Free Republic

Government efforts to squelch purported misinformation and disinformation on the most contested subjects in American politics don't stop with Cabinet-level agencies.The National Science Foundation has awarded at least $39 million in grants and contracts in fiscal years 2021 and 2022 for projects that target misinformation or disinformation, frequently pertaining to COVID-19 and elections.Two contracts went to anti-misinformation groups for journalists. Hacks/Hackers received $3.7 million with the potential for $2 million more for "expert-informed resources ... to address vaccine hesitancy and misinformation."Meedan received a $3.2 million contract with the potential for $2.5 million more to develop "fact-checker" and "community collaboration tools"...

Nearly a quarter of Americans said they have not been vaccinated against the Chinese coronavirus, a survey from The Economist/YouGov found. According to the survey, 23 percent of Americans have not been vaccinated against the Chinese coronavirus after two years of public pressure from government officials and various employers. Six percent said they have received one dose but are not fully vaccinated, and another six percent said they prefer not to reveal their status.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, and now Twitter, has said he would support Ron DeSantis in a 2024 presidential primary, although it is still unclear if the Florida governor intends to run. Asked on Twitter, the platform he now owns, if he would support DeSantis in 2024, Musk responded in the affirmative, while stressing that platform should be “fair to all.”

Independent YouTuber Matt Orfalea does not align with Democrats or Republicans. He eschews any type of label because labels are dangerous, he tells The Federalist. “A lot of people identify with their politics. I just identify as a video creator.”Perhaps this is why Orfalea’s videos are so effective. Amassing hundreds of thousands of views, and in some cases, millions, the filmmaker’s work consists of crisply edited mash-ups of politicians and corporate media figures making complete fools of themselves — without any commentary from Orfalea himself. One such mashup shows politicians and media decrying the Wuhan lab leak theory as a...

Biden’s war on fossil fuels may reduce funding for America’s national parks, according to the Western Energy Alliance, a nonprofit energy industry association for the U.S. West. The Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA), which was passed in August 2020, provides $1.9 billion for public lands and national park restoration, primarily from onshore oil and gas development on federal lands. The act combined the restoration and Land and Water Conservation funds, which supplies $900 million in matching grant money for state and local parks. No Federal Oil Biden campaigned on a promise that he was going to eliminate the oil industry,...

Belarus foreign minister dies suddenly - one day after meeting Pope's envoy Ante Jozić amid speculation they were discussing a secret peace plan in Ukraine. CAREER SPY Makei had been foreign minister for a decade and was due tomorrow and Monday to host Vladimir Putin's foreign minister Sergei Lavrov in Minsk. Lavrov's spokeswoman said Russia was 'shocked' at his passing. No cause of death was given - but several sources speculated that his demise could be suspicious. Makei was described as 'healthy'. He had been trained in the Soviet GRU and had a reputation as Lukashenko's 'grey cardinal'. While Lukashenko...

THIS is the moment Vladimir Putin appears to wheeze and gasp through a meeting with grieving mums whose children were killed in Ukraine. Russia's president - who is reportedly "critically ill" - met with a carefully selected group of parents as he sat down with them to have tea, cakes and fresh berries. Putin appeared physically uncomfortable and breathless as he spoke - stopping to clear his throat on multi occasions and struggling with his words. "I would like you to know that, that I personally, and the whole leadership of the country - we share your pain," Vlad told...

Way to go, Joe! Interesting story on Alignable. Due to high inflation, reduced consumer spending, higher rents and other economic pressures, U.S.-based small business owners’ rent problems just escalated to new heights nationally this month, based on Alignable’s November Rent Poll of 6,326 small business owners taken from 11/19/22 to 11/22/22. Unfortunately, 41% of U.S.-based small business owners report that they could not pay their rent in full and on time in November, a new record for 2022. Making matters worse, this occurred during a quarter when more money should be coming in and rent delinquency rates should be decreasing....

Event is believed to have been a staged PR stunt with handpicked audience All mothers in attendance believed to be strongly pro-war Putin loyalists One seen previously singing Russian national anthem on Red Square after Putin annexed Ukraine Vladimir Putin's meeting today with mothers of servicemen he sent to the Ukraine-Russia war has been exposed as a cynical stage-managed sham. He met a group of ultra-loyalist women carefully selected not to ask difficult questions. Meanwhile, furious Russian mothers and wives not at the event raged at the 'shame' of how Putin avoided them and their complaints about using their relatives...

Volodymyr Zelensky appeared to criticise the mayor of Kyiv for failing to provide enough emergency shelters for residents during his regular speech to the nation. Following Russian attacks on energy infrastructure, Ukraine has established thousands of so-called “invincibility centres” where people can access heat, water, internet and mobile phone links. More than 4,000 centres have been set up so far in Ukraine. In an evening address, Mr Zelensky indicated that “more work needed to be done” in some areas such as Kyiv, where Vitali Klitschko is the mayor. "Unfortunately, local authorities have not performed well in all cities. In particular,...

