Free Republic

Oil prices soared on Wednesday morning after U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted earlier in the day that Russia would better “get ready” for U.S. missiles in Syria. At 08:33 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, WTI Crude was above $66 and Brent—above the $71 mark. WTI Crude was up 0.92 percent to $66.12, while Brent Crude had jumped 0.87 percent at $71.66. “Russia vows to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria. Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and “smart!” You shouldn’t be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys...

When the Congressional Budget Office released its updated budget forecast, everyone focused on the deficit number. But buried in the report was the CBO's tacit admission that it vastly overestimated the cost of the Trump tax cuts, because it didn't account for the strong economic growth they would generate. Among the many details in the report, the one reporters focused on was the CBO's forecast that the federal deficit would top $1 trillion in 2020, two years earlier than the CBO had previously said. And, naturally, most news accounts blamed the tax cuts. "U.S. budget deficit to balloon on Republican...

President Trump signed an executive order Tuesday for a government-wide review of welfare programs, with a goal of putting more people back to work, White House officials said. The order directs all federal agencies involved in providing more than $700 billion in low-income assistance annually to study programs that are “failing Americans,” and to report back in 90 days with recommendations, said White House domestic policy council director Andrew Bremberg. “Our country still struggles from nearly record-high welfare enrollments,” Mr. Bremberg said in a conference call with reporters. “President Trump endorses reforms that ensure those in need receive assistance, while...

President Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order directing federal agencies to strengthen existing work requirements and introduce new ones for low-income Americans receiving Medicaid, food stamps, public housing benefits and welfare as part of a broad overhaul of government assistance programs. The order directs federal agencies to review all policies related to current work requirements as well as exemptions and waivers and report back to the White House with recommendations within 90 days. “Welfare reform is necessary to prosperity and independence,” said Andrew Bremberg, assistant to the president and director of Trump’s domestic policy council.

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and to promote economic mobility, strong social networks, and accountability to American taxpayers, it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1. Purpose. The United States and its Constitution were founded on the principles of freedom and equal opportunity for all. To ensure that all Americans would be able to realize the benefits of those principles, especially during hard times, the Government established programs to help families with basic unmet needs. Unfortunately, many of the programs designed to help families have...

The speech was written. A cast of relatable Americans with emotional stories was standing by to reinforce the message. But President Donald Trump was in no mood to play along. “The hell with it,” Trump said, recounting the scene with his aides to a West Virginia crowd last week, Trump tossed the staff-prepared remarks on tax cuts in the air and ducked as the paper fluttered to the floor. “I said, ‘This is boring, come on.’ Tell it like it is.” This president has never been one to stick to a script, but that abandoned speech illustrates a new phase...

At the Simmons College leadership conference in Boston on Thursday, former first lady Michelle Obama praised her husband’s presidency while taking a veiled swipe at the current occupant of the White House. She said that her husband’s administration was “like having the good parent at home.” In Michelle Obama’s warped view, her husband filled the national role of a “responsible parent, the one who told you to eat your carrots and go to bed on time.” This analogy is ridiculous as a “good parent” would not practically double the national debt, socialize healthcare, unconstitutionally grant amnesty to illegal aliens and...

Diplomacy is often considered the most Genteel and cultured of governmental pursuits. And that can work many times, when done right. But it can also fail miserably, as Winston Churchill clearly understood watching the ever-so-Genteel Neville Chamberlain botch what could have preempted World War II. And it has been failing America over multiple presidential administrations. Donald Trump is no Winston Churchill in eloquence or knowledge of history or philosophies or alcohol intake, but he has ChurchillÂ’s fiery love of country and willingness to speak bluntly outside the nicety circles while carrying a big stick to defend that beloved country. Refreshing...

Though there are numerous questions I could ask to determine if a fellow American gets his "news" from the DMIC (Democrat Media Industrial Complex), I usually lead with this one: "What political party is the party of the wealthy?" If the answer is "the Republican Party," I know that the individual is a regular consumer of DMIC propaganda. It's tempting to get angered at the individual, but I know that two of the ways the DMIC lies are by distorting and withholding. The Democratic Party is the party of the mega-, mega-wealthy. This is one of the dangerous cover-ups of...

Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., accidentally sent out a tweet Wednesday that appeared to be a draft. The tweet included a parenthetical reminder to “tag officials and tax march,” before sending the tweet where she said she would be participating in a march to call attention to the “GOP tax scam.”

