Free Republic

Anyone looking to buy Visa, American express, or Mastercard gift cards using a credit card will now have to show a government-issued photo ID. Also, purchases made at the self-service checkouts will no longer be allowed. “The ordinance was really born out of frustration,” said Shakopee Police Chief Jeff Tate. “This is five or 10 seconds to take your identification out and make sure it matches the card. I don’t think that’s asking too much..." Chief Tate believes other cities will adopt similar ordinances. “We’re the first, and hopefully not the last. We’ve had some inquiries from some outside agencies...

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of a Native American man who was convicted of hunting off-season in Bighorn National Forest. Neil Gorsuch joined the four liberal justices in Herrera v. Wyoming, holding that an 1868 treaty between the U.S. and the Native American Crow Tribe granted the tribe the right to hunt in "unoccupied lands," and that the treaty did not expire when Wyoming became a state in 1890. Crow Tribe member Clayvin Herrera was charged with off-season hunting in 2014, but he argued that the 151-year-old treaty protected his ability to hunt at that time....

In the latest two horrific school shootings, one at a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) high school in Highlands Ranch, CO, and the other at a college in Charlotte, NC, two courageous students lost their lives as they tackled the shooters to stop the slaughter. Never again should another precious young person with his whole life ahead of him need to die as a first responder. Now we know they don’t have to because armed and willing school staff can keep them safe. This is the take-away from a new study from the Crime Prevention Research Center after analyzing nearly 20...

President Trump was “thrilled” that his campaign acquired Northern Virginia office space at “bargain basement” rates, a campaign official told the Washington Examiner in an interview in the plush 14th floor offices overlooking the Potomac River from Arlington, Va. But campaign finance specialists say the "steal" could violate election law, which views below-market rates for rent as an illegal in-kind campaign donation. The deal was presented as a story of real estate prowess that was a fitting reflection of the man who authored The Art of the Deal. Campaign manager Brad Parscale took advantage of a long-term lease inked in...

In a significant way, "Mayor Pete" Buttigieg is the embodiment of his father Joseph — and, by extension, Antonio Gramsci. Buttigieg Senior was a professor of critical theory and the relationship between culture and politics at Notre Dame University from 1980 until his retirement in 2017.  (The man, a smoker who wouldn't quit, died of lung cancer in 2019.)  Academically, Joseph Buttigieg spent his entire professional life editing the journals of Antonio Gramsci.  According to a N.D. alumni newsletter, Professor Buttigieg's work on Gramsci has been spread far and wide, with his work having been translated into German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Japanese. ...

As the investigations into the Trump-Russia investigation proceed, it’s not too difficult to figure out a few of the theoretical starting points. The first and most obvious theory is the one largely promulgated in the media for the better part of two years. It goes something like this: The sharp, super-sleuth investigative skills of top officials within the Justice Department and our intel community enabled them to identify Donald Trump and his campaign as treacherous conduits to Russian President Vladimir Putin himself. That theory was summarily dismissed by special counsel Robert Mueller’s conclusion that there wasn’t so much as even...

My hometown of Minneapolis has been totally transformed by the arrival of tens of thousands of refugees from Somalis, one of whom now represents the city and a few suburbs in Congress. Nobody there was asked if such a makeover was desired by the residents; State Department officials decided that the generous welfare benefits available in Minnesota were reason enough to send people whose native land was tropical to the coldest major city in the United States. But now that the old 97%+ Caucasian city has been made into a multicultural exemplar, the local establishment, including the newspapers and broadcasters,...

The “conservative” response to Big Tech censorship has largely been relegated to two thought-terminating lanes: “President Trump, just FIX IT already!” or “That’s capitalism, baby!” Both real legal constraints and political considerations — imposed on President Trump by allies who are understandably reluctant to embrace the most aggressive executive branch solutions — limit his maneuverability. Meanwhile, “free market” absolutists refuse to acknowledge the powerful forces at work that deny free speech-focused social media competitors access to a level playing field, as can be seen with even a cursory look at Gab.com’s struggle: The biggest danger we face is that we yet again retreat to...

Prince Charles and Donald Trump will meet for afternoon tea during the US president's state visit to the UK next month. The Prince of Wales and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, will join Mr Trump for afternoon tea at their official residence Clarence House, according to CNN. Mr Trump and his wife Melania will be guests of the Queen during his three-day visit, which begins on June 3. Read more: A body language expert reveals what the relationship between Donald and Melania Trump is really like His formal visit follows a working trip to the UK last summer that...

