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CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Bernie Sanders told veterans in Iowa Friday that unlike some other politicians, he doesn't pay lip service to their concerns. "It is very easy to raise the flag at a troop deployment, it is very easy for a politician to give a moving speech on Veterans Day," Sanders said. "But it is very hard to go down that long road with the men and women who served and make sure that they continue to get all the benefits, all the healthcare, that they are entitled to for the rest of their lives." The Vermont senator told...

If you had to vote in your state primary/caucus today, knowing what you know now about the various declared and probable candidates, who would you vote for? Why? Who would you like to see as the running mate for your preferred candidate? If you could help staff your candidates cabinet and other top appointments, who would you choose? If you could recommend different congressional leaders than we have now, who would they be? And who would you like to see on the Supreme Court and why? And finally, feel free to donate to Free Republic.

The hardest shot yet at Trump from a fellow candidate. “Donald Trump continues to demonstrate his fundamental misunderstanding of border security. Make no mistake – border security is a federal responsibility, but when I met with President Obama last year and it became clear he would not act, I told him if he would not secure the border, Texas would. Rather than thanking Texas for stepping into a gap it shouldn’t have to fill, Mr. Trump has made clear that he believes the states should fend for themselves on border security. Not only is this wrong, it perpetuates the...

Former Harrisburg Mayor Stephen R. Reed was charged Tuesday with a battery of theft, fraud and bribery charges that, if proven, would stamp corruption in indelible ink on the Reed Era. They would also likely put Reed, who has been out of office since January 2010 and has indicated his intent to fight for vindication, in jail. The 65-year-old Reed was arraigned before Magisterial District Judge William Wenner Tuesday on charges that go right to the heart of his longtime role as benevolent dictator of Pennsylvania's Capital City.

The head of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia is weighing in on the firing of teacher from a Montgomery County Catholic school, who allegedly lost her job because of her same-sex marriage. Margie Winters says she lost her job as the religious education director at Waldron Mercy Academy because of her marriage to Andrea Vittori. More than 100 people gathered together in support Winters at General Wayne Park in Lower Merion Township on Sunday afternoon. "I'm here to support Margie and let her know what was done to her was unjust, discriminatory and unfair," said Anthony Arechavale, parent. "I think it's...

Former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Penn.) warned Monday that Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s dissonance with his wife on same-sex marriage could cause him to be less “active” in his opposition. “Spouses matter,” Santorum said in an editorial meeting with The Daily Caller. “When your spouse is not in-sync with you — particularly on cultural issues, moral issues — [you] tend not to be as active on those issues." Walker panned last month’s Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage nationwide as a “grave mistake” where “five unelected judges [took] it upon themselves to redefine the institution of marriage.” But while those views...

The latest Monmouth University Poll of Republican voters nationwide found significant bumps, both in the vote choice question and candidate favorability, for Jeb Bush and Donald Trump since they threw their hats into the rings. Bobby Jindal has made no headway since he entered the race, and Chris Christie may actually be losing ground since his announcement. Despite Trump’s surge, the poll also found that many GOP voters are not taking his candidacy seriously. When Republicans are asked who they would support for the GOP nomination for president, Jeb Bush nominally leads the pack with 15%, followed by Donald Trump...

The latest Monmouth University Poll of Republican voters nationwide found significant bumps, both in the vote choice question and candidate favorability, for Jeb Bush and Donald Trump since they threw their hats into the rings. Bobby Jindal has made no headway since he entered the race, and Chris Christie may actually be losing ground since his announcement. Despite Trump’s surge, the poll also found that many GOP voters are not taking his candidacy seriously. When Republicans are asked who they would support for the GOP nomination for president, Jeb Bush nominally leads the pack with 15%, followed by Donald Trump...

As candidates are gearing up for the 2016 election cycle, many members of Congress have officially endorsed their favorites.Roll Call has compiled a list of the current public endorsements from sitting members of Congress among the Republican candidates.While some have racked up more endorsements than others (most candidates have none), we decided to filter the nearly 25 endorsements based on their different scores from three of the biggest conservative advocacy groups: The Heritage Foundation, the American Conservative Union, and FreedomWorks.Here are the three 2016 Republican candidates who have received the lion’s share of endorsements, matched with the average ratings from...

Catholic school on the outskirts of Philadelphia has come under heavy attack in recent days after firing an openly lesbian teacher in a same-sex civil marriage with her partner. Since 2007, Waldron Mercy Academy knew that teacher Margie Winters had been civilly married to her lesbian lover, but they kept her on as Director of Religious Education anyway for a total of eight years, under the advisement that she keep her relationship secret and not discuss it with students or parents. Though she kept the order, parents from the school eventually found out about Winters and complained to the school...

