Free Republic

An essential principle of the United States is that it is a free country, with individual liberties guaranteed, and government power limited. That concept is now being tested. A deadly worldwide pandemic has led to draconian lockdowns, forced closings of businesses, and even mandatory “stay at home” orders, some with Orwellian, friendly sounding names like “Safer at Home” or “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” – but still mandatory and enforced by police. The unprecedented, far-reaching orders have been issued by unelected county health officers as well as by governors of states. Are these orders legal? Do state governors have the legal...

Iran has summoned the Swiss ambassador in Tehran, who represents US interests in the country, over recent Gulf tensions, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Thursday, according to the IRIB news agency. The ambassador was given a message to pass on to the United States that Iran will strongly defend its maritime rights in the Gulf and respond to any threats. Iran warned it will destroy US warships if its security is threatened in the Gulf, the head of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards told state TV on Thursday, a day after US President Donald Trump warned Tehran over...

The university and school district ripoff of loan funds is the tip of the iceberg. I just observed temp employment agencies and payroll service companies getting the loans that should have gone to the actual employer. The actual situation I observed was a Company with 65 employees, all paid through a payroll service company. The payroll service company writes the payroll checks and is reimbursed weekly for all wages, taxes, and a premium to cover processing costs. The payroll service Company got a PPP loan for all the wages FOR THE 65 employee wages paid indirectly by my client. The...

“Tolerance of intolerance is cowardice.” Ayaan Hirsi Ali Georgia state Rep. Vernon Jones, a Democrat, has just resigned from his office. He said he is “leaving the plantation.” Why? Because he expressed his support for President Trump. He believed that Trump’s policies have benefitted blacks, includingTrump's support for black colleges and prison reform. He was even brave enough to express the truth that it is Joe Biden who has long supported racist policies. What did he get for his courage and honesty? Vicious harassment by his fellow Democrats. So he has stepped down. The left does not tolerate straying from...

Every day brings more evidence that Joe Biden is not up to the job of being President. These two clips from yesterday make that abundantly clear. The more Biden does interviews, the more obvious it becomes he is not well. The Democrats and the Leftist Media are propping him up and protecting him. But it is going to eventually become abundantly clear to Americans that no matter how they feel about Donald Trump, Biden is simply not able to handle the job of President. . . .

Upon hearing the Coronavirus Committee's expression of alarm regarding the disease's disastrous affect in New Orleans, Louisiana, I said to a friend, "I'd bet a lot of that statistic is black people, especially black women." Several factors play into the statistics, but I would wager eating habits play a large part. My family's roots are in Texas by way of Louisiana. Most of my ancestry can be traced to that state. An aunt explained that our ancestors were brought from Virginia to Louisiana. After emancipation and many decades later, they moved to Texas in search of employment. I know the...

Many Americans have witnessed daily briefings in which New York State's governor, Andrew Cuomo, makes repeated demands of the President and exploits his moment in the sun by condemning the President and even maligning him. Instead of constantly complaining, it's about time Cuomo apologized to President Trump and to those Americans across the country who specifically helped NYC during her time of need. It is not President Trump who has fallen short in doing his job, rather governor Cuomo and his side-kick Bill de Blasio, mayor of New York City. Three weeks ago Cuomo was demanding ventilators, masks, gowns, and...

Now is the time to consider the possibility that the coronavirus lockdowns ordered by some states will turn into a public policy calamity, Fox News senior political analyst Brit Hume argued Monday night. Appearing on "Fox News @ Night" with host Shannon Bream, Hume said that sustained damage to the economy and the lives of over 20 million recently unemployed Americans may not heal after implementing "draconian" measures.

The collapse of the price of a barrel of oil this week was something to see. It was cheaper for producers to pay people to take it away than it was to store it themselves, as capacity had been reached. They were offering almost $40 per barrel to take the oil. Made me wish I had an Olympic sized swimming pool I could fill up for a rainy day. While people watched dumbfounded at how this could happen, people working in the energy industry were terrified - what would this mean for the jobs, millions of them? The answer isn’t...

A heartbreaking photo of an English bulldog looking longingly at the children he used to play with before the coronavirus pandemic has gone viral — with thousands of fans admitting that they can relate to his quarantine woes. Costume designer Rashida Ellis, 38, from Atlanta, Georgia, took to Twitter on Tuesday to post a snapshot of her three-year-old dog Big Poppa looking dejected while sitting on their balcony. 'Big Poppa has been so sad today, I think he miss[es] playing with the kids in the building. He just watches them from the patio,' she captioned the image, which has attracted...

It’s just the flu, bro. Houston (Harris County) is starting a 1000 dollar fine for not wearing a mask in public. There is an exception for exercise and eating so I guess I will always be walking or carrying a granola bar. All this is happening at the same time as the Republican counties are relaxing restrictions. Flubros are the voice of reason but as the restrictions hit closer to home my mind started thinking about the panic/fear porn that grips the Fearbros. The panic porn in their nightmares involves seeing families having fun in public without a mask. My...

