Free Republic

Pat Gray discusses President Trump's latest power move as he blocked Iran's top diplomat from coming to the United States after learning that he planned to trash America in front of the UN.

HUD ISSUES IMPROVED FAIR HOUSING RULE WASHINGTON - The U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today published its proposed Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule, which offers clearer guidance to states and local governments to help them improve affordable housing choices in their community. Read HUD's proposed rule. "HUD's commitment to Fair Housing remains as steadfast as ever before, and this improved rule reaffirms our mission of giving people more affordable housing options in communities across the country," said Secretary Carson. "By fixing the old Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule, localities now have the flexibility to devise housing plans that...

The Trump administration took steps Tuesday to roll back an Obama-era rule intended to ensure that communities confront and address racial segregation in housing, saying local governments have been overburdened by the requirements. The proposed Department of Housing and Urban Development rule would redefine fair housing standards to place more emphasis on improving housing choice rather than reducing discrimination. It would reduce regulatory burdens and eliminate the assessment tool used to map racial segregation under the 2015 Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule. According to HUD, simplifying the process for cities to meet fair housing requirements would help them meet their...

Australians are doing their best to save local animals from overwhelming brushfires by any means possible — including packing them into their cars. A viral video documents two teen cousins’ efforts to save area wildlife by packing six koalas into their vehicle. “Rescuing Koalas affected by fires on Kangaroo Island with my cousin,” reads the video’s caption. “Little fellas looking a little exhausted.” The clip pans to the back of the car, where a mom and her child are cuddling. “She’s a mother with a baby,” says one of the two young heroes, who are identified by LADbible as Micah,...

Two more Chinese nationals have been arrested for illegally taking photographs at a Florida Navy base, court records show. The arrests over the weekend of Yuhao Wang and Jielun Zhang bring to four the number of Chinese people charged recently with snapping pictures at the Naval Air Station in Key West, Florida. An FBI affidavit says Wang and Zhang drove up to an air station annex entrance and were told by a security officer they could not enter the property without military identification. The FBI says the pair drove onto the base anyway and were apprehended by authorities about 30...

RICHMOND, Va. -- Governor Ralph Northam (D - Virginia) wants to see the Commonwealth end its recognition of Lee-Jackson Day. Celebrated in Virginia on the Friday before Martin Luther King Jr. Day each January, Lee-Jackson Day honors Confederate Generals Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. "I don't think there's any secret that it's in honor of two individuals who fought to prolong slavery which is not a proud aspect of Virginia's history," Governor Northam said Monday after announcing his support for a proposal to establish Election Day as a new state holiday. "I think we need to move forward and...

However much emotion eclipses reason, the Iranian regime is not likely to become so reckless as to trigger a war it cannot possibly win. The regime must know devastation would surely come if it seeks to avenge the killing of Qassem Soleimani by attacking what one senior American intelligence official figure said would top even the White House as its dream target. “Why hit the White House when you can hit the center of the Earth?” the official told The Daily Beast on Monday. He meant the epicenter as seen by President Trump, whom the Iranians hold personally responsible for...

RUSH: I made mention of the fact yesterday that General Soleimani was flown back to Tehran in a cardboard box. There was no body. There were body parts. There was a hand with an identifiable ring. Flown back there in a box that was laid out across three coach seats in the Iranian airline. Well, it turns out now that this coffin, Soleimani’s coffin was later put on the hood of a Chevrolet truck — not a Toyota, a Chevrolet truck — for part of his funeral procession. So Chevy got some product placement here, edging out Toyota, which is...

Now that New York State has “reformed” its criminal justice laws so that suspects are being immediately released without bail for a wide variety of crimes, these stories seem to be popping up on a daily basis. In today’s edition of the Empire State’s version of Groundhog Day, we learn that a Long Island man got himself into a bit of trouble after committing what was described as a “burglary spree” at a local shopping mall. Not being among the brightest of criminals, he was easily tracked down the next day, on New Year’s Eve, and arrested. But under...

Key West visitors always flock to the town’s favorite tourist spots — Mallory Square, Duval Street, Ernest Hemingway’s home, and the Southernmost Point Buoy — to snap photos and record memories. But apparently, not students visiting from China. For some reason, they seem to like taking pictures of military facilities in Key West. The latest — a pair of Chinese nationals attending the University of Michigan — were arrested over the weekend and appeared in federal court in Key West on Monday on a charge of entering a U.S. Naval property for the purpose of photographing defense installations. Since the...

RICHMOND, Va. -- Virginia's Attorney General is urging lawmakers to toughen hate crime statutes. Mark Herring is re-introducing a series of bills he hopes will address the problem in the Commonwealth. His bills would expand Virginia's definition of a hate crime, put more restrictions on militia groups, and bar anyone convicted of a hate crime from having a gun. Herring says with the new democratic majority in the General Assembly, he's optimistic the measures will pass. In previous years his bills failed. "These are all measures designed to help stem the prevalence of hate crimes and white supremacist violence that...