ELIZABETH, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — Union County officials have announced the arrest of a man who they believe is responsible for at least seven murders in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. In Elizabeth, New Jersey, investigators said 22-year-old Todd West fatally shot his cousin on May 18 and then went on a shooting spree on June 25, killing three people and critically injuring another, 1010 WINS’ Rebecca Granet reported.

Republican 2016 presidential hopefuls Scott Walker and Rick Santorum are suggesting a potentially controversial way to boost Americans' job prospects: admit fewer legal immigrants into the United States. The notion, absent from presidential politics for at least 20 years, could help them tap into the frustrations of working-class voters who have struggled with stagnant wages and reduced job opportunities since the economic crisis of 2007-2009. It could also complicate prospects for a comprehensive fix to the nation's outdated immigration system and tar the Republican Party as anti-immigrant at a time when it needs to broaden its support base of Hispanics...

Rick Santorum said he didn't like Donald Trump's "verbiage" when he called Mexican immigrants "rapists" in his presidential announcement speech, but said he was raising an important point by bringing up the effect that illegal immigration has on American workers. "While I don't like the verbiage he's used, I like the fact that he is focused on a very important issue for American workers and particularly, legal immigrants in this country," Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator and presidential candidate said on CBS' "Face the Nation" Sunday. "People who are coming illegally, obviously, are coming with a bad intent, let's just...

WASHINGTON — Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum admonished his competitors Thursday for their reactions to the Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage, saying as president he would fight to repeal the ruling and implement a law protecting religious freedoms enshrined in the First Amendment. “Many are moving on,” Santorum said of Republican reactions to the court ruling. “Well, not me. This will not stand.” The former Pennsylvania senator gave the keynote speech at a gala for the National Organization for Marriage – a conservative organization that defines marriage as between a man and a woman – Thursday in Washington.

I heard this "theory" from a friend, and decided to throw it out to Free Republic. My friend (no proof) said that he believes Donald Trump is a Trojan Horse.... Trump's is only there to pull people away from the other campaigns of Cruz, Walker, Paul, etc.... in order to eliminate them. Then once it's down to Trump and Bush in the Primaries, then he will step down. Leaving us with Jeb Bush vs. Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton will easily defeat Jeb Bush, and she will be the next President. Hopefully this nightmare scenario will never come to pass. Thoughts,...

The woman who called herself "Sam" for months now knows her real nameNearly five months after showing up in a San Diego-area emergency room without any recollection of her name, age, family, or friends, a woman who calls herself “Sam” finally has an identity. Ashley Menatta, 53, never married and has sisters in Colorado and Maryland. She was born in Pennsylvania, lived in Flagstaff, Arizona and several years ago found her way to Southern California living in La Jolla, Vista, and Carlsbad. The woman’s plight captured world wide attention after our NBC 7 post went viral with a Facebook...

DENVER -- Ben Carson, the famed surgeon turned presidential candidate, rode his outsider message to victory on Sunday at the Western Conservative Summit straw poll sponsored by the Washington Examiner, edging out former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. Taken together, the results point to the resonance of the anti-Washington message among conservative audiences, as all three candidates argued in different ways that they would shake up the DC status quo. Carson garnered 26 percent of the 871 votes cast; Fiorina got 23 percent; Walker was at 22 percent; and Ted Cruz, at 11 percent, was the...

During a Wednesday morning live broadcast from outside the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, N.Y., CNN reported that escapees David Sweat and Richard Matt could be anywhere between New York's North Country and Canada, or even south to Mexico. As a reporter spoke, a map on the screen showed the words "New York" over Pennsylvania, and then tracked a potential path north to Canada or south to Mexico.

Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee told conservatives Saturday that the Supreme Court tried to “unwrite the laws of nature and the laws of nature’s God” when it legalized gay marriage across the nation. […] Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry derided the ruling but didn’t suggest a next step. “These decisions need to be made in the states,” said Perry, who noted that his states’ rights plank extends even to Colorado legalizing recreational marijuana in defiance of federal drug law. […] On Friday, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum said the gay marriage ruling was “based on a lie” that gay-marriage opponents...

A newspaper in Harrisburg, PA, PennLive/The Patriot-News, informed its readers yesterday that the paper would no longer be accepting anti-gay marriage letters or op-eds. After nationwide outrage was expressed, the paper revised its policy slightly; you could submit anti-gay marriage tracts for a limited amount of time. Daily Caller: After receiving strong pushback, the newspaper’s editorial board, which is overseen by Editorial Page Editor John Micek, quickly revised its policy. Freedom of speech will be allowed — but only for a “limited” period of time. Micek explained on Twitter: “Clarification: We will not foreclose discussion of the high court’s decision, but arguments that...