Free Republic

Here's the story of how armed men on a mission from God grabbed a national wildlife refuge and sparked a debate about the rule of law and public lands. By Rocky Barker Efforts to expel a controversial state representative from the Washington Legislature are likely over after no Republicans would sign a letter calling for state Rep. Matt Shea’s expulsion. The Spokesman-Review reports that all 98 members of the state House of Representatives were asked Thursday to sign a letter calling for the expulsion of Spokane Valley Republican. All 56 Democrats signed the letter, but no Republicans did. Democratic Rep....

Attorneys for Roger Stone late Friday filed a motion arguing the federal judge who sentenced him to more than three years in prison should recuse herself from deciding his request for a new trial. Defense attorneys said Judge Amy Berman Jackson’s statements just before sentencing Stone Thursday afternoon show she’s already made up her mind about whether a juror was biased against the longtime GOP operative. Stone is seeking a new trial based on social media posts by the forewoman in his trial, Tomkea Hart, saying she never should have been allowed on the jury because of Twitter posts mocking...

Tim Eyman has been in violation of Washington campaign finance laws for at least the last seven years, concealing nearly $800,000 in political contributions, a Thurston County Superior Court judge ruled Friday.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA- We’ve received reports that Philip Haney, a DHS whistleblower on the Obama administration, has been found dead. We have not yet received independent confirmation from the Sheriff’s Department, but sources within law enforcement have verified that there’s a death investigation underway. If you have seen a few episodes of Behind the Uniform or have ever watched Fox News, you probably recognize the name Philip Haney. He was the DHS whistleblower that dropped the hammer on the Obama administration regarding the Muslim Brotherhood and ISIS. He was also a friend to many at Law Enforcement Today. We have...

James T. Hodgkinson, the man identified as shooting a Republican member of congress and four others on Wednesday morning, was a small business owner in Illinois who defined himself publicly by his firm support of Bernie Sanders' progressive politics -- and his hatred of conservatives and President Donald Trump. This is based on CNN's review of Hodgkinson's Facebook profiles, public records, and three years of impassioned letters to his local newspaper. "Trump is a Traitor. Trump Has Destroyed Our Democracy. It's Time to Destroy Trump & Co." he posted on his personal Facebook page on March 22. "Republicans are the...

WASHINGTON—California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) officials failed to answer a congressman’s questions about its Chief Investment Officer’s (CIO) links to a Chinese program the FBI says is a spy tool. “CalPERS failed to answer two fundamental questions raised in my letter to Governor [Gavin] Newsom,” Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) told The Epoch Times Friday. Banks was referring to his Feb. 12 letter to Newsom concerning CalPERS CIO Yu Ben Meng’s “long cozy” relationship with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). “First question: Is Mr. Meng a member of the Thousand Talents Program, something the FBI called a ‘non-traditional espionage program?’...

KANSAS CITY, MO—After a lengthy dispute with his wife this morning, local man Lee Branscom expressed his great sorrow and regret over whatever he did in her dream last night that had her so ticked off at him, sources confirmed Tuesday He attempted reasoning with her, using the "lame excuse" that he had no control over what dream Lee does, but after that failed, he resigned himself to apologizing for every action of the imaginary version of himself. "Honey, I know in your dream I hijacked a school bus, blew up the Empire State Building, and cheated on you with...

Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he would give the federal government access to the entirety of the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) database, except for Social Security numbers. “I would give them anything but the Social Security numbers,” the governor said during an interview with the WAMC radio station on Friday. “The Social Security numbers are the indicator of documented or undocumented, and I will never give them the Social Security numbers in the DMV database—over my dead body will I do that.” The new offer comes after an apparent stalemate in negotiations between New York state...

2020 is shaping up to be the most unique election cycle of modern times. – Regular readers will know of my contention that the quadrennial presidential election cycles always end up following one of two patterns, based on the overall dynamics at play within the national electorate. If the general attitude among the population is one of satisfaction and complacency, then we end up having a status quo election, one that preserves the general balance of power in Washington, DC. If the general attitude among voters is one of dissatisfaction and unrest, we end up with a change election, one...

WASHINGTON—U.S. authorities arrested a former Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent on Friday on charges he conspired with Colombian drug traffickers to steal millions of dollars the U.S. government had seized from suspected dealers. In an indictment unsealed Friday, prosecutors said Jose Irizarry had been “enriching himself by secretly using his position and his special access to information.” He used the money, they said, to fund a lavish lifestyle of expensive homes and cars and a $30,000 Tiffany ring. Federal prosecutors said Irizarry used his position with the drug agency to launder money with the help of what they described as...

