Free Republic

Before jetting off for two weeks’ vacation, President Obama laid the blame for the Iraq crisis at the doorstep of the Bush administration. At a brief press conference Saturday on the White House lawn, Obama scoffed at the notion that he might regret not having left a residual American force in Iraq. “Under the previous administration, we had turned over the country to a sovereign democratic Iraqi government,” Obama said. “In order for us to leave troops in Iraq, we needed the invitation of the Iraqi government, … and the Iraqi government, based on its political considerations, in part because...

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., demanded Friday that Republicans take down a "Slap Hillary" site that features a flash game where players can slap the former Secretary of State, Twitchy reported. **SNIP** But it seems Pelosi's outrage is somewhat selective. The California Democrat said nothing about a "Slap Palin" site that encourages those on the left to "Slap some sense into Sarah Palin." We did not link to the page as it includes a sexually-explicit Photoshopped image portraying the former Alaska governor.

WASHINGTON — Top defense officials were to meet Thursday to discuss trimming the list of countries where servicemembers’ paychecks are pumped up by imminent danger pay. The officials were considering eliminating imminent danger pay in 18 countries and 5 waterways around the world that military officials believe may no longer be hazardous enough to warrant the extra pay. According to a Wednesday report from The Associated Press, that could affect up to 56,000 troops who serve in, sail through or fly over designated danger zones, saving the department $120 million annually. A defense official who spoke on the condition of...

The Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) announced its opposition to the potential appointment of former Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE) as Secretary of Defense, citing a long list of actions Hagel has taken that raise alarms about his failure to support Israel. Hagel is said to be the leading contender to replace Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, who is expected to step down early next year. The RJC outlined a number of instances highlighting Hagel’s anti-Israel record: In August 2006, Hagel was one of only 12 Senators who refused to write the EU asking them to declare Hizbullah a terrorist organization; In October...

Those warm, loving, kind-hearted leftists will turn on you so fast: last night an enraged supporter of Tom Barrett slapped him for conceding the race. (HT: The Hope for America.) I don’t recall – no pun intended – this sort of thing ever happening on an Election Night before. I wonder how Democratic officeholders and their professional class feel about having a grassroots base that is, at least in some parts, psychotic enough to resort to physical violence upon their own candidates for acknowledging reality. At the time, Barrett trailed by about 10 percentage points or 200,000 votes; as of...

(Reuters) - The brother of Pope Benedict said in an interview on Tuesday he slapped pupils in the face at a German school where he led the choir, but had been unaware of the brutality of discipline there Rev. Georg Ratzinger, 86, made the comments to a German paper following charges of sexual and physical abuse in Catholic schools in the pope's native Bavaria. Sexual abuse scandals have also rocked the church in the United States and Ireland. The diocese has said one priest abused two boys sexually in 1958 and was sentenced to two years in jail. Another clergyman...

Original in Japanese: グリーン雇用」提唱者、米特別顧問辞任　政権に打撃My translated synopsis: Reporter Mr. Katsuta from Washington reports for Asahi Shimbun news that the one person who asserted "Green Jobs" for the Obama Administration, Mr. Van Jones, has resigned. He was in charge as a special advisor to the President for Environmental Quality....right in the middle of President Obama's declining popularity as being hit on his health care reform policies, comes this resignation. As for the Obama Administration, this development has all the trappings of being a new smack in the face. ....Jones had signed on to a petition questioning the culpability of previous President Bush...

President Barack Obama got the $825 (or $1.2 trillion over a decade) stimulus package through the House of Representatives but the 244 to 188 vote is a hollow victory indeed. Without a single Republican voting for the bill, his high-profile visit to Capitol Hill on Tuesday came to exactly naught - at least on the House side. Obama vowed to change Washington and usher in a new post-partisan era. The the mood music and optics were pitch perfect as he trekked up to the Hill. Republicans praised his gesture, welcomed his sincere demeanour and appreciated his willingness to listen. Problem...

"Peace Activists" Slap Female Blogger Twice--Encourage Others to Violence" Written by Melanie Morgan    Sunday, 23 March 2008 Many times I have been threatened with violence, as well as our staff at Move America Forward. We simply shrug off the danger, and continue with our work to support our troops. 'Skye' at MidnightBlue.com wasn't so lucky yesterday in Philadelphia, Pa. She was slapped TWICE by so-called 'peace activists'. Video verifying 'Skye's' account coming shortly. And photos. 'Skye' with Michelle Malkin. Skye with Larry Bailey of Gathering of Eagles. She sent me two e-mails. Here's the first. Melanie, I am...

