Free Republic

In his speech announcing a Justice Department lawsuit against the State of California, Attorney General Jeff Sessions suggested that the Golden State is treading the path of the confederacy. Condemning recent California laws enacted to impede federal immigration enforcement, Sessions said: “There is no nullification. There is no secession.” The state’s political leaders did not appreciate the comparison. Nevertheless, the attorney general has a point. California’s behavior today is reminiscent of the course charted by South Carolina in the nullification crisis of 1832, when John Calhoun previewed for the country the impulses and arguments that would later lead to secession...

In a lengthy letter to the inspector general of the Department of Justice (DOJ), two key senators demanded answers on whether anti-Trump dossier author Christopher Steele was ever paid by the Russian government or other Russian sources. The letter from Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) asked Michael E. Horowitz, the DOJ inspector general, for answers to 31 sets of detailed questions related to DOJ’s handling of various Russia-related probes in 2016 and 2017. “What connections are there between Mr. Steele and the Russian government or Russian intelligence community?” the senators asked. “Has Mr. Steele ever been...

A plan of action for how a second special counsel can investigate the FBI and Justice Department is spelled out in a point-by-point letter submitted by two Republican senators. They specifically want to know whether former FBI Director James B. Comey lied to them and had a plan to double-cross President Trump. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley of Iowa and Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina sent a letter last week to Attorney General Jeff Sessions. They and two other Republicans want a special counsel with the powers of the Trump-Russia probe’s Robert Mueller to investigate suspected Justice...

(CNN) - While students in a South Carolina school participated in the National School Walkout this week, a custodian helped herself to their cash, police said. The incident occurred at Richland Northeast High School on Wednesday. Aisha Evans, a custodian at the school, went into a classroom while students were outside and rummaged through three book bags, the Richland County Sheriff's Department said. In all, Evans stole $180, the department said.

The sister of Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof has been charged after deputies say she brought weapons to school on National Walkout Day. On Wednesday, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department said that 18-year-old Morgan Roof was charged with simple possession of marijuana and two counts of carrying a weapon on school grounds. Reportedly, a school resource officer was contacted by a school administrator after marijuana, pepper spray and a knife were found on Roof. There was also a social media post on Snapchat which caused students and staff to be alarmed.

RICHLAND COUNTY, SC The younger sister of Dylann Roof, who murdered nine black parishioners during bible study at a Charleston church, was arrested and charged Wednesday for possessing drugs and weapons on school grounds. Morgan Roof, 18, was charged with charged with simple possession of marijuana and two counts of carrying weapons on school grounds., according to the Richland County Sheriff's Department, which confirmed her relationship to Dylann Roof. Morgan Roof had also made a social media post on Snapchat which caused alarm to the student body. In it, Morgan Roof said she hoped the students participating in the National...

South Carolina's largest school district says it's going to reprimand several hundred students who participated in a national walkout to protest gun violence at schools. Greenville County Schools spokeswoman Beth Brotherton said Wednesday that students who participated in the walkout will be cited for cutting class. She said that school records show that about 530 students participated at about a dozen high schools.

Freepers please lift my dear friend Debbie Thompson in prayer. She went to the doctor because she wasn't feeling well this morning and now she's been admitted for a heart Cath tomorrow because her doctor has found blockages. Debbie is a one-in-a million lady who has stepped up and helped me out so many times I cannot count them; the most important one is she has become a surrogate grandmother to my daughter because my own mom passed away over 10 years ago. Debbie is a wonderful christian woman who I consider to be salt of the Earth.

Last week President Trump announced a new 25 percent tariff on steel imports and a 10 percent hike on aluminum imports. Foreign leaders like Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the move "unacceptable" and the European Union threatened to respond to the U.S. with their own tariff. Try it, Trump dared. He'll just add a new tax on European cars.British Prime Minister Theresa May shared her own "deep concerns" with Trump directly in a phone call on Sunday. What he should have done was pursue "multilateral action," May reportedly told the president.At least one person sees where Trump is coming from.Sen....

An 18-year-old woman faces a felony charge after investigators say she lied about being raped at a Clemson University fraternity house. But the woman told The Independent Mail of Anderson on Thursday that she is, indeed, the victim of a sexual assault. “This story is being blown out of proportion, and that’s all I can say,” the woman said, according to The Independent Mail. The woman is accused of filing a false report of a sexual assault Jan. 27, the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Thursday. According to deputies, the woman said she was assaulted at...

