Free Republic

Noted libertarian Charles Koch, writing in the Washington Post, argued that he agreed with one claim made by socialist Senator Bernie Sanders: that the system is rigged in favor of the few. This result, he argues, can only be accomplished when society is experiencing continued, preferably increasing, economic growth. Is there something inherent in the system of natural liberty, or in human nature itself, that is systematically corrupting in ways that undermine its claims of universal benefits? — [Adam] Smith warned that natural liberty faces natural obstacles in the form of human nature, particularly the desire of especially “merchants and...

10 April 2026 Easter Friday Santa Maddalena di Canossa, Borgata Ottavia, Rome Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: A(II).First readingActs 4:1-12The name of Jesus Christ is the only one by which we can be savedWhile Peter and John were talking to the people the priests came up to them, accompanied by the captain of the Temple and the Sadducees. They were extremely annoyed at their teaching the people the doctrine of the resurrection from the dead by proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus. They arrested them, but as it was already late, they held them till the next day. But many...

“I think you should get your a– to the draft. I don’t think it’s asking too much for you to get on a private jet, fly to Pittsburgh with all of your family and be there so when your name gets called, you walk out on that stage, YOU DAP WITH THE AKWARD COMMISSIONER, YOU HUG HIM, you rock the Raider jersey and you say, ‘I am proud to be in the NFL.’”

NHRA has announced changes to the Pro Stock class for the 2027 season, including the return of hood scoops and the switch to two top-mounted 4-barrel style throttle bodies, as it continues its efforts to increase parity and participation and reduce overall long-term costs for teams. Hood scoops will return to Pro Stock bodies beginning in the 2027 season, along with removing the single forward-facing throttle body and replacing it with two top-mounted 4-barrel style throttle bodies. This comes from the NHRA Technical Department’s continued effort to add more parity, continue to increase participation, and reduce overall long-term costs for...

Ed Martin makes the case for mercy in an age of lawfare and politicized justice. When the justice system becomes a political weapon, clemency stops being a “presidential privilege” and becomes one of the last guardrails against abuse. And that’s why the left is so scared. The second Trump starts issuing pardons, the media spin machine kicks into high gear. They treat his acts of clemency with the same tired bias they always do, suddenly acting like mercy itself is suspicious. What they never stop to ask is what mercy actually means when the justice system is no longer acting...

As a professor of the classical liberal arts, I began reading Bob Pepperman Taylor’s new book, Liberal Education and Democracy, with interest. Taylor, who teaches law and politics at the University of Vermont, surveys a wide range of thought leaders, describing their foundational ideas in detail. One notable example is Taylor’s paraphrasing of Michael Oakeshott: “Liberal learning is learning to understand and perhaps even participate in a conversation that transcends a particular moment, a conversation that reflects on the human condition from a wide variety of times, places, and perspectives.” That’s well said. Taylor’s thesis begins with liberal-arts authors and...

The Iranian regime is once again proving why it cannot be trusted. Despite a delicate ceasefire agreement, Iran is already backsliding, attempting to choke off the world’s oil supply and reportedly shaking down tankers for “tolls” in the Strait of Hormuz. The Gateway Pundit reported on Wednesday that Fars News Agency, the official propaganda arm directly linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), reported that tanker traffic is now “suspended” after Israel continued hammering Hezbollah. PBS journalist Elizabeth Landers confirmed that President Trump told her directly: Israel’s war against Hezbollah in Lebanon is NOT part of the ceasefire deal.

NEW YORK, March 20 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge has struck down a Treasury ​Department rule aimed at curbing money laundering in real estate by ‌requiring that the beneficial owners of companies buying real estate in cash be disclosed. Jumpstart your morning with the latest legal news delivered straight to your inbox from The Daily Docket newsletter. Sign up here. The Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) implemented the rule in ​2024 to prevent criminals from anonymously stashing ill-gotten gains in U.S. ​property. Lawyers at the libertarian Pacific Legal Foundation challenged the ⁠rule, arguing it exceeded FinCEN's statutory authority....

Inflation surged in March as consumer prices jumped amid the economic disruptions caused by the Iran war's impact on the energy market. The Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday said that the consumer price index (CPI) – a broad measure of how much everyday goods like gasoline, groceries and rent cost – rose 0.9% from a month ago and is 3.3% higher than last year. The annual figure jumped from last month's 2.4% reading, while the monthly increase also rose markedly from last month's 0.3% reading Expectations vs. reality Both the 0.9% monthly increase and 3.3% annual rise were in...

He’s Zo-ing back on his word. Many of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s lofty campaign promises have already bit the dust 100 days in, as he makes a U-turn or scales them back almost beyond recognition. His improbable path from democratic socialist also-ran to victory in 2025’s election came in no small part from the sweeping, voter-pleasing pledges. While his marquee platforms of universal child care, fast and free buses and a rent freeze clearly captured voters’ imaginations, he made a slew of other promises that would quickly — and significantly — reshape New York City, including: City-owned grocery stores Mamdani’s early...

