Free Republic

One defiant NYC business owner — who’s been deemed “non-essential” during the pandemic — has a message to New York: “I’m opening my doors come hell or high water.” Eliot Rabin, whose Upper East Side boutique, Peter Elliot, is known for high-end men’s and boys apparel, refuses to follow a state order closing retail business not considered essential. He insists that his $85 pocket squares and $15,000 suits are part of the fabric of New York City: “Why is a liquor store essential and I’m not?” Rabin told The Post.

Rice Brothers Brazilian Jiu Jitsu owner Tanner Rice shouted at the top of his lungs as grapplers followed his commands Monday morning. Sixteen people — each paired with a partner — wrestled and tangled in each other's gi. Hands and arms wrapped around arms and ankles, as is routine in the sport of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. The sport exemplifies the opposite of what it means to socially distance under the CDC's guidelines to avoid being exposed to the coronavirus and stem the spread of the contagious respiratory illness. Gov. Gavin Newsom's stay-home orders in March shut down gyms and fitness...

RIO RANCHO, N.M. (AP) — The mayor of a small New Mexico city promised a confrontation Monday between his small police force and State Police as he seeks to lift a COVID-19 lockdown order that shuttered nonessential businesses to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Grants Mayor Martin “Modey” Hicks vowed last week he would allow all small businesses to reopen in defiance of the governor’s order to keep them closed during the health emergency. The move comes as some rural communities across the country are pressuring their state and local officials to allow them to reopen their towns amid...

Gym owner defies Governor's order, plans to reopen this week

MADISON, Miss. — A Madison barbershop owner said he was frustrated and tired of keeping his business closed while others remained open for business, so he opened his doors. “We have got a lot of single people who want to go to work. They have got children. They have no other income. There are no employees that have been forced to go to work. These are all the employees here that want to work,” barbershop owner Mike Land said.

From our favorite South Korean Scottish Fold cat family. The "Butler" (human servant) touches the paws of his 5 kitties to watch their reactions. Video, 4 minutes, 23 seconds

ALGONQUIN, IL - Republican and conservative action committee Freedom Movement USA will be in Algonquin Sunday hosting an 'Open Illinois Now' rally from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. to protest the state's extended stay-at-home order due to the coronavirus pandemic. According to the committee's event Facebook page, the group plans to protest at Randall and County Line roads while gathering at a six-foot distance. According to Freedom Movement USA Chairman Brandon Harris is calling on others to hold protests, "Rather than continuing to abide by unconstitutional shutdowns," according to a statement written by Harris on the committee's Facebook page. "While...

The Washington Post “Fact Checker” has a very strange and unfactual way of reacting to Democrats telling voters and interest groups they want no restrictions on abortion. They think it’s a “lie” to say these Democrats support abortion up until birth. They gave three “Pinocchios” [mostly false] for this statement: Virtually every Democrat candidate has declared their unlimited support for extreme late-term abortion, ripping babies straight from the mother’s womb, right up until the very moment of birth.” — President Trump, at a campaign rally in Charlotte, March 2, 2020 Salvador Rizzo is doing this “fact check” on April 28,...

Today, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) released its advance estimate of U.S. GDP for the first quarter of 2020. BEA estimates that real GDP contracted 4.8 percent at an annual rate in the first quarter of 2020, the first decline in six years. In comparison, real GDP expanded 2.5 percent annually over the first three years of the Trump Administration.This release confirms that COVID-19’s unprecedented adverse shock to the economy brought an end to the longest economic expansion in U.S. history. Consumer spending declined sharply, contributing -5.3 percentage points to the first quarter’s contraction. This rapid shift in...

PROTECTING MEAT SUPPLIES: President Donald J. Trump is using the Defense Production Act to ensure that Americans have a reliable supply of products like beef, pork, and poultry. President Trump is signing an Executive Order providing the authority to ensure the continued supply of beef, pork, and poultry to the American people.Under the order, the Department of Agriculture is directed to ensure America’s meat and poultry processors continue operations uninterrupted to the maximum extent possible. To ensure worker safety, these processors will continue to follow the latest guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the...

