Free Republic

Donald Trump is right when he calls for high trade tariffs to protect American jobs, according to one brave economist. The Republican presidential candidate’s protectionist rhetoric has been playing well with voters heading into the primary season. But Trump has been attacked by economists and the media for violating the sacred belief that free trade is always a good thing, writes Peter Morici, a professor at the University of Maryland. Morici argues that China hasn’t been playing fair, however, and says the artificially weak yuan has cost America hundreds of thousands of jobs. “Trump’s proposals for fixing trade — starting...

U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) has endorsed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for president, less than a week before the Iowa caucuses. In a release from the Cruz campaign announcing the endorsement, Meadows says Cruz is consistent, conservative and puts the interests of the country first. "We are approaching a historic election that has the potential to fundamentally change our nation as we know it. Ted Cruz is the principled, conservative leader we need in the White House," Meadows said in a news release. "On issue after issue, Cruz has told the truth and done what he said he was going...

If you win the Powerball in Michigan, don’t be surprised to discover some "partners" sharing the pot with you: state and federal tax collectors. Here’s how much they will scoop off the top in taxes, as calculated by Joe Henchman, vice president of legal and state projects at the Tax Foundation. The winner will have 25 percent withheld automatically by law for federal taxes and the state withholding tax. In Michigan, the state income tax rate is 4.25 percent. When the winner files their taxes next year, they would have to pay again — the difference between what was withheld...

Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump holds an 8-point lead in Iowa, just four days before the first-in-the-nation caucuses there, according to a Public Policy Polling survey released Thursday. The billionaire businessman secured 31 percent support, followed by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in second, with 23 percent, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), at 14 percent, and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, at 9 percent. Former Govs. Jeb Bush (Fla.) and Mike Huckabee (Ark.), along with Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), tie for fifth, with 4 percent each.

In a statement following his announcement that he would not be participating in tonight's GOP debate on Fox News, Donald Trump‘s campaign said, "[He will] host an event in Iowa to raise money for the Veterans and Wounded Warriors, who have been treated so horribly by our all talk, no action politicians." This morning, Ben Ferguson contrasted that with statements the real estate tycoon made in 1991 and 2004, when he tried to get homeless and disabled veterans kicked off of Fifth Avenue in front of the famed Trump Tower. Trump is decrying "all talk, no action politicians" now just...

It's as Russian as borscht, but the AK-47 will soon be made in Florida. The weapon of choice for guerrillas, terrorists and the soldiers of armies around the world, some 100 million AK-47s have been made in Russia since it rolled off the line in 1947. But now, the company's U.S. arm is planning to manufacture the gun at a plant in Pompano Beach, Fla. "An iconic firearms platform, revered the world over, with a history of intrigue and controversy, now reborn as the new American Kalashnikov," the company said in a statement."Whether you are a sport shooter, hunter,...

FLINT, Michigan, January 28, 2016 (LifeSiteNews) – The mainstream media is once again showing its pro-abortion bias, going so far as to blatantly lie in its reporting. The city of Flint is in the middle of a water disaster, causing lead poisoning and other health problems. Presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) criticized "every level of government" for the crisis, said officials should be held accountable for exposing residents to "poisoned water," and called the impact on Flint residents "heartbreaking." Cruz made good on his rhetoric, as his campaign gave out bottled water to Flint women in crisis pregnancy centers,...

This week has turned out to be eventful for GOP presidential hopeful Donald Trump. First, he made waves when he decided to boycott Fox News' GOP debate, and now he's announced an endorsement from an elected official that's sure to have him smiling. Republican South Carolina Lt. Gov. Henry McMaster has officially endorsed Trump, making him the highest-ranking South Carolina official to do so. McMaster introduced Trump before his rally Wednesday night in South Carolina and praised Trump's business achievements as well as his unwillingness to be controlled by donors, according to The Hill.

Sen. Bernie Sanders completed his walkback on guns Thursday with a move to co-sponsor a bill that repeals gun industry protections he backed in 2005. Tad Devine, his senior strategist, confirmed that Sanders will sign onto repealing a bill that gives gunmakers and manufacturers unusual immunity from liability. Hillary Clinton has hammered Sanders for his 2005 vote in favor of the measure, arguing that he caved to the firearms lobby at a time when Democratic primary voters overwhelmingly back more gun control. Sanders had said repeatedly that he was open to “changes” in the liability protection law. His official change...

A mail from the Cargo Systems Messaging Service of the US Customs and Border Protection dated to this Saturday, and revealed by Channel 1's "Mabat" show on Thursday, shows the US is now required products from Judea and Samaria to be labeled differently. In new instructions on marking requirements sent out to American importers, goods from Judea and Samaria are not to be marked "Israel." Those who do not comply are to be sanctioned. "West Bank Country of Origin Marking Requirements," reads the title of the mail, which begins by clarifying that "the purpose of this message is to provide...

