Free Republic

For as long as I can remember and at least two years here on FR, there has been a raging debate over the wisdom of voting or even supporting one of the many "third" parties that exist. I used to believe that this argument was necessary and good even though I was often puzzled that people who were disenchanted with their party would stay loyal to the bitter end even if that end appeared nowhere in sight. But I have recently come to the conclusion that what we really have in America is not a two party system but a ...

New rules on investigation of top U.S. officials 1.12 p.m. ET (1713 GMT) July 1, 1999 By Laurie Asseo, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department announced new rules today that give Attorney General Janet Reno the authority to appoint special counsels to investigate the president and other top government officials. The rules in effect will replace the independent counsel law that expired Wednesday following years of controversy. Even Kenneth Starr, who has investigated President Clinton's administration for more than four years, has told Congress he favored its abolition. Deputy Attorney General Eric Holder said at a news ...

As I listen to the ever present debates between traditionalists (conservatives) and liberals, and when I see how easily our citizenry is swayed by the lies and propaganda forced on them by the media, I wonder if our people remain motivated to, or are even capable of, sustaining their self-rule. As I review history, I grieve over the oppression that was always required to move men and women into action against tyranny. It was always pain that "sparked" revolution. How much anguish will we need to experience before we act? I am haunted by this truth (which was articulated by ...

Ward Connerly says the more he listens to Gov. Bush, the more he realizes that the governor is like-minded. Gee, maybe Bush is a conservative!!! I knew it all the time...ignore the disinformation you are being fed!

MOSCOW, June 30 (Itar-Tass) - US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright may be dismissed already this summer for mistakes in the US policy regarding Yugoslavia, a Russian influential newspaper reported on Wednesday citing its sources in Washington. "In Washington they are talking that a certain reshuffle will take place in the State Department leadership before this autumn. /President Bill/ Clinton has reportedly found a worthy replacement to current Secretary of State Madeleine Albright", the Nezavisimaya Gazeta wrote. It said that although officially the USA continues to attribute to itself all the successes in solving the Kosovo crisis, "a different viewpoint ...

The Independent Counsel law lapsed last night at midnight. And Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr said the law should not be re-authorized. Obviously, Starr believes that, because his own investigation was a waste of tens of millions of dollars, the Independent Counsel law should be trashed. The truth is that the Independent Counsel law is a good law. When corruption has been rooted out in places like France and Italy, it has usually been the result of an independent magistrate—their version of our Independent Counsel. We also know that when Independent Counsels like Donald Schmalz and Daniel Pearson did their ...

Don't Blink! All Promises Broken - Volume II Hearings Held Without Notice - Behind Closed Doors You Might Miss What's Next by Michael C. Ruppert Posted June 29, 1999 - © Copyright 1999 From The Wilderness, Michael C. Ruppert. All Rights Reserved On May 25, just four days after we published our last issue, under the totally misleading heading of "CIA and Drugs in Los Angeles" the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) held a closed door hearing. It took us until June 22 to determine that the Committee heard testimony that day from Department of Justice Inspector General ...

Freeper Presidential Straw Poll - RESULTS!!! CANDIDATES Thanks to the 168 voters who participated in the first Freeper Presidential Straw Poll. The Freeper choice for President is: Keyes and Forbes each with 36 votes! (21%) GW Bush in third 32 votes. (19%) Buchanan in forth with 30 votes. (18%) Quayle in fifth with 20 votes. (12%) Bob Smith is the only other canidate who recieved more then 5 votes, he got 6. After the July 4th weekend, we can have a runoff between the top 3 vote getters if there is enough interest. Many voters included multiple canidates, which made ...

LETS TALK ABOUT DIRTY MAGAZINES . . . There must have been something interesting in that Clinton yakathon. But every time the president was asked at his Friday press conference why he is so polarizing, whether he is responsible for coarsening the culture or if it bugs him to be trashed by his vice president, he vanished into a nattering nimbus of positivism. So let's not talk about Bill Clinton. He is SO over. Let's talk about dirty magazines. I'm not referring to PENTHOUSE and PLAYBOY. I have in mind the wildly popular new macho men's magazines. One that is ...

First Lady Hillary Clinton next week will begin a "summer long listening tour" after her exploratory committee files registration papers with the Federal Elections Commission next Tuesday for an anticipated run for the seat of retiring New York Democrat Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan. "I'm eagerly looking forward to listening to New Yorkers and hearing directly what's on their minds about the issues affecting their families" Mrs. Clinton said in a printed statement released Wednesday. Clinton's sentiments come on the heels of a recent poll indicating she is losing ground to her most likely Republican opponent, New York City Mayor Rudy ...