Hillary Clinton blames misogyny, FBI, sexism, NRA, Russia for 2016 loss by Pete Kasperowicz | April 04, 2018 07:49 AM Hillary Clinton on Tuesday recited a list of several factors that contributed to her 2016 loss against Donald Trump, and said America is in a "really bad spot" with President Trump in the White House. "[E]very day that goes by there’s more evidence and more proof of Russia and fake news and Cambridge Analytica and misogyny and sexism," she said, according to Newsweek. "I mean it’s hard, it’s very hard." She said the "lock her up" chants that Trump led...

For a nation accustomed to instant gratification, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is a winner.Before President Donald Trump even signed the bill, companies were announcing employee pay raises, bonuses, and increased investments to grow their businesses and bring operations back from overseas.Among the first out of the gate was AT&T, which said it would give $1,000 bonuses to more than 200,000 nonmanagement employees and make an additional $1 billion investment in the United States. Boeing put $100 million toward training, education, and other workforce development. Walmart expanded paid parental leave and boosted starting wages to $11 an hour.Then in...

RUSH: I have for many, many moons now been informing everybody that the left, that the liberals, that the progressives, the Democrat Party cannot be open and honest about what it believes because if it were they would suffer tremendous defeats nationwide. Remember, I’ve always said that. They have to mask themselves. They have to camouflage themselves as centrists or other things. Obama was a master at it. Bill and Hillary Clinton were masters at it. But omething’s happening out there, and it’s gonna redound to our benefit, because the Democrats are now throwing off the masks. They are throwing...

Trump fans, of course, are ever-ready to remind us that the president wasn’t very popular when he won the presidency. That may bode well for his 2020 reelection prospects if he draws an opponent as unpopular as Hillary Clinton. But in midterms, poor presidential approval ratings invariably mean poor performance by the president’s party. The most important historical data point remains this: Presidents who go into the midterms with an approval rating under 50 percent have an average loss of 36 House seats. Democrats need 24 seats to take control. Trump and the GOP have a ways to go to...

Some of the biggest winners in the omnibus include the Commerce, Defense, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security and Transportation departments, which all had increases of more than 10 percent compared to fiscal 2017 enacted spending levels. The State Department was the only agency to see a decrease (when other international activities and overseas contingency operations funding are included), and the Environmental Protection Agency's budget is either flat or has a slight increase, depending which summary of the omnibus is used (a House Democratic summary shows an increase of $763 million or 9.5 percent over enacted fiscal 2017 levels...

Immigrants who accept almost any form of welfare or public benefit, even popular tax deductions, could be denied legal U.S. residency under a proposal awaiting approval by the Trump administration, which is seeking to reduce the number of foreigners living in the United States. According to a draft of the proposal obtained by The Washington Post, immigration caseworkers would be required to consider a much broader range of factors when determining whether immigrants or their U.S.-citizen children are using public benefits or may be likely to do so. Current rules penalize immigrants who receive cash welfare payments, considering them a...

A Poll by "The Hill" says most are not seeing change in paychecks due to tax cuts. True if you don't have overtime (12% instead of 15%) True if you don't take advantage of the Greater Standard Deduction and/or increased Child Credits by adjusting your W4. The Democrats are on Thin Ice.

Driven to desperation by their fury at President Trump’s election, his presidency, and Robert Mueller’s failure to substantiate the bogus Russia conspiracy fantasy, progressives are escalating their rhetoric, and in the process, unmasking their true beliefs. For decades, they have obscured their real goals, and pretended to be interested in moderate, incremental measures that they believe would be acceptable to mainstream Americans. Using terms like “compassion” and “fairness,” they have sought to justify handing more and more power to the state, and the importation of a population amenable to state control of all aspects of life. But in reaction to...

RUSH: Here’s Chuck You Schumer. This is in Washington today on the Senate floor. Audio sound bite No. 24. SCHUMER: Overall, we Democrats are very happy with what we’ve been able to accomplish on a number of very important priorities to the middle class in America: infrastructure, education, opioid treatment, mental health, child care. This spending agreement brings that era of austerity to an unceremonious end and represents one of the most significant investments in the middle class in decades. RUSH: I don’t know, folks. I just want to puke when I hear this stuff. I just want to vomit....

Nearly a week since U.S. President Donald Trump fired national security adviser Michael Flynn, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul advised against appointing former U.N. Ambassador and White House Chief of Staff John Bolton. Trump’s first choice, retired Navy special forces officer Robert Harward, who served under Defense Secretary John Mattis, turned down the position last week and reports say the White House has ruled out former CIA Director David Petraeus, who was ousted as the nation’s top spy amid a scandal over his sharing confidential documents with his mistress. Flynn resigned last week amid questions on whether he discussed sanctions with...