Free Republic

The U.S. has received intelligence that suggests Osama bin Laden’s son and potential successor, Hamza, is dead, NBC News reported Wednesday. The three U.S. intelligence officials who spoke with NBC declined to share when, where, or how the younger bin Laden died, and would not say whether the U.S. was at all involved. The news, if confirmed, would dispel fears widely-held in the intelligence community that Hamza bin Laden was poised to succeed his father as the spiritual and tactical leader of al-Qaeda’s global jihadist movement. Born around 1989, Hamza bin Laden traveled with his father to Afghanistan in 1996...

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday lowered interest rates for the first time since the Great Recession in 2008 to help stave off the possibility of an economic downturn. Policymakers led by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell voted 8-2 in favor of a small cut in the federal funds rate, and recommitted to their promise to "act as appropriate" to sustain the country's longest economic expansion in history. Interest rates, which affect the cost of borrowing for credit cards and mortgages, are now set to hover between 2% and 2.25%. The rate cut follows months of pressure from President Donald Trump, who...

Poor John Delaney. If he weren’t a bald, middle-aged, straight-white-male centi-millionaire who used to be a congressman from Maryland, he might be getting some real traction in the moderate lane of the Democratic primary. On night one of the second Democatic debate, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren were the only candidates on stage polling in the double digits, essentially tied nationally for second place. But rather than spar with one another, they banded together to fend off criticism from the other candidates, who tried to distinguish themselves as more moderate and more electable than Sanders, the self-described socialist, and Warren,...

A black teenager in Ohio was caught on video chasing four individuals with a pistol — firing multiple shots at them and allegedly shouting, “I don’t like white people in my hood!” Court papers obtained by WKRC outline the alleged incident, which unfolded on July 25 in the Kennedy Heights neighborhood of Cincinnati. Devonta Allen, 18, was walking down a local street when he spotted his alleged victims inside two different cars, the court papers say. He allegedly fired three shots at them — hitting both vehicles, but missing everyone inside. Video captured at the scene reportedly shows Allen chasing...

US Military Jet Crashes Near Death Valley, California 22:05 31.07.2019(updated 22:13 31.07.2019) Get short URL 0 51 A US Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet fighter jet crashed in western Death Valley in California's Inyo County Wednesday. The pilot's status is unknown. Local news reports that a search-and-rescue helicopter has been dispatched to the area from nearby Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake.

It’s the latest hybrid nobody asked for. America’s leading mustard brand, French’s, has collaborated with trendy California-based ice cream company Coolhaus to create mustard-flavored ice cream. The suspect sweet will be served up starting the week of Aug. 3, which is not coincidentally National Mustard Day.

The TV host came under fire for suggesting parents should wait until a child's "formative years" before making declarations about their gender Mario Lopez is facing backlash over comments he made in a recent interview that suggested it was “dangerous” for parents of children as young as 3 years old to definitively label their kids transgender... ...In a statement to PEOPLE on Wednesday, Lopez apologized for his remarks. “The comments I made were ignorant and insensitive, and I now have a deeper understanding of how hurtful they were,” he said. “I have been and always will be an ardent supporter...

Saying what no politician has the guts to say. Remarkable - gives me hope.

Here is a hopefully short synopsis of something that happened this week that I still don’t understand (?) [Be sure to read all 25 or so tweets, you will not be disappointed and you will be amazed.]

The United States has obtained intelligence that the son and potential successor of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, Hamza bin Laden, is dead, according to three U.S. officials. The officials would not provide details of where or when Hamza bin Laden died or if the U.S. played a role in his death. It is unclear if the U.S. has confirmed his death. Asked by reporters on Wednesday whether the U.S. had intelligence that Hamza is dead, President Donald Trump said, "I don't want to comment on that."

Today’s Campaign Update, Part II (Because The Campaign Never Ends) We here at the Campaign Update have laughed out loud for the last 3 years as CNN’s ratings have collapsed like a treehouse built like a Bernie Sanders acolyte. – Now, the fake news channel’s collapse has rubbed off on its cherished Democrat Party and it’s presidential debates. Last night’s first of two debates aired solely on CNN this week plummeted from the 15.3 million viewers who tuned into the debates held in late June to just 11.5 million, according to the final ratings released this morning by the Neilsen...