NEW YORK, July 1 (UPI) - Ladbrokes, the famous British-based oddsmakers, says (Thursday) odds are slightly favorable for Vice President Al Gore to be elected the 43rd president of the United States on Nov. 7, 2000. Ladbrokes says for those who want to back Democratic Gore, the odds are 5 to 4. For Republican Texas Gov. George W. Bush, Ladbrokes' current odds are 6 to 4.

A Day of Disappointing Developments for Gore Bradley's Fund-Raising Reflects Serious Challenge By Ceci Connolly Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, July 1, 1999; Page A08 Second-quarter fund-raising reports released yesterday gave Vice President Gore a double dose of bad news: He now faces a serious primary challenge, and if he clears that hurdle, he must confront the long-term prospect of competing with a Republican rival who so far has demonstrated extraordinary fund-raising abilities. Former senator Bill Bradley, already positioned as the only alternative to Gore for the Democratic nomination, collected $7.5 million over the past three months, to Gore's ...

A Day of Disappointing Developments for Gore Bradley's Fund-Raising Reflects Serious Challenge By Ceci Connolly Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, July 1, 1999; Page A08 Second-quarter fund-raising reports released yesterday gave Vice President Gore a double dose of bad news: He now faces a serious primary challenge, and if he clears that hurdle, he must confront the long-term prospect of competing with a Republican rival who so far has demonstrated extraordinary fund-raising abilities. Former senator Bill Bradley, already positioned as the only alternative to Gore for the Democratic nomination, collected $7.5 million over the past three months, to Gore's ...

WHAT IS FREEDOM ? A lot of the differences in political, social and religious views stem from how a person defines freedom. I used to believe that freedom was, basically, "I can do what I want whenever I want and no one can tell me different," or "If it feels good, do it." If I wanted to do this drug, I could do it. If I wanted to have sex with this person, (as long as they consented) I could do it as well. When I put my hypothesis into practice, though, I didn't feel free at all. All those ...

Whitewater is over and Ken Starr now has the option of closing up shop or trying to do something with two other investigations that had nothing to do with his original charge. He can pursue the charges of witness tampering that Kathleen Willey leveled at a key supporter of President Bill Clinton or he can continue to investigate Hillary Clinton's involvement in the politically-motivated firings of White House travel office employees shortly after Clinton took office. Or he can just call it a day and go home. Starr ended his nearly five-year Whitewater probe Wednesday by obtaining a pair of ...

WASHINGTON, July 1 (UPI) - NATO's top military commander says (Thursday) he is not confident that Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic will be overthrown, despite growing opposition to his regime in his country. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Gen. Wesley Clark said the opposition is "fragmented and weak" and has been "traumatized by a campaign of covert terror against them."

Today, I am announcing reforms to the Administration's export controls on high-performance computers (HPC) and semiconductors. These policies will strengthen America's high-tech competitiveness, while maintaining controls that are needed to maintain our national security. These reforms are needed because of the extraordinarily rapid rate of technological change in the computer industry. The number-crunching ability of a supercomputer that once filled a room and cost millions of dollars is now available in an inexpensive desktop computer. Computers that are widely used by businesses and can be manufactured by European, Japanese and Asian companies will soon exceed the limits that I ...

Af first you might think this goes against his legacy dreams. Consider that he will have "ruled" over the greatest economy of the century and then the Republicans ruined it. What better way to ensure that the Republicans never get into power again, after all, it's the luxury and fat that keeps this country from understanding it's true needs. Anybody agree?

Leave these elitist scum behind, Patrick... HERE Summer of discontent July 1, 1999 BY ROBERT NOVAK SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST Is there really a chance that Patrick J. Buchanan, born and bred a Republican, could run as an independent presidential candidate in 2000 and thereby elect Democrat Al Gore? Yes, the seed has been sown in the soil of Buchanan's discontent with the GOP. Such a deviation still is unlikely. Buchanan is pondering what he calls his "conundrum": The better he does in Republican primaries, the stronger would be an independent bid. But the longer he stays in the GOP chase, the ...

Sparking memories of the cold war, US fighter jets were scrambled to intercept two Russian bombers as they came within attack-range of the USA Thursday. The Russian TU-95 bombers were intercepted as they approached Iceland on what turned out to be a military exercise flight. The US aircraft escorted the bombers around the sovereign airspace of Iceland and monitored their activities before returning to base. The Russian Air Force has said its bombers did not violate any laws during the flight of the bombers. A similar alert was raised by Norway when two Russian TU-140 bombers brushed past the Norwegian ...