Free Republic

Embattled Texas GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales admitted Wednesday to having had an affair with a married staffer who later committed suicide, calling the affair a "lapse in judgment." The confession comes the same day Florida GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna introduced a censure resolution against Gonzales and the House Ethics Committee opened a probe into the allegations. Gonzales, who advanced to a runoff in his reelection bid Tuesday, told conservative talk show host Joe Pags in an interview that he “made a mistake” by having the affair and accepts "full responsibility." “I take full responsibility for those actions. Since then,...

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told reporters on Wednesday that “everybody in America” should watch how their representatives vote on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill expected to come to the floor on Thursday. “You better watch that board. And everybody in America better watch that board. Anybody who votes to block funding for the homeland, it is shameful,” Johnson said. “I don’t know how to describe it. It speaks to a long record of Democrats’ deliberate efforts to undermine America’s safety and the essential operations of DHS.” Democrats have demanded that the White House significantly reform its immigration...

Each year on March 31, the world observes Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV) to raise awareness about transgender people. It is a day to celebrate the lives and contributions of trans people, while also drawing attention to the disproportionate levels of poverty, discrimination, and violence the community faces compared to cisgender (non-transgender) people.

Police in Cleveland, Ohio, are asking the public for tips after two young Black girls were found dead inside separate suitcases buried in shallow graves on Monday. Cleveland Police Chief Dorothy Todd said during a news conference that the girls, believed to be between the ages of 8 and 13 and 10 and 14, were found Monday evening. The discovery was made Monday evening after a man walking his dog near East 162nd Street and Midland Avenue, in a field near Ginn Academy, found a partially buried suitcase and called police. Police responded and located a shallow grave and found...

Companies in the U.S. that paid tariffs invalidated by the Supreme Court in February are legally entitled to refunds, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday. Judge Richard Eaton of the U.S. Court of International Trade in New York said that U.S. importers were "entitled to benefit" from the high court's February 20 decision that President Trump lacked the authority to impose sweeping tariffs last year under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Eaton was ruling specifically on a case brought by Atmus Filtration, a Nashville, Tennessee, company that makes filters and other filtration products, claiming a right to a...

The House committee investigating Jeffrey Epstein voted to subpoena U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to testify on her handling of Justice Department files on the disgraced financier. The Republican-led House Oversight Committee voted 24 to 19 Wednesday to issue the subpoena. A Justice Department spokesman didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the vote. Republican Nancy Mace of South Carolina proposed the subpoena and it passed the over the objection of the panel’s chairman, James Comer of Kentucky. Mace said the subpoena would require a taped, closed-door deposition under oath and a time had not yet been set...

Just before the closure of candidate filing in Montana, incumbent U.S. Sen. Steve Daines withdrew from his re-election campaign for a third term. U.S. Attorney for Montana Kurt Alme filed for office at 4:52 p.m. and Daines endorsed Alme in a statement shortly after.

Iran built the most comprehensive civilian surveillance network in the Middle East. Cameras on every street. Facial recognition at universities. License plate readers that automatically fined women for removing their hijab in their own cars. A mobile app called Nazer that let citizens report uncovered women. Drones at beaches. The infrastructure that killed Mahsa Amini in September 2022 and crushed the Woman, Life, Freedom uprising that followed. Israel hacked nearly all of it.

Iranian weapon debris, blown to pieces or mechanically crippled, keeps dropping from the Middle East sky. For that, we can thank heat-seeking satellites, military-grade malware and radar-jamming software, all made in America. New technology laser weaponry has also been deployed against Iran as part of Operation Epic Fury, The Post has learned.

“Never be separated from the Americans.” That was the advice Winston Churchill gave to his countrymen in the last meeting with his cabinet in 1955. Unfortunately for the United Kingdom, current Prime Minister Keir Starmer has clearly ignored that advice. He appears to be doing his best to pull the plug and drain whatever is left of the once mighty and revered British Empire. On Tuesday, while at a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, President Donald Trump lambasted Starmer’s response to America’s ongoing military operation in Iran. Trump said he was “not happy” with the U.K. for its initial...

4 March 2026 Wednesday of the 2nd week of Lent (optional commemoration of Saint Casimir)St. Casimir Church, ClevelandReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: Violet. Year: A(II).First readingJeremiah 18:18-20My enemies are digging a pit for me‘Come on,’ they said, ‘let us concoct a plot against Jeremiah; the priest will not run short of instruction without him, nor the sage of advice, nor the prophet of the word. Come on, let us hit at him with his own tongue; let us listen carefully to every word he says.’Listen to me, O Lord,hear what my adversaries are saying.Should evil be returned for good?For they...

