Free Republic

Authored by Jim Clifton, Gallup CEO & Chairman,The U.S. now ranks not first, not second, not third, but 12th among developed nations in terms of business startup activity. Countries such as Hungary, Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, Sweden, Israel and Italy all have higher startup rates than America does.We are behind in starting new firms per capita, and this is our single most serious economic problem. Yet it seems like a secret. You never see it mentioned in the media, nor hear from a politician that, for the first time in 35 years, American business deaths now outnumber business births.The...

On Jan. 4, New York Times' Frank Bruni kicked off the new presidential race with an analysis of a likely - some say inevitable - Bush / Clinton rematch (Jeb vs. Hillary). Predictably it covered little that those outside The Political Class likely even found compelled to read. What, after all, is there to say of such a matchup? If (another) Bush runs against (another) Clinton, and no one can tell them apart, will anyone notice? How many beyond the politically passionate — that is: those whose votes are ensured no matter who each party fields — will care who...

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is facing a second lawsuit from business groups upset about a controversial rule they contend will unfairly speed up union elections. The business groups are challenging what they refer to as the NLRB's "ambush election" rule. The Texas chapters of the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) and National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) filed the lawsuit late Tuesday in federal court seeking to overturn the rule. "We are proud to join the legal fight against the ambush rule, which is designed to deprive employers, particularly small businesses who typically do not employ legal counsel,...

The head of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce charged on Wednesday that Senator Elizabeth Warren and other backers of what he called "economic populism" were actually seeking a state-run economy. ... "Today we're hearing a lot of talk about so-called economic populism. Its advocates claim they are standing up for the average citizen - but what they really stand for is the unbridled growth of the central government and a state-run economy," ...

"Klansville U.S.A." which was broadcast nationally last night is a PBS American Experience production by WGBH in Boston based on a book of that title by David Cunningham. It is an interesting look at the rise and fall of the North Carolina Ku Klux Klan in the 1960s. A very good historical documentary marred by the jarring flaw of taking a cheap shot at Republicans. It was almost as if the producer and director, Callie T. Wiser, just couldn't restrain herself from taking a shot at Republicans. The documentary stuck to the facts until just a couple of minutes before...

The Boston Globe’s boston.com this morning was silent amid a furor of criticism over their article mocking death threats aimed at Republican House Speaker John Boehner. Boston.com spokeswoman Mary Zanor did not return an email or call for comment today. The story, written by Boston.com associate editor Victor Paul Alvarez and posted on the website’s “Top News” section last evening, was headlined “Would Anyone Have Noticed if Bartender Succeeded in Poisoning John Boehner?” “The question is: Would anyone have noticed? Stories about Boehner’s drinking have circulated for years. His drinking inspired a blog called DrunkBoehner, and in 2010 he brought...

<p>Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) gave her most definitive answer to date about her 2016 plans in an interview with Fortune published Tuesday.</p> <p>So are you going to run for President? No.</p> <p>In the past, Warren has denied that she's running for president, always speaking in the present tense.</p>

Boston, MA – She calls herself a “fly-in abortionista.” Based in Massachusetts, this traveling abortionist has spent stints working at the last abortion clinic in Jackson, Mississippi, and for Planned Parenthood in various Midwestern states, wearing a mask in the likeness of one of the Three Stooges to conceal her identity. Currently, Nicola Moore is one of several abortionists who fly in to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to abort babies at the Planned Parenthood facility there. Kept open only by out-of-state abortionists, the Sioux Falls Planned Parenthood is the sole abortion facility in that state. But now, in addition to...

President Obama said Tuesday he would veto any bill that tries to start construction on the Keystone XL pipeline before a federal review is finished — a process in its seventh year. You can argue whether Obama is being sincere in his desire to follow procedure, or just trying to run out the clock so he doesn't have to make a decision, but by any measure, six-plus years is a long time. Jason Russell tries to put this in perspective at the Washington Examiner by calculating what other things someone could do while Obama's reviews held up the pipeline. Among...

Ideological splits among Republicans have been part of the fun of the American political fair for more than 50 years now, but what of potential divisions on the Left? When Barack Obama departs the White House in 2016, the question already being asked is whether Democrats will now suffer the same kind of upheaval that the Tea Party inflicted on Republicans after George W. Bush left office in 2008. Last week in Washington DC it was possible to hear the opening shots of what some left-wing Democrats hope will become a similarly fierce fight for the ideological soul of their...