Palmetto State Armory issued a statement after Dick’s Sporting Goods announced Thursday that it would no longer sell assault rifles or high capacity magazines at its 35 Field and Stream stores. Dick’s also announced that it would no longer sell firearms or ammunition to anyone under the age of 21. Walmart made a similar announcement Thursday. PALMETTO STATE ARMORY STATEMENT BELOW Palmetto State Armory would like to go on record stating that we support the Second Amendment. While this may seem like an obvious statement, we as a company felt it necessary to make our opinion known to the general...

Chuck Schumer votes against South Carolina federal judge nominee because he's white By Caitlin Byrd cbyrd@postandcourier.com Mar 1, 2018 Updated 1 hr ago Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer rejected President Donald Trump's nominee for a long-vacant South Carolina federal judgeship not because of his qualifications but because of his race. The decision drew the quick ire of South Carolina's two U.S. senators and U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-Spartanburg, a former federal prosecutor. Schumer, a New York Democrat, said in a Senate floor speech Wednesday he would not support Greenville attorney Marvin Quattlebaum for a vacancy on the U.S. District Court...

A South Carolina senate panel voted in favor of a personhood bill last week, sending the measure to the state Senate on a 15-9 vote. The bill would recognize preborn babies as human beings from the moment of fertilization, and therefore, would ensure them “the constitutional right to due process of law and equal protection under the law,” as outlined in the South Carolina constitution. If the bill is passed, it would effectively ban abortions, and would join South Carolina with Missouri and Kansas as states with personhood laws. “We are trying to challenge the Supreme Court on their fundamental...

While speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) argued that if Republicans don’t do anything on DACA, the program ends, “and a lot of these young people start getting deported,” it would “destroy” the Republican Party. He further stated that doing nothing on DACA is not “even a viable option.”

Rep. Steven Long, R-S.C., announced Monday that he is going to host a drawing to give away three 9mm handguns to educators in the state in light of President Trump’s call to arm some teachers in the wake of the Florida massacre. Long said he will give away three Smith & Wesson M&P Shield 9mm handguns, “one to a K-12 teacher, school staff member, or school administrator; one to a higher education (college/university) faculty, staff member, or administrator; and one to any freedom-loving patriot who wishes to participate in the drawing,” according to a press release, reported WISTV. It is...

A lawyer for Susan Rice said in a letter Friday that the former national security adviser sent herself an email on her last day in office documenting a meeting with President Obama and his top national security advisers about sharing intelligence with the incoming Trump administration in order to create a “permanent record” of the discussion. Kathryn H. Ruemmler of Latham & Watkins LLP wrote: Given the importance and sensitivity of the subject matter, and upon the advice of the White House Counsel’s Office, Ambassador Rice created a permanent record of the discussion. Ambassador Rice memorialized the discussion on January...

A faith based foster care program is at risk of losing its license. South Carolina Department of Social Services is challenging Miracle Hill Ministries to stop recruiting only Christian families.

More than two dozen Senate Republicans are urging President Trump to re-engage in Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations. The 25 GOP lawmakers sent a letter to Trump on Friday saying they support his recent comments that he may consider U.S. participation if the 11-nation Asia-Pacific pact is improved.

A coalition that includes a Latino membership organization and a former Massachusetts governor filed lawsuits on Wednesday challenging how four U.S. states allocate their Electoral College votes in presidential elections. The lawsuits were filed in federal courts in Massachusetts and California, states that went for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016, and South Carolina and Texas, where a majority of votes went to Republican U.S. President Donald Trump. The lawsuits challenge the winner-take-all system used in those states to select electors who cast votes for president and vice president in the Electoral College after a presidential election. Forty-four other states...

Columbia, SC Once again, a group of obstructionists who like to call themselves environmentalists is trying to steal opportunities away from South Carolina. The Coastal Conservation League and Southern Environmental Law Center filed a suit in federal court a week before Christmas to halt the construction of Interstate 73, highlighting their continued disregard for the public good. These groups say the environmental impact of I-73 is too high. This couldn’t be further from the truth. The federal government requires that any new highway be constructed along the least environmentally impactful route. Fifteen state and federal agencies have spent 16 years...