Free Republic

LONDON (AP) — Documents leaked by former NSA contactor Edward Snowden suggest that spy agencies have a powerful ally in Angry Birds and a host of other apps installed on smartphones across the globe.

July 3, 2012 Romney Campaign Declaring Cease Fire on Health Care Posted by Staff In the aftermath of the Supreme Court health care ruling, the early conventional wisdom was that an unfavorable health care ruling at the court would be good for Republicans politically, even as it was a serious policy setback for conservatives. But that's not shaping up to be the case. Mitt Romney, after giving a brief statement decrying the decision, has been virtually silent on criticizing the health care law. He's been on vacation and his campaign has been giving off clear signals that it doesn't want...

WASHINGTON - President Bush said Friday that Congress must stay in session until it approves legislation modernizing a U.S. law governing eavesdropping on foreigners. “So far the Democrats in Congress have not drafted a bill I can sign,” Bush said at FBI headquarters, where he was meeting with counterterror and homeland security officials. “We’ve worked hard and in good faith with the Democrats to find a solution, but we are not going to put our national security at risk. Time is short.” The president, who has the power under the Constitution to keep Congress in session, said lawmakers cannot leave...

An outbreak of E. coli in eight U.S. states has killed one person and sickened dozens of others, prompting federal health officials to warn consumers nationwide not to eat bagged fresh spinach. Food and Drug Administration and state officials do not know the cause of the outbreak, although raw, packaged spinach appears likely. "We're advising people not to eat it," said Dr. David Acheson of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. Eight states were reporting a total of 50 cases of E. coli, Acheson said Thursday. The death occurred in Wisconsin, where 20 people were reported ill,...

Police have "neutralized" one suspect in a confusing, chaotic shooting scene at a college in downtown Montreal that has left three people in critical condition. CTV's Jed Kahane, reporting from Montreal, said police received a call about the shooting at just before 1 p.m. ET. Dawson College is located at the corner of Atwater and Sherbrooke in the heart of downtown Montreal. Students told Kahane they saw someone coming down the hall with a gun. "They ran back into their classroom and closed the door. The person was apparently chasing someone, and they heard, in her words, at least 20...

Connecticut // U.S. Senate - - Dem Primary 608 of 748 Precincts Reporting - 81.28% Lamont, Ned 116,387 51.71% **Winner Lieberman, Joe (i) 108,683 48.29% Georgia, U.S. House Democratic District 4 Precincts Reporting: 58 of 167 (35%) Hank Johnson 12098 60% Cynthia McKinney (I) 8002 40% By ROBERT TANNER With more than half the precincts counted Tuesday, Sen. Joe Lieberman struggled in his bid for a fourth term, battling to overcome a primary challenger and escape payback from his own party for supporting the Iraq war. Six years after Democrats backed him for vice president, Lieberman lagged with 48 percent,...

t all started with just one contested image, brought to light by bloggers: In the original picture, thin smoke can be seen rising over Beirut after a recent Israeli air strike; in the published photograph, thick, black smoke billows. "The photographer has denied deliberately attempting to manipulate the image, saying that he was trying to remove dust marks and that he made mistakes due to the bad lighting conditions he was working under," said Moira Whittle, the head of public relations for Reuters, on Sunday.

Lincoln, NE - A federal appeals court has reversed a ruling that stuck down Nebraska's same-sex marriage ban. U.S. District Judge Joseph Bataillon ruled last year that the measure was too broad and deprived homosexuals of participation in the political process. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals today reversed that ruling. Nebraska voters approved the amendment by 70% in 2000. The Court said the amendment "and other laws limiting the state-recognized institution of marriage to heterosexual couples are rationally related to legitimate state interests and therefore do not violate the Constitution of the United States." Liberty Counsel filed a brief...

A federal appeals court has reversed a ruling that struck down Nebraska's same-sex marriage ban. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday overturned an earlier ruling by U.S. District Judge Joseph Bataillon, who ruled last year that the measure was too broad and deprived gays and lesbians of participation in the political process, among other things. Seventy percent of Nebraska voters approved the amendment in 2000. The court said the amendment "and other laws limiting the state-recognized institution of marriage to heterosexual couples are rationally related to legitimate state interests and therefore do not violate the Constitution of...

Mumbai relived a nightmare when seven explosions shook the city within minutes on Tuesday evening. Reports said more than 100 people had died and many were injured. The target was Mumbai's life-line -- its local train services -- timed to catch the evening rush. The first blast occurred in a first-class compartment of a local train near Khar station at 6.24 p.m and six more had occurred within the next 11 minutes all on trains or at or near railway stations. The other blasts occurred at Mira Road, Matunga, Santa Cruz, Jogeshwari, Borivili and Bhayendar railway stations. All explosions were...

