Free Republic

A federal jury in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, found Nvahbulai Quisiah guilty today of conspiracy to defraud the United States, preparing false client tax returns, wire fraud, and identity theft, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.According to the evidence presented at trial, Quisiah owned and operated First Premier Tax Service, a tax return preparation business in Philadelphia.  From 2010 through 2017, Quisiah falsified clients tax returns by claiming false dependents, itemized deductions, and business losses to fraudulently increase the refunds...

It isn’t an overstatement to describe The New York Times’ 1619 Project as a journalistic declaration of war against America. Many of the project’s historical claims are downright fabrications — but in the most decisive respect, that’s besides the point. The project’s leader, Nikole Hannah-Jones, has tried to brush off the criticism of many distinguished historians by claiming that such disagreement is how historiography always proceeds — as we learn progressively more, a new “narrative” challenges old ones. The 1619 Project, however, isn’t about new historical scholarship, and insofar as journalism is about the quest for truth, it isn’t quite...

Aleksandra Sadowska from the city of Wroclaw in the west of Poland had gone to the tattooist after deciding she wanted to emulate a rap artist called Popek, who also had the whites of his eyes dyed black. The bungled procedure left the 25-year-old model complaining of pains in her eyes which the tattooist is reported to have said was normal and could be treated with painkillers. Based in the Polish capital Warsaw, the tattoo artist named in local media as Piotr A., is facing three years in prison for unintentionally severely disabling the woman.

Posted on March 1, 2020February 29, 2020 by Msgr. Charles Pope God’s Law is Personal and Loving In Monday’s first reading (Monday of the First Week of Lent) there is a recitation of the law that features the refrain “I am the Lord.” What does this expression mean and why is it appended to each command?When we think of God’s law, there is a danger that we might think of it as we do of any secular law: as a sort of impersonal code written by nameless legislators or bureaucrats. We have not met them; we do not love,...

After what must have been a difficult year for Matthew and Kelly Stafford, the couple announced the best of news on Sunday. The couple is expecting their fourth child this summer, with Kelly posting the announcement from Disneyland. We will apparently have to wait until the baby’s delivery before we know if the Staffords are receiving a fourth straight daughter. Kelly Stafford also wrote on her Instagram story that the child will be their last. “Yes, we are done after this,” she said. “Stafford party of 6 will stay a party of 6.” All of this is a welcome development...

Tehran dismisses US offer of aid, accusing Washington of trying to weaken Iranians’ spirits over outbreak TEHRAN, Iran — A member of a council that advises Iran’s supreme leader died Monday after falling sick from the new coronavirus, state radio reported, becoming the first top official to succumb to the illness that has affected several members of the Islamic Republic’s leadership. Expediency Council member Mohammad Mirmohammadi died at a Tehran hospital of the virus, state radio said. He was 71. The council advises Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as settles disputes between the supreme leader and parliament.

The U.S. government is taking wise measures to reduce the spread of the coronavirus. But, as the saying goes, we should pray like it all depends on God and prepare like it all depends on us. When I was in school studying infectious disease epidemiology, none of the cool kids worked on flu. We all wanted to chase Ebola, HIV/AIDS, drug-resistant tuberculosis, malaria, and other exotic killer bugs.Everyday, ho-hum killers like influenza, pneumonia, and other respiratory illnesses were just too mundane for globetrotting adventurers like us. Who wants to spend her life hand-sanitizing and finger-wagging about vaccines when you could...

Diversicare Health Services Inc., has agreed to pay $9.5 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting false claims to Medicare for rehabilitation therapy services that were not reasonable, necessary, or skilled, the Department of Justice announced today. The settlement also resolves allegations that Diversicare submitted forged pre-admission evaluations of patient need for skilled nursing services to TennCare, the state of Tennessee’s Medicaid Program.  Diversicare, based in Brentwood, Tennessee, provides skilled nursing and rehabilitation services at approximately 74 facilities across the country.“Today’s settlement demonstrates our commitment to protect patients and taxpayers by ensuring that...

A Black Lives Matter activist said Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey's husband brandished a gun at her as she, along with other protesters, rallied outside the couple's home in Granada Hills early Monday morning. Melina Abdullah, one of the the most vocal Black Lives Matter organizers in Los Angeles, released video of the confrontation she said happened between her and Lacey's husband David at around 5:40 a.m. The footage opens with a man holding up a firearm at his door saying: "Get off of my porch, right now. Get off." A woman is heard responding: "Good morning. Are...

