Free Republic

I strongly support Ron DeSantis in the race to become the Republican nominee. I am not unpersuadable. Certainly not NeverTrump. If it is Trump v. Democrat, I am Trump. Easy call, that. But I am, in fact, a fan of Ron DeSantis. You already know that, but I want to lay my cards on the table as the primary battle heats up. DeSantis has been an outstanding governor of Florida, and his electoral victory and the huge level of support in Florida (nearly 60% approval) demonstrate that Floridians as a group agree with that sentiment. DeSantis turned Florida deep Red...

Governor Andrew Cuomo was praised by his lieutenant governor as a “real leader” on electronic records preservation as she attacked legislators for not being transparent.

Maura Pfefferman’s journey has come to a premature end. Jeffrey Tambor has announced that he will not return to Transparent for its upcoming fifth season. He issued the following statement to our sister site Deadline: Playing Maura Pfefferman on Transparent has been one of the greatest privileges and creative experiences of my life. What has become clear over the past weeks, however, is that this is no longer the job I signed up for four years ago. I’ve already made clear my deep regret if any action of mine was ever misinterpreted by anyone as being aggressive, but the idea...

Jeffrey Tambor has been accused of sexual assault by a second transgender person - his fellow Transparent actor Trace Lysette. Lysette, who plays yoga instructor Shea in the show, claims Tambor pressed up against her in a sexual way during filming and repeatedly made lewd sexually suggestive remarks.

This was from "the most transparent administration in history" Obama spent a record $36 million fighting information requests The Obama administration blew a record $36.2 million in taxpayer funds on legal costs in its final year fighting requests for federal records under the Freedom of Information Act (FoIA), according to an analysis by a media outlet unnamed here that is known to freak out and threaten lawsuits when its material appears in other media. The litigation study was conducted by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University.

Crew members working on “Transparent” are reportedly upset with gender-neutral bathrooms on set — and too afraid to speak up. Toilets on the set of the critically acclaimed Amazon hit about a transgender woman’s journey are open to male, female and transgender occupants, reports TMZ, making some uncomfortable with the prospect of running into a different gender in the restroom. But fear of appearing intolerant on the Emmy-winning series celebrated for its inclusiveness has apparently kept disgruntled employees from complaining. The bathrooms contain at least two stalls and two urinals, photos obtained by the gossip site show. They have been...

President Barack Obama on Monday lashed out at U.S. reporters for failing to “dig deeper and to demand more” from the current crop of presidential candidates. Members of the press quickly bit back at the leader of the “most transparent” administration in U.S. history.[snip] The president challenged reporters to ask tougher questions of candidates rather than “feed the beast” with gossip and soft news. “A job well done is about more than just handing someone a microphone. It’s to probe and to question and to dig deeper and to demand more,” Obama said.

Hillary Clinton believes she's the most transparent person in American history. The Democratic presidential candidate made the claim in a town hall this morning, hosted by NBC's Today Show: The Weekly Standard home magazine blog podcasts politics & government Foreign policy & national security books, arts & society newsletter store events Subscribe You are here: Blog / Hillary: I'm the Most Transparent Person in American History The Blog Hillary: I'm the Most Transparent Person in American History 8:17 AM, Oct 5, 2015 • By DANIEL HALPER Share on email 16 Send to Kindle Single Page Print Larger Text Smaller Text...

U.S. stocks traded about 2 percent lower on Friday, extending a recent rout, as concerns about slowing global growth continued to pressure investor sentiment. ( Tweet This ) The Dow Jones industrial average briefly fell into correction territory, losing more than 470 points as all blue chips declined. In the last five years, the index has only had four instances with closing losses of more than 400 points. "It's an expiration day and it looks like they're to have for sale on the close maybe as much as a billion dollars," said Art Cashin, director of floor trading for UBS....

ANALYSIS/OPINION: The civility chorus may at last be getting what it wants, a shutdown of debate in the name of piety and good manners. Honest debate frightens the chorus, whose sopranos and tenors forget that debate, sometimes gentle and sometimes loud and robust, is what Congress is meant to be about. Rep. Paul Ryan, once the tough numbers cruncher for the Republicans, has been the eager point man for President Obama in the campaign to give him authority to make unilateral trade deals that include far more than mere trade. Mr. Ryan is having trouble dealing with partisan stress on...