This didn’t take long, did it? Almost as soon as Mitch McConnell got past the 51st vote to use the rules from Bill Clinton’s impeachment trial for Donald Trump’s, he moved to seal the victory: Senate Republican leaders are preparing to move forward on a set of impeachment trial rules without Democratic support.Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is on the verge of having sufficient backing in his 53-member caucus to pass a blueprint for the trial that leaves the question of seeking witnesses and documents until after opening arguments are made, according to multiple senators.That framework would mirror the...

More statehouses are wading into the contentious debate over the participation of transgender athletes in men’s and women’s sports. In recent weeks, Republican legislators in at least five states have drafted measures aimed at preventing athletes from competing in categories different than their biological sex. Lawmakers say they are specifically concerned about female athletes facing unfair competition. A conservative legal group last year filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education on behalf of three female high-school athletes claiming Connecticut’s inclusive transgender policy is unlawfully unfair. The bills—introduced or prefiled in New Hampshire, Washington, Georgia, Tennessee and Missouri—reflect growing...

The city council in Richmond, Virginia, the former capital of the Confederacy, passed a resolution Monday to petition the state legislature for permission to take down or modify its Confederate statutes. Virginia state law allows local governments to erect war monuments, but prohibits the local governments from taking them down or modifying them. The law prohibits local governments from moving the monuments or adding placards explaining why they were erected. The resolution passed by a vote of 6-2, said Councilmember Chris Hilbert who voted for the resolution. Under the resolution, the city of Richmond will ask the General Assembly to...

In its continuing quest to break new ground in the pursuit of justice, the State of New York now has a new requirement that the accused must be given the victim's name and address. Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) defended the new requirement, calling it the fulfillment of the accused's right to confront his accuser. The previous policy of confining this right to the courtroom is too limited. The ability to contact the accuser and witnesses, if any, prior to a trial will make the process fairer and more efficient." "In many cases, victims of crimes are confused and uncertain about...

HB 569 Out-of-state concealed handgun permits; reciprocity. Introduced by: Dan I. Helmer SUMMARY AS INTRODUCED: Out-of-state concealed handgun permits; reciprocity. Reinstates the prior law providing that the holder of an out-of-state concealed handgun permit who is at least 21 years of age is authorized to carry a concealed handgun in Virginia if the other state (i) has a 24-hour-a-day means of verification of the validity of the permits issued in that state and (ii) has requirements and qualifications that are adequate to prevent possession of a permit by persons who would be denied a permit in Virginia. Under current law,...

Australian police investigating the bushfires have arrested more than 180 alleged arsonists in the past few months. But apparently they forgot to send the memo to Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett, both of whom insisted in their Golden Globes acceptance speeches that the Australian bushfires were in fact caused by ‘climate change.’ “Make no mistake. The tragedy unfolding in Australia is climate change-based,” declared climate expert Crowe on Sunday, in a speech read out for him at the Golden Globes by Jennifer Aniston, supposedly because Crowe was too busy at home “protecting his family from the devastating bush fires.”

A transgender teen unable to change the sex listed on his birth certificate sued New York state Tuesday, claiming a discriminatory policy is forcing him to rely on a document that inaccurately portrays his identity. The lawsuit filed in federal court in Albany argues that transgender minors should have the ability to correct their New York state birth certificates, something that underage individuals with documents issued in New York City and some other states can already do. In 2014, New York state broadened who can change the sex listed on their birth certificates to include those who haven’t had gender...

RICHMOND, Va. — Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg is in Richmond Tuesday to campaign ahead of the 2020 presidential election. The former New York City mayor met with Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney at Ironclad Coffee Roasters in Shockoe Bottom and former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe at Main Street Station Tuesday morning. 2020 presidential candidate @MikeBloomberg met Richmond Mayor @LevarStoney for coffee today at @IroncladCoffee in Shockoe Bottom. pic.twitter.com/PDQLxpMrU3 — WTVR CBS 6 Richmond (@CBS6) January 7, 2020 McAuliffe said he did not plan on endorsing a candidate in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. “I have a lot of...

Happy New Year, everyone!! Here's hoping 2020 is the best year yet!! President Trump should take the win in the Senate trial without dragging it out, then concentrate on winning the 2020 election with wide coattails, then bide his time as the cases against the various coup plotters wind their way through the justice system. Win the election, hold the senate, take back the house!! And then continue the work of making America great again: Build the wall, enforce the law, deport them all!! End DACA!! End sanctuary cities!! End anchor babies!! Continue cutting regulations, cutting government, cutting spending and...