Free Republic

"The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act" isn't living up to its promise. Also known as Proposition 47, the California ballot initiative, which was approved in November 2014 with 60 percent of the vote, downgraded drug possession and many property crimes from a felony to a misdemeanor. Proponents argued that lesser punishment for low-level offenders would enhance public safety. San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon was the rare prosecutor who pushed for its approval. He told the San Francisco Chronicle, "What we have been doing hasn't worked, frankly." Gascon spokesman Alex Bastian told me, "The voters indicated that possessing small amounts...

There is no human being who, looking back on their life, hasn’t had the thought, “If I only knew then what I know now…” It’s human nature. No matter how long ago “then” was, hindsight is always 20/20. This isn’t about Hillary Clinton and her secret, unsecured email server. She didn’t make a bad choice and end up skirting the law; she made a conscious decision and is now getting caught. That’s karma, not virgin ignorance. No, I’m not writing about Hillary’s ever-changing email excuses (I already analyzed that here on Friday) or anything else political. This is personal –...

Our country is in a crap sling of gastronomical proportions. I was going to say astronomical but this thing is more gassy than it is interplanetary. You wanna know how messed up weÂ’ve become? Well, for one, Kim Kardashian has 43 million followers on Instagram just waiting for her to post a pic of her ample ass-ets. Secondly, social media dipsticks think Cecil The LionÂ’s plight was/is more important than Planned Parenthood's dealing aborted baby body parts. Thirdly, there are actually people in this country, who call themselves Americans, whoÂ’re contemplating making Hillary Clinton president. Look, as far as IÂ’m...

<p>Senate Republicans had a chance to stop Planned Parenthood from butchering unborn children and selling their body parts to the highest bidder. Instead, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell refused to put up a vote -- thumbing his nose at Senators Mike Lee and Ted Cruz, along with every pro-lifer in the nation.</p>

One year later, the aftershocks from Tea Party favorite Dave Brat’s stunning win over then-House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) are still rippling across Washington. (SNIP) Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) had just arrived at a birthday fundraiser for Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-Kan.) at Del Frisco’s Grille, a steakhouse near the White House. She would later tell McHenry that Cantor’s unexpected loss had made it her worst birthday ever. A few blocks away, Rep. Bill Flores (R-Texas) was sitting down to dinner with Republican Study Committee (RSC) Chairman

"We have now sunk to a depth at which the restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men." – George Orwell Despite all the gnashing of teeth from the Left over Donald Trump’s comments about illegal aliens and liberals’ deliberate attempts to distort what he said, his controversial comments about Mexico are absolutely correct. "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. …They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems to us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people." Despite attempts to...

"We have now sunk to a depth at which the restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men." – George Orwell Despite all the gnashing of teeth from the Left over Donald Trump’s comments about illegal aliens and liberals’ deliberate attempts to distort what he said, his controversial comments about Mexico are absolutely correct. "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. …They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems to us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people." Despite attempts to...

Politics today seems to be dominated by an “either you’re in or you’re out mentality.” If you’re a good Republican, a good Christian, and a good conservative, then you really can’t support gay marriage—at least, that’s what I’m constantly being told. “We can’t redefine an institution that’s been around for thousands of years,” opponents of marriage equality say. “To do so would be to radically transform the way society has always understood marriage. That’s just not what conservatism is all about.” But is that really true? It seems to me the heroes of the modern conservative movement— individuals such as...

I don't know about for you, but for me, the most inspiring interview of the week occurred when CNBC's John Harwood interviewed presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders. It generated a couple of thoughts in my head that I'm confident will be game changers. I'm secretly hoping that the Sanders team will offer me a job as their Chief Economic Consultant, as a result. Here was the part of the exchange that really got my carbon-neutral cruelty-free non-fossil-fueled engine running: Harwood: If the changes that you envision in tax policy, in finance, breaking up the banks, were to result in a more...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)DES MOINES, Iowa — The first person to declare they are running for president will be in the metro Thursday night. Republican Senator Ted Cruz is in Iowa meeting with voters just one week after he announced his candidacy for president. Cruz made his first public appearance in the state that holds the first in the nation caucuses Wednesday in Sioux City. Cruz told the crowd at Morningside College that in order to have a bright future, the country has to look to the principles of the past. He talked about restoring free enterprise, tax reform, and regulatory reform. To...