Appearing on VICE’s Seat at the Table with Anand Giridharadas, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) urged Americans not to return to work after states begin reopening their respective economies in response to updated information on the Chinese coronavirus pandemic. “We talk about this idea of ‘reopening society,’ only in America does [President Trump] — when the president tweets about liberation, does he mean ‘go back to work,'” Ocasio-Cortez said. “When we have this discussion about going back or reopening, I think a lot of people should just say, ‘no, we’re not going back to that. We’re not going back to working...

The co-chair of the occupied GIRÊ SPî/ Tel-Abyed Canton Council, Hevin Ismail has considered Turkey's exploitation of the world’s preoccupation with Corona pandemic, and launched simultaneous attacks with Başûr (south Kurdistan) and north and east Syria, with the continued isolation on the leader Abdullah Ocalan, a new conspiracy against the people. "The partnership between Turkey and the Kurdistan Democratic Party KDP is a shame," Hevin Ismail, said "This partnership is pushing Turkey to continue its dirty plans in Başûr, north and east Syria." Attempts to transport infected people with Covid19 to north and east Syria saying: "With the occupation of...

Disney's world theme parks may not reopen until 2021 due to strict social distancing measures in force because of coronavirus, ultimately impacting profitability. Some of Disney's largest and best-known theme parks may have to wait for a coronavirus vaccine to be found before they can reopen, despite some sites advertising bookings as early as June. Social distancing, travel restrictions and recession brought on by the global pandemic are factors that contribute to the business becoming 'less profitable', until such time as a vaccine is 'widely available'. That is a financial analysis of Disney by investment banking group UBS, in a...

Gov. Mike Parson said Wednesday most businesses would be able to reopen their doors when the state begins to loosen restrictions on movement early next month. Until May 4, Parson said at his daily briefing, the current state stay-at-home order remained in effect. And he said Franklin County, where officials plan to loosen restrictions this weekend, is still be under the state order. "We're working on the policy and the guidelines for that, but I will tell you almost every business in the state of Missouri will be able to open their doors," Parson said. "People will go back to...

After instituting pay cuts across its nonunion employees earlier this month, Tribune Publishing announced it will furlough employees across the company. Staffers will take three-week furloughs in one-week increments between May and July of this year to “ensure financial stability,” but will retain health benefits during those periods. Furloughs effect nonunion employees who make between $40,000 and $67,000 per year, the Chicago Tribune reports. As an alternative to a furlough, employees have the option of receiving a severance package and leaving the company. The move comes as the company experiences a further decline in advertising revenue amid the COVID-19 pandemic....

We have some troubling news developing deep inside America’s food supply chain network, suggesting rapid food inflation could be dead ahead. In the last several weeks, six major US meatpacking facilities have shuttered operations because of the coronavirus outbreak. That means 15% of America’s hog-slaughtering capacity has been shifted offline, and there is an additional risk that beef and poultry capacity could be reduced in the weeks ahead, reported Bloomberg. With every virus-related plant closure, farmers have been denied access to meatpacking facilities/slaughterhouses, resulting in herd overcapacity and suggests euthanizing hogs could be next. Dennis Smith, a senior account executive...

It must have been in the Fall of 1960 that I went with some neighbors to watch our local high school football team, Wheaton, play powerhouse Richard Montgomery in the final game of the Montgomery County football season. Wheaton was hoping to gain a share of the County championship with Richard Montgomery. Optimism did not abound. Richard Montgomery had a star running back named Mike Curtis. Rumor had it that he was unstoppable. Curtis must have played on defensive side as well, but it was his ability as a ball carrier that had made him a local legend. If my...

London (CNN Business)Economists and investors had been bracing for dismal economic data for this month. But the latest readings of the closely-watched Purchasing Managers' Index, which surveys senior executives at private sector companies, are gut-wrenchingly awful. The numbers: The eurozone composite PMI, which tracks activity in the manufacturing and services sectors, hit 13.5 in April, down from 29.7 in March — easily the worst reading since the survey started in 1998. It's a sign of the extent to which Europe's economy has imploded as shutdowns to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus hit citizens from Berlin to Paris and...

Osama bin Laden planned to assassinate President Barack Obama to unsteady the United States by putting 'totally unprepared' Joe Biden in charge. Declassified documents seized from Bin Laden's Pakistan compound as he was killed in May 2011 reveal his plans to throw the U.S. 'into a crisis' by killing Obama while he traveled in a plane with U.S. military commander David Petraeus. The 45-page document, which were first reported by The Washington Post in 2012, is now available in full along with hundreds of others from the raid.