Free Republic

"I'm a maniac and everyone on this stage is stupid, fat and ugly, and Ben, you're a terrible surgeon," Senator Ted Cruz of Texas said to rival Ben Carson, a retired neurosurgeon, as the debate opened, saying he had now "gotten the Donald Trump portion of the program out of the way." Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who has been a frequent target of Trump's attacks, said he "kind of missed Donald Trump," adding: "He was such a teddy bear to me." Trump was able to garner a tremendous amount of attention on Thursday without having to share much of...

Vice President Joe Biden told fellow Democrats on Thursday that they should see it as “a gift from the Lord” if Republicans nominate Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas or billionaire businessman Donald Trump for president in 2016. “We may be given a gift from the Lord in the presidential race here,” Biden told lawmakers attending the annual House of Representatives Democratic conference, held this year in Baltimore. “I don’t know who to root for more: Cruz? Or what’s that guy’s name, he’s having a fundraiser for veterans tonight, I’m told,” said the vice president. Trump has announced he will snub...

Despite not showing up at the Republican Fox News debate tonight, Donald Trump still dominated the online conversation. Google, Fox News' partner for the debate, kept track of which candidates were the most searched during the debate. Guess who topped the chart almost all throughout Yep, aside from that brief Marco Rubio blip, it was Trump all the way.

A Lone Morton Thiokol Engineer tried to convince NASA and Thiokol management that their booster rocket is flawed. Both NASA and Thiokol ignore his warnings.The next day The Space Shuttle Challenger explodes over Florida and the Rogers Commission is formed to find out what exactly happened.

Candidates with big poll leads have sought to wriggle out of debating without looking like cowards or risking a slip into obscurity for years, but Donald Trump actually lived the dream Thursday night. By picking a well-timed fight with Fox News and Megyn Kelly, Trump dominated days of debate coverage without even participating, then stood aside and laughed -- hosting his own rival televised event while on the main stage his GOP rivals spent hours squabbling with each other and turning in poor man's versions of Trump-style demagoguery.

Floridians will decide this November whether to allow medical marijuana in the state. On Wednesday, a constitutional amendment to legalize the drug gained enough signed petitions to qualify for the ballot next November. If passed, the amendment would allow doctors to prescribe marijuana for people with “debilitating conditions” such as cancer, HIV/AIDS, epilepsy or multiple sclerosis. Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article56931218.html#storylink=cpy

Senators Rand Paul and Marco Rubio joined forces Thursday night to accuse their colleague, Ted Cruz, of being willing to "do or say anything" out of political expediency. "This is the lie Ted's campaign is built on, and Rand touched upon it," Rubio said during the debate. "That he is the most conservative guy and everybody else is a RINO. The truth is, Ted, throughout this campaign, you've been willing to do or say anything in order to get votes." Rubio and Paul argued that Cruz has been inconsistent in his approach to immigration reform. Cruz, who put forth an...

A former Soviet agent says he has found evidence that Joseph Stalin spied on Mao Zedong, among others, by analysing excrement to construct psychological portraits. According to Russian newspaper reports, in the 1940s Stalin's secret police had set up a special department to get its hands on people's faeces. The ambitious aim: to analyse samples of foreign leaders' stools. (snip)

January 29, 2016 Friday of the Third Week of Ordinary Time Reading 1 2 Sm 11:1-4a, 5-10a, 13-17 At the turn of the year, when kings go out on campaign,David sent out Joab along with his officersand the army of Israel, and they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah.David, however, remained in Jerusalem.One evening David rose from his siesta and strolled about on the roof of the palace.From the roof he saw a woman bathing, who was very beautiful.David had inquiries made about the woman and was told, "She is Bathsheba, daughter of Eliam, and wife of Joab's armor...

A Daily Caller story today reads, Veterans Group To Refuse Any Donations From Trump Fundraiser, but a lot is left out, perhaps deliberately. The short story nowhere mentions who and what this group is. The reason why they won’t accept the funds is the story. Read on. The story reads A military veterans group told Donald Trump they do not want his money from his fundraiser for vets.

