Free Republic

Sens. Rand Paul and Ted Cruz have joined an upstart effort to remove the chain of command from military sexual assault cases, POLITICO has learned. The tea party favorites give the bill’s lead sponsor, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, critical conservative cover as she battles the Pentagon and hawks in both parties on her proposal to create a new prosecution system for major military crimes. Paul is scheduled to attend a press conference Tuesday in the Capitol with Gillibrand and other bill backers, including Sens. Chuck Grassley and Barbara Boxer, to discuss his new position, which inches the New York Democrat closer...

WASHINGTON (AP) — A third former employee says she considered filing a workplace complaint over what she considered aggressive and unwanted behavior by Herman Cain when she worked for the presidential candidate in the 1990s. She says the behavior included a private invitation to his corporate apartment.

The Washington Post is now reporting the Al Gore-Redheaded Masseuse story. Surprisingly, they track how the National Enquirer report relied "heavily" on the documents behind the accusation, and point out the care taken before letting the story go to press. Gore and his attorneys have been trying to sweep this under the rug since 2007 and again in 2008. There can hardly be an "I don't remember" defense.

Local pastor heads Lutheran clergy charging pastor with misconduct The group of 16 clergy are challenging the bishop's handling of case. By MELISSA NANN BURKE Daily Record/Sunday News Updated: 06/16/2010 06:47:53 PM EDT A local pastor is among 16 Lutheran clergy who challenged their bishop Tuesday by filing church charges against a Mechanicsburg minister accused last year of soliciting sex from a woman he was counseling. The group, led by the Rev. Elizabeth Polanzke of Luther Memorial Church in Spring Garden Township, charges the Rev. Alan C. Wenrich with "conduct incompatible with the character of the ministerial office" and requests...

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested a Tucson man Friday on federal charges related to the sexual exploitation of children. According to officials, Albert Thomas Rogers, 51, contacted an ICE undercover special agent regarding a tour including the sexual exploitation of children in January. Rogers is the superintendent for the Tanque Verde Unified School District and an associate principal at Emily Gray Junior High School.

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Mayor Sam Adams, who has admitted lying about a sexual relationship with a teenager, said Sunday that he would not resign. A city commissioner, Randy Leonard, told The Associated Press that Mr. Adams had left a phone message in the morning saying he had decided to remain in office. Two other commissioners told The Oregonian of Portland that Mr. Adams, the city’s first openly gay mayor, had told them the same thing. The fourth, Amanda Fritz, declined to comment. Efforts to reach Mr. Adams were unsuccessful. The Oregonian’s editorial page has called for his resignation, as...

James Tramel went from convicted murderer to priest while in prison, a transformation that the Episcopal Church used to successfully lobby for his parole and celebrate him before politicians and the press. But the church is now grappling with the sexual abuse of a parishioner under his care. Tramel has been suspended for sexual misconduct, temporarily stripped of his priestly authority and left searching for a new job. The San Francisco-based Episcopal Diocese of California now faces questions of whether, in its haste to proclaim Tramel's story, it redeemed and promoted him too quickly. Convicted of second-degree murder in a...

O.K., it is the weekend and time to have a little fun. And besides, some of our readers sent email asking when we would reflect upon another major motion picture in our “Leadership Ideas From the Movies Series.” The movie is “Dawg” with Denis Leary and Elizabeth Hurley. Most guys could watch Elizabeth Hurley knit and be entertained if not aroused. And she is great in this. In “Dawg” Leary plays ladies’ man who must apologize to the women he has betrayed before he can inherit $1 million from his grandmother. Hurley plays the woman attorney who supervises the project....

A 28-year-old Dripping Springs High School chemistry teacher was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of initiating an intimate relationship with one of her students, according to court documents. Rebecca Garrison of Austin is facing charges of indecency with a child and improper relationship between an educator and student. She is in the Hays County Jail. Both charges are second-degree felonies, which are punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. The student's mother told officials she became suspicious of her son's relationship with Garrison and started checking his e-mails and cell phone records, an...

Grand jury to review Merkel abuse charges MERKEL - A state probe of relationships between Merkel students and teachers paints a picture that suggests boundaries between coaches and students vanished years ago. The six-month investigation by the state department of Child Protective Services, which investigates allegations of child abuse and neglect, is believed to be a first for the school district. The Taylor County Sheriff's Office assisted CPS with the investigation, which was prompted by a teacher's complaint in August. No arrests have been made in the investigation, although District Attorney James Eidson is expected to present the findings of...

