Free Republic

On the 112th anniversary of Ronald Reagan’s birth, we commemorate his many monumental accomplishments as the greatest president of the past century. But it is also a good occasion for correcting the record regarding the persistent, never-ending efforts to obscure those accomplishments with misleading smears. One attack on Reagan that has grown in the telling over the years is the claim that he invented a wartime story about having been present at the liberation of the Nazi death camps. The problem: The actual evidence of Reagan saying this is vague, thirdhand, and contradicted on the record by people who were...

[Catholic Caucus] Cardinal Müller says Pope Francis revoked penalties on abusive priests at the request of cardinalsCdl. Müller's new book contains revelations about a possible papal hamstringing of the CDF, in order to prevent convicted priests from being laicized.The former head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), Cardinal Gerhard Müller, has highlighted a culture of non-action in the Vatican when it comes to Italian priests condemned by the CDF of sexual crimes.The cardinal’s comments come as part of his recently released book-length interview with Il Messaggero‘s Vatican correspondent, Franca Giansoldati. Entitled “In Buona fede,” the book...

I believe this is video is dated. But these were still his own words. I thought it might be of some interest here. https://youtu.be/gZIwjOTaQ_Y

Whoopi Goldberg told her co-hosts Tuesday on ABC’s “The View” that during the State of the Union address, President Joe Biden should call out Republicans who she accuses of trying to “change history.” Goldberg said, “What I need from him desperately is I need for him to say to all those brown kids who adults keep saying your history isn’t important, ‘I’m your president, I’m telling you it is. I’m your president. I’m telling you that I don’t accept the erasure of black and brown people from America’s history because there is not American history without these black and brown...

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (Reuters) - Automakers may not be able to build as many electric vehicles as they would like — and consumer demand for those EVs may not materialize as quickly as anticipated — if government and industry do not address and resolve a convergence of issues, a new study released on Tuesday said. Among those roadblocks, a looming shortage of battery raw materials could put government mandates “in conflict with manufacturing reality” — one of the macro trends charted in the 2023 Moving World Report, published by investment firm UP.Partners. Obstacles to the acceleration of EV production and...

Gen. Glen VanHerck, head of NORAD, takes questions on Chinese spy balloon. Was asked about previous balloons administration says crossed US in Trump years. Has very little to say. Then asked: If you didn't know about them then, how do you know now? Has even less to say. pic.twitter.com/fA4Ri2Q1Up— Byron York (@ByronYork) February 6, 2023------------------------

The gun control group Newtown Action Alliance is responding to the constitutional carry push in Florida by tweeting that “there is no such thing as ‘constitutional carry.'” Twenty-five states have constitutional carry, and Republicans in Florida and South Carolina are now racing to see which state will be number 26, but Newtown Action Alliance says it does not really exist. Newtown Action Alliance’s tweeted their opinion: Newtown Action Alliance @NewtownAction Just to be clear, there is no such thing as “constitutional carry”. The constitution didn’t give anyone the right to carry guns publicly without permits, background checks, or training. This...

Up to 178 "Leopard 1A5" are allowed to be delivered to Ukraine. Exactly how many depends on the state. Defense Minister Pistorius said in Kyiv that there should up to 25 tanks by the summer. The Federal Ministry of Economics has approved the export of up to 178 Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks to Ukraine. This was announced jointly by the Economics and Defense Ministries in Berlin. The government has already granted permission in principle last week, but had not yet specified a number. The tanks are currently in armaments factories or in halls. How many of the tanks can...

Feb. 3 (UPI) -- A Japanese zoo said it has solved the mystery of a gibbon became pregnant while living in isolation -- and a tiny hole in a board is to blame. Zookeepers at Kujukushima Zoo and Botanical Garden Mori Kirara in Sasebo City, Nagasaki Prefecture, said they were surprised when a lar gibbon named Momo gave birth in February 2021, as the ape had been living in her own enclosure without any males present. Officials said Momo was protective of her offspring, so it was nearly two years before they were able to collect enough stool and excrement...

Last week, the company announced that beginning Feb. 1, the centralized monopoly will no longer help support local charities, including youth athletic associations. Instead, it will donate to social justice and social responsibility initiatives that work on a larger scale, like affordable housing and other entities that align with its values.

Newly released video captured the moments before a knife-wielding double amputee was fatally shot by police in Los Angeles and shows him stabbing a man in front of a gas station. Huntington Park on Monday released video of Anthony Lowe, 36, sitting in his wheelchair on Jan. 26 before attacking a pedestrian with a 12-inch butcher knife near a Shell station. The man, who is seen staggering, was critically wounded with a collapsed lung but is recovering. Police also released the 911 call made by the victim, who identified himself as Ramiro. “I got stabbed in the heart right now,”...

