Free Republic

Following the latest Twitter bomb dropped by Elon Musk, U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz criticized the FBI, saying the agency needs some “serious reshaping” for participating in possible free speech violations. Gaetz promised House Republicans would demand the agency account for its cozy relationship with the social media firm once the GOP is in charge.

The mayor of El Paso declared a disaster “due to a humanitarian, security, and economic crisis resulting from a mass migration” through the city. The declaration comes as thousands of migrants continue to cross from Mexico into the city in advance of the end of the Title 42 protocol expected on Wednesday. Freezing temperatures in the city of El Paso are in the forecast for the coming week while hundreds of migrants camp out on the streets. The surge of migrant crossings, only expected to increase following the termination of the Title 42 migrant removal protocol on Wednesday, led El...

WASHINGTON — The prospect of growing military threats from both China and Russia is driving bipartisan support for a surge in Pentagon spending, setting up another potential boom for weapons makers that is likely to extend beyond the war in Ukraine. Congress is on track in the coming week to give final approval to a national military budget for the current fiscal year that is expected to reach approximately $858 billion — or $45 billion above what President Biden had requested. If approved at this level, the Pentagon budget will have grown at 4.3 percent per year over the last...

Kindly asking you all to pray for our @MarkSteynOnline to recover quickly. He’s an extraordinarily brave and kind man and someone we need with us for much, much longer. Please send him your love and prayers.

Thursday night’s Log Cabin Republicans’ “Spirit of Lincoln” gala in the main ballroom of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago beachfront club was a joyous celebration of gay rights. | Steve Helber/AP Photo PALM BEACH, Fla. — Hundreds of guests in tuxedos of all styles — sequined, quilted, velvet — and colorful gowns sipped on Trump-branded champagne and martinis. Between courses of steak and bite-sized Key lime pie, they danced to “YMCA” and “Macho Man,” the disco anthems at Trump rallies. Thursday night’s Log Cabin Republicans’ “Spirit of Lincoln” gala in the main ballroom of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago beachfront club was a joyous...

NYPD officers refused to look at Ring camera surveillance footage that would have exonerated a nurse busted for domestic violence charges, according to a new federal lawsuit. Tricia Lara says she’s the one who got arrested when her cousin forced her way into her Brooklyn apartment on June 30 — even though a camera set up in her living room showed her cousin was the aggressor. The officers’ unwillingness to watch the video — despite a state law requiring cops to investigate who “primary physical aggressor” in a domestic violence case is — put Lara through the criminal justice system...

Pray For The Peace of JerusalemMatthew 20The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard 20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 He agreed to pay them a denarius[a] for the day and sent them into his vineyard. 3 “About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4 He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ 5 So they went. “He went out again...

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — The mayor of a Texas border city declared a state of emergency Saturday over concerns about the community's ability to handle an anticipated influx of migrants across the Southern border. El Paso Mayor Oscar Leeser issued the state of emergency declaration to allow the city on the U.S. border with Mexico to tap into additional resources that are expected to become necessary after Title 42 expulsions end on Dec. 21, the El Paso Times reported. Leeser had previously resisted issuing an emergency declaration, but said he was moved to action by the sight of people...

A well-known Catholic priest and incendiary leader of the anti-abortion movement was removed from the priesthood by the Vatican, according to a letter from Pope Francis’s representative to the United States that was obtained by The New York Times. Frank Pavone, who leads the advocacy organization Priests for Life, and was once a religious adviser to former President Donald J. Trump, was dismissed from the clergy on Nov. 9 with no possibility of appeal, the letter states. The letter included a statement about the removal, called laicization, that it said was approved by the Dicastery for the Clergy, a Vatican...

Conservatives on Twitter blasted President Joe Biden for telling another "ridiculous tall tale" about himself in a speech, claiming that his uncle won a Purple Heart for his actions during World War II. -excerpt- At one point during his speech, the president stated, "My dad, when I got elected vice president [in 2008], he said, ‘Joey, Uncle Frank fought in the Battle of the Bulge.’ -excerpt- ‘and he won the Purple Heart and he never received it. He never got it. Do you think you could help him get it? -excerpt- Biden’s father, Joseph R. Biden Sr., died in September...

