Free Republic

Democrat gubernatorial hopeful Rep. Charlie Crist (D) said this week that it is a “grim day” in Florida because Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed legislation barring age-inappropriate classroom discussions on sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten classrooms. “It’s a grim day for Florida. Today especially, I want our LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters in Florida and across the country to know that they are loved and will always be welcomed in the Sunshine State,” the Democrat and former Florida governor said on the day DeSantis signed the Parental Rights in Education act, essentially mourning for LGBT Americans and repeating the...

Former Republican-turned-Independent-turned Democrat Charlie Crist, interviewed with MSNBC’s Ed Schultz this week and stated that he would raise taxes, if he was elected Governor of Florida in 2014. Here is the exchange between Ed Schultz and the one-time “I am pro-life, I’m pro-gun, I’m pro-family and I’m anti-tax” Charlie Crist. Schultz: What do you think about Florida’s finances, and what do you expect out of the wealthiest residents? Crist: I think we both have to expect more of each other. I don’t like to raise taxes. I don’t think that anyone really enjoys the idea of doing that, I did...

And so it begins. Former Republican-turned-Independent-turned-Democrat, Charlie Crist, has finally launched his much anticipated gubernatorial campaign against Rick Scott. Well, kind of. The website CharlieCrist.com has just launch, asking Floridians to share their comments with the former governor, because as Crist believes,” Only you, the people, can get Florida back to common sense.” -

Censured Rep. Charles Rangel is not in the clear yet when it comes to his ethics problems: he faces a Federal Election Commission (FEC) probe into alleged misuse of campaign funds for his legal defense. The FEC, according to the New York Post, has taken up a complaint filed by the right-leaning National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC) that Rangel (D-N.Y.) used funds from his National Leadership PAC to pay for legal counsel for the House ethics case that ended in his censure last week. To avoid paying legal services out of their own pockets, lawmakers are only permitted to...

PAGO PAGO, American Samoa (AP) ― American Samoa's last remaining tuna cannery announced it is cutting its work force in the U.S. territory by an additional 600 to 800 people to keep up with global competition. Pittsburgh-based StarKist Co. said Thursday in a news release that the layoffs over the next six months will shrink its American Samoa work force to less than 1,200 employees, down from a high of more than 3,000 in 2008. StarKist President and CEO Don Binotto said in the release that it is difficult to compete when workers' wages are nearly 10 times those of...

Starkist Samoa, Gov. Togiola T.A. Tulafono and some local businesses have voiced their disappointment with the passage of a federal bill, that includes provisions to increase minimum wages for American Samoa over a period of time. StarKist Samoa had planned to launched next month the expansion of its tuna pouch production, after it was transferred early this year from Ecuador. The company planned to hire between 200-300 workers, but some employees say they were informed Wednesday that this project is on hold. - ADVERTISEMENT - Bank of Hawaii Small Business Resource Provisions of the federal supplemental bill that provide millions...

Pelosi warns Bush shouldn't 'abuse power' on troop escalation (01-15) 12:37 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, returning to her hometown of San Francisco, strongly warned today that President Bush "should not abuse his power" with regard to troop escalation in the Iraq war and said it is the duty of Congress to "exercise oversight over his power.'' "If the president doesn't have a plan, Democrats will hold him accountable," Pelosi said in her first public appearance outside Washington since her election as speaker Jan. 4. Regarding Bush's decision to push ahead with an escalation of about 21,500...

I guess my question is, how do we expect to defend ourselves against terrorism? We're fighting a war overseas and we can't even keep it together here! Sure, there have been incidences of foreign terrorists (specifically the WTC in '93 and of course on 9/11 along with the Pentagon and the downing of Flight United 93), but there is domestic terrorism! Does anyone remember Timothy McVeigh or Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris? With the latter mentioned, these were two sick individuals who were planning on a wide scale attack on their school. Fortunately, they weren't able to pull it off...

A good quick read...

"Intelligent design." It's been in the news a lot lately. Lawsuits over textbook stickers, the presentation of evolution and the legality of presenting alternatives, have thrust the term into public awareness. But just what is intelligent design? To hear some folks talk, you'd think it's a scam to sneak Genesis into science classrooms. Yet intelligent design has nothing to do with the six days of creation and everything to do with hard evidence and logic. Intelligent design (ID) is grounded on the ancient observation that the world looks very much as if it had an intelligent source. Indeed, as early...

Thirty hours and thirty minutes until the clock strikes Saddam! Please keep the clock bumped and updated so we can count the ticks...until the beginning of the end of the wealthy, murderous, French backed dictator!