🇺🇸Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem 🇮🇱(4/10/26)[Prayer]A New Study For A New Year: PersonalitiesExodus 15:1-13 15 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. 2 The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt him. 3 The Lord is a man of war: the Lord is his name....

“And notice how nonchalant it sounds. Trump didn’t go for epic, carnage-heavy branding. He branded it the way you’d casually announce National Potato Chip Day.” American Debunk on X. [Truth Social post from President Trump] Note: you are living through the FAFO of all FAFOs just now. The USA is brooking no more aspersions from whomever is still left alive to speak for the jihad posse in Iran. These are the terms: open the strait, layoff the other Gulf states, surrender those thousand pounds of enriched uranium. You can still go forward in time as a developed nation, enjoy the...

MS NOW host Reverend Al Sharpton said the United States' upcoming 250th anniversary is not a "celebration" for Black people and that it's "crazy" to expect them to celebrate it. "They're going to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the country July 4th, but that's not our celebration," Sharpton said at the National Action Network’s 35th Anniversary National Convention on Wednesday. He continued, "We were slaves then, and they celebrate signing the Declaration of Independence 1776. We were not even emancipated until 1863. So I don't know what everybody getting ready for a celebration [for]. You know that it seems crazy...

Wayne Allyn Root — businessman and ebullient, unapologetic conservative — wrote something the other day that caught my eye. Over an article about “The Great American National Divorce,” his headline blared: “Escape of the White People.” Describing the exodus of New Yorkers to Florida and Californians to Nevada, Root noted that interstate migration across America is speeding up. Why? Because Americans who are not die-hard leftists “can no longer live with radical, extreme, self-destructive, communist SUICIDE BOMBERS.” As Root repeatedly points out, Democrat-run states are destroying themselves. By electing “evil, communist madmen like LA Mayor Karen Bass, Chicago Mayor Brandon...

An immigration appeals board has denied Mahmoud Khalil’s latest bid to dismiss his deportation case, a largely expected ruling that brings the former Columbia University graduate student and Palestinian activist one step closer to re-arrest and possible expulsion. The Board of Immigration Appeals issued the final order of removal on Thursday, according to Khalil’s lawyers. The board’s rulings are not public, and an inquiry to the US Department of Justice was not immediately returned. Khalil said he was not surprised by the ruling, which he called “biased and politically motivated.”

The United States Postal Service is suspending employer pension contributions for workers beginning Friday, citing a looming cash shortfall, the agency announced Thursday. The move, which affects the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), comes just weeks after the Postal Service warned Congress it could run out of cash in under a year without significant reforms, including changes to pension funding and stamp prices. USPS emphasized that the pause will have no immediate impact on current or future retirees. "There will not be any immediate detrimental impact to our current or future retirees if normal FERS cost payments are temporarily withheld,"...

California’s In-Home Supportive Services Program is ripe for scams, experts say. California Governor Gavin Newsom is embroiled in a national fraud scandal. Thus far, much of the coverage has focused on alleged schemes related to unemployment insurance, hospice care, and food stamps. In this exclusive investigation, we shine a light on one of California’s largest initiatives: the In-Home Supportive Services Program, or IHSS, which pays family members and other individuals to provide home-based care for the elderly and disabled—at a cost of nearly $30 billion per year. On the surface, IHSS presents itself as an instrument of compassion, directing billions...

On June 26, 2025, Governor of Rhode Island (D) Dan McKee signed into law a ban on the manufacture, purchase, sale or transfer of certain firearms. The firearms affected were semi-automatic shotguns with fixed magazine capacity exceeding six rounds, shotguns with revolving cylinders, and semi-automatic rifles with fixed magazine capacity exceeding ten rounds. In addition, the ban covers semi-automatic rifles which can accept a detachable magazine and which have any one or more of the following characteristics:folding or telescoping stockbayonet mountgrenade launchershroud which protects the non-trigger hand, except an extension of the stock on the bottom of the barrelpistol grip...

Democrats are united in their opposition to President Donald Trump and his unprecedented second-term agenda. But as the Democratic National Committee (DNC) huddles in New Orleans for its spring meeting, the party is once again coping with deep internal divisions over Israel's military actions and a powerful pro-Israel lobbying group's recent meddling in Democratic Party primaries. The DNC's Resolutions Committee debated and held test votes Thursday on resolutions recognizing a Palestinian state, putting limits on military aid to Israel and taking aim at what one resolution calls the "growing influence" of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which is best...

The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a self-described "progressive" candidate’s bid to enter Ohio’s Republican primary, leaving in place a decision by state election officials to disqualify him for misrepresenting his party affiliation. Samuel Ronan, a former Democratic state and national candidate, attempted to run as a Republican in Ohio’s 15th Congressional District against GOP incumbent Rep. Mike Carey. To do so, he signed a declaration of candidacy — under penalty of election falsification — swearing he was a member of the Republican Party. However, court documents filed in U.S. District Court note Ronan was caught publicly admitting that his...