Former Mayor Catherine Pugh, who pleaded guilty last November to federal charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and two counts of tax evasion, is scheduled to be sentenced in federal court next week. Pugh announced last April that she would be taking an indefinite leave of absence for personal health reasons after The Baltimore Sun reported that she had engaged in unethical activity surrounding her children’s book series Healthy Holly. It was reported that Pugh exchanged city contracts for book sales and had received over $500,000 from the University of Maryland Medical System...

With low liquid natural gas (LNG) prices making U.S. exports an increasingly attractive option for other nations’ electricity generation, industrial processes, and space heating, a string of LNG infrastructure projects around the world are indicating where the LNG market could develop in the coming years. Indeed, if the Trump administration’s LNG policy of facilitating the development of pipelines and export terminals continues to be mirrored by the construction of corresponding port, storage, and regasification infrastructure internationally, a host of new markets could open up for American fuel products. Surviving Reduced Demand and Low Prices It remains to be seen, however,...

ormer Rep. Katie Hill said she was "surprised and disturbed" after the husband of her 2018 fundraising consultant was arrested by the FBI and accused of coordinating an effort to crash the website of her Democratic primary opponent. Arthur Dam, the husband of fundraising consultant Kelsey O’Hara, was charged with intentionally damaging and attempting to damage a protected computer. The news was first reported by the Intercept. The campaign website of Hill’s opponent, Bryan Caforio, crashed for the first time on April 20, 2018. It crashed again on April 21, April 28 and May 29, according to the criminal complaint....

You’ve got Oregonians seeking to cascade into Idaho, Virginians who identify as West Virginians, Illinoians fighting to escape Chicago, Californians dreaming of starting a 51st state, and New Yorkers who think three states are better than one. Separation fever is sweeping the nation as quixotic but tenacious bands of frustrated rural dwellers, suburbanites and conservatives seek to break free from states with legislatures increasingly controlled by liberal big cities and metropolitan strongholds. “Oregon is controlled by the northwest portion of the state, Portland to Eugene. That’s urban land, and their decisions are not really representing rural Oregon,” said Mike McCarter,...

The Health Ministry on Saturday said nine South Koreans tested positive for the coronavirus after a recent visit to Israel. The Koreans were in Israel from February 8-15 and were confirmed to have the virus upon their return to South Korea, according to a statement from the ministry. The ministry called on anyone who was in close contact with the Koreans to report this and self-quarantine for 14 days from the date of their last interaction. Chuncheon, South Korea, February 22, 2020. (Yonhap/AFP) The Health Ministry on Saturday said nine South Koreans tested positive for the coronavirus after a recent...

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Latest on the 2020 presidential campaign (all times local): 9:15 p.m. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is lumping the “Democratic establishment” in with the corporate and Republican establishment and saying they can’t stop him. Sanders is the favorite in Saturday’s Nevada caucuses after winning New Hampshire and essentially tying for first in Iowa. His rivals and some party centrists have become alarmed that the self-declared democratic socialist could win the nomination as his opponents split the non-Sanders vote. Sanders is an independent who caucuses with Democrats. In Nevada he has stressed his independence from the party....

I've been watching some NBA games on YouTube and decided to update my ranking of the greatest basketball players of all time. The variables are player statistics, the impact the player had on his team, the strength of the opposition, and the strength of the player’s team (such as whether he had someone to elevate his game). I use a tier system, where arguments can be made for any particular ranking for players within the same tier. In my opinion, Michael Jordan is the greatest of all time (the GOAT). There’s never been anyone who dominated both ends in a...

Tucker Carlson lands an epic hit on those who are really responsible for trashing the USA. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iruf0Qc7saw&feature=youtu.be

Can this really be all there is? No, I'm not lamenting the pointlessness of existence. I'm expressing despair over the state of the race to decide on a Democrat to face President Trump in November. So why do all of them seem so unappealing? So incapable of defeating our corrupt, incompetent, and immoral president? So unworthy of being given a chance to try? It's possible that I'm the problem. I define myself more as an anti-Republican than a committed Democrat. I'm a centrist whose centrism doesn't quite map onto the policies typically embraced and espoused by the party's moderates. I'm...

Today's Quotefall Puzzle features a quote by Al Michaels. Click puzzle (or click here) for full size rendition, then use your browser's print command to print puzzle. 40 years ago today, sports announcing legend Al Michaels gave the call to the end of the most influential sporting event in the history of the United States, the medal round match between the US and the Soviet Union. A group of American college kids beat the Soviet hockey team, who at the time was considered the most formidible hockey team in Olympic history. The United States went on to beat Finland and win...