Free Republic

With several Democrats openly floating the possibility they might vote to acquit President Trump, congressional Republicans are planning an aggressive "Plan B" strategy in the event some Republicans break off and demand additional witnesses in the president's impeachment trial, Fox News has learned. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., privately said early Tuesday that he wasn't sure there were enough Republican votes to block more witnesses, given that some moderates in the GOP's 53-47 Senate majority were wavering. Any witness resolution would likely require four Republican defections in the Senate, because in the event of a 50-50 tie, Chief Justice...

Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, January 27, 2020   Practice Fusion Inc. Admits to Kickback Scheme Aimed at Increasing Opioid Prescriptions Practice Fusion Inc. (Practice Fusion), a San Francisco-based health information technology developer, will pay $145 million to resolve criminal and civil investigations relating to its electronic health records (EHR) software, the Department of Justice announced today.As part of the criminal resolution, Practice Fusion admits that it solicited and received kickbacks from a major opioid company in exchange for utilizing its EHR software to influence physician prescribing of opioid pain medications.  Practice Fusion...

Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, January 28, 2020   First of its Kind Enforcement Action by the Justice Department The Department of Justice filed civil actions for temporary restraining orders today in two landmark cases against five companies and three individuals allegedly responsible for carrying hundreds of millions of fraudulent robocalls to American consumers, the Department of Justice announced.  The Department of Justice alleges that the companies were warned numerous times that they were carrying fraudulent robocalls — including government- and business-imposter calls — and yet continued to carry those calls and facilitate...

The Department of Justice announced today that the Chair of Harvard University’s Chemistry and Chemical Biology Department and two Chinese nationals have been charged in connection with aiding the People’s Republic of China.  Dr. Charles Lieber, 60, Chair of the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard University, was arrested this morning and charged by criminal complaint with one count of making a materially false, fictitious and fraudulent statement.  Lieber will appear this afternoon before Magistrate Judge Marianne B. Bowler in federal court in Boston, Massachusetts.Yanqing Ye, 29, a Chinese national, was charged in an indictment today with...

The administration has discussed the prospect of suspending flights to China, but has not made a decision, officials said, denying some media reports that it had.

South Court Auditorium Eisenhower Executive Office Building 2:24 P.M. EST THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you all very much for that very warm welcome. And on behalf of the President of the United States and the First Family: Welcome to the White House. (Applause.) And join me in thanking an extraordinary leader. I just — as soon as I heard her voice, I had to jump out from behind the curtain. (Laughter.) She is not only the 18th Secretary of Transportation, but frankly, she is one of the most distinguished public servants in the United States of America, with an...

Rose Garden 11:11 A.M. EST Q Mr. President, what’s your response to the Bolton manuscript? And does this increase the chances he could be called to testify? PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, I haven’t seen a manuscript, but I can tell you: Nothing was ever said to John Bolton. But I have not seen a manuscript. I guess he’s writing a book. I have not seen it. Q Well, you know what the allegation is. PRESIDENT TRUMP: We’ll talk inside. Q Do you expect Prime Minister Netanyahu to implement the plan right away in the coming six weeks? PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, I...

Oval Office 11:18 A.M. EST PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, thank you very much. It’s an honor to have Prime Minister Netanyahu, a great friend of mine and a great friend of our country. We’ve had a tremendous almost three-year relationship. I’ve known you many years before that, but this was three years of primetime, and we’ve done a lot for Israel. And the relationship, I think, has never been better. We’re going to be discussing Mideast peace. We’re going to be announcing a plan tomorrow at 12 o’clock. And that’s a plan that Bibi and his opponent, I must say, have...

On International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we remember the millions of precious souls who perished as a result of the horrific crimes perpetrated by the Nazi regime.  We also reaffirm our steadfast commitment to confronting the vile poison of anti-Semitism wherever and whenever it arises.This year’s annual observance of International Holocaust Remembrance Day is especially moving as we commemorate the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.  As we solemnly mourn those who were abused, tortured, or killed at Auschwitz and other concentration and extermination camps, we acknowledge the heroes who risked their own lives—many of whom made the ultimate sacrifice—to...

Today’s stay from the Supreme Court is a massive win for American taxpayers, American workers, and the American Constitution. This decision allows the Government to implement regulations effectuating longstanding Federal law that newcomers to this country must be financially self-sufficient and not a “public charge” on our country and its citizens. Two courts of appeals had already ruled that the Government should be able to implement these regulations, but one single district judge’s nationwide injunction remained. As two Justices pointed out today, the expanding practice of district courts entering nationwide injunctions raises real problems about the proper power of a...