Already, we have the greatest video of the 2016 presidential election cycle. Rick Santorum -- And have I mentioned recently what a colossal dick Rick Santorum is? -- was down in the home office of American Sedition for one of those mock "summits" designed to lift the wallets of terrified caucasian separatists. A lady got up in the audience, opened her mouth to speak, and huge bats flew out. Why is the Congress rolling over and letting this Communist dictator destroy my country? Y'all know what he is and I know what he is. I want him out of the...

resident Obama sure is consistent. His State of the Union address sounded like his other speeches: What I've done is great! America is in a much better position. We've created a manufacturing sector that's adding jobs. More oil is produced at home. I cut deficits in half! Give me a break. The deficit is lower now not because of any prudence on Obama's part but merely because the $800 billion stimulus spending blowout didn't continue. All the president does is increase spending: free community college, free Obamaphones, free birth control, etc. Yes, our annual deficit is lower, but it's still...

Since 9/11, the Western world's academic, media, political elites have done their best to portray Islam in a favorable light, treating it very differently from all other religions. Criticism of every doctrine, religious or secular, is permitted, often encouraged. But not of Islam. Only positive depictions are allowed. We'll start with an example of pro-Islamic bias that is so ubiquitous that no one seems to notice it. Why do Western media -- overwhelmingly composed of irreligious people, one might add -- always deferentially refer to Muhammad as "the Prophet Muhammad" in news articles and opinion pieces? When Jesus is mentioned,...

Carly Fiorina is gearing up to run for president. National Journal reports she already has begun hiring staff. Fiorina has run for office only once, as the Republican challenger to Sen. Barbara Boxer of California in 2010 -- and she lost. Still, the former Hewlett-Packard CEO won prime attention by running and losing. She's on "Meet the Press" all the time. She's still rich and still good-looking. (In 2010, Fiorina and husband Frank claimed a combined net worth of $30 million to $120 million.) Insiders think she's probably running for vice president; if Hillary Clinton is the Dems' nominee, the...

The political class breathed a sigh of relief Saturday when the US Senate averted a government shutdown by passing the $1.1 trillion omnibus spending bill. This year's omnibus resembles omnibuses of Christmas past in that it was drafted in secret, was full of special interest deals and disguised spending increases, and was voted on before most members could read it. The debate over the omnibus may have made for entertaining political theater, but the outcome was never in doubt. Most House and Senate members are so terrified of another government shutdown that they would rather vote for a 1,774-page bill...

Now that Republicans will control both houses of Congress, they will have an opportunity to deal with Obamacare. What should be done? They can begin by repealing the worst features of Obamacare. They can do that by keeping three promises many of them made to voters during the last election: Keep your job; keep your health insurance; and keep your doctor. The most direct way to get rid of all the anti-job provisions of ObamaCare is to repeal the employer mandate. The most direct way to insure that people can keep insurance they like is to repeal the individual mandate....

The Partnership for a New American Economy today launched a new ad campaign calling on Congress to act on immigration reform this year. (SNIP) The ad will premiere tonight at the PNAE, FWD.us, and U.S. Chamber of Commerce event, “#iCodeImmigration: Accelerating Immigration Reform,” in Washington DC, featuring Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL-25) and Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-SC-5).

For decades, the black vote in the United States almost uniformly has gone to Democrats. How’s that working out? Black unemployment is twice the national average, poverty rates are higher than before Democrats offered “help,” and the education system fails a disproportionate number of black children. That’s what 50-plus years of blind voting loyalty to Democrats has earned. And, thanks to those same Democrats and the nation’s first black president, it’s about to get a lot worse. President Obama is set to legalize upwards of 5 million illegal aliens, with the dream of granting amnesty and citizenship to 6 million...

VIDEO of a recent Upstate SC townhall, moderated by Josh Kimbrell, at Dickey's Barbecue Pit at the Village Greens Golf Course in Inman, South Carolina. The video was produced by the Mulch Tank Business and Leadership Center (www.MulchTank.com) located in Spartanburg, South Carolina

Local media is reporting that the Obama administration has taken control of access to two Ferguson, Missouri townhall meetings on the Mike Brown shooting being held Monday evening. The Department of Justice has limited attendance to Ferguson residents only and has ordered ID checks to gain entry. DOJ banned reporters. In a First Amendment irony, the meetings are being held in churches: Wellspring and Pour Lady of Guadalupe. The shooting of unarmed 18 year old black robber by white police officer Darren Wilson after a confrontation that occurred just minutes after Brown robbed a convenience store has stoked national controversy....