Free Republic

Voting in the United States has long been considered both a right and a responsibility. But one California lawmaker hopes to make casting a ballot a legal obligation. Assemblyman Marc Levine introduced a bill last week that would essentially require every registered voter to cast a ballot — even if it’s an empty one.

South Korea has seen its first coronavirus death after Daegu city's 2.5million people were put on lock-down today after the country's cases nearly doubled to over 100. Mayor Kwon Young-jin made a televised address, urging citizens to wear masks and remain indoors while revealing his concerns that the contagion could rapidly overwhelm the city's health infrastructure. A man in his 60s from neighbouring North Gyeongsang province tested positive for the coronavirus after dying Wednesday following symptoms of pneumonia, authorities said. He was among 15 people found to be infected at a hospital in Cheongdo. The surge in cases comes after...

This is the moment for the ultimate question of the Bernie Sanders movement: is the United States ready for a socialist President? At Wednesday's Democratic presidential debate, Sanders defended himself as a socialist (he calls himself a democratic socialist) and then dismissed a recent poll that suggested Americans do not have a favorable view of socialism. Who was leading in that poll, he asked the debate moderator? He was, although the moderator didn't know it. The moment allowed Sanders to skate with the impression that it doesn't matter that Americans oppose socialism because clearly they like him. Polling does suggest...

President Donald Trump (I still never tire of typing those three glorious words) loves to make history. He’s really good at it – better than anyone, in fact. Last night, the President decided to make another piece of history that all of his predecessors in office, from the most conservative Republican to the most leftist Democrat, have taken a pass on doing: Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump I am pleased to announce that our highly respected Ambassador to Germany, @RichardGrenell, will become the Acting Director of National Intelligence. Rick has represented our Country exceedingly well and I look forward to...

LAS VEGAS -- Mike Bloomberg became a piñata, and Elizabeth Warren resurrected her feisty side. The Democratic candidates formed a circular firing squad Wednesday night, with arrows flying in all directions and fights breaking out among a seemingly infinite permutation of candidates on matters from health care policy to lewd comments about women. Mike Bloomberg It was the billionaire entrepreneur's first time on the debate stage, and his rivals made the most of it. He was slammed on everything from his record on stop-and-frisk to the millions he's sinking into his campaign. Bloomberg kept his composure, standing stone-faced, barely smiling,...

Michael Bloomberg shrugged off his ghastly debate performance with his campaign vowing he's just 'warming up' after the former mayor was universally panned for his stage debut. 'You know you are a winner when you are drawing attacks from all the candidates. Everyone came to destroy Mike tonight. It didn’t happen,' Bloomberg's campaign manager Kevin Sheekey said in a statement after the debate. 'He was just warming up tonight,' Sheekey added. The general consensus was Bloomberg bombed in Wednesday night's debate, his first time appearing with his rivals for the Democratic nomination.

Twenty-three years ago, I was asked to give a talk to the New York City Bar Association as part of a symposium titled "Executioners, Jailers, Slave Trappers and the Law: What Role Should Morality Play in Judging?" I was charged with addressing what judges should do when faced with moral quandaries over issues like partial-birth abortion (also called "dilation and evacuation abortions," or "D&E abortions") and physician-assisted suicide. While I was discussing the present, the other panelists -- most of whom were judges -- were discussing the past (as in, "What should judges have done about slavery?" or "Should judges...

“Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and whether it be right” (Proverbs 20:11).

High heels can be notoriously difficult to walk in, but Hillary Clinton has an ingenious trick. While speaking onstage today at the Clinton Global Initiative meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the former first lady wore a pair of black pumps with anti-slip pads pasted to the bottom. Apart from the shoes, Clinton wore one of her signature pantsuits, choosing a dark color with a matching shell underneath. Her footwear was a pair of black pumps with a pointed toe and kitten heel. The shoes appeared to have a smooth sole, which can lead to slippage on wet floors and...

In Hong Kong, where there's been one coronavirus fatality, schools remain closed due to a government-imposed shutdown, forcing many children to be start homeschooling themselves during the outbreak.

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem (Music in The Bible) Psalm 119 Psalm 119[a] ה He 33 Teach me, Lord, the way of your decrees,     that I may follow it to the end.[b] 34 Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law     and obey it with all my heart. 35 Direct me in the path of your commands,     for there I find delight. 36 Turn my heart toward your statutes     and not toward selfish gain. 37 Turn my eyes away from worthless things;     preserve my life according to your word.[c] 38 Fulfill your promise to your servant,     so that you may be feared....