In the wake of Donald Trump's announcement that he would not participate in the Jan. 28 GOP debate because Megyn Kelly is moderating, Kelly has been subjected to a barrage of misogynistic abuse online. It's disgusting and depressing, but not at all surprising, for two reasons: Because many people (read: trolls) feel empowered to talk to women online in a degrading, abusive way, and because Trump's campaign is built on misogyny. Trump has trolled Kelly since August, and now his supporters are following his lead.

Carpet bombing, also known as saturation bombing, is a large aerial bombing done in a progressive manner to inflict damage in every part of a selected area of land.[1][2][3][4] The phrase evokes the image of explosions completely covering an area, in the same way that a carpet covers a floor. Carpet bombing is usually achieved by dropping many unguided bombs. The term obliteration bombing is sometimes used to describe especially intensified bombing with the intention of destroying a city or a large part of the city.[5] The term area bombing refers to indiscriminate bombing of an area,[5] and also encompasses...

We can confirm multiple reports of Bernie Sanders’ campaign staffers attempting and gaining access to Employee Dining Rooms at Las Vegas Strip properties where over 57,000 members that we represent work. We are disappointed and offended. It's completely inappropriate for any campaign to attempt to mislead Culinary Union members, especially at their place of work. The Culinary Union button that hundreds of thousands of union members have proudly worn to work every day represents 80 years of struggle and fighting for justice. We strongly condemn anyone falsifying their affiliation with the Culinary Union in order to gain access to properties...

Megyn Kelly challenges Ted Cruz on his past immigration statements.

And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out against the Philistines to battle, and pitched beside Ebenezer: and the Philistines pitched in Aphek. And the Philistines put themselves in array against Israel: and when they joined battle, Israel was smitten before the Philistines: and they slew of the army in the field about four thousand men. And when the people were come into the camp, the elders of Israel said, Wherefore hath the Lord smitten us to day before the Philistines? Let us fetch the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of Shiloh...

Sarah Palin Thursday lauded Donald Trump's decision to skip the Republican presidential debate in Des Moines, calling him a "game-changer" whose "victory on this issue proves we have a choice." "Trump just spoke for the majority of us who are through with a prejudiced press and a political hierarchy expecting us to hit our knees at their command," the former Alaska governor and 2008 vice presidential candidate, said on Facebook. "Enough is enough."

Good news and bad news for Trump fans from Nate Cohn. The good news: If you’re looking for evidence that Monday night’s electorate will include a bunch of people who’ve never voted Republican before, which probably means a stronger than expected showing for Trump, here you go. New registrations for the GOP are up from where they were in 2012: This is what the figures look like corrected AND with new data. It's a completely different story. pic.twitter.com/sbYDUchlo3— Nate Cohn (@Nate_Cohn) January 28, 2016 Those are dismal numbers for Bernie Sanders, who’s hoping to bring his own surge of...

We wish this was just a joke. It is not. It is pure sacrilege taking place in a parish in Brooklyn, New York. Not only does the Diocese of Brooklyn know about this abomination … it actually helped advertise it on facebook! The statement from the Diocese of Brooklyn says: “On Sunday, Jan. 31, head down to St. Bernard’s Parish in Mill Basin for a very special treat: a #StarWars themes Mass! Kids come dressed as their favorite character and there will be snacks in the auditorium after the Mass. Be sure to be there at 11:30 AM and May...

Just who is Donald J. Trump's Prince, and why has he come now to buy into the Plaza Hotel? Prince Walid bin Talal is the Saudi ruling family's most prominent -- and most adventurous -- international investor, with large stakes in Citicorp, Four Seasons Hotels, Fairmont Hotels, Euro Disney and Saks Fifth Avenue, which is controlled by Investcorp of Bahrain.

The woman, Nooshafarin Ravaghi, a Lake Forest resident, was an English as a Second Language teacher and had been working as a contracted employee at the jail for the last six months, according to Lt. Jeffrey Hallock, a spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff's Department. Nayeri had been attending one of the woman's classes, and they developed a friendly relationship from there, according to Hallock, who said police believe she "directly contributed to the escape and provided credible planning tools." Ravaghi has been speaking with police, and denied providing the escapees with anything beyond maps. But Hallock said investigators "absolutely...