Free Republic

After you read this- you will wonder what country we are in. Tom Francois is an outspoken critic of Barack Hussein Obama- and has a robust Twitter presence. He also likes to dabble with his "paint" program to create funny cartoons. He has never threatened the President in any way, manner or form. On April 11, 2013, he heard relentless pounding on his door shouts of "Police!" The officers introduced themselves as members of The Secret Service and asked if they could "take a look around." Since Tom had nothing to hide (and he didn't want any return visits) -...

(CNN) - Sen. John McCain visited rebels in Syria on Monday, his communications director confirmed to CNN, making the Arizona Republican the highest ranking elected official from the United States to visit the war-torn country.

President Obama spent this afternoon visiting wounded service members at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, meeting 27 injured troops and awarding eight purple hearts. During his visit to the hospital the president met with 11 soldiers, 14 Marines, one sailor and one NATO forces member, according to the White House. Twenty-six of the service members that the president met were injured in Afghanistan and one was wounded in Iraq. The visit comes just two days after the president honored Iraq veterans at a White House dinner, praising those who served as heroes and welcoming them home after nearly nine...

Obama is attending a fundraiser on the West Side today -- and millions of people will spend two extra hours in their cars as a result President Obama is scheduled to land at LAX at about 2:45 P.M. Thursday. He then has to get to the Sony lot for a 4:30 fund-raising appearance, then up to Tavern in Brentwood for dinner and another fundraiser. He's staying overnight in the L.A. area -- they don't announce where, but at least some of the previous overnights have been at the Beverly Hilton. The city is advising that the traffic impacts should extend...

Video of the recent Netanyahu visiting the relatives of the family murdered in their sleep by a terrorist.

Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor paid a surprise visit to Rosa Parks Elementary School in West Berkeley this morning. Sotomayor is in Berkeley to judge a moot court competition at the University of California Berkeley Law School, Boalt Hall, this evening. The competition has been moved to Zellerbach Hall because of the demand for tickets. Sotomayor chose Rosa Parks because two children of law school dean Chris Edley and his wife, Maria Echaveste, attend the school, and she heard about its commitment to diversity and its Spanish language immersion program. Sotomayor is the first Hispanic Supreme Court justice and...

Seoul, South Korea - North Korean leader Kim Jong Il may have traveled to China in what would be his second visit to the country this year. The Yonhap news agency cites a high-ranking Seoul official as saying there are signs Kim went to China early Thursday. YTN television in Seoul is also reporting a possible Kim trip to China. A National Intelligence Service spokesman tells the AP the reports "appear to be true" but gave no further details. He spoke on condition of anonymity because of department policy. China's Foreign Ministry did not comment.

WASHINGTON, May 6, 2010 – Afghan President Hamid Karzai and several members of his Cabinet will visit Washington next week for several days of sessions focused on ensuring success of the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan and strengthening the two countries’ long-term partnership, defense officials confirmed today. The visit will begin with an opening ceremony at the State Department on May 11, and will include a meeting hosted by President Barack Obama at the White House the next day. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates is expected to participate in most of the sessions and will host a bilateral meeting at the...

Sarah Palin could have hardly picked a more crunchy granola town to give a speech in than Eugene. Despite its pioneer and logging heritage, the town where Nike running shoes were born from a waffle iron is high on organic food, snobby about craft beers and tattoos, home to the University of Oregon and dependably votes Democratic. Last year, the mayor declared the first week in May as Medical Marijuana Awareness Week.

Democrat president Barack Obama boarding Air Force One in Long Beach on a previous visit to California The good news for California Democrats is that their hero President Obama is returning to the Golden state this afternoon. The bad news is once again they'll have to hand over big money to see or hear him. Common Californians -- including the increasing 12.6% of whom are now unemployed -- will be unable to hear the president address the economy or mounting fears over his healthcare bill and its costs because his announced events on this West Coast trip Monday are political...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. judge ordered the Secret Service on Monday to disclose records of visits by nine prominent conservative Christian leaders to the White House and Vice President Dick Cheney's residence. The ruling, in response to a legal watchdog group's suit, could shed light on the influence leaders like James Dobson of Focus on the Family have had on President George W. Bush's administration. It may also affect legal efforts to force the release of visiting records of convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff and other similar cases. "We think that these conservative Christian leaders have had a very big...