FORT WORTH -- A Fort Worth police officer was arrested Wednesday on allegations that he slapped the rear of a woman he caught engaging in sexual conduct in a car in Oakhurst Park in June.Officer Craig Murrah, who has been with the department since 2001, was arrested on a warrant for "official oppression," a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to two years in a county jail and a fine of up to $4,000.Murrah is on restricted duty pending a review of the case by the Tarrant County district attorney's office. According to a news release by the Fort Worth...

The Iranian president has warned that his nation's enemies will receive a "historical slap in the face" in return for any show of aggression towards the Islamic state. Iran factfile Addressing a rally in the southwestern city of Khorramshahr, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad insisted that Iran was entitled to develop a full range of nuclear technology. And he warned: "Any kind of aggression or thoughts of assaults will receive a historical slap in the face by the youth of Khorramshahr and the Iranian nation." His comments came ahead of a UN Security Council meeting aimed at resolving the worsening diplomatic crisis...

I can't help but think: what do the thoughtful Huffposters really want out of this media-inflated standoff with President Bush? It must be: The CHIEF BRODY SLAP. THE CHIEF BRODY SLAP is based on the infamous scene in Jaws when a distraught mom slaps Roy Scheider across the face. Her son was eaten by a shark, but she blames the sheriff. Because he didn't do enough. It's not the shark, it's the sheriff. It's like me blaming Arianna for Christine Lahti's post. But unjustified. And with a shark. THE CHIEF BRODY SLAP (CBS) is a chief staple in an any...

Sandy Berger... former National Security Advisor and Thief of Classified Documents, Receives slap on the Wrist As Bureaucracy covers for "it's own" DojGov.net Newswire 6 April 2005 The Justice Department said yesterday there was no evidence that former national security adviser Samuel R. "Sandy" Berger was trying to conceal information when he illegally took copies of classified terrorism documents out of the National Archives in 2003. This is in spite of the fact that he stole classified documents, destroyed them and lied about his actions in an attempt to revise historical events. Under an agreement with US Department of Justice...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Rep. Maxine Waters, one of the city's most prominent political voices, labeled Mayor James Hahn a failure Thursday and endorsed his rival in the May runoff, Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa. Hahn's campaign shrugged off the defection - Waters supported the mayor four years ago - but it came as the latest reminder of the incumbent's unsteady relationship with the black community. Hahn was elected with overwhelming black support but saw his popularity fade after the ouster of the city's black police chief, Bernard Parks. With Villaraigosa at her side at a Wilshire district hotel, Waters, who is...

New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) has long been rumored as desperately seeking the democratic nomination for president in 2008. And while many political observers fully expect the power hungry former First Lady to hit the campaign trail within only a few months of being re-elected as a US Senator in 2006, US News & World report claims to have a confirmation of sorts. From USNews.Com's Washington Whispers: Hillary's in… You don't have to take it from us about Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton 's desire to run for president. Her brothers, Hugh and Tony Rodham, say it's true. Friends...

Thats right... The Votes are in... they have been counted... and despite what you see on the news, Bush has been fired!... Kerry WINS!

Republicans, we are letting President Bush's face get slapped way too much on slapthecandidate.com. As of 5:00 a.m., Bush had been slapped 612,576 times more than Kerry. Now, I realize this is a silly internet game, but I can't stand the thought of the Dems beating us at anything. Will you all please take the time to log onto that site (sorry, I don't know how to give a link), and slap Kerry around a bit? At any given moment, there are many more Dems on that site than Republicans--probably because we have LIVES. Nevertheless, we need to win this...

this is so much fun, and really makes you feel good! SLAP KERRY! right now its: 246788 slaps for Kerry 330645 slaps for Bush

After watching the presidential debate Thursday night, two UNC students ended up ...

MIAMI -- A plane passenger slapped a federal air marshal after refusing to sit down and ignoring instructions to end her cellular phone call, which she said would have been "rude," prosecutors said Tuesday. Lilia Belkova has been jailed since being charged with assaulting a federal officer and interfering with a flight crew last Wednesday as a US Airways flight prepared to take off from Miami to Philadelphia. A bail hearing was set for Thursday. It was unclear late Tuesday if Belkova, 38, had yet been assigned an attorney. According to prosecutors, Belkova refused flight attendants' instructions to turn off...