The Bible In Paintings ~ Encouragement for Appreciating and Applying God's Word ~ THE FOUR EVANGELISTS ֎ Featuring 43 Paintings and 1 Statue ֎ M A T T H E W 1 POMPEO BATONI "St Matthew" 2 REMBRANDT "St Matthew and the Angel" 3 KURT WENNER "St. Matthew" 4 CARLO DOLCI "St. Matthew Writing His Gospel" 5 Irish School "Saint Matthew" 6 WILLIAM BLAKE "St. Matthew" 7 VALENTIN DE BOULOGNE "Saint Matthew" 8 CARAVAGGIO "The Inspiration of Saint Matthew" M A R K 9 LOUIS CRETEY "Saint Mark the Evangelist" 10 Source 11 JOACHIM WTEWAEL "The Evangelist Saint Mark"...

But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. Matthew 1:20-21 (King James Version) Anyone who does not realize the last four to five years was an organized coup have not been paying attention or were willfully participating or perhaps...

Progressives Blow Up the Framers’ Constitution.There is no correlation between majoritarian rule and free government. Our Framers wisely limited the democratic element to just one half of one of the three branches of government. The House of Representatives satisfies the Founders self-evident truth that just governments derive their powers from the consent of the governed. The previous squibs in this series illustrated two recurring themes surrounding the senate debates at the 1787 federal convention. First, the senate should counter the democratic excesses of the people in the house. In Madison’s words, the senate must be structured to reflect “more coolness”...

Fumbling blindly through cratered farms, the troops from Russia’s 155th Naval Infantry Brigade had no maps, medical kits or working walkie-talkies, they said. Just a few weeks earlier, they had been factory workers and truck drivers, watching an endless showcase of supposed Russian military victories at home on state television before being drafted in September. One medic was a former barista who had never had any medical training. Now, they were piled onto the tops of overcrowded armored vehicles, lumbering through fallow autumn fields with Kalashnikov rifles from half a century ago and virtually nothing to eat, they said. Russia...

Earlier this week, Elon Musk tweeted an emoji of a white rabbit and told people to follow it … Caroline Orr Bueno, Ph.D., explained that Musk was “explicitly” encouraging his 120 million followers to start following QAnon, “a domestic terrorism movement.” An explicit directive to follow QAnon would have gone something like, “Follow QAnon,” but she doubled down, revealing that Musk was using “memetic warfare” to conceal his creation of a network to organize violence. QAnon is most commonly associated with “Pizzagate,” which held that there was a pedophile ring being run out of a D.C. pizza shop. We’ve heard...

Russia says it will deploy musicians to the front lines of its war in Ukraine in a bid to boost morale. The defence ministry announced the formation of the "front-line creative brigade" this week, saying it would include both vocalists and musicians. ... But they questioned whether the new brigade would actually distract troops, who have been primarily concerned about "very high casualty rates, poor leadership, pay problems, lack of equipment and ammunition, and lack of clarity about the war's objectives". ... The new unit will be tasked with maintaining "a high moral, political and psychological state [among] the participants...

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, Dec. 16 -- 6 P.M. Maj.-Gen. Halleck, Commander-in-Chief: The Army of the Potomac was withdrawn to this side of the Rappahannock River, because I felt fully convinced that the position in front could not be carried, and it was a military necessity either to attack the enemy or retire. A repulse would have been disastrous to as under existing circumstances. The army was withdrawn at night without the knowledge of the enemy, and without loss, either of property or men. AMBROSE E. BURNSIDE, Major-General Commanding. GEN. BURNSIDE'S SUNDAY DISPATCH. The following is a copy of...

Communism is everywhere in our society, attacking, attacking, attacking. Here's why. To fight pornography in the schools, a Texas housewife recently appeared at a school board meeting. She lectured the officials: "I do not want my children to learn about anal sex in middle school. ... I want you to start focusing on education, not public health." Education, as we'll see, is the first refuge of scoundrels. Do you imagine that this school board is hip and cutting-edge? In fact, liberals have had few new ideas in more than a century. During World War 1, the communist government of Hungary...

Companies with 50 or more employees and authorities should set up internal reporting offices. The Federal Ministry of Justice and other federal authorities are also to act as external reporting offices. The draft law on whistleblower protection, which has now been passed by the Bundestag, is intended to protect against reprisals. "Whistleblowers" are intended to protect against disadvantages such as e.g. B. be protected against dismissal. The burden of proof does not lie with the aggrieved whistleblower. Reports on anti-constitutional statements by officials should also fall under whistleblower protection. Because officials must show loyalty to the constitution. Oral statements or...

Isn't it a sad thing that the Deep State can't even keep its secrets anymore? I wonder if it’s because so many of us lost faith in the federal government after its absurd overreactions, bad public health policies, and demonstrable lies respecting COVID, or is it just the passage of time and changes at the top making it harder to keep secrets, but this week both the FBI and CIA are in the line of fire. The CIASixty years after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the National Archives and Records Administration has finally released over 13,000 records in...