Free Republic

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md) will testify tomorrow afternoon in an unprecedented hearing before the Select Committee investigating how the Democrats violated House rules to produce a fraudulent result on August 2, 2007. According to a “notice of hearing” obtained by HUMAN EVENTS, and as explained to us by House sources, Hoyer – along with Cong. Michael McNulty (D-NY) – will be the first members to testify in such a hearing in the history of the Congress. Members often testify in behalf of bills they introduce or in behalf of presidential nominees they favor (or against those they oppose)....

The Metropolitan Police Department has joined other major U.S. cities in arming patrol officers with assault rifles to protect them against criminals with high-powered weapons, weeks after being released from a federal program that monitors the use of excessive force. "We want to be as accurate as possible and have more stopping power," Assistant Chief Patrick Burke said yesterday. The department already has 500 semiautomatic AR-15 rifles, which were converted from fully automatic rifles, and has trained 340 officers to use them.

May Day, the communists' day of celebration is a day that the moonbats look forward to every year. This year they were especially thrilled with a flashback to their early days. Fraxinus (BELOW) wore a different style t-shirt this Saturday but from across the intersection, it was a flashbcak to the psychedelic, intoxicating, 60s. Bringing this thread back to reality, we had another great visitor to our FReep. Frank is a marshall from the Gathering of Eagles events. While not loggin to GoE, he was at the WWII Memorial during that bitter cold, windy March 17, 2007 day. And he...

For a number of years now, the DC Police Department has been afraid to do the job that we the citizens hired them to do. Fear of lawsuits brought by various radical, leftist, socialist and anarchist groups has for years rendered the DC Police Department impotent in carrying out their duties; but that may have changed this week. On Monday, May 5, 2008, officers of the Montgomery County (MD) Police, DC Police and US Park Police coordinated a search of the home of well-known DC radical (and bicycle messenger/delivery boy), Luke Kuhn (aka "Wook"). While officers were executing the search...

Saying "I divorce thee" three times, as men in Muslim countries have been able to do for centuries when leaving their wives, is not enough if you're a resident of Maryland, the state's highest court ruled yesterday. Yesterday, the Court of Appeals rejected a Pakistani man's argument that his invocation of the Islamic talaq, under which a marriage is dissolved simply by the husband's say-so, allowed him to part with his wife of more than 20 years and deny her a share of his $2 million estate. The justices affirmed a lower court's decision overturning a divorce decree obtained in...

ANNAPOLIS (AP) — Gov. Martin O'Malley said yesterday that if a referendum on slot-machine gambling fails in November, "it'll be back to the drawing board with a lot of unpopular choices, and I don't think any of us wants to go there." Mr. O'Malley said during an interview on WCBC-AM in Cumberland, Md., that the money Maryland would eventually get from slot machines would constitute about 25 percent of what's needed to balance the state's budget in coming years. The rest of the money to handle Maryland's projected deficit comes from about $1.4 billion in tax increases approved last November...

ANNAPOLIS (AP) — Gov. Martin O'Malley said yesterday he likely will delay the start of a law that allows only low-phosphorus dishwashing detergent in Maryland — a measure intended to reduce Chesapeake Bay pollution and the first such statewide ban in the country. The General Assembly approved the bill a year ago, requiring companies that make the detergent to use low amounts of phosphorous by the end of 2009. But detergent maker Procter & Gamble Co. said it took effect too soon to make production changes and pushed to delay implementation until July 2010, a change approved by lawmakers in...

The changes have also brought thousands of Hispanics, some legal immigrants and others not, who have migrated up Interstate 270 to meet the demand for construction and service jobs. Until now, the county has handled the influx with outreach classes in schools and community policing programs. Chic Hispanic restaurants flourish in downtown Frederick, and working-class Latinos have remained relatively invisible. Suddenly, however, their presence is igniting a controversy that some fear could escalate into the kind of war over illegal immigration that has torn apart Prince William County. In the past month, the Frederick County sheriff has joined with federal...

ELLICOTT CITY, Md. — The Howard County State's Attorney's Office says a driver who struck and killed a county police officer last year has paid her traffic fines. Prosecutors say Stephanie Grissom of Columbia paid $310 in fines for speeding and negligent driving. She also received three points on her driving record.

