Free Republic

He is not, not, not. I’ve made that case at length elsewhere but let me add a few points.1. Contra Coulter, Trump’s probably the only major player in the standoff who isn’t dead, dead, dead if he’s the first to extend an olive branch. McConnell is facing reelection in a red state next year and is always viewed suspiciously by the base notwithstanding his work on judicial confirmations. If he buckles and destroys Trump’s leverage he may face a populist revolt in Kentucky. Schumer is viewed similarly suspiciously by the left, a weak leader who won’t fight fight fight...

Veteran broadcaster Bob Costas is stepping down from his longtime role with NBC Sports. Costas told the New York Post of the decision Tuesday, which the network confirmed with the paper. “It’s all settled quietly and happily for all concerned,” Costas told The Post. Costas also told The Post he will continue to do work for MLB Network and is considering pursuing a long-form interview show.

'Climate change could destroy the whole world and kill everyone on it,' he said. 'It's frustrating that a lot of people don't understand that.'

On Sunday's MSNBC Live with Alex Witt, after panelist Jennifer Grossman invoked Martin Luther King's historic "content of their character" statement, TV One journalist Roland Martin, in a demanding tone, requested a "favor": "Please don’t quote Dr. King." Apparently in Martin's world, only a black person like him can quote King, while a white person like Grossman can't. To her credit, Grossman pushed back hard: "I will quote Dr. Martin Luther king every single day and you won’t stop me."

On Friday's News One Now on TV One, substitute host Michelle Bernard presided over a panel in which one guest asserted that the push to repeal ObamaCare by Donald Trump supporters is fueled by a desire for "eugenics" against minorities to bolster "white supremacy." She further claimed that there was a desire to "eliminate" and "annihilate" minorities. Neither host Bernard nor even the token Republican on the panel voiced any disagreement with her incendiary claims.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and her Republican critics have both called her proposal to dramatically increase America's highest tax rate "radical" but a new poll released Tuesday indicates that a majority of Americans agrees with the idea. In the latest The Hill-HarrisX survey — conducted Jan. 12 and 13 after the newly elected congresswoman called for the U.S. to raise its highest tax rate to 70 percent — a sizable majority of registered voters, 59 percent, supports the concept. Ocasio-Cortez has not introduced any legislation to enact the concept but the survey shows a broad cross-section of Americans supports it,...

Taking charge of Group of 77, which encompasses 134 developing countries, Abbas slams Israel’s ‘occupation of the state of Palestine,’ condemns ‘terrorism in all its forms’ Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas assumed the chairmanship of the largest bloc of countries at the United Nations on behalf of “the State of Palestine” on Tuesday in New York City. The Palestinians are slated to serve as the leader of the bloc, known as the Group of 77, for the next year. In a speech at the UN headquarters, Abbas called the task of leading the Group of 77 “a great responsibility.” "I...

CNN’s Erin Burnett and Joan Walsh have slammed President Donald Trump for joking about buying the Clemson University football team burgers rather than having First Lady Melania Trump make “little quick salads.” “It seems to me like the president will not be happy until there is not one single female Republican voter in the country. It’s incredibly sexist,” political analyst Walsh said. “He shouldn’t talk about the first lady in that way. We aren’t all here to make salads for men.”

CNN legal analyst Areva Martin thought she was talking to a white man Tuesday while appearing as a guest on David Webb’s SiriusXM radio show. When Webb, a frequent Fox News contributor and host on Fox Nation, said he considered his qualifications more important than his skin color when applying to jobs in journalism, Martin accused him of exercising white privilege. But there’s a problem with that sentiment, as Webb quickly pointed out: “Areva, I hate to break it to you, but you should’ve been better prepped,” he responded. “I’m black.” The exchange was posted to Twitter by Webb on...

On Sunday, Britain's Daily Star reported that Lady Gaga and Angelina Jolie — two white actresses — are competing for the role of Cleopatra, sparking outrage across social media. Social Justice Warriors (SJWs) demanded that the African queen should be played by a woman of color, even though the historical Cleopatra was Greek, not black. "Stop whitewashing Cleopatra!!!" tweeted Kendra James, a writer and editor at Shondaland.com. "Film the story of literally any other queen on the vast African continent."