TEHRAN, Iran - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez made his fourth trip to Iran in two years on Monday, state media reported, as the two countries sought to strengthen ties while their leaders exhort the international community to resist U.S. policies. Chavez, who arrived in Tehran from Saudi Arabia where he attended the weekend's OPEC summit, is expected to discuss various political and economic issues with his Iranian counterpart, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported. Chavez was accompanied by a string of top Venezuelan officials for the hours-long visit — among them the foreign, industry, oil and communication...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26, 2007 – Award-winning actor Robert Duvall certainly wasn’t gone in 60 seconds when he stopped at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here yesterday to visit wounded servicemembers. (Video) Retired Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Dan Cordell shakes hands with actor Robert Duvall, who spent time visiting wounded servicemembers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington on Sept. 25, 2007. Cordell was injured Sept. 13 while working as a contractor in Iraq. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Molly A. Burgess, USN  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. He did discover, however, that his 2000 movie...

DAMASCUS, Syria - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad lashed out Thursday at unspecified enemies of the troubled Middle East, warning them to abandon their "hostile plans." During a one-day trip to Damascus, Ahmadinejad held talks with Syrian President Bashar Assad, who said their discussions focused on Iraq, the Palestinian territories and Lebanon, where both Tehran and Damascus wield influence. "The enemies of the region should abandon plans to attack the interests of this region, or they will be burned by the wrath of the region's peoples," the hardline Iranian leader said at a joint press conference with Assad. Both Iran and...

Klobuchar says the soldiers she spoke with are stoic about their mission, but are eager to come home. The Minnesota Democrat, who has opposed the escalation of the war, says she favors a surge in diplomacy, a gradual pullout of troops and a transferring of authority to the Iraqi government.

BAGHDAD, Iraq - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (news, bio, voting record) and Rep. John Murtha (news, bio, voting record), both vocal war critics, were in the Iraqi capital Friday at the head of a delegation of House members on a fact-finding mission as the White House and Congress dueled over the expansion of U.S. forces in Iraq. The Pelosi delegation visited the heavily fortified Green Zone, site of the American Embassy, and met with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. "We come out of the meeting with a greater understanding of the others' point of view," Pelosi, D-Calif., said, in brief...

HRH The Duke of Edinburgh meets troops from The Queen’s Royal Hussars during a surprise visit to Basra, Iraq on Oct. 22. BASRA -- His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh made a surprise visit to the British Army in Iraq Sunday. He was visiting The Queen’s Royal Hussars (QRH) in Basra in his role as the Regiment’s Colonel in Chief. He offered his praise to the cavalry soldiers, who are only a few weeks away from the end of their six-and-a-half month tour of Iraq. “It’s a great pleasure to see you here. Everyone at home has been following...

Chief of Staff of the Army, Gen. Peter Schoomaker pins a Purple Heart on Spc. Rebecca Macintyre, a motor transport operator with the 96th Aviation Support Battalion, 101st Airborne Division, during a ceremony at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Michael Pfaff Chief of Staff Visits Soldiers at Speicher By U.S. Army Spc. Michael Pfaff TIKRIT, Iraq, Aug. 21, 2006 -- Chief of Staff of the Army, Gen. Peter Schoomaker visited troops at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, Iraq, Aug. 16. Schoomaker met with troops during several reenlistment, award, and “coin” ceremonies, in which Schoomaker personally...

CAMP AL ASAD, Iraq (Aug. 8, 2006) -- When Army Maj. John W. Penree decided to pay his nephew, Marine Sgt. Peter A. Penree Jr., a visit in Iraq’s Al Anbar province, the timing couldn’t have been better. The circumstances, however, probably could have. Both men are currently deployed to Iraq – Penree Jr., serves with the Hawaii-based 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment in western Al Anbar Province; Maj. Penree with the Wiesbaden, Germany-based 3rd Corps Support Command in Balad, Iraq. Penree Jr., a 23-year-old Marine infantryman from Frankfort, N.Y., was wounded recently when a suicide bomber drove a truck...

U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Michael O. Johanns, left, and Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Salam al-Zawbai sign an agreement Tuesday August 1, 2006 to keep working together to help Iraq's agricultural future. BAGHDAD -- U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns arrived in Iraq Tuesday to meet with high-level Iraqi officials, as well as Iraqi agricultural producers. Johanns was joined by representatives from the private sector, academia and the press. "Many people are surprised to learn how important the agriculture sector is in Iraq and how much potential it holds," said Johanns. "I am eager to meet face to face with Iraqi...