Saying "I divorce thee" three times, as men in Muslim countries have been able to do for centuries when leaving their wives, is not enough if you're a resident of Maryland, the state's highest court ruled yesterday. Yesterday, the Court of Appeals rejected a Pakistani man's argument that his invocation of the Islamic talaq, under which a marriage is dissolved simply by the husband's say-so, allowed him to part with his wife of more than 20 years and deny her a share of his $2 million estate. The justices affirmed a lower court's decision overturning a divorce decree obtained in...

BALTIMORE - Two members of the Westboro Baptist Church have failed to post bonds needed to delay the collection of a $5 million jury award while their case is being appealed. As of 5 p.m. Monday, the deadline imposed by a federal judge, Shirley Phelps-Roper and Rebekah Phelps-Davis had not posted their bonds of $125,000 and $100,000. The women had argued in April for lesser bond amounts. The jury award followed a finding in November that the Kansas church intentionally inflicted emotional distress upon Albert Snyder, of York, Pa., by protesting the Maryland funeral for Snyder's son. Marine Lance Cpl....

Explorer89, a very good friend of MrConfettiMan sent me this information to share. Click on the link above to get the pdf of an internal Goddard newsletter that describes the inscription on a reaction wheel that is going to the moon. Joe (FR's MrConfettiMan) wrote the software for the reaction wheel. Joe's article is on page 9. Since the pdf is a bit grainy, the inscription on the wheel is reproduced below: "The life of Joe Vitale ended far too early, but his work will carry on as the United States Space Program returns to the moon. The software Joe...

A federal judge has sentenced a former NASA accountant to one year in prison after she pleaded guilty to embezzling nearly $150,000 after six years on the run. Prosecutors say 39-year-old Tracey Carpenter of Suitland was indicted in 2001 and was a fugitive until her arrest in November. According to her plea, as an accountant at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Carpenter had access to NASA's accounting database to process payments to vendors. In 1997 and 1998, she took at least 10 payments totaling $148,321, altering invoices to make it look like vendors were being paid and doctoring...

TAMPA, Fla. -- Deborah Jean Palfrey, the woman known as the "D.C. Madam," apologized to her mother and sister in suicide notes, saying she couldn't bear going to prison and saw killing herself as the only "exit strategy." Palfrey, convicted last month of running an elite Washington prostitution ring, wrote to her mother that she could not "live the next 6-8 years behind bars for what you and I have come to regard as this 'modern day lynching,' only to come out of prison in my late '50s a broken, penniless and very much alone woman." The notes were released...

In the community of Shady Grove Woods, trees are becoming more and more scarce. Residents and other anti-Intercounty Connector activists marched through the neighborhood on Saturday, pointing out the trees that were cut down to make way for the six-lane highway. ‘‘It’s just that we didn’t have a say in it in so many ways and we’re not talking about a two-lane road, we’re talking about a major highway running through here,” resident Sam Chim said of the ICC. ‘‘We have a lot of nice, private woods back here and now we’re going to have a highway running through instead....

BALTIMORE (AP) As Maryland's white population shrinks, the number of minorities, and particularly Latinos, continues to increase, according to U.S. Census Bureau Figures released Thursday. The figures indicate non-Hispanic whites in Maryland decreased by 21,428 between 2006 and 2007, while the Latino population of all races increased by 17,779. Latinos now make up slightly more than 6 percent of the state's 5.6 million people, whose overall numbers inched up marginally in last year. Whites represent 63.6 percent of Maryland's population, African-Americans 29.5 percent and Asians 5 percent. ''Maryland has been changing for a while, and these numbers reflect that continuing...

Maryland Democratic Party Vice Chairman Lauren Glover is fielding calls from Sen. Barack Obama. Jim Leaman, executive director of the Virginia AFL-CIO, is being inundated with personal letters and e-mails from supporters of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. And D.C. Council member Harry Thomas Jr. just wants be left alone. Pressure is mounting on the 67 Democratic superdelegates from the District, Maryland and Virginia to choose between Obama and Clinton in the most heated presidential nomination fight in a generation. With neither Clinton nor Obama likely to win enough pledged delegates to secure the nomination, the 793 superdelegates nationwide will have...

