Free Republic

While President Trump was in office, staff in the White House residence periodically discovered wads of printed paper clogging a toilet — and believed the president had flushed pieces of paper, Maggie Haberman scoops in her forthcoming book, "Confidence Man." Why it matters: The revelation by Haberman, whose coverage as a New York Times White House correspondent was followed obsessively by Trump, adds a vivid new dimension to his lapses in preserving government documents. Axios was provided an exclusive first look at some of her reporting. Haberman reports Trump has told people that since leaving office, he has remained in...

Several members of Italy's Carabinieri paramilitary police force called for the deaths or beatings of two American teenagers who were arrested in the hours after an officer's slaying, Italian media reported Wednesday. A Carabinieri officer has been charged with using unjustified measures in handling a suspect for allegedly blindfolding one of the teens illegally as he awaited questioning at a police station. Phone messaging chats involving several Carabinieri hours after the July 2019 arrests of the young tourists were introduced as evidence at the officer's trial on Wednesday. Gabriel Natale-Hjorth and Finnegan Lee Elder, respectively 18 and 19 at the...

Tourists looking to visit Hawaii will not need to receive the COVID-19 booster shot to count as fully vaccinated, Hawaii Gov. David Ige announced Tuesday. “In making this decision, we considered declining COVID-19 case counts in Hawaii, the continental U.S. and Europe,” Ige said in a statement. “Hospitalizations have also dropped.” Ige also cited Hawaii’s high rates of vaccination and boosting as a reason not to mandate boosters for visitors — statewide, 75.2% of residents have received the initial round of vaccines (two doses of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or one Johnson & Johnson vaccine) and 35.8% have...

Philip Perry is a partner at Latham & Watkins, which works on behalf of foreign entities, including some flagged as threats to U.S. national security. Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) called on the U.S. to stand up to the "generational threat" posed by China while unveiling a major report on Beijing's "malign behavior" at the same time her husband's law firm was working on behalf of companies linked to China's military, intelligence, and security services. As Cheney stood at the podium, her husband Philip Perry’s law firm was cashing in on legal and lobbying work that his employer — Latham &...

"But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague." "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely...

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is expected to serve as chair of the Defense Department's Defense Innovation Board. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin nominated Bloomberg to "leverage his experience and strategic insights on innovation, business and public service," Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told reporters on Wednesday. Kirby added that Bloomberg will bring "a wealth of experience in technology innovation, business and government to the Defense Innovation Board." "His leadership will be critical to ensuring the department has access to the best and brightest minds in science, technology and innovation through the team of diverse experts that he will...

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) warned Americans on Monday that as COVID-19 restrictions are dropped, there is an increased risk for “acts of violence” such as mass shootings. “The United States Remains in a heightened threat environment fueled by several actors, including an online environment filled with false or misleading narratives and conspiracy theories,” the DHS warned. “As COVID-19 restrictions continue to decrease nationwide, increased access to commercial and government facilities and the rising number of mass gatherings could provide increased opportunities for individuals looking to commit acts of violence to do so, often with little or no warning,”...

The President of a registered pro-pedophile activist charity called the Pedophile Associates of America has been sentenced on charges of possessing images of child sexual abuse for the second time. Ian Andrew Zearley was first arrested in 2010 and was convicted of two counts of child pornography possession. At the time, the FBI had reported that Zearley’s hard drive contained over 600 child sex exploitation pictures and videos, including one over 19-minutes long of two men tying up and raping a 10-year-old boy. Zearley was released approximately 6 years later, but was arrested again in 2019 on similar charges and...

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Dr. Anthony Fauci said that the U.S. is emerging from "the full-blown pandemic phase of COVID-19," according to the Financial Times. "As we get out of the full-blown pandemic phase of Covid-19, which we are certainly heading out of ... decisions will increasingly be made on a local level rather than centrally decided or mandated. There will also be more people making their own decisions on how they want to deal with the virus," Fauci said, according to the outlet. "There is no way we are going to eradicate this virus," Fauci...

“Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death” (Proverbs 10:2 KJV).