MOSCOW - Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev, the purported author of modern Russia's worst terrorist attacks, was killed Monday, the head of the Federal Security Service said. FSB head Nikolai Patrushev told President Vladimir Putin that Basayev had been killed overnight in Ingushetia — a republic bordering Chechnya that was plagued by sporadic spillover violence from the separatist region. Patrushev's meeting with Putin was shown on Russian state television. Basayev, 41, claimed responsibility for some of Russia's worst terror attacks, including the seizure of some 800 hostages in a Moscow theater in 2002, the 2004 school hostage taking in Beslan that...

The US Supreme Court has ruled that the Bush administration does not have the authority to try terrorism suspects by military tribunal. In a landmark decision, the court upheld the challenge of Osama Bin Laden's ex-driver against his trial at the US facility at Guantanamo. Salim Ahmed Hamdan is demanding a civilian trial or court martial, where the prosecution faces more obstacles. He is one of 10 Guantanamo inmates facing a military tribunal there.

Militants take credit for kidnapping US soldiers Cairo, Egypt - An umbrella militant group in Iraq says it kidnapped two US soldiers south of Baghdad. A statement posted on an Islamic Web site says "your brothers in the military wing"

The New York Times reported that Iraqi residents in the area said they saw two soldiers taken prisoner by a group of masked guerrillas. It said the two surviving soldiers were led to two cars and driven away.

Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of drugs as a part of an extensive agreement the lawmaker reached with the District of Columbia Office of the Attorney General. “I’ve always said that I wanted to take full responsibility for my actions. Today in court I did just that,” Kennedy said in a brief meeting with reporters after appearing before D.C. Superior Court Magistrate Judge Aida Melendez. “I accepted the consequences of my actions. I’ve cooperated fully with the Capitol Police and with the attorney general’s office. “I think they’ve done a fantastic job. … I...

CAIRO, Egypt - Al-Qaida in Iraq said in a Web statement posted Monday that a militant named Abu Hamza al-Muhajer was the group's new leader. Al-Muhajer succeeds Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was killed Wednesday by a U.S. airstrike on his hideout northeast of Baghdad, Iraq. The successor's name — a pseudonym, as most militants are known by — was not immediately known and did not appear to be on any U.S. lists of terrorists with rewards on their heads. The name al-Muhajer, Arabic for "immigrant," suggested he was not Iraqi. Al-Muhajer is a common alias among Islamic militants, referring to...

CAPITOL HILL A conservative nominee for the U-S Court of Appeals in Washington, D-C, has been confirmed by the Senate. White House aide Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed today by a vote of 57 to 36. He was praised by Republicans but widely opposed by Democrats. President Bush said Kavanaugh will be "a brilliant, thoughtful and fair-minded judge." A filibuster threat softened after Democrats were granted a request for a hearing at which Kavanaugh testified. The nominee told Democrats he played no role in the White House formulation of policies on detainees and domestic wiretapping. Kavanaugh was an assistant to independent...

Social Security Numbers for Millions of Veterans Stolen From V.A. Official's Home Monday, May 22, 2006 Student Soc. Security Numbers Mistakenly E-Mailed WASHINGTON — Personal data, including Social Security numbers of 26.5 million U.S. veterans, was stolen from a Veterans Affairs employee this month after he took the information home without authorization, the department said Monday. Click here to read the statement by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans Affairs Secretary Jim Nicholson said there was no evidence so far that the burglars who struck the employee's home have used the personal data — or even know they have it....

Affidavit: $90,000 found in congressman's freezer FBI wraps up search of Jefferson's office in bribery probe WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Federal agents searched the Capitol Hill office of a Louisiana congressman under investigation on bribery charges Sunday, while newly released court papers said agents found $90,000 in cash last year in his Washington home. the cash sum in a freezer. The money was divided among various frozen food containers, according to the heavily redacted affidavit. Agents told a judge the money was part of a $100,000 payment that had been delivered by an informant in the bribery probe, which already has...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- According to court documents, a congressman under investigation for bribery was caught on videotape accepting $100,000 in $100 bills from an FBI informant. The court document was released on Sunday. FBI agents allegedly later found the cash in the freezer of Louisiana Congressman William Jefferson. Jefferson, who represents New Orleans, has not been charged and denies any wrongdoing. The new details about the case emerged after federal agents searched Jefferson's congressional office on Capitol Hill Saturday night and Sunday. Jefferson's lawyer said he is accusing the government of conducting "a public relations agenda."