At the Treasury Department, the memo came down from the deputy executive secretary, Wally Adeyemo, in December of 2009. Going forward, the memo stated, “sensitive information” requested under the Freedom of Information Act was to be reviewed not only by career FOIA officials but also by a committee of political appointees... before release. And it didn’t just happen at Treasury, but at the IRS and the Department of Homeland Security, too. Current and former FOIA attorneys at these agencies say documents requested by the media have come in for special scrutiny, called “sensitive review,” often holding up release for weeks...

SEATTLE (Tribune News Service) — President Barack Obama continues to boast that he runs “the most transparent administration in history” with a straight face. But the claim doesn’t even pass the giggle test. His administration has an abysmal record of prosecuting more whistleblowers than any predecessor. His administration’s compliance with the Freedom of Information Act has gotten worse, rather than better, the longer he is in office. And he routinely sidesteps the seasoned White House press corps to sit for interviews with the likes of YouTube stars. Add to the list of transgressions the new disclosure that former Secretary of...

For the second consecutive year, the Obama administration more often than ever censored government files or outright denied access to them under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, according to a new analysis of federal data by The Associated Press. The government took longer to turn over files when it provided any, said more regularly that it couldn't find documents, and refused a record number of times to turn over files quickly that might be especially newsworthy.

'Most Transparent' White House Dumps FOIA Regulations for Itself Transparency advocates hammer Obama administration for change. President Barack Obama says he's running the most transparent administration in history, but transparency advocates aren't applauding. By Steven Nelson March 17, 2015 | 6:56 p.m. EDT The Obama administration announced Tuesday it will ditch regulations that subjected large portions of White House correspondence to public records requests, a decision derided by transparency advocates who wryly noted it was issued during a week celebrating open access to government.The notice exempting the White House's Office of Administration from the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act...

Lies, lies, and nothing but lies. The lies end now. As reported moments ago, the White House is voiding a federal regulation that subjects its Office of Administration to the Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA (incidentally the same act that discovered none of Hillary Clinton's "personal" government-business emails since they were not even stored on government property!) which as USA Today explains, makes "official a policy under Presidents Bush and Obama to reject requests for records to that office." And just like that the lie of Obama's transparency is over, and it couldn't come at a worse time for...

Amazon proved itself a major player in the television field when its original program “Transparent” won the Golden Globe for best TV series, musical or comedy and star Jeffrey Tambor won best actor. Not only was it Amazon’s first-ever Golden Globe award, “Transparent” also became the first online series to ever win a best series award, comedy or drama, at the annual awards show. “My new best friend,” Tambor said of the digital media company during his acceptance speech. The series stars Tambor as a father of three who reveals he identifies as a woman. There was a lot of...

So President Obama has announced that the Internet should be regulated as a public utility. He's asking the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to reclassify internet service providers (ISPs) from "information services" under Title I as telecommunications providers under Title II regulatory guidelines. (See here for background on the distinction.) This is all being done in the name of "Net Neutrality," keeping the Internet free and open, prohibiting "fast lanes" for certain services and sites, making sure no legal content is blocked, and all other horribles that...have failed to materialize in the absence of increased federal regulation. Reason contributor and Clemson...

The Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution is crystal clear in meaning. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. FBI Director, James Comey, an Obama appointment, does not give a damn what the Constitution says. In a recent speech, Comey warns If Apple and Google Won't Decrypt Phones, We'll Force Them To Everyone...

The White House on Sunday stood by President Obama's position that he continues to be the most transparent president in U.S. history, despite widespread complaints from journalists and other Americans about a lack of information or apparent misinformation. “I have a responsibility in this job to try to help the president live up to his commitment to be the most transparent president in history,” new White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said on CNN’s “Reliable Sources.” Earnest said he “absolutely, absolutely” sticks by Obama’s line about having the most transparent administration, after continued criticism about apparent attempts to not make...

In a lightly publicized press conference, Secretary of State John Kerry told members of the Mexican media that “I believe President Obama will go down in history as the president who has held himself and his administration accountable to the highest standards of transparency and accountability.” While GOP critics of the Administration have repeatedly battled to try to obtain documents relating to the numerous scandals—Fast and Furious, NSA spying, IRS mistreatment of conservative groups, the Benghazi massacre, and “death-by-delay” at Veterans Administration hospitals—Kerry insisted that “the fact that people are aware of these events proves the Administration has not suppressed...