Free Republic

In the second installation of a three-part series on "gun violence in Mexico," the National Catholic Reporter (NCR) continues to blame the U.S. for gun violence in Mexico, while viewing Fast & Furious as a legitimate attempt at law enforcement which just happened to go wrong. According to NCR, Obama tried to reinstitute an "assault weapons" ban in the U.S. as a way to keep Mexico safer. He also pledged to "keep increasing the pressure on the gun traffickers." NCR claims part of the pressure on traffickers included Operation Fast & Furious, which turned out to be a "botched 2009...

In a speech on Wednesday, Sen. Rand Paul outlined his views on immigration reform. Acknowledging the need for some legalization process for the 12 million illegal immigrants already here, Paul stressed that border security had to come first. Under Paul's plan, legalization wouldn't even be considered by Congress until the border was secured. This contrasts sharply with the approach outlined this week by Sen. Rubio, who said legalization had to come first. Paul's plan would direct the Border Patrol and an Inspector General to certify to Congress when the border is secure. To verify that the border is secure, the...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has backed off plans to remove gray wolves from the endangered species list. ... The government plan would have allowed gray wolves in the lower 48 United States to be hunted or killed. They have been under federal protection since 1967. The Mexican gray wolf, found only in the Southwest, retains protection.

Texas-based Furr’s Fresh Buffet restaurant chain has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the company announced Tuesday. The chain employs more than 2,000 people but plans to continue operating its 29 restaurants in New Mexico, Arizona, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas during the Chapter 11 process. Buffet Partners LP said a December ice and sleet storm in North Texas, leaving tens of thousands of people without power and stranding drivers, severely hurt its already tenuous liquidity. Barry M. Barron Sr., who was named chief executive of Buffet Partners last June, said in a statement that because of “the challenges facing our...

Old Mexico Lives On Feb 1st 2014 On February 2nd 1848, following a short and one-sided war, Mexico agreed to cede more than half its territory to the United States. An area covering most of present-day Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah, plus parts of several other states, was handed over to gringolandia. The rebellious state of Tejas, which had declared its independence from Mexico in 1836, was recognised as American soil too. But a century and a half later, communities have proved more durable than borders. (snip)

It’s no coincidence that sage grouse habitat also happens to intersect both the largest untapped coal deposits in the country as well as large parts of the Bakken oil field. It’s clear the primary motivation to focus on sage grouse for ESA listing is to provide yet another tool for special interest groups to block energy development. And in this obstructionist toolbox, there’s no heavier sledgehammer than the Endangered Species Act. What an interesting irony, then, that so much effort is going into “protecting” one bird from energy development, when the Obama administration is turning a blind eye to hundreds...

Clovis city officials say the whopping weeds are covering homes and blocking streets and residents are calling it the tumbleweed invasion of 2014. “It looked like a herd of cows coming in,” said Clovis resident Lee Cassidy. “The tumbleweeds were just rolling in.” After those tumbleweeds rolled in, they got stuck.

What a hoot, the media is referring to people who hate guns as “gun safety advocate.”

    ~The FReeper Canteen Presents~ Road Trip: White Sands Missile Range, New MexicoWhite Sands Missile Range is a rocket range of almost 3,200 square miles area, the largest military installation in the United States. WSMR includes the Oscura Range and the WSMR Otera Mesa bombing range. WSMR and the 600,000-acre Fort Bliss Range Complex to the south form a contiguous swath of territory for military testing. White Sands Missile Range is a Test and Evaluation Command Installation operated primarily for the support of research, development, test, and evaluation of weapon and space systems, subsystems, and components. WSMR, established in...

The facts 1. There are 21 US Senate seats held by Democrats in the 2014 election. 2. There are nine US Senate seats held by Democrats in the 2016 election. This is likely to be 10 due to a special election in HI in 2014. 3. Republicans need to pick up six senate seats to have a majority. The Analysis The failures of ObamaCare and broken promises by Democrat senators create a target rich environment in 2014. This is a year Republicans have to do well. Winning a majority in the senate by only one seat or maintaining the status...

