Free Republic

President Joe Biden and his administration said Americans should reduce their consumption of oil and gas in order to keep prices down and ultimately punish Russian President Vladimir Putin. White House press secretary Jen Psaki reacted to calls for the United States to stop importing oil from Russia in order to further punish Putin for escalating his invasion of Ukraine.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said on Wednesday that he opposes a short-term debt hike being hashed out by Senate leadership and that Republicans shouldn't be "held hostage" due to concerns that Democrats could change the filibuster. Graham, the top Republican on the Budget Committee, is the first Senate Republican to speak out against the tentative deal that is still being worked out by Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). "I do not support the Democrats’ reconciliation package and I do not support raising the debt limit to make that level of spending possible....

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) released a statement Tuesday opposing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) backwardly focused January 6 commission legislation due to bad-faith negotiations. McCarthy explained Republicans have been hoodwinked by Pelosi “falsely” claiming “in the press that she had delivered Republicans a counterproposal, when in reality her proposal would not surface until weeks later.”

Leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement have come out against President-elect Joe Biden’s decision to nominate former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg for Secretary of Transportation, recalling his struggles with minority voters. Biden announced Tuesday that Buttigieg was his choice for the transportation post — a plum position for a candidate who dropped out of the presidential race before Super Tuesday and endorsed the former vice president.

WASHINGTON – US State Department Spokesperson Jen Psaki responded Wednesday to Israel's announcement of building 1,500 units in east Jerusalem saying "We do not consider continued settlement activity or east Jerusalem construction to be steps that create a positive environment for the negotiations." At no time in the course of pursuing negotiations toward a two-state solution have we condoned settlement activity or east Jerusalem construction," she added. Psaki stressed the importance of the peace talks and the need to resolve the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. She added that releasing prisoners is a difficult but necessary step to guarantee an...

WASHINGTON – A top Treasury official says the Obama administration opposes a proposal to audit the Federal Reserve, a plan that has bipartisan Senate support. Deputy Treasury Secretary Neal Wolin said an amendment to a pending financial regulation bill could encroach on the independence of the central bank. The amendment's sponsor, independent Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont, has criticized the Fed for secrecy in its assistance of banks.

The nomination of Sen. Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) to be the state’s next lieutenant governor was turned down on a preliminary 36-34 vote Thursday by the state Assembly, leaving Republicans scrambling to try to salvage Maldonado’s bid. [Updated at 12:06 p.m.: An earlier version of this post, along with the headline, said Maldonado had been rejected for the job; as the post explains, though, the vote was preliminary.]

WASHINGTON — As the health care debate heats up, the American Medical Association is letting Congress know that it will oppose creation of a government-sponsored insurance plan, which President Obama and many other Democrats see as an essential element of legislation to remake the health care system.

LOS ANGELES — California's three-member State Lands Commission has passed a resolution urging the Legislature not to support a proposed new oil drilling project off the Santa Barbara coast. ... Last year, Houston-based Plains Exploration & Production Co. unveiled an unprecedented deal with longtime anti-oil conservationists in Santa Barbara County to allow the state's first new offshore oil project in more than 40 years. ... The commission rejected the proposal in January. ... Members of environmental groups accused the governor of attempting a power grab. ...

The Obama administration is opposing an Illinois law that helped ensnare Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) in a federal indictment for corruption. Ethics watchdogs charge that in opposing a law intended to prevent politically connected companies from unfairly winning government contracts, President Obama has gone against promises he made during the presidential race.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Obama administration struggled to quell persistent Democratic demands for a potentially explosive probe of harsh Bush administration detainee interrogations Thursday, abruptly declaring opposition to an independent commission. Republicans stepped up their own criticism of Barack Obama's handling of the sensitive issue.

President Obama opposes any move to bring back the so-called Fairness Doctrine, a spokesman told FOXNews.com Wednesday. The statement is the first definitive stance the administration has taken since an aide told an industry publication last summer that Obama opposes the doctrine -- a long-abolished policy that would require broadcasters to provide opposing viewpoints on controversial issues.