SHREVEPORT, La. - Two Shreveport women are in custody after being accused of defrauding veterans of more than a million dollars. Police were conducting an investigation Tuesday in the 100 block of Captain H.M. Shreve Boulevard in a case they've been working on since September. Multiple veterans were targeted and police said most were senior citizens. Investigators said Destane Glass, 21, was arrested and booked with identity theft. Glass reportedly used the money to buy a home, expensive cars and other lavish items. Investigators said 21-year-old Zarrajah Watkins used her job at Teleperformance to gain access to the veterans' USAA...

During an interview aired on Friday’s edition of the Fox Business Network’s “Maria Bartiromo’s Wall Street,” Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-TN) said he believes there is a “highly likely” chance there will be a rail strike in the middle of the holidays. Host Maria Bartiromo asked, “The president tried to act as if he had some kind of a tentative deal before the midterm elections, but we now know that four of the unions have rejected a deal which gave them, by the way, a 24% raise, but only one paid sick day. Senator, what is the likelihood that we have...

Kevin McCarthy currently does not have enough votes for Speaker. This is a very good thing. While Biden, Pelosi and Schumer are destroying the country like never before Kevin McCarthy is way too weak to stand up against this destruction of the USA. This is because McCarthy has never shown strength. He’s Paul Ryan’s puppet in the House. Yesterday Congressman Bob Good from Virginia reported that after two years Kevin McCarthy there is no indication that McCarthy will suddenly stand up against the Biden regime. Good shared: Tell me on what basis Steve, if you were looking at the 220...

The most prominent purveyor of homewashing is the massive government-sponsored enterprise known as the Federal Home Loan Banks. There are 11 regional FHLBs from Boston to San Francisco and points in between. They and their 6,500 member institutions follow a simple business model. The FHLBs borrow at a deep discount due to their government status. They then pass part of the government subsidized discount on to their members in the form of low-cost advances. As of Sept. 30, the FHLBs had over $1 trillion in taxpayer-subsidized debt outstanding. Subsidized advances to members stood at $655 billion, an 86 percent increase...

Air India is facing criticism over new grooming guidelines for its cabin crew that were published in the Indian media. The strict rules include five pages dedicated to hairstyles alone, while other sections dictate strict guidelines for what staff are allowed to wear in hotels. What are the new rules? All cabin crew have been told to regularly dye gray hair, according to a document published by Indian broadcaster NDTV. It is mandatory for crew with "frizzy hair" to undergo hair smoothing or relaxing treatments. "Wavy, curly and frizzy hair cannot be left open," the guidelines state, adding: "Bushy, unruly...

The Vatican said on Saturday that Chinese authorities had violated the terms stipulated in its provisional agreement on the appointment of bishops. A statement released on Nov. 26 said that “the Holy See noted with surprise and regret” that Bishop John Peng Weizhao had been installed as an “auxiliary bishop of Jiangxi,” a diocese that is not recognized by the Vatican. Peng’s installation ceremony in Nanchang, China “did not occur in accordance with the spirit of dialogue … and what was stipulated in the Provisional Agreement on the Appointment of Bishops, on September 22, 2018,” it said. The Vatican statement...

As the United States rolled back the clocks one hour this month to observe the end of Daylight Saving Time, many people got a bit more sleep than usual – but some not as much as others. Growing evidence shows that lack of sleep and sleep disorders, such as obstructive sleep apnea, remain more prevalent in Black, Asian, and Hispanic or Latino communities, and these inequities can have long-term detrimental implications for physical health, even raising the risk of certain chronic diseases.*** Now, some sleep researchers worry about the potential effects that continuing to change standard time twice each year...

Vladimir Makei, the foreign minister of Belarus, has died at age 64, Belarusian state news agency Belta reported Saturday. No cause of death was stated, but Belta said he passed away "suddenly." Makei had been the foreign minister of the authoritarian country since 2012 and was one of longtime ruler Alexander Lukashenko's close allies. Before his time as a minister, he was Lukashenko's chief of staff. Makei was also considered a possible successor to Lukashenko, who has ruled with an iron fist since 1994. Born in 1958 in the western Grodno region, Makei studied in Minsk and Austria before serving...

A tweet from Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot lamenting the slaying of five patrons of Club Q in Colorado Springs sparked an outpouring of ridicule from other Twitter users. In her tweet, the Mayor asked “how many people need to be murdered? How many lives torn apart? Until it actually stops?” Responses to her tweet pointed out that as the mayor of a city that averages more than a dozen murders a week she could be more effective if she put her energy into trying to reduce the carnage in her jurisdiction. Former ESPN sportscaster Jeannine Edwards wanted to know “where...

On Friday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends,” Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL) stated that Secretary of State Pete Buttigieg hasn’t had enough involvement in trying to avert a potential rail strike, which, along with rising diesel costs, “will be a one-two shot to an already struggling economy.” Waltz said that in addition to the cost of gas spiking if there’s a rail strike, “the cost of diesel is through the roof as well. You know, the average trucker used to spend 300, $400 to fill up his rig. Now, he’s spending over $1,000, and this will be...