We’re from the government and we’re here to help. One in seven Obamacare navigators in New Mexico is listed in the FBI’s crime information database.But these “experts” are here to serve you.New Mexico Watchdog reported: An investigation by the National Review, one of the leading conservative media outlets in the country, reports that one in seven navigators in New Mexico hired to help consumers work their way through the Affordable Care Act appeared on the FBI’s National Crime Information Center database.But an official with the state’s Affordable Care Act Implementation Projects emphasizes that while a person’s name may turn up on the FBI database, it does not mean they pose any risk to...

Suspect was taken to two hospitals and subjected to anal probes over suspicion of hiding drugs ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A city and county in southern New Mexico have settled a lawsuit filed by a man taken to two hospitals and subjected to anal probes over suspicion of hiding drugs, the man's lawyer said Monday. According to attorneys for David Eckert, Hidalgo County and the city of Deming recently settled their portion of a lawsuit for a total of $1.6 million. The lawsuit, filed against police and sheriff's officials in Deming and Hidalgo County, which borders Mexico, alleges Deming police sought...

<p>ROSWELL, N.M. (AP) - Police say there has been a shooting at a Roswell middle school in New Mexico.</p>

City, county settle NM 'anal probe' lawsuit ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- A city and county in southern New Mexico have settled a lawsuit filed by man taken to two hospitals and forced to have anal probes over suspicion of hiding drugs. Attorney for David Eckert said Monday that Hidalgo County and the city of Deming recently settled their portion of a lawsuit for a total $1.6 million. The lawsuit, filed against police and sheriff's officials in Deming and Hidalgo County, which borders Mexico, alleges Deming police sought a search warrant for Eckert because they thought he appeared to be clenching his...

New Mexico lawmakers want to lower the bar for high school graduates. The state already has one of the lowest graduation rates in the country. The new plan establishes two kinds of diplomas—the current diploma of “excellence,” and a “general” one. …

New Mexico has seen celebrations across the state since its highest court unanimously ruled it was unconstitutional to deny a marriage license to same-sex couples. Not so for the sovereign Navajo Nation, whose borders spill over into the northeastern part of the state and where tribal law is clear: Such unions are banned. Some Navajo hope to change that, buoyed by the cultural climate shift underscored when the U.S. Supreme Court in June struck down part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act. Gay marriage is permitted in the District of Columbia and 18 states, the most recent being Utah,...

**SNIP** The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the oldest and largest national organization of tribal governments, along with attorneys representing the Osage Nation and 20 Arizona tribes, met with the White House to discuss the FWS’ eagle “take” rules. After the meeting, the NCAI passed a resolution accusing the administration of failing to consult meaningfully with tribes while pursuing a rule to lengthen eagle take permits for wind farms from five to 30 years. The resolution said eagle permits should not be issued without the consent of affected tribes. **SNIP** Wind farms must be located where the wind blows...

John Dodson, the ATF agent who blew the whistle on the the Justice Department’s blood-soaked gun-trafficking operation known as Fast and Furious, told the Arizona Republic in an interview, Thursday, that the FBI played a key role in events leading to the 2010 murder of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. His comments to the paper, augment what he wrote in his new book, The Unarmed Truth - My Fight to Blow the Whistle and Expose Fast and Furious. Dodson claims that the bandits who killed Terry were working for FBI operatives and were tipped by the DEA to be...

The Roosevelt County clerk and her deputy resigned Friday to avoid issuing same-sex marriage licenses as required by the New Mexico Supreme Court’s landmark opinion Thursday legalizing same-sex marriage statewide. County Clerk Donna Carpenter, an elected Republican, and Chief Deputy Clerk Janet Collins told other officials of the eastside New Mexico county that they were leaving their jobs because they disagreed with the unanimous Supreme Court ruling. They personally opposed issuing marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples, Commissioner Jake Lopez said. The county clerk “said she would rather resign because she wasn’t going to provide any licenses to people...

EL PASO, Texas — She was forced to strip, cavity searched for hours, then billed, she says. She’s suing. A New Mexico woman’s lawsuit claims federal border patrol officers forced her to undergo a brutal six-hour, full-body cavity search, before she was brought to a hospital for further examination, and charged $5,000 for the forced procedures. The Lovington, N.M., woman said border patrol agents subjected her to anal and vaginal probes that made her feel like an “animal,” before being taken to EL Paso County Hospital. There, she was forced to have an observed bowel movement, was X-rayed, had a...