This week, Families United was invited from across the country to join the Iraq Ambassador at Arlington National Cemetery for a special salute to the soldiers they lost in the liberation of Iraq. They were honored with a dinner and a memorial plaque. While they were in DC, these very special people decided to join us out on the corners of the main entrance of Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC) to support the soldiers who willingly sacrifice themselves for their country. You may not know about Families United, but it is an organization comprised of the families of members...

The Washington Post Co. on Friday reported a 39 percent drop in first quarter profit, hurt by an early retirement program charge at Newsweek and a continued loss of revenue from its newspapers. The Washington-based corporation said earnings fell to $38.8 million, or $4.08 per share, compared with $63.9 million, or $6.70 per share, a year earlier. The company said revenue climbed 8 percent to $1.06 billion from $985.6 million. Quarterly results included a $15.3 million, or $1.60 per share, expense related to Newsweek's early retirement program. Even excluding the costs of the retirement program, earnings fell well below the...

<p>TARPON SPRINGS - Police were called to the home of DC Madam Deborah Jeane Palfrey's mother on Thursday to investigate her apparent suicide.</p> <p>Police have confirmed that the dead person is Palfrey who was 52.</p> <p>Palfrey was dubbed "The DC Madam" by the national media after her arrest for allegedly running an upscale call girl ring in the nation's capitol.</p>

Legs (Trooprally) was the 1st at our Westminster Rally. Check out Post #3 by WVNan and then my Post #5. Our comments grew on Legs as shown in Post #6. Legs just craved the attention for himself before my hubby- Anomoly99, My Hero and I joined him! Jimmy Valentine's brother continues the fun and encourages the ego of Legs Trooprally! LOL Honestly, I don't know if it was the USA and USMC Flags that Mr. T was flying proudly or newly nicknamed "Legs" getting the positive responses! All joking aside, we know that people appreciate us being out in Westminster...

Five defendants were driving from Howard Circuit Court when deputies arrested them on charges of driving with suspended licenses because of delinquent child support payments, said the Howard’s Sheriff’s Office. “I think they were shocked,” said Lt. Charles Gable, sheriff’s office spokesman, referring to the arrests that occurred Friday and Monday. “We got all kinds of reactions; the first person we pulled over was like, ‘Wow.’ ” The defendants are John Porterfield, 43, of Columbia; Denee Powell, 43, of Silver Spring; Riko Johnson, 26, of Annapolis; Craig Myers, 44, of Highland; and Renard Whitehead, 41, of Bowie. The maximum sentence...

Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (Md.), the House Democrats’ point man in negotiations on an overhaul of intelligence surveillance law, is keeping his eye on conservative Blue Dog Democrats who might defect on the issue under Republican pressure. The topic has reached a critical point because surveillance orders granted by the director of national intelligence and the attorney general under the authority of the Protect America Act begin to expire in August. If Congress does not approve an overhaul of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) by Memorial Day, intelligence community officials will have to prepare dozens of individual surveillance warrants,...

An Appreciative Local must have thought we were hungry as he drove past us because he bought us (BELOW - that is Eager helping Lurker Bill on our left flank) a bag of McD's double cheeseburgers and a bag of 20 oz. sodas. This meant he had to stop at two places since McD's does not sell bottled soda. Most of us chowed down immediately. This Saturday we had also bought some Dunkin Donuts with the gift certificates (4 - $10 certificates) that another appreciative local gave us several months ago. It had been too cold to buy donuts previously...

Federal transportation officials today told Congress and Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) that they have approved the proposed 23-mile extension of Metrorail to Dulles International Airport, reversing their announcement in January that the project was unfit for federal funding. In a letter to Kaine and in a 10 a.m. conference call with the governor and Virginia congressional leaders, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said the $5 billion project had finally met the Federal Transit Administration's standards for cost efficiency, construction and expected ridership. The project will now move into the final design phase, a major step toward receiving $900...