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey will remove an art installation featuring a nine-foot tall statue of Saudi Arabia’s flag from the World Trade Center campus. “We have been in contact with the 9/11 Memorial and various stakeholders, and in full collaboration with the artist will relocate the exhibit from its current location,” a spokesperson for the organization told Observer on Monday. “We believe this solution respects the unique sensitivities of the site and preserves the artistic integrity of the exhibit.” Created by French sculptor Laurence Jenkell in 2011, the exhibit ‘Candy Nations’ depicts countries in the...

<p>NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge in New York has barred the Trump administration from adding a question about citizenship to the 2020 census.</p> <p>U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman said Tuesday that while such a question would be constitutional, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross had added it arbitrarily and not followed proper procedure.</p>

A source with knowledge of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into alleged Russian election meddling pushed back Tuesday on a new report claiming Mueller called on Deutsche Bank to submit data pertaining to its client relationship with President Trump. But the source tells Fox News there has been no subpoena from Mueller’s office to Deutsche Bank about the president’s finances.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is going to restart high-risk food inspections this week despite the partial government shutdown, which has forced the FDA to suspend most routine domestic food facility inspections. "We re-starting high risk food inspections as early as tomorrow," FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb tweeted on Monday, noting that the inspections will be performed by employees who have agreed to come back to work unpaid.

A man convicted of murdering an eight-year-old girl was allegedly killed by his cellmate at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. According to The Oklahoman, a corrections officer discovered the body of Anthony Joseph Palma, 59, around 7.30pm on Friday during a regularly scheduled security check. Reports say medical staff's efforts to revive Palma were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at 8.55pm. Details on how Palma died were not released nor was the name of the inmate, but he was also serving time for first-degree murder, reported the newspaper.

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's pick for attorney general sent White House lawyers a memo arguing that the president could not have obstructed justice by firing ex-FBI Director James Comey, describing a critical prong of the special counsel's Russia investigation as "fatally misconceived," he told the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee in a letter Monday. The development, revealed the night before William Barr's confirmation hearing, raises questions about Barr's communications with Trump's attorneys ahead of his nomination and is likely to prompt questions ...

The House and Senate this week voted overwhelmingly to provide back pay to about 800,000 federal workers who are going without paychecks because of the partial government shutdown. But seven lawmakers — all House Republicans — opposed the measure. Those "no" votes came from Reps. Justin Amash (Mich.), Andy Biggs (Ariz.), Paul Gosar (Ariz.), Glen Grothman (Wis.), Thomas Massie (Ky.), Chip Roy (Texas) and Ted Yoho (Fla.). President Trump on Thursday indicated he would sign the bill, leading to its passage by unanimous consent in the Senate later that day. On Friday, the House cleared the measure in a 411-7...

NEW YORK — In testimony, former FBI Director James Comey exclaimed “there’s no deep state” before going on to suggest that workers risk their jobs by “speaking out” –purportedly against President Donald Trump. During testimony before the House Judiciary and Oversight and Government Reform committees last week, Comey was asked by Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.) for suggestions on how the nation should get back “on track” after the “storm” it is currently weathering – a clear reference to Trump’s presidency. Comey responded by launching into mini-speech about the resilience of America, while insisting there is no “deep state” and...

Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah) on Monday called on fellow GOP Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) to resign over recent comments he made about white supremacy and white nationalism. "I wish he’d resign, frankly," Stewart said on CNN's "Cuomo Prime Time." "He’s lost the trust and faith of his comrades. For the good of the party, for the good of the American people, I think it’s time for us to make a change." His comments came just hours after GOP leaders in Congress stripped the Iowa congressman from any committee assignments in the new Congress. Stewart said that he "absolutely" agreed with...

Once again, House Republican leaders last week found themselves having to answer for the offensive statements of Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa. This time King further confirmed his insensitivity and evidently racist approach to public policy. The New York Times quoted King asking, "White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization – how did that language become offensive?" In a frank Washington Post op-ed, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., asked, “Why are Republicans accused of racism? Because we’re silent on things like this.” To their credit, many Republican office holders were quick to condemn the provocative remarks, with Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst tweeting, “I...