Miami, FL ~ Friday, February 28, 2020 Remarks as Prepared for Delivery Thank you, Vince [Hawkes]. It’s wonderful to be here. I’m grateful to Vince and to all the leadership and staff at the International Association of Chiefs of Police for the work they do, every day, on behalf of brave law enforcement officers across the United States and throughout the world. The relationship between the IACP and my office, the Office of Justice Programs, goes back many years, but it has never been stronger than it is at this moment. We have stood side by side in the fight...

Guest piece from America’s History Teacher, Larry Schweikart I know. I get outright laughter when I say this (which I first did in 2018 on Brandon Voght’s radio show in New Mexico when asked who would be the GOP nominee in 2024 assuming Trump wins in 2020. (First, there is no doubt in my mind that Trump not only will win in 2020, but will do so even far more convincingly than in 2016—perhaps between 320 and 340 electoral votes and win the popular vote. But it could be even better for Trump depending on who the Democrat nominee is)....

As millions of students across the United States celebrate Read Across America Day, Melania and I are pleased to join them in celebrating the wonders of reading and literature, while also honoring our Nation’s outstanding educators, librarians, and families who support America’s remarkable young people. Read Across America Day is a celebration of the joys of literacy and an important reminder that we must make every effort to ensure that our Nation’s children receive the necessary education in reading and writing to cultivate the skills they need to pursue their American Dream. To help all of America’s students unlock their...

Vice President Mike Pence today convened a regularly scheduled White House Coronavirus Task Force meeting via phone at 4:00 pm EST. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention Director Dr. Robert Redfield provided the latest update on the Coronavirus including the actions taken to implement the announcement yesterday from President Donald Trump. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun discussed the measures taken for screening of outbound passengers from Italy, South Korea, Iran, and China in addition to the assistance provided to State and local communities by the CDC....

Two cases detected weeks apart in Washington State had genetic links, suggesting that many more people in the area may be infected. Researchers who have examined the genomes of two coronavirus infections in Washington State say the similarities between the cases suggest that the virus may have been spreading in the state for weeks. Washington had the United States’ first confirmed case of coronavirus, announced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Jan. 20. Based on an analysis of the virus’s genetic sequence, another case that surfaced in the state and was announced on Friday probably was descended...

We have long heard the phrase “The dumbing down of America” to describe the effort of the Democratic Party to indoctrinate, under-educate, immigrate and acclimate, to influence the coming elections to favor the Democrat candidates. Usually, when we think about this process, we tend to imagine it to be the poorly educated, illegal aliens, the huddled masses who dwell generationally at the bottom of the prosperity chain, looking for someone to blame their plight on. And such a movement does exist in those echelons as the “progressive” wing of the Democratic Party strives to tilt the playing field by hook,...

Today, Vice President Mike Pence and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar announced the addition of the following individuals to the President’s Coronavirus Task Force: Dr. Ben Carson, Secretary of Housing and Urban DevelopmentDr. Stephen Hahn, Commissioner of Food and DrugsKelvin Droegemeier, Director of The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy  Last week, the Vice President announced the addition of Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin, Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams, Director of the National Economic Council Larry Kudlow, and Coronavirus Response Coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx to the task force. Additional members can be found here.  

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg explained in an interview with “60 Minutes” why he believes America will choose him over President Donald Trump this fall by characterizing those who swept Trump into office as mounting a “revolution” against the educated elite.

As we observe National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, Melania and I join the American people in remembering those family members and friends who have been lost to this terrible disease. We extend our support to those brave individuals battling colon and rectal cancers and encourage them to always keep up the fight. Colorectal cancer accounts for 50,000 deaths each year, the third most among all types of cancers. Colorectal cancers affect people of every race and ethnicity, and are most prominent in people over the age of 50. Furthermore, colorectal cancers do not always show symptoms in the early stages,...

A federal court on Monday ruled that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton must sit for a deposition where she will be questioned on matters relating to her use of a private server during her time in the State Department. The ruling from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia was issued in relation to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request from conservative activist group Judicial Watch. The Court had previously ordered discovery into three main areas: whether Clinton’s use of a private email server was an intentional attempt to evade FOIA; whether the State Department...

We are pleased by yesterday’s well-reasoned decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejecting a suit by House Democrats seeking to compel the testimony of former White House Counsel Donald F. McGahn II. The court recognized the long history, dating back to President George Washington, of presidents of all parties resisting improper information requests from Congress and rightly held that it is not the role of the courts to referee such inter-branch disputes. House Democrats went so far as to impeach the President on a wholly partisan basis in part for resisting their...