WASHINGTON — As President Joe Biden prepared to deliver one of the biggest speeches of his presidency, he met with a close group of aides at the White House and read drafts aloud from top to bottom. He practiced in front of teleprompters at Camp David, making sure the language was relatable and clear. And, in quiet moments ahead of the State of the Union address Tuesday evening, he marked up his speech with subtle lines and dashes that he has long used as a signal to take a breath, pause between his words or steer through a tricky transition....

A manufacturer that provides ready-made entrées and snacks across multiple states has recalled more than 400 products over concerns of potential listeria contamination. Breakfast sandwiches, salads, wraps, fruit cups and parfaits are among the products made by Fresh Ideation Food Group that were recalled Friday, according to the Food and Drug Administration. Fresh Ideation Food Group is a Baltimore-based company that provides individually packaged and bulk-packaged food products in multiple states along the Eastern Seaboard, its website states. They were sold in vending machines and retail locations in Connecticut, District of Columbia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina,...

After Jerome Powell raved about the strong US labor market and oddly ignored the staggering crowding-out of US interest payments on its massive debt, the US Treasury’s 3-year debt auction was … a Hinderburg moment. First, the high yield at today’s auction of 3-year Treasury notes was 4.073%. This occured as the allotment to brokers and dealers collapsed along with M2 Money growth YoY. Then we have this horrible chart of the 3Y auction stop through, crashing into uncharted waters. A stop-through indicates when the highest yield the Treasury sold in the auction is below the highest yield expected when...

Centrist Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) kept speculation alive about him running for president in 2024 as a third-party candidate, telling reporters Tuesday “I don’t like the direction we’re going” and declining to rule out a bid for higher office. Manchin has criticized Democratic leaders for refusing to negotiate with Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) over a package of fiscal reforms to attach to legislation raising the debt limit and has repeatedly voiced frustration over the lack of progress in Washington on energy permitting reform and addressing the nation’s $31 trillion debt. “I don’t know what the next chapter will be, I...

Aiden Fucci, now 16, entered the surprise plea on the day he was set to face trial for stabbing Tristyn Bailey 114 times and leaving her body in a wooded area near their community. “I just want to say I plea guilty and I’m sorry for the Bailey family and my family,” Fucci said in a brief statement to the court Monday. Fucci is being charged as an adult, and prosecutors stressed they did not offer him any leniency in sentencing as part of the plea agreement. Bailey had been socializing with both Fucci and another classmate before the crime,...

But new evidence shows that one of the leading COVID medicine-producing companies may be manipulating the virus using antiviral drugs. Molnupiravir is sold as Lagevrio. Lagevrio is an antiviral drug produced by Merck & Company, and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics. The drug is designed, in theory, to prevent RNA viruses from replicating. Lagevrio induces viral mutations during replication. The National Institutes of Health insist that this pill has “shown antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 in vitro and in clinical trials.” But how’s this for a twist? Recent studies reveal that Lagevrio may be helping to generate and trigger new COVID-19 variants. This is...

From the “you can’t make this stuff up” department comes this inane story. Josh has his take on it. Scottish Power admitted 71 of its windmills were hooked up to the fossil fuel supply after a fault developed with their power supply. Full story --- Dozens of giant turbines on Scotland’s windfarms have been powered by diesel generators, the Sunday Mail can reveal. Scottish Power admitted 71 of its windmills were hooked up to the fossil fuel supply after a fault developed on the grid. The firm said it was forced to act in order to keep the turbines warm...

Ukraine has reported that more than 1,000 Russian troops were killed on Monday alone as the war between the neighboring countries approaches its first anniversary. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said in a Telegram post that 1,030 Russian personnel were killed in fighting, raising the total throughout the conflict to just more than 133,000. Ukrainian forces also destroyed 14 tanks and 28 armored personnel vehicles, officials said. Reuters reported that the number of Russian soldiers killed made Monday the deadliest 24 hours of the war for Russia so far, but it could not independently verify Ukraine’s claims. It also reported that...

California Gov. Gavin Newsom Monday demanded a federal investigation into rising natural gas prices in western states, after many families across the state saw their gas bills double — or more — in the month of January. In a letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the group responsible for regulating wholesale natural gas, Newsom asked the agency to "focus its investigatory resources on assessing whether market manipulation, anticompetitive behavior, or other anomalous activities are driving these ongoing elevated prices in the western gas markets." Many SoCalGas customers saw a massive bill in January, in many cases double the previous...