LA PLATA, Md., April 29, 2008 – At least 60 airmen, soldiers and civilians with the Air and Army National Guard brought Christmas early to a disabled Maryland resident here April 26 by repairing her home on "National Rebuilding Day." Members of the National Guard Bureau, the Air Guard Readiness Center and the District of Columbia National Guard were among the volunteers who repaired the home of Michelle Samuel for what they called a "Christmas in April" event. Known nationally as Rebuilding Day, the annual event's community projects are planned and organized for the last Saturday in April. Orchestrated...

PIKESVILLE, Md. (WJZ) ― Officers Vickie Warehime and J. Posluszny Jr. have solved a lot of mysteries, but this one is over their heads--literally. In fact, it may be about 30 to 40 feet in the air. For months, the Baltimore County Community Outreach officers have been investigating a bizarre phenomenon disturbing neighbors in an area of Pikesville near Beth Tfiloh Community School. Now, they say they may be closer to an answer. Derek Valcourt reports 911 callers complain about a deafening explosion and a bright flash of light in the middle of night. "The bedroom actually lights up like...

<p>At 3:00 Wednesday, April 30, Second Amendment Sisters is sponsoring a photo shoot with two news organizations at a shooting range near the DC area. Junior shooters are welcome with a parent or guardian over 21.</p> <p>You are welcome to bring your own pistol, revolver, or air pistol or borrow one at the event. Due to the way the range is set up, weather will not be a factor.</p>

On May 3rd & 4th, 2008 World T.E.A.M. Sports (The Exceptional Athlete Matters), working with the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, The National Navy Medical Center, The Soldiers Angel Foundation, The Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund, and others will be hosting our 2008 Face of America Bike Ride, a two-day inclusive bike ride from Bethesda, MD to historic Gettysburg, PA to honor and assist servicemen and women who have been severely injured in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and any and all other servicemen and women as well. If you are interested in participating in the ride itself or...

Convicted sniper John Allen Muhammad was regularly whipped with hose pipes and electrical cords and beaten with hammers and sticks by family members during a brutal childhood, according to lawyers trying to save Muhammad from the death penalty. The lawyers argued in a federal court petition filed this week that the jurors who sent Muhammad to death row for the 2002 sniper spree were improperly barred from hearing most of the evidence of the harsh life Muhammad faced as a child. Muhammad and his teenage accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo , were convicted in 2003 of a random killing spree that...

Chris Plante, morning radio talk show host for 630 WMAL, Washington, D.C. (the home of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Mark Levin) will be on the "CNN Newsroom" show tonight at 10:00 p.m. with Rick Sanchez to discuss OPERATION CHAOS. This announcement just came out of Chris' own mouth during his Sunday show a few minutes ago. Stay Tuned! SEND TO ALL LIMBAUGH PING LISTS, AS WELL AS HANNITY'S AND LEVIN'S....

Lawyers Argue Muhammad Had Mitigating Factors Jurors might not have sentenced convicted sniper John Allen Muhammad to death if they had known that he was abused as a child, that he has brain damage and that there were conflicting witness accounts to some of the shootings, Muhammad's appeals lawyers argued in court papers this week.

Chris will be on Sundays from 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. by himself, and from 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. alongside WMAL’s “Pet Liberal”, Jerry Klein. Chris will be on from 9:00 - 11:45 a.m. Monday through Friday. THIS DISCUSSION FORUM WILL BE “CHRIS PLANTE CENTRAL” FOR AN ENTIRE MONTH, STARTING APRIL 27TH THROUGH MAY 31ST. Tune in through streaming audio (or radio in the D.C. region) for the most fun-filled, fastest-growing and sensational radio talk show, “The Chris Plante Show”, transmitting LIVE from Washington, D.C.’s 630AM - WMAL (see links below). If you want a serious conversation mixed with sense of...

The D.C. Chapter of FreeRepublic.com invites all Freepers and lurkers in good standing to join us on Monday, April 28, 2008 as we freep Barack Obama's Minister of Hate, Dr. Jeremiah Wright, at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.When: 8 a.m. (that's right, 8 in the morning), Monday, April 28.Where: The sidewalk in front of the National Press Club, 529 14th St., NW, Washington, D.C.We'll be out there for a few hours, so plan accordingly.As always, the D.C. Chapter's rules for protesting will be in effect. Briefly, they are: No violence, no profanity, no racism, no provocations, obey the...

