Free Republic

Remember Donald Trump saying that he would spend $2 million a week on ads? It looks like that didn't last. Trump's campaign just placed its next flight of ads for the week of January 14-20, and -- with all stations accounted for -- he's only set to spend less than $700,000, according to an ad-buying source. At the end of December, Trump told reporters "I'll be spending a minimum of $2 million a week and perhaps substantially more than that." And he met the target of $2 million early in January, surprising some skeptics who thought his promise to dole...

I can just sense it. Yesterday, it almost happened, and everything is being couched in words, words that perhaps are felt to be needed to ready others for the "whys" and "what fors", words that indicate it is going to happen. Who am I to judge? Levin was one of those who lead the charge against the gang of eight. For that, I will always love him. Even if he goes Beck. Decades ago, I recall turning on the little Japanese made transistor radio and going through the AM dial and listening in on "Doctor" Steuart McBirnie and his "Voice...

When Donald Trump in December called for "a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States," I replied that changing just one word - "Islamists" instead of "Muslims" - would transform his outrageous and dead-end effusion into a politically feasible and operationally viable policy idea.In response, came this valid question from readers: And how does one distinguish between Muslims who are Islamist from those who are not? This is a very doable task, though an expensive, time-consuming one demanding great skill.By Islamists (as opposed to moderates), I mean those approximately 10-15 percent of Muslims who seek to apply Islamic law (the...

Progress comes at the ballot box - and nothing changes the ballot box more than drastic changes in national demography. ... Democracy Works, a New York 501C3 is perhaps the epitome of this trend: its first product, TurboVote, focuses directly on the voter and removes barriers to their actual participation in elections by using software to automate sending a filled out envelope with completed voting forms and text messaging for reminders to ensure voters complete needed tasks at the deadline, and Ballot Scout, their second, is software that local election officials integrate into their systems to better track mailed in...

All across America last weekend, panicked drug users rushed to their dealers to stock up on marijuana, heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine for fear of running out. The arrest of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, head of the biggest drug cartel in Mexico, was sure to cause a sudden shortage of illegal substances in this country. That's right. And I'm Queen Latifah. In reality, the capture of the narcotics kingpin is likely to have about as much impact on drug supplies as Martian solar storms do. You wouldn't expect long lines at the gas pump if the CEO of Exxon Mobil...

As a general rule, I loathe both Holocaust and slavery comparisons.

Haley, the first governor in the history of South Carolina who is neither white nor male, suggested Wednesday that the United States has never "passed any laws or done anything based on race or religion." Except that is exactly what the United States has been doing...

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay told Newsmax TV on Wednesday that Ted Cruz might ultimately "end up in the courts" on the question of his citizenship and how it might affect his presidential campaign. "I've had this problem ever since Cruz announced," DeLay, the five-term Texas Republican who served from 2003 to 2005, told "The Steve Malzberg Show" in an interview. "There is a difference between the definition of natural born and naturalization — and it has not been settled by any branch of government. "Cruz needs to address this in some way because it is a cloud right...

White House chief of staff Denis McDonough pushed back against the notion his president is played out in the wake of his last State of the Union address, promising “audacious executive action” in Barack Obama’s final year in office. During a breakfast with reporters in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, McDonough responded to the observation that the president’s final speech before Congress lacked the usual pledge to “go it alone” if lawmakers failed to act. Coupled with the feeble executive actions on gun control announced earlier this month, had President Obama rethought the utility of acting unilaterally on issues important to...

This is like the Night of the Living Dead Microsoft's relentless campaign to push Windows 10 onto every PC on the planet knows no bounds: now business desktops will be nagged to upgrade. When Redmond started quietly installing Windows 10 on computers via Windows Update, it was aimed at getting home users off Windows 7 and 8. If you were using Windows Pro or Enterprise, or managed your machines using a domain, you weren't supposed to be pestered with dialog boxes offering the free upgrade. Until now. According to Microsoft on Wednesday, the controversial try-hard "Get Windows 10" nagware is...

WASHINGTON - Local police departments are concerned about a spike in homicides in our area linked to the notorious and dangerous MS-13 gang. At least seven recent murders in the region have confirmed ties to MS-13, and there are two other cases with possible links to the gang known for its brutality. "The spike, if you would call it, occurred at the end of the year. So there were a number of cases right at the end of 2015, and that's concerning because you don't want to see that carry over into 2016," said Capt. Darren Francke of the Montgomery...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem Character Studies From The Bible Paul (Paul's Letter to The Romans) 9 I speak the truth in Christ-I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit- 2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, 4 the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the...

Republican primary front-runner Donald Trump late Wednesday declined to attack Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in the wake of news that the Texas senator misreported campaign finances, but did acknowledge that it was a "very big thing." "Well, I heard it's a big thing. I know nothing about it. But I hear it's a very big thing," Trump said in an interview on Bloomberg's "With All Due Respect." "I hope he solves it. I think he's a nice guy, and I hope he gets it solved." Trump has previously attacked GOP primary rivals for being bought by big donors, flouting his...

More evidence has surfaced that Donald Trump's Iowa ground game is not very substantial. One volunteer leader enlisted by Donald J. Trump to turn out Iowa voters has yet to knock on a single door or to make a phone call. Another is a "9/11 truther" with a website claiming that the Sept. 11 attacks were a government conspiracy. A third caucus precinct captain ... said the campaign's goal of having them each enlist 25 supporters was unrealistic. "There's probably not even 25 registered voters in a precinct," said the captain, Kathy Hawk. ... "I got 12 to go to...

'100% certain' FBI will refer indictment to Loretta Lynch

Based on EIA's weekly survey of gasoline prices, the U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $1.996 per gallon (gal) on January 11, falling below $2.00/gal for the first time since March 23, 2009. The U.S. average retail regular gasoline price had last approached, but not gone below, the $2.00 mark in early 2015. Falling gasoline prices are a result of falling crude oil prices and the seasonal slowdown in gasoline demand. Four of the five regions in the United States currently have averages below $2.00/gal, with the exception of the West Coast, where the retail regular gasoline...

... Mr. Trump has no desire to acquaint himself with most issues, let alone master them. He has admitted that he doesn't prepare for debates or study briefing books; he believes such things get in the way of a good performance. No major presidential candidate has ever been quite as disdainful of knowledge, as indifferent to facts, as untroubled by his benightedness. It is little surprise, then, that many of Mr. Trump's most celebrated pronouncements and promises - to quickly and "humanely" expel 11 million illegal immigrants, to force Mexico to pay for the wall he will build on our...

China has finished construction on a second 10,000-ton China Coast Guard (CCG) cutter destined for patrols in the South China Sea, Chinese state media reports. The ship, designated CCG 3901, “has been completed recently and is ready to start protecting China’s maritime rights,” The Global Times announced. A sister ship, the CCG2901, already deployed to the East China Sea in 2015. The CCG 3901, constructed at Shanghai’s Jiangnan Shipyard, has been dubbed the ‘monster’ by the media due to its unusual large size for a coast guard vessel. According to some sources, the vessel could have a displacement 12,000 to...

Pray For Our American Heroes and Our Nation Stand Firm "For he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer." Romans 13:4 ESV