Free Republic

President Donald Trump’s explosive allegations against China Thursday night are already reverberating far beyond domestic politics. Speaking from the White House on Thursday, Trump accused China of “the largest compromise of election data in history,” alleging Beijing illicitly obtained information from roughly 220 million American voter files during the 2020 election cycle. The Chinese Communist Party quickly denied the charges, while China-watchers in the United States questioned if the relationship between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping has been shattered. “China has all along adhered to the principle of non-interference in others’ internal affairs,” Chinese Embassy spokesman Liu Chang said...

President Donald Trump accused members of the U.S. intelligence community Thursday night of operating a "shadow government" to allegedly conceal evidence of China’s efforts to influence U.S. elections, seizing on newly declassified emails that he says reveal a bitter internal dispute about how Beijing’s activities should be characterized. Trump did not claim China changed votes or altered election results. Instead, he argued Beijing engaged in an influence campaign aimed at shaping U.S. public perceptions. Trump claimed intelligence officials kept significant reporting out of his presidential briefings and highlighted an email in which a National Security Agency analyst allegedly wrote, "We...

On Thursday at the White House, President Donald Trump addressed the nation and presented new evidence detailing multiple security breaches in elections he said were concealed by a self-proclaimed "shadow government" and the Biden administration. "Another official inside the FBI wrote that she was running 'a shadow government' to keep intelligence about China's election meddling from becoming known," he said, during a primetime address from the White House. The Chinese hacked while the Democrats denied According to Trump and subsequent documents to be released Thursday, in the spring and summer of 2020, the intelligence community (IC) began detecting the Chinese...

The South Carolina State Election Commission (SEC) has completed its review of South Carolina election law regarding voter eligibility for the August 11 Special Republican Primary. Based on that review, voters who participated in the June Democratic Primary are not eligible to vote in the August 11 Special Republican Primary. Voters who participated in the June Republican Primary, or who did not vote in either party's June primary, are eligible to vote in the August 11 Special Republican Primary. The Commission's determination is based on the requirements of South Carolina election law governing voter participation in political party primaries.

GREENVILLE, S.C.—Businessman Mark Lynch renewed his Senate campaign Monday following the sudden death of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R), South Carolina. “A lot of you have asked. Yes, it’s official. I’m committed to finish what God has called us to since February of 2025. To bring the U.S. Senate seat of South Carolina back to TRUE Conservative leadership for the Republican party. I want to again personally thank all of you who supported us with your time, treasures and talents, your sacrifice will never be forgotten. Now I'm calling on you again as we FINISH this fight,” Lynch wrote on X....

WASHINGTON (VINnews) – Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent disclosed publicly for the first time Thursday that he was the target of an alleged assassination plot just hours after being sworn into office. Speaking at a State Department ministerial on political terrorism, Bessent said he was the subject of an alleged assassination attempt “two hours after being sworn into my job,” adding that the case demonstrates that politically motivated violence remains a real threat. Federal prosecutors have charged Ryan Michael English, 24, of Massachusetts, in connection with the alleged plot. According to the Justice Department, English traveled to the U.S. Capitol on...

The average life expectancy for a Russian soldier entering battle in Ukraine is 20 to 30 minutes, Central Intelligence Agency director John Ratcliffe said on Wednesday. Ratcliffe was speaking at the Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit, where he attributed the deadly conditions to Ukraine's combat drones equipped with AI. "What I would say is, our intelligence is consistent with some of the open-source reporting you may have seen in Ukraine," Ratcliffe said. "So the average life expectancy of a Russian recruit, right now, arriving on the battlefield in Ukraine, is estimated to be between 20 and 30 minutes." "And that's...

Extraordinary address comes ahead of November midterm elections, with Republicans at risk of losing their majorities in Congress WASHINGTON—President Trump delivered an extraordinary prime-time address in which he alleged that the U.S. election system had been compromised, ramping up his efforts to sow doubts about his 2020 election loss, raise skepticism about the coming midterms and pressure lawmakers into passing sweeping voter-ID legislation. Speaking in the East Room on Thursday night, Trump said he was declassifying a trove of intelligence documents that he argued showed efforts by the Chinese government to interfere in or influence the 2020 U.S. election. He...

A federal appeals court sided with President Donald Trump's administration on Thursday in a case brought by The New York Times over ​the Pentagon's press access restrictions. Press freedom advocates have criticized policy changes ‌under the Trump administration that limited journalists' access to the Pentagon, saying they suppressed freedom of speech, opens new tab. A three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said ​the Pentagon's policy requiring government escorts for journalists at the Pentagon ​could stand. It overturned a decision by a judge at ⁠a lower court.