Somebody adjourned the world Friday. Though it now seems long ago. You can hear the traffic again. But then ... sudden, blinding light. Everywhere -- inside and out. Like floodlights. The world was a silent movie set. With a white mantle thrown over it. Complete silence. Everything was muffled. The sense of mystery. All was slow-motion. A sepia reprint. Photogravure. Did you stand still in reverence or fear or both? No matter. You didn't even whisper. You were a ghost flinching in the light. You stepped warily. Not just because of the snow and ice. Or fear of falling. But...

The story could be the plot for a western-style soap opera. The latest scene involved two ranchers being sentenced to five years in federal prison for inadvertantly burning about 140 acres of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) rangeland in two separate fires. That is an area big enough to feed about three cow-calf pairs for a year in that neck of the woods. “I call it ‘as the sagebrush burns,’” said Erin Maupin, a former BLM range technician and watershed specialist and rancher in the area, of the long history involving the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), special interest groups...

When Arnold Schwarzenegger succeeds Trump in the boardroom, the show gains impressive advisers. The most impressive would be billionaire Warren Buffett, one of the world's most-respected businessmen. The show also adds Steve Ballmer, former Microsoft CEO; TV host and businesswoman Tyra Banks; and actress-entrepreneur Jessica Alba. Schwarzenegger will follow the Trump model and put a relative in an advisory role: His nephew, entertainment attorney Patrick Knapp Schwarzenegger, joins the show.

HOUSTON, Texas - Today, the Cruz for President Campaign announced the endorsement of Governor Eddie Calvo of Guam. Calvo is in his second term as the elected Republican governor of Guam, the critically important U.S. territory in the Pacific. He will serve as the Guam chairman of Cruz for President."I’m honored to have the support of Governor Calvo,” said Cruz. “He is a proven leader, who hasn’t been afraid to fight Washington to ensure a better, brighter future for Guam.”"Ted Cruz is listening to voters in Guam like no other candidate,” said Calvo. “He uniquely understands the issues facing not...

Because of Donald Trump's decision to skip the last GOP debate before the Iowa Caucus, logic clearly leads to the inevitable conclusion that neither Iowa nor New Hampshire can possibly give us a true read on the race for the GOP presidential nomination. Think about it. If Trump wins Iowa after skipping the debate, there will remain a lingering doubt of whether he could have pulled off the win had he been forced to answer tough questions. If he loses, there will be the issue of whether his decision to ditch the debate killed off the obvious momentum he was...

A Russian Su-27 jet fighter came within 20 feet of a U.S. RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft over the Black Sea on Monday in Moscow's latest military provocation involving dangerous aerial encounters. "On Jan. 25 an RC-135 aircraft flying a routine route in international airspace over the Black Sea was intercepted by a Russian Su-27 in an unsafe and unprofessional manner," Navy Capt. Daniel Hernandez, chief spokesman for the U.S. European Command, told the Washington Free Beacon. "We are looking into the issue." Defense officials said the Su-27 flew alongside the RC-135, an electronic intelligence-gathering aircraft, and then performed what they said...

Foundation donation page is live. As a Vet, and father of an Iraq Combat Vet, I am very pleased that Donald has made the care of Vets a top priority. And yes, I want him to be able to announce a YUGE amount of donations tonight!

I'm a big fan of the Ford Ranger truck. Back in 2011 Ford unwisely discontinued Ranger production in the United States. But recently the Internet has been filled with stories about the Ranger coming back to the US in 2016. The official Ford site is silent about this. So today I called a nearby Ford dearship. Forget about it, they said, the Ranger is not coming back to the US. Maybe that's true, maybe they just want to sell me a F150 today. So does anybody here know the inside scoop on the Ranger?

Dr. Thomas a homosexual pastor and one of Donald Trump's favorite pastors, Dr. Robert Jeffress, discussed same-sex marriage. Thomas argued that homosexual rights should be equated the same as rights with African-Americans received during the Civil Rights movement. Dr. Robert Jeffress responded, "I do not believe race is the same as sexual choice. I have an African-American pastor friend here in this community who says, "Don't equate sin with the color of my skin."" Thomas was offended and said, "My sexual orientation is just as valid in my lifestyle as someone's color of their skin. It's not a choice, it...

When deciding who to blame for the current state of affairs in our country, we always run through a familiar list of shadowy villains: the “system,” the “establishment,” politicians, lobbyists, the schools, the media, etc. These are fine suspects in their own right, but I find it ridiculous that, somehow, we skip right over the first and most dastardly culprit: ourselves. We never blame us, do we? We always get off the hook. All of the misery and misfortune in our culture have been hoist upon us from Washington, D.C. and Hollywood and Ivory Towers, and none of it from...