Free Republic

"They would rather Hillary Clinton, they would rather bankrupt our kids and grandkids, they'd rather lose the Supreme Court for a generation, they'd rather see our religious liberties stripped away, our Second Amendment taken away, they would rather see Islamic terrorism continue to rise and Israel continue to be under assault than actually have a true Reagan conservative in the White House who believes what he says. That shows just how messed up Washington is, but it also shows why frustration is volcanic."...

Ammon Bundy, the rancher who led an armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon, abruptly reversed course Tuesday and withdrew a request to be released from custody as he awaits trial on a felony conspiracy charge, court papers showed. Bundy had initially been scheduled Tuesday to ask a federal judge in Oregon to release him on electronic GPS surveillance, his attorney Mike Arnold said. But now Bundy will resubmit that request at a later time, his attorneys said in court papers. He will stay incarcerated "to gather further evidence of his statements and actions encouraging a peaceful protest...

Commemorates International Holocaust Remembrance DayHOUSTON, Texas - Today Presidential Candidate Ted Cruz released the following statement in honor of International Holocaust Remembrance Day."Today the world remembers the greatest atrocity in human history. The utter horror of the Holocaust must never be forgotten. We mourn for the millions of people who lost their lives and the families who lost their loved ones. And we honor the heroism of the Jewish people - and all those who were persecuted - their courage will always reverberate throughout the world."Just last week, it was reported that the Israeli citizen and Holocaust survivor Yisrael Kristal...

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America founder Paul Rieckhoff tweeted Wednesday that he would decline any contributions that came from the event, which Trump has proposed in place of his attending Fox News' debate this week. "If offered, @IAVA will decline donations from Trump's event. We need strong policies from candidates, not to be used for political stunts," he said.

For 26 days, armed occupiers have been holed up in a lonely federal wildlife refuge headquarters in rural Oregon. Dismissing the exhortations of the governor, ignoring the inconveniences of the residents, the occupiers stood their ground, saying they were protesting federal land policies. The government waited patiently for an opportunity to end the situation peacefully. A break came Tuesday night when Ammon Bundy, the group's leader, was arrested along with six others. An eighth person turned himself in. The group's spokesman, LaVoy Finicum, was killed. Here's a look at what happened -- and what happens next:

CNN)One person was killed as authorities arrested a group of people -- including Ammon Bundy -- involved with the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, the FBI and Oregon State Police said. The deceased individual, who has not been identified, was the subject of a federal probable cause arrest, officials said.

Four days after taking the Malheur Wildlife Refuge in Harney County, Oregon, LaVoy Finicum, a 55-year-old Arizona rancher told NBC News that he'd rather die than spend his days in prison. "There are things more important than your life and freedom is one of them," he said in early January as he sat huddled in a blue tarp outside of the wildlife refuge keeping watch with his gun in his lap. "I'm prepared to defend freedom." Finicum told NBC that night that he was staying outside to ensure that the FBI could find him if they came to arrest him....

Donald Trump has defended Vladimir Putin after a British public inquiry found the Russian president "probably" sanctioned the assassination of Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko in London. Mr Trump waded into the case saying he had seen "no evidence" of Mr Putin's involvement, adding: "They say a lot of things about me that are untrue too." The front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination has previously said he felt a "great honour" when Mr Putin praised him as an "absolute leader". .. But Mr Trump told Fox Business: "Have they found him (Mr Putin) guilty? I don't think they've found him guilty....

... And that brings us back to the key question of whether America wants to be great again, trusted by its allies, feared by its enemies, and safe at home. Because if so, voters need to ask not who channels their rage the best, but who has the courage and the competence to roll back Obama's policies. How can Rubio, who supported some of Obama's most devastating policies, or Trump who has no coherent policies, be expected to do what needs to be done? Through Ted Cruz's willingness to match his words with his deeds, and do what he believes...

Sen. Ted Cruz at Hearing on the Administration’s Immigration Enforcement...

Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) questions on Iran Nuclear Deal (C-SPAN)...

Ted Cruz says GOP senators yelled at him "at the top of their lungs" for derailing gun control

As President: I WILL HAVE YOUR BACK

Turkish Airlines flight from Houston diverted to Ireland following bomb alert NEWS Turkish Airlines flight from Houston diverted to Ireland following bomb alert Turkish Airlines The Turkish Airlines flight is being kept at a distance as investigators search the plane. KTRK Updated 1 hr 54 mins ago A flight which departed from Houston to Istanbul has been diverted to Ireland after a bomb alert. Turkish Airlines says Flight 34 was diverted to Shannon Airport after a handwritten threat was discovered upon the plane as it cross the Atlantic Ocean. The airline says an investigation is underway on board that Boeing...

When President Obama secretly authorized the Central Intelligence Agency to begin arming Syria's embattled rebels in 2013, the spy agency knew it would have a willing partner to help pay for the covert operation. It was the same partner the C.I.A. has relied on for decades for money and discretion in far-off conflicts: the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Since then, the C.I.A. and its Saudi counterpart have maintained an unusual arrangement for the rebel-training mission, which the Americans have code-named Timber Sycamore. Under the deal, current and former administration officials said, the Saudis contribute both weapons and large sums of...

A broad group of conservationists, state lawmakers and tribal members on Tuesday called for the federal government to arrest the Southern Nevada leaders and self-styled militiamen leading the armed occupation of an Oregon wildlife refuge headquarters. Battle Born Progress, the state advocacy group leading the call from Nevada, is also sending a care package to U.S. Fish and Wildlife officers based in Oregon to show their appreciation for handling the standoff. Ammon Bundy and Ryan Bundy, the sons of Bunkerville rancher Cliven Bundy, overtook the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge's headquarters in southeastern Oregon on Jan. 2. Since then, the group...

Militants raided a university in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday, timing their attack to a ceremony at the school to ensure maximum casualties. After security forces combed the campus block by block after the massacre, Mehmood Khan, provincial home minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said 19 civilians were killed, along with four terrorists. He expects the number of civilian deaths to increase. The attack took place at Bacha Khan University in Charsadda, Peshawar, less than 40 kilometers (25 miles) from where the Pakistan Taliban slayed 145 people, including 132 children, in a school attack in December 2014. It's unclear whether the group...

More thoughts on Cologne... Radical Islam is ascendant: The very people who oppose the War on Terror, and still remain eager to spread lies about it, are now among the victims in Cologne. I do understand that I'm making generalizations here, but the number of victims is large, and let's face it, we are talking about Europe. Hating Guantanamo and the War on Terror were among of the ways that the Euroleft likes to strut their social consciousness without it costing anything. That is, until now. The bill is due. Yes, I know that some will want to imagine that...

<p>So Mark Levin, as predicted, went Beck on us imho (Glen Beck).</p> <p>As fully expected, since he was already building up to it the day before, he is egging on this line of attack on Trump as reflecting "New York Values" - Cruz was told not to go there prior to the debate, but foolishly he went there, and there couldn't have been a more moronic move and insulting to all the 911 first responders, New York's finest, the NYC consruction workers, et all, and ... all just to try and take out Trump?</p>

... Mr. Cruz did not just dominate much of the Republican debate, he slashed, he mocked, he charmed and he outmaneuvered everybody else onstage - but none as devastatingly and as thoroughly as this campaign’s most commanding performer, Donald J. Trump. In the process Mr. Cruz - the high school student who once recited the Constitution from memory and the Princeton debater who dazzled judges with his ability to entrap less shrewd rivals - showed the American public that his surging candidacy is not a fluke. Twenty six minutes into what had been a slug-free evening, a moderator asked Mr....