The West Virginia Senate passed Senate Bill 96, a reform of the state weapons preemption law, on 11 February 2020. It passed with a vote of 30 in favor, 2 opposed. It appears all 50 states have some form of weapons preemption law.  Such laws prohibit local governments from enacting rules, ordinances or limits on the exercise of Second Amendment rights. This ensures some weapons laws are uniform across the entire state.The preemption laws vary in effectiveness and scope. In West Virginia, the current preemption law §8-12-5a has this heading: §8-12-5a. Limitations upon municipalities’ power to restrict the purchase, possession,...

Well that didn't take long. The venom and hatred from the far-left and the mainstream media for anything that challenges their beliefs is shockingly predictable. They just can’t stand it when a movie, book, play, or any other form of entertainment doesn’t conform to their Hollywood culture. They really, really hate it if the piece of art is the truth or based on a true story. That's why they hate my play FBI Lovebirds: UnderCovers and the fact it is going to be on the main stage at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Feb 27th. It is...

A group of Trump supporters on Wednesday was spotted carrying a World War II veteran to his seat before the president’s rally in Phoenix, Ariz., video shows. A clip posted to Twitter shows two men, one donning a Trump hat, carrying the vet down a flight of stairs at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The crowd can be heard chanting “USA! USA!” in the background. https://twitter.com/KariLakeFox10/status/1230260022652784641?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1230260022652784641&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fconservativeus.com%2Fvideo-heartwarming-moment-as-president-trump-honors-wwii-vet-carried-to-his-seat-by-fellow-trump-supporters%2F President Trump didn’t forget the sacrifice this man did so that he can attend his rally and decided to honor him. In true Trump fashion, the President recognized 100-year-old WWII veteran Irvin Julian, who...

Retired Col. Charles E. McGee, an original Tuskegee Airman, speaks with Senior Airman Alfredo Maldonado, right, and Airman 1st Class Quinton Coke, both personnelist with the 66th Force Support Squadron, during a visit to Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., in 2016. McGee served a total of 30 years in the U.S. Air Force, beginning with the U.S. Army Air Corps, and flew a total of 409 combat missions in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. The Tuskegee Airmen were the first African-American military aviators in the U.S. Army Air Corps. (Air Force photograph by Mark...

When E. Jean Carroll made her accusation against Donald Trump last summer, I paid her the courtesy of taking her seriously. I listened to what she had to say and considered it on its own merits. And speaking as someone who is not a Trump fan or supporter, I did not believe her. Her story just didn't add up. And in my opinion, nothing she's said or done since then has improved her credibility. Her assertion that "Most people think of rape as being sexy" was the last straw for me. But I also don't wish her any ill will,...

President Trump’s reelection campaign asserted that the Democratic Party is having a “full-scale meltdown” after Wednesday’s Las Vegas debate aired. The Trump campaign’s national press secretary Kayleigh McEnany released a statement on Twitter, warning that none of the Democratic candidates would “be able to go toe to toe with President Trump in November.” “The Democrat Party is in the midst of a full-scale meltdown. Americans are watching the party of JFK be torn apart by anti-job socialists and anti-worker globalists who want to control every aspect of Americans’ lives,” she said in the statement. “This train wreck is nothing compared...

The current hysteria surrounding Attorney General William Barr's decision to intervene in the Roger Stone case and override the Draconian and wholly unjustifiable sentencing recommendation made by prosecutors on the case is hypocritical and reflects a double-standard and a misunderstanding of the Attorney General's role and authority. Based on reports from the DOJ, the prosecutors misled their superiors about the recommendation they would make. They were part of the Mueller Special Counsel team that had a partisan agenda from start to finish. They hoped to inflict the maximum punishment on Stone for his association with the president, after failing to...

Morning "God, that comforteth those that are cast down." 2 Corinthians 7:6 And who comforteth like him? Go to some poor, melancholy, distressed child of God; tell him sweet promises, and whisper in his ear choice words of comfort; he is like the deaf adder, he listens not to the voice of the charmer, charm he never so wisely. He is drinking gall and wormwood, and comfort him as you may, it will be only a note or two of mournful resignation that you will get from him; you will bring forth no psalms of praise, no hallelujahs, no joyful...

Benghazi hero Dave 'Boon' Benton unveils his 'Askari' at the Orlando International SWAT Round-Up - Benton is a unique man, a quiet man, very much a philosopher of life. He is a family man, a lover of his country and God. A man who will fight to the death if need be, but trust me, it would be no easy task to kill him, as it has been tried many times before. On weapons, tactics, combatives and overall survival skills, there are very few people I listen to more closely than Boon. TOGETHER with Alex Ferrer, the CEO and owner...