WASHINGTON - A second Republican signed onto a Senate resolution on Wednesday opposing President Bush's 21,500-troop buildup in Iraq, setting a marker for a major clash between the White House and Congress over the unpopular war. Sen. Olympia Snowe (news, bio, voting record), a moderate from Maine, said she would support a nonbinding resolution that would put the Senate on record as saying the U.S. commitment in Iraq can be sustained only with support from the American public and Congress. Snowe's decision to join the effort came as the White House and GOP leaders struggled to keep Republicans from endorsing...

Internet Gambling Ban Part of Broader "War on Immorality" (Washington, DC) As part of House Speaker Dennis Hastert's (R-IL) agenda to force Americans to abide with his moral beliefs, Congress is now trying to outlaw Internet gambling. Hastert listed the prohibition of Internet gambling in his recently announced American Values Agenda. The House of Representatives already passed H.R. 4411, The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. This attempt to cut off Internet gambling by Americans bans financial payments to offshore casinos. The Senate will be tackling this issue after it returns from its August recess. The House version of...

HOUSTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush has long opposed making English the country's national language, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said on Friday, the day after the Senate voted to do so. The vote came in an amendment to proposed legislation overhauling U.S. immigration law and directed the government to "preserve and enhance" the role of English. Opponents said it could affect the status of some multilingual services offered by government organizations. Adding to the confusion, the Senate also adopted a softer amendment calling English the "unifying language" of the United States. Senators take both versions into negotiations over a...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - The board of the California Public Employees Retirement System has voted to oppose a constitutional amendment that would institute a less generous pension system for government employees hired on or after July 1, 2007. The measure by Assemblyman Keith Richman, R-Chatsworth, would create a new defined benefit plan for those workers. It also would allow them to enroll in a voluntary, 401(k)-style defined-contribution plan. The vote was 10-0 with two representatives of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger abstaining. A 13th board member was absent. "This bill comes at the wrong time," said state Treasurer Phil Angelides, a member of...

SAN FRANCISCO - The influential senior citizen lobby AARP urged its 3.1 million California members and other voters Wednesday to oppose Proposition 78, which would create a voluntary prescription drug discount program for poor, uninsured state residents. AARP opposes the drug industry-sponsored measure because it would make pharmaceutical industry participation voluntary, but supports an opposing measure that would make discounts mandatory if the companies wanted to fully participate in the state's Medicaid program. "There is a danger if Proposition 78 passes that we will see little or no real benefit," said AARP state director Tom Porter. "Discounts will be provided...

NEW YORK - Sen. Hillary Clinton is opposing a freedom museum planned for ground zero, citing concerns raised by the families of the World Trade Center victims who say the proposed museum would dishonor the dead. The International Freedom Center last week released a report saying the museum "will tangibly link Sept. 11 and the lives of its victims to humanity's greatest idea: freedom." In addition to the terrorist attacks, its exhibits would deal with events such as the fall of the Berlin Wall, efforts such as the Civil Rights Movement, and documents such as the Declaration of Independence and...

A bill to legalize assisted suicide in Vermont has died for the second consecutive legislative session. A House committee held a hearing on the bill but dropped the issue when other lawmakers indicated its prospects were severely limited. The House Human Services Committee held a public hearing and took two days worth of testimony, but lawmakers in favor of making Vermont the second state in the nation to legalize the practice will have to wait until next year. The gavel fell on the legislative session on Saturday and lawmakers will be headed back to the state capital to deal with...

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - A deeply divided U.N. General Assembly committee adopted a nonbinding statement on Friday calling on governments to prohibit all forms of human cloning, including techniques used in research on human stem cells. The assembly's legal committee voted 71 to 35 with 43 abstentions in favor of the proposal put forward by Honduras and backed by the George W. Bush administration. The measure now goes to the full 191-nation assembly. Islamic countries said they would abstain because there was no consensus. Opponents of the measure, like Britain, Belgium and Singapore, said the text would have no impact...