Free Republic

For all the tedium of American political debates, at least we don’t have to defend air-conditioning. Not so in France, where “air-conditioning has become part of the political tug of war” amid a summer heat wave, writes The New York Times (NYT). On the side of air-conditioning, and reason, is Marine Le Pen. Le Pen is variously described as “far-right” (as by the NYT), “right-wing,” or “conservative,” depending on the author’s politics. She’s promised to deploy a “major air-conditioning equipment plan” if her party gains national control, according to the NYT. Le Pen is a former leader of the National...

Democrats decry “destroying democracy” while dismantling long-standing institutions, weaponizing agencies, and undermining the very systems they claim to defend. "Destroying democracy”—the latest theme of the left—can be defined in many different ways. How about attempting to destroy constitutional, ancient, and hallowed institutions simply to suit short-term political gains? So, who in 2020, and now once again, has boasted about packing the 156-year-old, nine-justice Supreme Court? Who talks frequently about destroying the 187-year-old Senate filibuster—though only when they hold a Senate majority? Who wants to bring in an insolvent left-wing Puerto Rico and redefine the 235-year-old District of Columbia—by altering the...

Past proponents of this idea look to the text of the 1845 congressional resolution annexing Texas: “New States of convenient size not exceeding four in number, in addition to said State of Texas and having sufficient population, may, hereafter by the consent of said State, be formed out of the territory thereof, which shall be entitled to admission under the provisions of the Federal Constitution.”

Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential victory sent shockwaves throughout America and the world. Most of all, it devastated the Democrat Party, which could not accept that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the Democrats’ anointed next president, had lost to President Trump. We're only now finding out just how panicked the Democrats really were over the prospect of a Trump White House, but two men have for years been leading the charge to expose the dirtiest political trick in American history. And thankfully, they're still on the case. Throughout the 2016 campaign, Democrats sought to tie President Trump to President Vladimir...

Ben Rhodes points to Ugandan-born Democratic socialist as model for party's future directionBen Rhodes, a key former Obama administration official, believes the Democratic Party is "afraid of its own future" and needs to embrace the strategy of New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, who identifies as a Democratic socialist. Rhodes, who was deputy national security adviser to President Barack Obama, is perhaps best known for his advocacy of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. He has since emerged as a prominent figure in liberal media as a contributor to MSNBC and co-host of the "Pod Save The World" podcast. His...

Russia is preparing its troops for new offensives instead of getting ready to stop the war in Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday, ahead of talks between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday. “[Putin] is certainly not getting ready for a ceasefire and war end,” the Ukrainian president said in his nightly address. He added, without providing specifics, that Russia was moving its troops for new operations on Ukrainian soil. “There is no sign that the Russians have received signals to prepare for a postwar situation.”

There is no bottom to the depravity of the political left; there just isn’t. Whatever issue you think I’m referring to there, you’re right. There isn’t much of anything, with the possible exception of a sandwich order, that those people can do that wouldn’t disgust me at this point (honestly, whatever kind of sandwich they eat is probably disgusting, too). There is something fundamentally wrong with them – like they were dropped on their heads as babies or their parents traded them for meth or something. Whatever it is, the word “gross” comes to mind. Why this, and why now?...

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) was asked on Sunday whether he is considering running for president again in 2028, but pointed to the fact he will soon turn 84 years old. During an interview with CNN, Sanders was asked “Is there another presidential run in you?” to which he replied, “Let’s not worry about that,” according to Fox News. He then said he will be 84 in September and he felt “that speaks for itself.” Sanders said he wants to see “the most progressive candidate that we can have” but what he thought was more important than him running for the...

Americans’ support for Israel’s military actions in Gaza is dropping rapidly, prompting pro-Israel Democrats and some of President Donald Trump’s long-time allies to warn that the country could permanently damage its standing in the United States. A Gallup poll released this week found that just 32% of US adults support Israel’s military actions in Gaza — a record low since the war was launched in response to Hamas’ October 7, 2023, terror attack. The poll also found the strongest partisan split yet: Support among those who identify themselves as Republicans remained strong, at 71%. But just 8% of Democrats and...

The "fifteen-minute cities" are already shrinking. The governments of both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick have banned walking in the woods province-wide: Jeff Evely @JeffEvely got a $28,872 dollar fine for going into the woods in Nova Scotia. FOR GOING INTO THE WOODS! Canada is broken. pic.twitter.com/eOkBa5Cttv — Ryan Gerritsen🇨🇦🇳🇱 (@ryangerritsen) August 9, 2025 This would appear to be in breach of Henry III's Charter of the Forest. But then at the dawn of the thirteenth century your average horny-handed peasant was not so in awe of government experts that he presumed they had the right to prevent him taking...