April 28, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – Catastrophe brings reflection. What is most precious to me? What have I taken for granted? And ideally, the number one issue, am I following God’s will for my life? I share some nostalgia for “the way things were.” Churches and vacation Bible schools packed with families and children. Holiday parties where people don’t hesitate to hug each other. Birthdays at noisy, fun restaurants with friends and family. Plane trips where the main worry is making your connection. But is all America’s recent past worth recapturing? If we’re revising life-as-usual, maybe we have a chance to...

https://twitter.com/i/status/1255612322338369537 Amazing video on the street in locked down Las Vegas. Man is singing with microphone from the back of his truck. Rather than arresting the man, the law enforcement officer respects the Constitution and actually joins in the singing.

East Room 3:16 P.M. EDT  THE PRESIDENT:  Well, thank you very much everyone.  This is a great honor.  And I see you have social distance on your mind and that’s a very good thing.  Jovita, congratulations.  Tremendous job you’re doing.I want to thank everyone for being at the White House — a very special house, a very special place.  No matter where you go in the world, they love the White House.  And being here in the East Room of the White House in particular, where so many important functions have taken place over the years.And today, we’re really...

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — More than a month into the statewide school closure, state Education Secretary Pedro Rivera says with current data, he doesn’t see schools reopening in the fall. “We’re preparing for the best, but we’re planning for the worst,” Rivera said. He said schools across the commonwealth have stepped up by providing continuity of education through online and print materials, as well as programming broadcast on public television. “At the end of the day, we’re going to make sure that the health and welfare of our students is first and foremost, front and center,” Rivera said. “And we’re...

Oval Office 11:35 A.M. EDTTHE PRESIDENT:  Well, thank you very much.  We’re with the Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, who’s done a spectacular job in Florida.  He enjoys very high popularity, and that’s for a reason.  The reason is he’s doing a good job.And he came up.  We talked about many things, including he’s going to be opening up large portions and, ultimately, pretty quickly, because he’s got great numbers — all of Florida.  And I thought Ron would maybe — we’re together, we’re in the White House.  This was a — sort of, a little bit of an...

ALBANY - Mayor Kathy Sheehan is asking people to reconsider plans to attend a rally Friday to protest the state’s coronavirus quarantine orders. She's also warning city residents to avoid the area around the state Capitol. Conservative groups are planning the second rally in as many weeks for Friday afternoon in the city, hoping to pressure Gov. Andrew Cuomo to lighten the restrictions placed on many commercial and social activities. Cuomo announced earlier this week that a drop in coronavirus cases should allow some upstate businesses to reopen by mid-May. Some city residents were caught off-guard by last week’s protest....

It is welcome news that Florida is now set to become the sixth state to require both parental consent and notice before minor girls can get an abortion. A bill mandating this has passed both houses of the state Legislature, and Gov. Ron DeSantis has promised to sign it. Ensuring that a child’s parents are involved before any medical or surgical procedure is performed on a minor patient makes sense in any state. In Florida, though, it makes extra sense. Florida is home to a huge immigrant population, many of them undocumented and vulnerable, and special care should be taken...

Original defense counsel for Michael Flynn spurned congressional immunity overtures following Flynn's guilty plea. Flynn's original defense attorney also allegedly said he would be unlikely to pursue congressional testimony by Flynn without the approval of Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Multiple congressional committees approached Michael Flynn’s original defense counsel to raise the prospect of immunity in exchange for Flynn’s congressional testimony but were spurned, multiple sources familiar with the interactions told The Federalist. After Flynn pleaded guilty to making false statements to federal investigators, representatives of multiple congressional committees with oversight responsibility for national security matters asked Flynn’s lawyers if Flynn...

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the Defense Production Act of 1950, as amended (50 U.S.C. 4501 et seq.) (the “Act”), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, it is hereby ordered as follows:Section 1.  Policy.  The 2019 novel (new) coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing outbreaks of the disease COVID-19, has significantly disrupted the lives of Americans.  In Proclamation 9994 of March 13, 2020 (Declaring a National Emergency Concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak), I declared that the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States constituted a...

MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY THE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCYSUBJECT:       Authorizing the Crisis Counseling Assistance and Training Program for Major Disaster Declarations Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. 5121-5207 (the “Stafford Act”), it is hereby ordered as follows:Section 1.  Policy.  It is the policy of the United States to take measures under the Stafford Act to assist State and territorial Governors in their...