Civil commitment is a delicate issue for families and authorities. The way it works now is that when someone threatens a family member or runs through traffic screaming at cars, police can place a hold on them. A county judge then decides whether they’re “a danger to self or others.” But that legal standard has not been defined by the courts. The process is justifiably difficult. But many think it’s become so difficult that people only end up getting help after they break the law and are criminally committed. So Oregon is thinking about changing the way people with mental...

Since 1973, when Roe vs. Wade ushered in what would eventually lead to abortion on demand, including partial-birth abortion and even the failure to protect babies born alive after failed procedures -- the pro-life movement has achieved few legislative victories. That may be about to change. While New York and several other states have passed statutes effectively allowing infanticide, more conservative states are passing "heartbeat" bills and other restrictions. Information is becoming more helpful in changing the opinions of people not rigidly "pro-choice" to one more favorable to defending unborn life, at least at late stages of fetal development. Films...

Alabama Public Television chose not to air PBS’s Arthur episode that included a same-sex marriage. In the episode, which aired nationwide May 13, Arthur and his friends attend their beloved teacher Mr. Ratburn’s nuptials to his partner. APT preempted the episode by showing a re-run of Arthur. Mike Mckenzie, director of programming at APT, said APT was notified by WGBH and PBS in mid-April about the episode entitled “Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone” and decided to show a re-run. Mckenzie said APT has no plans to air the episode at a later date. “Parents have trusted Alabama Public Television...

Olivia Jade Giannulli wants to go back to the University of Southern California - even as her mother, Full House star Lori Loughlin, faces possible prison time for allegedly paying bribes in order to gain her daughter’s entry into the school. ‘Olivia Jade wants to go back to USC,’ a source told Us Magazine. ‘She didn’t get officially kicked out and she is begging the school to let her back in.’

If the contents of an email sent to staffers by then-FBI Director James Comey regarding the infamous “Steele dossier” is accurate, then U.S. Attorney John Durham, whom Attorney General William Barr has assigned to look into the origins of the Obama-era “Spygate” scandal, may soon be able to indict a former CIA director. That would be none other than former CIA Director John Brennan. The crime: Lying to Congress, something the deep state vociferous #NeverTrumper has done in the past. During an interview Monday with Maria Bartiromo on Fox Business Network, legal analyst Andrew Napolitano said that based on statements...

1944: During preparations for the invasion of Saipan, accidental ordnance blasts on LST 353 at West Loch, Pearl Harbor, kills 163 and injures 396. Six tank landing ships, three tank landing craft, and 17 track landing vehicles are destroyed in explosions and fires.

From Alabama’s new law restricting abortion to Virginia’s governor Ralph Northam (D) comments clearly condoning killing infants after birth, abortion is guaranteed to be a central part of next year’s election. The abortion debate usually centers only on the morality of the act (choice versus life). Morality surely is important, but abortion has the much wider impact.Liberalizing abortion rules from 1969 to 1973 ignited vast long-term social changes in America. This discussion might finally provide a chance to evaluate how Roe v. Wade has changed the U.S.One often misunderstood fact: Legal abortions didn't start with Roe or even with the five...

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage has just been assaulted with a milkshake. Burger King must be so proud! The attack happened while Farage was in Newcastle Upon Tyne, as part of a whistlestop tour which is taking him to all corners of England for his final campaign push before Thursday’s European election.Farage was unharmed, though his suit most definitely wasn’t. You can well understand why he was so very peeved – not least at the failure of his tight security to prevent what could have been an assault by something far worse than milkshake.

Key moments from Pete Buttigieg's Fox News town hall

Each one of the more than 50 million abortions committed in the United States since the Supreme Court’s abysmal decision in Roe v. Wade (1973) has destroyed a unique human being. Your brother or sister, a potential spouse or best friend—every one of them was sacrificed for profit and pleasure. Those tiny human persons were, as the Declaration of Independence recognizes, “created equal” and endowed—just like you or me—with the inalienable right to life. In other words, human beings, no matter how small, have the right to life simply because they are human. Period. This isn’t difficult, but people have...

At the center of the battle over marriage, the popular Christian-owned restaurant chain Chick-fil-A is once again a target of criticism, this time over a $1.65 million donation to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes to support summer camps for inner-city Atlanta youth. The LGBTQ blog Outsports called attention to the donation, saying the company’s charitable arm “has been continually criticized for its donations to organizations classified as anti-LGBTQ.” Chick-fil-A Foundation Executive Director Rodney Bullard told Business Insider the foundation has a “much higher calling than any political or cultural war.” “The calling for us is to ensure that we’re relevant...