President Donald Trump suggested ahead of a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska this week that Ukraine could cede land to Russia as part of a peace deal — an idea that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky swiftly rejected.“Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier,” Zelensky said in a video address Saturday. The leaders of Britain and the European Union threw their support behind Ukraine’s president, saying a ceasefire must come before any negotiations.Trump had said that “some swapping of territories” could be “to the betterment” of both sides.Ukraine is a vast Eastern European country, covering about...

---SNIP--- It’s decline began some 20 years ago, when the company made multiple acquisitions, many of which were in telecommunications and wireless technology. In concept, that made great sense. But acquiring businesses is a skill of its own, and David Yoffie, a Harvard Business School professor who was on Intel’s board of directors at the time, told Fortune “100% of those acquisitions failed. We spent $12 billion, and the return was zero or negative.” Intel also tried unsuccessfully to grasp the mammoth cell phone opportunity. The company understood the opportunity and was supplying chips for the highly popular BlackBerry phone....

One of the internet’s most famous fact-checkers, former Washington Post writer Glenn Kessler, was grilled by author and podcaster Mark Halperin on Friday over media bias. The man behind The Washington Post's "Pinocchios" announced in late July he would be leaving the paper without anyone to fill his shoes. Kessler, who reportedly edited more than 3,000 fact checks as editor and chief writer of The Fact Checker, announced that week he had taken a buyout deal, ending his lengthy career at the Post. "After more than 27 years at The Washington Post, including almost 15 as The Fact Checker, I...

As “Madame Web” star Sydney Sweeney remains mum on allegations of promoting eugenics via her American Eagle advertisement, she has seemingly stirred up even more support from far-right figures after recently gaining the favor of President Trump. A black-and-yellow banner covering a billboard on the 91 Freeway in Corona boldly states: “Proud Boys Love Sydney Sweeney,” according to a photo that one Corona resident shared with ABC7.

The Associated Press just made it clear where it stands on the terrorists’ war on Israel: With the terrorists. How else to read its bizarre puff piece Wednesday sympathizing with the poor, suffering Hezbollah goons injured in Israel’s pager attack last year? The Babylon Bee couldn’t have come up with a better parody than the 2,100-word feature, “Survivors of Israel’s pager attack on Hezbollah struggle to recover” — though that’s not how AP’s Bassem Mroue and Sarah El Deeb meant it. The two recount their interviews with six people wounded in the attack, all “Hezbollah officials or fighters or members...

Academia’s self-image is crumbling. Beneath the slogans lies a fragile empire that can’t survive the sunlight of basic public scrutiny. It’s good to be back in the Advocate — the self-described “world’s leading source of LGBTQ+ news and information.” The last time it covered me, it involved a spat with a group of criminal, gay furry hackers. It never published the follow-up when one of those hackers was arrested, just as I promised. This time, I’ve committed an even greater sin in the Advocate's eyes: I asked a woke, gay professor at a public university to share his syllabus. That...

NEW DELHI, Aug 8 (Reuters) - New Delhi has put on hold its plans to procure new U.S. weapons and aircraft, according to three Indian officials familiar with the matter, in India's first concrete sign of discontent after tariffs imposed on its exports by President Donald Trump dragged ties to their lowest level in decades. India had been planning to send Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Washington in the coming weeks for an announcement on some of the purchases, but that trip has been cancelled, two of the people said. Trump on Aug. 6 imposed an additional 25% tariff on...

Public sours on Washington, loses hope for quick NATO accession LONDON — Most Ukrainians now favor ending the war with Russia through negotiations, as support for fighting until victory has dropped sharply since the early days of the conflict. Although their hopes for joining NATO and the European Union have faded and approval of U.S. leadership has plummeted, Ukrainians still see the EU, U.K. and U.S. as key to ending the war. Yet, most doubt that will happen anytime soon.More than three years into the war, Ukrainians’ support for continuing to fight until victory has hit a new low. In...

Los Angeles County is struggling with a massive budget crunch. Sales taxes are rising to over 10% in some areas and many departments are being cut down the line over what Fesia Davenport, the county’s first black female CEO, has described as “unprecedented financial challenges” and “extraordinary budgetary pressures.” But those challenges are not coming so much from the massive wildfires that devastated Los Angeles over the winter, but from the even more massive tide of sexual abuse complaints. Los Angeles County is dealing with $2 billion in costs from the wildfires, after the city’s first black female mayor and...

DEI is collapsing under its own contradictions—no longer able to define who qualifies, who deserves preference, or why identity should outweigh merit. Donald Trump’s executive orders banning Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI)-related racial and gender preferencing have ostensibly doomed the DEI industry. But DEI was already on its last legs. Half of all Americans no longer approve of racial, ethnic, or gender preferences. DEI had enjoyed a surge following the death of George Floyd and the subsequent 120 days of nonstop rioting, arson, assaults, killings, and attacks on law enforcement during the summer of 2020. In those chaotic years, DEI was...