Renewed call to oust U.N. in response to rape reportAlleged assault of Haitian by peacekeepers spurs group to get world body out of U.S. --WND Responding to new allegations of rape by United Nations peacekeepers, an activist group renewed its call to evict the world body from the U.S. U.N. peacekeeperMove America Forward, co-chaired by California campaigner Howard Kaloogian, has collected nearly 100,000 signatures on its petition to "Get the U.N. Out of the U.S." and stop American funding of the organization. "It has become an almost daily occurrence to read about allegations of rape and molestation by U.N....

Pressure Groups Impede Church's Voice, Says Cardinal Vatican Official Sees "New Inquisitions, Full of Money" VATICAN CITY, OCT. 19, 2004 (Zenit.org).- If John Paul II and the Church is little heard today, it is partly due to "powerful cultural, economic and political pressure groups," says Cardinal Renato Martino. The president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace expressed this concern Monday at the Vatican press office when presenting the book "Pope John Paul II and The Challenges of Papal Diplomacy -- Anthology (1978-2003), a collection of papal texts. According to the cardinal, there are today "new holy inquisitions full...

<p>Sacramento -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was dogged during his campaign by allegations of sexual misconduct, said Tuesday in an interview that he voluntarily participated in a sexual harassment prevention course along with his senior staff after taking office.</p> <p>"We all went through that a long time ago," Schwarzenegger said. "Absolutely. We all did."</p>

Arnold's Apology Mr. Schwarzenegger's response to the LATimes sexual misconduct indictment has won praise in various quarters for its deftness. Nimbly did Mr. Schwarzenegger neither deny nor admit the claims of six women, 1975 to 2000, of unwanted touching. Mr. Schwarzenegger did not point out, as I do now, that this amounts to 1 grope every four years, and he had no time to assemble contrary evidence. Surely, with a little time, he could have brought forward at least an equal number--and probably a whole lot more--of women who appreciated his attentions. Instead, Mr. Schwarzenegger apologized for any offense his...

EAGLE, Colo. (AP) -- Prosecutors need more time before deciding whether to bring charges against Kobe Bryant, who is accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a resort near Vail last week. "Sometimes it takes a while," District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said Monday. "It may be beyond the end of the week." He refused to discuss details of the allegations against the five-time NBA All-Star. Bryant's lawyer says he "expects to be completely exonerated," and accused the sheriff's office of rushing the case.

A news conference is scheduled for 5 PM PST. Please keep those of us office dwellars up to speed.

JAFFREY – Bishop John B. McCormack confronted angry parishioners Sunday as he explained why he assigned to their church a priest who had a sexual relationship with a teenage boy. "Don’t accuse me of lying. I’m not lying," he shouted as many in the crowd of about 200 at St. Patrick Church accused him of withholding information about the Rev. Roland Cote, who was assigned there from Nashua’s St. Louis de Gonzague this spring."You have no business being in this church," one woman told him. Another woman walked out during the 45-minute question-and-answer session and muttered, "How can a bishop...

SENECA FALLS (NY)- The Rev. David Gramkee stood before his parishioners at the 12:15 p.m. Mass yesterday at St. Patrick's Church, surrounded by life-long members of the church, families, and teary-eyed teens as he said what could be his final Mass there. Dwarfed by the vaulting roof and enormous cross behind the altar, Gramkee's voice echoed through the chamber as he retold one of his favorite tales. It was from Cecil B. DeMille, who watched a beetle break its shell and become a dragonfly. "A water beetle landed there, right on the edge of the canoe. I don't know the...

NEW YORK (AP) _ A high-ranking priest in the Archdiocese of New York resigned his positions as church pastor and auxiliary bishop after admitting to several affairs with women, the archdiocese announced Tuesday. Bishop James F. McCarthy, pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Shrub Oak in Westchester County, admitted to the affairs after they were brought to the attention of archdiocesan officials in a letter that arrived Saturday. ``I take this opportunity to express my personal care and concern for all involved in this situation, in particular any women and their families who may have been hurt, and...