New homes built in Montgomery County would have to meet federal energy efficiency standards under innovative legislation approved yesterday by the County Council over the objections of builders who said that the mandate would drive up costs for consumers. The measure, meant to reduce energy consumption by 15 to 30 percent, is part of a far-reaching environmental initiative. It includes property tax credits for residents who switch to renewable energy, a requirement that residents disclose utility costs when they sell a home and a plan to get county officials to trade in their government-issued sport-utility vehicles. "We are attacking literally...

ELDER STREET AND GEORGIA AVENUE, WASHINGTON, DC - 18 April 2008 The DC Chapter stalwarts and FRiends refusing to cling to guns or religion or antipathy toward people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment manned their post Friday night at the main gate outside Walter Reed Army Medical Center Week 157 Honor Roll: Fraxinus, Lurker Bill aka “Sweet William”, VAFlagwaver, Ron G. Kirby, USNRetired, Kburi, PleaDeal, BufordP, Tom the Redhunter; Cindy_True_Supporter, Trooprally (Mr. & Mrs.) and from the Mason Nation – Laura R. BufordP wants to know, “Are you talking to me?” PleaDeal on patrol, camera...

PatrioticMarineMom and I had a warm, windy day consisting of spring flurries. Flurries of supporters and white petals from the flowering pear trees that line Main Street! PatrioticMarineMom was holding her USMC Flag and her favorite Marine son sign. I had my USA Flag and one of my favorite signs: God Bless The Military and Their Families. We received a decent amount of beeps, waves and thumbs up. We also received a few salutes, SEMPER FI and OOORAH shouts. Those are always good gestures to see and hear. One man thanked us for being there. We told him that we...

Well, maybe if it was raining like it usually does and is forecast for this coming Saturday. But we did have plenty of t-shirts. BELOW LEFT: Cindy_True_Supporter. BELOW RIGHT: Lurker Bill's daughter BELOW LEFT: Fraxinus's T-shirt BELOW RIGHT: My T-shirt says "Kill Them All, Let the Devil sort It Out" in case you couldn't read it as it wraps around my winter surge. The roll call of our 9 Patriots included Legionnaires Glenn (USMC - WWII), Newbie Ed (Army - WWII), Halsey (USMC - Korea), Lurker Bill and daughter, Cindy_True_Supporter, Fraxinus, [Mrs] Trooprally and myself, [Mr] T. All Pics by...

·11250 Waples Mill Road ·   Fairfax, Virginia 22030    ·800-392-8683   Maryland State Police Seeking to Retool Ballistic Imaging Program!   Monday, April 21, 2008   Please Make Your Voice Heard Today! The Maryland State Police have quietly drafted new regulations on the state’s ballistic imaging program, the Maryland Integrated Ballistics Identification System (MD-IBIS).   Current regulations require that “The pertinent data base be searchable for comparison purposes to shell casings from crime scenes for the purpose of identifying the source of these casings.” If the new regulations are adopted the language concerning crime scenes will be removed and require that “The pertinent data...

Mother Nature pulls plug on Earth Day concert in WashingtonPosted : Mon, 21 Apr 2008 01:12:01 GMT Author : DPA Category : Environment Washington - Environmental activists tried to rally Sunday in Washington to encourage action on climate change, but they couldn't get the weather to cooperate. Green Apple Festival, a group seeking to raise environmental awareness through live music events, was the organizer of concerts across the country ahead of the annual Earth Day observance, which is Tuesday. Concerts with diverse performances were held in New York, Miami, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, San Francisco and Los Angeles. An eighth show...

YES, we have the moonbats on the run once again! Around 2:15pm, a moonbat whom we nicknamed “Howard” as in Stern, walked to his position to see nobody there! He walked across the street to talk to us. He approached me first as I was the closest. He asked me how I thought the war was going. I told him I thought it was going fairly well. He then wanted to see if he understood us. He asked if we were for peace but just in a different way. I told him that was right, that we believe in peace...