East Room 12:09 P.M. EST PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Thank you. Today, Israel takes a big step towards peace. (Applause.) Young people across the Middle East are ready for a more hopeful future, and governments throughout the region are realizing that terrorism and Islamic extremism are everyone’s common enemy. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of meeting with both the Prime Minister of Israel and a man that’s working very hard to become the Prime Minister of Israel in the longest-running election of all time — (laughter) — Benny Gantz of the Blue and White Party....

NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly dismissed the idea that journalists interview top government officials to score "political points," pushing back on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's remarks following a clash between the pair after an interview last week. Kelly, co-host of NPR's "All Things Considered," wrote in a New York Times op-ed on Tuesday night that being able to hold powerful people accountable is "both a privilege and a responsibility." "There is a reason that freedom of the press is enshrined in the Constitution. There is a reason it matters that people in positions of power — people charged with...

January 29 2020 Wednesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 2 Sm 7:4-17 That night the LORD spoke to Nathan and said: “Go, tell my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD: Should you build me a house to dwell in? I have not dwelt in a house from the day on which I led the children of Israel out of Egypt to the present, but I have been going about in a tent under cloth. In all my wanderings everywhere among the children of Israel, did I ever utter a word to any one of the...

The Senate impeachment trial of President Trump continued with the first day of opening arguments by the President’s defense team. Day 6 included White House counsel Pat Cipollone’s preview of the defense, deputy counsel Mike Purpura presentation on the evidence, and Jay Sekulow, the president’s personal attorney, speaking about the details surrounding Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Speakers used digital slides, graphics, and video during their presentations.The Senate impeachment trial of President Trump continued with the first day of opening arguments by the President’s defense team. Day 6 included White House… read...

Jack Burns, one of the original writers for The Muppet Show and a comedy partner to George Carlin, has died. The writer, actor and comedian was 86. The funnyman was living in senior care for the past two years and celebrated his 31st year of sobriety in December, manager Peter Santana on Tuesday told The Hollywood Reporter. Burns died Monday of respiratory failure in Toluca Lake. Kicking off his career as one half of a comedy duo with George Carlin, Burns performed with Carlin — who would go on to become the first host of Saturday Night Live and film...

Lev Parnas, the former Rudy Giuliani associate who has been thrust into the center of Congress’s impeachment proceedings, got a ticket to attend the Senate's trial on Wednesday but won't be able to attend due to his ankle bracelet, his lawyer said. Joseph Bondy, Parnas’s attorney, said his client had received tickets to attend Wednesday’s proceedings from Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.). Schumer's office confirmed it offered the tickets. “Although we couldn’t arrange to have Lev Parnas watch the trial with us because his GPS ankle monitor is not allowed, Lev will join us in DC tomorrow to show...

CNN anchor Don Lemon on Tuesday night addressed a segment from the weekend that drew criticism from President Trump in which the host laughed after a guest mocked supporters of the president. "Ask anyone who knows me," Lemon said at the end of his show Tuesday while addressing the segment. "They'll tell you: I don't believe in belittling people ... for who they are, for what they believe or where they're from." Lemon said that while he found the "joke" from the guest to be funny at the time, he "didn't catch everything that was said." "I was laughing at...

The two lawmakers suggested in a letter to Attorney General William Barr that the footnotes contradict key claims made in Inspector General Michael Horowitz's declassified version of his spy abuses investigative report. Two top Republican senators on Tuesday alleged that claims made in a report from Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General (IG) Michael Horowitz mischaracterized evidence about the government’s secret surveillance of the Trump campaign during and after the 2016 presidential election. Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ron Johnson, R-Wisc., wrote to Attorney General William Barr on Tuesday demanding that the Justice Department declassify four footnotes in the inspector...

Javelin is a US-made, man-portable fire-and-forget anti-tank missile. It destroys bunkers, tank, trucks and low flying helicopters. When the gunner determines the target, coordinates are sent to the logic gob, which locks on the target. After launch and during flight the crew run like hell from the firing position. The missile is equipped with imaging infrared seeker to deliver an 8.4 kg tandem shaped charge. A precursor warhead detonates any ablative armor, then the primary warhead penetrates the base armor. Javelin is capable of destroying any main battle tank in the world today.

OKLAHOMA CITY, January 28, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – The City of San Francisco and the State of California have gained notoriety over the past few years for banning city employees from paid work trips to states with conservative values, and now the Oklahoma Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt has decided to return the favor. Stitt issued an executive order last week banning state-funded travel to California, citing the Golden State’s intolerance of pro-life neighbors, KFOR reported. “California and its elected officials over the past few years have banned travel to the State of Oklahoma in an effort to politically threaten and intimidate...