Free Republic

When I was a lad, I very much enjoyed the comedy of Cheech & Chong. Tonight, at the Novo by Microsoft theatre in downtown Los Angeles, I got to see them live. Their humor comes from a gentler, and now rather distant, time in our nation’s history, but only one of the many bits actually felt dated. Amid the drug-related and social-observation material came a genuine political surprise. An anti-Trump joke in the opening act fell a little flat, and a few minutes later, when the main act got under way, Cheech asked the audience, “Are there any Donald Trump...

Today the Cruz campaign announced the endorsements of former Chairmen of the California Republican Party John S. Herrington and Tirso del Junco. They join former CRP Chairmen Ron Nehring and Michael Schroeder on the Cruz team From the campaign statement: “As a member of President Reagan’s cabinet, I’ve seen first-hand how a great leader can change the course of our nation. Ted Cruz is the proven conservative leader our country needs to lead us to prosperity once again,” said Herrington. John S. Herrington served as President Reagan’s Assistant Secretary of the Navy from 1981-83, Deputy Assistant for Presidential Personnel from...

You'd be excused if you tuned out in previous years when the actual nominating part of a political convention occurred. Usually it's a pro forma exercise with little suspense, as each state ticks off its vote for the eventual nominee. And that nominee has been known well in advance — at least for the last 40 years, anyway. But this year a contested convention actually seems possible, if not probable, on the Republican side. It's the stuff of journalists' dreams and political consultants' nightmares. Donald Trump got a big win in New York Tuesday, and he leads in the delegate...

It’s safe to say each of the CNN Town Halls this week painted the remaining Republican presidential candidates in a positive light and that’s a good thing for those of us who see the number one priority as the need to defeat Hillary Clinton (or Bernie Sanders) in November. Instead of #NeverTrump, we were reminded that #NeverHillary is a much more important objective than the need to settle scores, even if there’s good reason to carry grudges in the first place. Ted CruzAnd while it’s somewhat likely the Republican candidates’ favorability ratings could get a boost courtesy of CNN’s idea...

Whenever Ted Cruz appears on television, I cringe as unpleasant memories of distant relatives cross my mind, reminding me of things best forgotten. And what is best forgotten is simply the Hispanic political tradition of severity. Think Francisco Franco. Think Fidel Castro. Think Ted Cruz? Yes, Ted Cruz is a would-be autocrat. My paternal grandmother, a Galician matron who despised sexism in all its forms, called it “la maldición gallega,” or “the Galician curse.” By that she meant the dreadful and familiar anti-democratic tendency in the political lives of the Hispanic world where dictators, strongmen, caudillos, and caciques have ruled...

In his 1944 opus “Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive,” the philosopher Johnny Mercer provided some bracing imperatives that, rightly understood, explain why I am supporting Ted Cruz for the presidency of the United States. “You've got to accentuate the positive,” Mercer argued. Eliminate the negative Latch on to the affirmative Don't mess with Mister In-Between. Quite right. These imperatives, while not quite categorical, are sufficiently compelling to command our attention. Ted Cruz is the only candidate who accentuates the positive, who latches on to the affirmative. 1. Executive power. Even many ardent supporters of President Obama have been taken aback by his...

Donald Trump won North Carolina’s Republican primary last month, but many of the state’s GOP convention delegates elected so far prefer the second-place candidate: Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. That could spell trouble for Trump if he doesn’t arrive at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July with the 1,237 delegates required to win on the first ballot. For the first round of voting, North Carolina’s delegate count must proportionately match the state’s March 15 primary results: 29 votes for Trump, 27 for Cruz, nine for John Kasich, six for Marco Rubio and one for Ben Carson. Any delegate who...

Give Donald Trump credit for planning ahead. He is preparing to be a sore loser. Trump’s complaints that he is being undone by a rigged system crafted by a corrupt Republican Party is the dress rehearsal for his campaign’s closing argument should it come up short in Cleveland. Trump will, in his telling, have been stabbed in the back by insiders and be fully justified in wreaking a terrible revenge on the party that he briefly sought to lead. Facts and logic don’t particularly matter to Trump or his mouthpieces, yet the “rigged” charge is absurd even by the standards...

Breitbart News Network CEO and President Larry Solov released the following statement in response to statements made by Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump attacking Breitbart reporter Michelle Fields: Breitbart News stands behind Michelle Fields. Even Donald Trump campaign spokesperson Katrina Pierson said Thursday that “someone probably did grab her,” i.e. Fields, though she claimed it could not have been Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski. Trump’s suggestion that Fields made up the incident Tuesday evening contradicts the evidence, including her own injuries, an account from Washington Post reporter Ben Terris, and audio recorded at the scene.

As Donald Trump is presenting himself as the presumptive nominee, he has described himself as “flexible” on immigration. This now has Ted Cruz  positioned as the Republican candidate with the most hardline position on immigration. NumbersUSA, a prominent immigration restriction group, keeps an ongoing scorecard on 2016 presidential candidates and since updated on March 4, Ted Cruz has an “A” and Trump a “B+”. Roy Beck, founder and executive director of NumbersUSA, spoke to The Daily Caller Tuesday about the differences between the two candidates and how he feels both will return America to policies that benefit the citizen...

Whether you are an early bird or a night owl may not only determine when you prefer to sleep -- it can also affect your personality and quality of life. And it looks like night owls may have it tougher when it comes to their overall well-being and functioning in a predominantly 9-to-5 world. In a recent study, researchers at the University of Barcelona, Spain, compared "morning people," those early birds who like to get up at dawn, and "evening people," night owls who prefer to stay up late and sleep in. Among the differences they found is that morning...

The Danish government has begun paying compensation to women who have developed breast cancer after long spells working nights. It follows a ruling by a United Nations agency that night shifts probably increase the risk of developing cancer. BBC Radio Scotland's The Investigation has been hearing from experts and union leaders in Scotland who said the UK government should be doing more to tackle the dangers. For years there has been growing evidence that night shifts are bad for you. Among the symptoms: disturbed sleep, fatigue, digestive problems and a greater risk of accidents at work.

Events on this day in music history, May 19th1978-U.S. release of Dire Straits first single "Sultans of Swing."1978-Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr play together for the first time since the break-up of The Beatles, at the wedding reception of Eric Clapton and Patti Boyd. Clapton, Mick Jagger, and Ginger Baker joined in.Birthdays include:Pete Townshend, b. 1945 (he didn't die before he got old!)Dusty Hill of ZZ Top, b.1949Joey Ramone, b.1952Dire Straits-Sultans of SwingPete Townshend-Pinball WizardThe Ramones-Blitzkrieg Bop