In broadening the legal definition of rape, Maryland's highest court has rightly expanded women's rights, recognizing the importance of their being able to assert control at times of particular vulnerability. The seven judges may have relied on different legal reasoning, but they were unanimous in concluding that a woman can change her mind and withdraw consent during sexual intercourse - and that a man has to honor her decision. Making that more clear in the law is a welcome advance that should help juries as they weigh the facts in individual cases. Rape generally involves physical or psychological power and...

WASHINGTON - Pope Benedict XVI praised America as a land of opportunity and hope Thursday as he celebrated the first public Mass of his U.S. pilgrimage, but he lamented that the nation's promise fell short for Indians and blacks. But, he said, hope for the future "is very much a part of the American character." Tens of thousands of worshippers filled Washington Nationals stadium on a clear spring day and cheered Benedict as he arrived in a white popemobile, standing in the back and waving. A crowd of 46,000 was expected, and the demand for tickets doubled the supply, organizers...

FELLOW FREEPER CHOSEN TO SING FOR THE PONTIFF!!! For full coverage, live feed and all related text documents, click on the following link.

ANNAPOLIS (AP) — A woman can say "no" at any time during intercourse, and a man can be convicted of rape if he doesn"t stop, Maryland's highest court ruled yesterday.In the case of a man convicted of rape in 2004, the Court of Appeals decided that a woman can withdraw consent at any time, even after agreeing to sex. The court ordered a new trial for Maouloud Baby, who was convicted of raping a woman in a car in 2003 when he was 15. His first trial ended in a mistrial. According to testimony, the 18-year-old woman had just had...

Several weeks ago we had the local Mongomery County Sentinel newspaper interviewed the two opposing groups. Because the Sentinel requires a PAID subscription to view and link to its articles, I have received permission from JimRob to not link to the article so long as I don't put large portions of the article in this AAR. If you are interested in reading the full article, and paying for the privilege, the article is titled "War in Iraq protested and celebrated in Olney" by Bailey Quinonez and is in the March 27 - April 2, 2008 edition. My rebuttal Letter to...

Spiro Agnew's political career rose like a phoenix from the ashes. In six short years he went from being elected Baltimore County Executive to being elected Vice-President of the United States. He would be a bulldog for President Richard Nixon, playing a role that many future GOP Vice-Presidents like Dan Quayle and Dick Cheney would, making tough speeches to keep conservatives in line with the more moderate president who would "stay above it all." Agnew's attacks on the mainstream media ("the nattering nabobs of negativity") would make him as hated at the president himself in MSM circles. Agnew's election as...

BALTIMORE — Scientists using federal grants spread fertilizer made from human and industrial wastes on yards in poor, black neighborhoods to test whether it might protect children from lead poisoning in the soil. Families were assured the sludge was safe and were never told about any harmful ingredients. Nine low-income families in Baltimore row houses agreed to let researchers till the sewage sludge into their yards and plant new grass. In exchange, they were given food coupons as well as the free lawns as part of a study published in 2005 and funded by the Housing and Urban Development Department.

Police charged five Montgomery County teens and one adult yesterday with being linked to what authorities said was a scheme to steal guns from a student's home and sell them to classmates, a sale broken up when a 14-year-old potential customer accidentally fired a bullet into the wall of a restroom stall. The gunshot, at lunchtime Wednesday, jolted the Albert Einstein High School community in Kensington, a campus with some of the premiere academic offerings in southern Montgomery County and one of the most diverse student populations in Maryland. It also revealed divisions within the student and parent community on...

Six days after she was sucker punched and beaten in her own Baltimore classroom, high school art teacher Jolita Berry still finds it almost impossible to watch the MySpace video of the attack. And she can’t make herself go back to work.... The attack happened last Friday morning in Berry’s classroom in Reginald F. Lewis High School in Baltimore. One of the girls in the class approached the 30-year-old teacher and got nose-to-nose with her and threatened her. ...The video, recorded on a cell phone by another student, picks up with Berry on the floor trying to defend herself while...