Asked why @BernieSanders is so angry, the answer is simple: 28 years in Congress and never able to pass even a scintilla of his socialist agenda. All hat, no cattle.I'm angry because multi-millionaires like you and Trump have rigged our economy at the middle class' expense. https://twitter.com/MittRomney/status/1156565822850129925 I'm angry because millions are living paycheck to paycheck. I'm angry because 34 million Americans are uninsured. Why doesn't that anger you? https://twitter.com/BernieSanders/status/1156594006421385216 Nice try, but socialism isn’t the answer. If it was, maybe Bernie would have something to show for his 3 decades in Congress. #AllHatNoCattle

Health authorities have uncovered an alarming surge in resistance to crucial HIV drugs. Surveys by the World Health Organization (WHO) reveal that, in the past 4 years, 12 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas have surpassed acceptable levels of drug resistance against two drugs that constitute the backbone of HIV treatment: efavirenz and nevirapine. People living with HIV are routinely treated with a cocktail of drugs, known as antiretroviral therapy, but the virus can mutate into a resistant form.

Yesterday I received "notification" from FedEx officially looking email telling me that package is on the way, will require signature. To find out where it is just go click on link. Today I got email from service@paypal, telling me to go click on "You received a payment of $308.09 USD from eBay Inc Shipping (us-ebay-shiplabels16@ebay.com) Check and Update Activity" which points to: (http://members.westnet.com.au/~kathscully/LABEL.07-31-19.jar) which looks like malware in .JAR format (like .ZIP) When I got first one and viewed on the phone, I clicked on it and nothing showed. Later checking via computer I found the .JAR file on the...

Republicans have failed to promote a single conservative fiscal reform to even tweak the growing welfare state, despite their promise to fight for welfare work requirements. But at least Republicans at a state level are promoting conservatism, right? Well, not if the courts are crowned king of the republic. Courts have become the final arbiter of cultural issues and now even border and national security issues. Thus, it was only a matter of time before they ventured into fiscal/economic issues. Recently, several states have been conditioning Medicaid eligibility upon work requirements. Arkansas, Kentucky, and New Hampshire got a waiver from...

The much awaited Miss Grand International 2019 pageant will be held in Venezuela on 25th October 2019. Announcement about the venue and date was made on the Facebook page of the pageant. The officials uploaded a video showing the glimpse of the host country Venezuela and captioned along with it, ‘Official Announcement.’ The grand coronation night of this pageant will witness Miss Grand International 2018, Clara Sosa crowning the new queen with much pomp and fanfare. Miss Grand International 2019 will be the 7th edition of the pageant. Last year Meenakshi Chaudhary of India was sashed first runner up, at...

Former Patriots and Dolphins linebacker Nick Buoniconti died on Wednesday after a battle with dementia, the Dolphins announced. Buoniconti was 78. Buoniconti was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001. He was a five-time All-Pro and two-time Super Bowl champion and won the Lombardi Trophy with the Dolphins in 1972 and 1973.

Democratic freshman representative Rashida Tlaib (Mich.) received a generous donation during the second quarter in the name of a man who died more than 10 years ago, a review of campaign and online records shows. Tlaib's campaign committee, Rashida Tlaib for Congress, hauled in donations of at least $2,000 from dozens of individuals between April 1 and June 30. One of those contributions was from George S. Farah Sr., a Michigan businessman, real estate developer, and community leader who made his way from Palestine to the United States in the mid-1950s. Farah passed away on Feb. 1, 2009, from heart...

On today’s show we dig into the first night of round two of the Democratic Party’s presidential debates. From the craziness of Marianne Williamson to semi-sane voices who warned about the party going so far left that they lose, the debate had it all. If you were looking to have free stuff promised to you, last night’s debate was for you. Free health care, free college, free entry into the country … the only “free” that didn’t warrant a mention from anyone on the stage was individual freedom. Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren clashed with Rep. Tim Ryan and...

With the next round of Democratic presidential candidate debates upon us, we will surely hear more about government activism to fix racial inequalities. Inequality is real and needs attention. According to the Urban Institute, average white household wealth in 2016 was $171,000 compared with average black household wealth of $17,409. Sen. Cory Booker wants government to make deposits into savings accounts for low-income children to the tune of up to $50,000 each. Sen. Kamala Harris proposes $100 billion in government subsidies for black homeownership. These kinds of proposals may win some black votes, but should they? Will they really make...