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush appears poised for a presidential run and is currently leading the polls among potential Republican candidates for 2016, but the comments he made in 1994 during his first run for Florida’s highest office may come back to haunt him.The Associated Press reports that Bush described himself then as a “head-banging conservative” and used fiery rhetoric — such as claiming he would do “probably nothing” for African-Americans if he became governor — in his ultimately unsuccessful bid. Bush made that statement in response to a question on what he would for African-Americans if elected to office.“It’s time...

Is the economy rigged against the middle class? The Democratic left's dream candidate -- Sen. Elizabeth Warren -- thinks so. "I see evidence everywhere of the pounding working people are taking," Warren said on Wednesday at an AFL-CIO summit on raising wages. "These families are working harder than ever, but they can't get ahead. Many feel that the game is rigged against them, and they are right. The game is rigged against them." Her argument, of course, is that the government must intervene to level the playing field. But Warren must not be looking very hard if she can't see...

Senator Elizabeth Warren fights for middle- and working-class Americans. But she's part of the Top 1%. Warren, the Harvard bankruptcy law professor elected to the Senate in 2012, is worth between $3.7 million and $10 million.

DENVER -- The U.S. Olympic Committee chose Boston to bid for the 2024 Games in an attempt to bring the Summer Olympics to America after a 28-year gap. During a daylong meeting at the Denver airport, USOC board members chose Boston over Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington, all of which have been lobbying to become the American choice for more than a year.

I have been putting off writing this op-ed piece for the past several months hoping in vain that our President and Attorney Eric Holder would become real leaders and not continue down the racist road they have been traveling. However the most recent police murders in New York City have prompted me to break my silence. I did not vote for President Obama when he first ran nor did I vote for him in 2012. When he was first elected I hoped that as a person of color he would move race relations forward and become a good, if not...

Memo to incoming Gov. Charlie Baker: Don't touch the drapes. Outgoing Gov. Deval Patrick spent $27,000 on those damask drapes in the governor's office, along with some fine furniture, when he first became governor, and he took a lot of heat over it. So leave the drapes alone. First impressions are very important. Do not repeat his initial mistakes. Also, be careful where you sit. The entire governor's suite on the third floor of the Statehouse has recently been refurbished to its historic 1798 Charles Bulfinch setting at a cost of $11.3 million.

No, apparently this is not a spoof, the scion of the man who was responsible for the Cuban blockade is full of awe for the Cuban dictatorship. Sure, it’s a dictatorship, but other than that, it’s just ducky, apparently. Writing in the South American news agency MercoPress, Robert F. Kennedy avers, after admitting the dictatorship and lack of a free press: Despite its poverty, Cuba has managed some impressive accomplishments. Cuba’s government boasts the highest literacy rates for its population of any nation in the hemisphere. Cuba claims its citizens enjoy universal access to health care and more doctors per...

From the first day of 2011, Mitt Romney was the favorite to win the 2012 Republican presidential primary campaign. No one else was even close. The 2016 outlook could not be more different. Offered the choice to bet on one single candidate to win the nomination versus the rest of the field, the choice would have to be "the field." For the first time in years, there is no one next in line. And without a former vice president or powerhouse former candidate looking likely to run, Republicans are shaping up to spend the next year and a half fighting...

Hundreds of people showed up at a pro-police rally on the Cape this weekend. Organizers said there was so much interest, they had to move the rally to a larger venue. "I've never seen anything go viral on Facebook like this has gone viral on Facebook," organizer Patrick Foran said. About 500 people came out to the Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School football field to show their support for the men and women in blue. Foran says he helped put the event together because he has friends who are police officers. "We're just looking to say thank you to all the...

The repeal of ObamaCare is the priority of the Republican party, Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) said on Sunday. “There will be a vote on repeal. The president, in the White House, will veto that,” he said of the symbolic gesture offered by GOP lawmakers still unsatisfied with the healthcare legislation. However, Barrasso told NBC’s Chuck Todd on “Meet the Press” that there would also be other bills that strike at other parts of the Affordable Care Act – some of which have gained bipartisan support – including a repeal of the medical device tax and the employer mandate. There is...