Trouble at Nathan Berman’s Manhattan project brings new scrutiny to a booming sector; housing needs collide with safety concernsIn the late 1990s, a young Nathan Berman walked into a faded brick office building in Manhattan’s Financial District and saw the future. Within two years, he had transformed the 1920s-era Tyler Building into 111 modern apartments.Berman was at the leading edge of what has turned into a real-estate boom. Banks and brokerage firms were abandoning older office buildings, and New York and other cities were growing desperate for new housing as rents soared. Converting offices into apartments was a financial and...

While driving in the central Israeli city of Rosh Ha’ayin in late June, eight months after being freed from captivity in the Gaza Strip, former hostage Rom Braslavski received a phone call from a military officer. “We wanted to update you that Abu Yousef, Talal Abd al-Aal, was eliminated,” the officer said to Braslavski, referring to a Palestinian Islamic Jihad commander who held and abused him during his two years in captivity by the terror group. “You can’t be serious,” Braslavski replied. “I’m very serious. You have no idea how happy I am, how excited I am, for you,” the...

WASHINGTON — SpaceX aborted the launch of its latest Starship test flight July 16 when some of the vehicle’s engines failed to ignite. Starship was scheduled to lift off on the Flight 13 mission from the company’s Starbase, Texas, test site at 6:45 p.m. Eastern. However, the launch was aborted just as Raptor engines in the Super Heavy booster ignited. SpaceX said moments later that it was calling off the launch attempt for the day. “Some of the engines didn’t start, triggering an automatic launch abort,” SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk posted on social media about 10 minutes after the...

Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao took to social media to report no one from the U.S. Navy’s elite Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron will be reprimanded after a low-altitude pass went viral in Florida on Wednesday. “Flight debrief complete. No reprimands. No firings. No problem. That’s the sound of Freedom! Semper fi and Hooyah,” Cao said in a social media post that included a brief video clip of the jet zooming over the beach. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is encouraging low-altitude military flyovers. The video shows the Blue Angels flying so low over a crowded beach in Pensacola...

UVALDE, Texas (AP) — Catastrophic flash floods in Texas have killed two people and forced hundreds of rescues in areas still reeling from devastating floods a year ago, Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday.Rescuers aboard boats and helicopters have saved more than 200 people, including stranded drivers and people trapped in homes, Abbott said.The governor said the hardest-hit areas are expecting more rain into Friday and are not out of danger yet, with some rivers expected to reach historic levels.After days of pounding rain, the National Weather Service said a large wave on Thursday barreled down the same river wrecked by...

The Ten Million Dollar Bounty. Target Acquired: Iranian State Media Publishes Chilling Guide Outlining Specific Locations to Kill Donald Trump The Islamic Resistance in Iraq has announced a massive 10 million dollar reward for the assassination of United States President Donald Trump, while Iran's state-affiliated Fars News Agency has simultaneously published a map pointing out locations where he can be targeted.

For years Americans were blatantly lied to about the security of our election infrastructure, including electronic voting machines and ballot-counting systems. We are releasing a series of previously-classified U.S. Intelligence Community Assessments and other reports proving that our government has long known these machines are extremely exposed to attack. As one assessment states: “We judge that U.S. adversaries, including at a minimum Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea, as well as non-state groups, have the capability to compromise U.S. election infrastructure.” The documents also state: “We assess that centralized election-related data repositories, such as voter registration databases, pollbooks, and official...

FR CANTEEN MISSION STATEMENT Showing support and boosting the morale of our military and our allied military and the family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. FReeper Canteen Just Hangin' Cafe Come on in, we're open Need a place just to hang out? This is it. We serve coffee, tea,or maybe a tall brew? Topped off with great conversation and music.Hey there... No worries in the FReeper Canteen Just Hangin' Cafe.We're just Grab a glass and start a conversation. You never know who you might meet in the Cafe. Glad you could join us. Enjoy your...

Avid Upper West Side jogger was run down from behind by an e-bike rider going the wrong way in Central Park — is now in a medically induced coma, according to her family and a witness. The “vibrant” 43-year-old runner, identified by her first name, Jean, had to have a portion of her skull removed during emergency cranial surgery following the harrowing July 7 crash, her niece, Brandi Wiltse, told The Post on Thursday. “Now, over a week from the incident, she is still not awake, still in a medically induced coma,” Wiltse said. But the electric bike driver involved...

LIVE THREAD - President

In the post-judicial-filibuster world, intellectual adherence to textualism, in and of itself, is no longer sufficient for Republican Supreme Court nominees. The Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision last month in Trump v. Barbara declaring birthplace citizenship a constitutional right — authored by Chief Justice John Roberts and supported by Justice Amy Coney Barrett and the court’s three liberals — elicited a wave of pointed conservative criticism.The critiques began in the case’s dissents. Justice Samuel Alito called the ruling “a serious mistake.” Justice Clarence Thomas said it “devalues” citizenship. Even conservative legal scholars who admire Roberts and Barrett acknowledge that Thomas’ historical...