On Wednesday’s Morning Joe, Joe Scarborough swooned over Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico after his primary victory over Rep. Jasmine Crockett. Scarborough said that Talarico had “exploded onto the national stage, a lot like Barack Obama.” Scarborough unapologetically repeated the analogy: “Yes, I will say, a lot like Barack Obama.”Get the rest of the story and view the video here.

We thought we were under a heightened security threat, and yet crazies keep getting into hearings on Capitol Hill. As we reported on Tuesday, an ICE Watch agitator had to be dragged out of a hearing by Capitol police where Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee.On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services was holding a hearing when Capitol police, with assistance from Sen. Tim Sheehy, dragged an antiwar activist and Green Party candidate out the door. Listen to his little friends crying, "A sitting U.S. senator just broke the hand of a...

According to a statement released by Leiden University, a groundbreaking ancient DNA study has provided new information about a pivotal transitional period in prehistoric Europe. The research underscored the remarkable genetic stability in the Low Countries and shed new light on the mysterious origins of the so-called Bell Beaker culture. A team of geneticists and archaeologists analyzed the genomes of 112 individuals who lived in the Rhine–Meuse region of the Low Countries -- today's Netherlands, Belgium, and northwestern Germany -- between 8500 and 1700 b.c. The data revealed that when Europe's first farmers arrived from Anatolia around 4,500 years ago,...

NATO air defenses shot down an Iranian ballistic missile heading toward Turkish airspace, the country said Wednesday. Launched from Iran, the missile passed through the airspace of Iraq and Syria before it was hit by NATO air defense systems and a fragment fell into the Dörtyol district of Hatay, according to Turkish spokesperson Burhanettin Duran. No casualties or injuries have been reported. “All institutions have monitored the process in real time and in full coordination, Duran said in a statement posted to X. “All necessary steps to defend Turkish territory and airspace will be taken without hesitation. . . ....

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - The U.S. State Department is advising travelers to use caution this month if they plan on traveling to Mexico for spring break. The agency has issued a Level 2 travel advisory for the country following a wave of cartel violence in recent weeks. What we know: Level 2 means travelers should "exercise increased caution." While popular spring break destinations like Cancun are under this Level 2 status, that is not the case for the entire country. The backstory: About a week ago, the world watched as violence broke out in parts of Mexico. Fire engulfed cars, blocking...

Senate Republicans voted down an effort Wednesday to halt President Donald Trump’s war against Iran, demonstrating early support for a conflict that has rapidly spread across the Middle East with no clear U.S. exit strategy. The legislation, known as a war powers resolution, failed on a 47-53 vote tally. The vote fell mostly along party lines, though Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky voted in favor and Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted against. The war powers resolution gave lawmakers an opportunity to demand congressional approval before any further attacks are carried out. The vote forced them to take...

ILULISSAT, Greenland (AP) — Fisherman Helgi Áargil no longer knows what to expect on Greenland ‘s fjords, where he spends up to five days at a time on his boat with his dog, Molly, and the ever-changing northern lights in the sky as company. Last year, his boat got stuck in ice that broke off the nearby glacier. This year, it’s been very wet instead. His income is just as unpredictable. An outing could bring him around 100,000 Danish kroner (about $15,700), or nothing at all. The Arctic’s rapidly changing climate is bringing more questions for Greenland, the semiautonomous territory...

A Santa Clara County jury has reached a verdict after a three-month trial in the case of a Los Gatos mother accused of hosting alcohol-fueled gatherings for teenagers and exposing them to harm. Shannon O’Connor, 51 — who has been dubbed the “Party Mom” — pleaded not guilty in 2023 to 63 felony and misdemeanor charges, including child endangerment, sexual battery and furnishing alcohol to minors. According to court documents, prosecutors identified 12 juvenile girls, referred to as “Jane Does,” and eight boys, “John Does,” as victims. O’Connor was found guilty of 48 of the 63 charges against her. Of...

Former Major League Baseball star Mark Teixeira has clinched the Republican primary to succeed GOP Rep. Chip Roy in southwest Texas. Teixeira secured more than 61% of the vote, avoiding a runoff in the 12-candidate primary field. Teixeira announced his candidacy for the Lone Star State’s 21st Congressional District seat last August. The seat is currently held by Roy, who has said he is running for Texas attorney general. The announcement of Teixeira’s campaign came days after Republican state lawmakers approved a redistricting map aimed at strengthening the GOP’s position in the 2026 election.