Hong Kong reported two deaths in Covid-positive patients, the first fatalities in the city since September, as a record outbreak overwhelms hospitals and testing resources. A 73-year-old man who had received two doses of Sinovac Biotech Ltd.’s vaccine in September died Tuesday, and an unvaccinated 76-year-old man died on Wednesday, health officials said. Both men had chronic illnesses. Hong Kong is battling to contain an unprecedented outbreak that’s pushed its health system to the brink. The city had managed to live for months with no local transmission due to onerous anti-virus measures -- including flight bans, up to 21 days...

Legendary comedian Dave Chappelle inspired more outrage when he joined a group of local residents to kill a proposal for low income housing in rural Ohio as a part of a large residential development. Chappelle grew up in Yellow Springs, Ohio, a small rural village of 3,700 people about 20 miles from Dayton. He bought 39 acres of farmland there and moved back in 2005. On Monday, he attended a village council meeting where he threatened to pull his plans to develop a restaurant called “Firehouse Eatery” and comedy club called “Live from YS" in the town. "I cannot believe...

A study has challenged the view that testosterone is bad for women's hearts, showing that for women aged over 70, having low testosterone levels actually doubles the risk of a cardiac event. Researchers say the findings warrant further research into the potential benefits of testosterone therapies for older women. Before menopause, women's ovaries are the primary source of testosterone circulating in the blood. After menopause, because the ovaries stop functioning, blood testosterone is made from the hormone DHEA which comes from adrenal glands. Using data captured in the longitudinal ASPREE (ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly) randomized trial, this...

Even some of the most liberal states across the country are rolling back restrictions to do with the Wuhan coronavirus, especially as it pertains to mask mandates. As Katie pointed out, though, this is surely to do with what the polls are telling Democratic politicians. Yet not all are willing to accept what many of us have known for months now when it comes to the importance of freedom when it comes to masking. Some of the states might surprise you. As mentioned above, they really are the most liberal states, with New Jersey ending its mask mandate in schools,...

Protests are proliferating around Canada in a way that Justin Trudeau and his Cabinet never expected. In fact, none of the political class had any idea that that they were coming. Everyone was totally taken by surprises; for the federal government, taken aback, it got worse. The Cabinet Ministers were disoriented, not believing what they were seeing and likely expecting that it would go away. But it didn't. Turning to their leader, who overnight became proverbially beleaguered, they could not come up with any solution that might save them from humiliation.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Tembexa (brincidofovir) to treat smallpox. Although the World Health Organization declared smallpox, a contagious and sometimes fatal infectious disease, eradicated in 1980, there have been longstanding concerns that the virus that causes smallpox, the variola virus, could be used as a bioweapon. Before its eradication in 1980, the variola virus mainly spread by direct contact among people. Symptoms typically began 10 to 14 days after infection and included fever, exhaustion, headache, and backache. A rash consisting of small, pink bumps progressed to pus-filled sores before it crusted over and scarred. Complications of...

DHS is now going after COVID misinformation spreaders considering them terrorist threats. Here's my list of people I think they should be investigating.Steve KirschFeb 8 SummaryDHS is getting tough on COVID misinformation spreaders, i.e., people who spread information that “undermines public trust in government institutions.”Since DHS has finite resources to pursue all these perpetrators, as a public service, I have created a list of what I believe are some of the country’s top misinformation spreaders.I sincerely hope that the DHS will focus their efforts on these individuals since they have made statements and/or taken actions (or refused to take action)...

@TuckerCarlson Who planted the pipe bombs found on January 6? Thirteen months later, and the FBI still has no idea. Segment...

Feeling lightheaded upon standing up due to initial orthostatic hypotension (IOH), or a transient decrease in blood pressure and increase in heart rate, is a common but poorly understood condition. A new study offers two simple cost- and drug-free techniques to effectively manage symptoms of IOH and improve quality of life by activating lower body muscle before or after standing. Syncope, lightheadedness, dizziness, or loss of consciousness from IOH, affects up to 40% of the general population (all ages), while presyncope is probably even more common. Despite this, the condition is relatively understudied and there is minimal information available about...

Corporate Media in Absolute MELTDOWN Over Canadian Trucker Convoy https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/1491582735735009284