Free Republic

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) is reintroducing legislation to require background checks on all commercial gun purchases in the aftermath of the Michigan State University shooting that left three students dead. Murphy has pushed for stronger gun control legislation throughout his time in Congress, and is now once again calling for mandatory background checks for every firearm sale. If the measure became law, prospective gun buyers would need to undergo a background check for the sale or transfer of guns, including online sales, purchases at gun shows and through unlicensed sellers, according to the bill. Murphy told Poppy Harlow on “CNN...

While most of the world lost ground in defense spending in 2022—mainly due to inflation—both China and many nations in Europe achieved real growth, and China’s spending level set a record, according to analysis by the independent, London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies. China’s spending and “military modernization remains the principal area of concern for Washington,” the IISS said in a summary of its findings. The seven percent increase in China’s defense spending from 2021 to 2022 is its largest in “absolute terms” going back 30 years, according to the report. In real terms—accounting for inflation—China spent $16 billion more...

President Joe Biden's demands for a ban on assault weapons were called irresponsible and unconstitutional by 16 state attorneys. The coalition of attorneys general, led by Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, sent a letter to the president saying his reasons for banning assault weapons have many "flaws" and could create a potential danger. "The right to keep and bear arms in self-defense guards and protects the right to life, the first and most fundamental God-given right recognized in the Declaration of Independence," the letter stated. "And, needless to say, your repeated attempts to deprive law-abiding Americans of guns that are...

Some of the most memorable moments in Chicago football history have been played in snow, wind, cold and fog, but Bears quarterback Justin Fields hopes that all comes to an end. Fields said on Pardon My Take that the weather in Chicago makes his job much more difficult, and he’d rather play indoors.

January’s producer price index, another inflation measure, rose 0.7% on the month while economists surveyed by Dow Jones expected a 0.4% increase. Initial jobless claims unexpectedly fell for the week ending February 11, per a Labor Department report. The new data comes after January’s consumer price index and retail sales report were both higher than expected, suggesting that the Federal Reserve may have further to go in its efforts to tame inflation. “Both inflation readings this week point to the stickiness of inflation and that the fight isn’t over, especially when considering today’s PPI reading was the highest month-over-month increase...

At least one person was killed after a gunman opened fire in a Texas mall food court Wednesday, cops said. Police said the shooting started around 5 p.m. at the Cielo Vista Mall in East El Paso. Officers said that four people, all men, were shot, one fatally. Two of the victims were rushed to the hospital in critical condition. The condition of the third victim was not immediately known. Police said two men were taken into custody. A weapon was also found at the scene.

Tachles: A modern Hebrew word of Yiddish origin that means “to the point.” Are the horsemen of the apocalypse on their way yet? Israeli commentator Amnon Abramovich this week compared Justice Minister Yariv Levin, MK Simcha Rothman and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to those end-times figures. All three are at the center of the political storm currently engulfing Israel. All three politicians are pushing for a right-wing revolution in Israel, and are racing to enact their policies without taking into account the mood of Israeli society. They don’t even want to hear the voices of right-wing voters. According to...

Springfield police are investigating a report from Kenwood Elementary School that allegedly involved several students and a racial incident. Officers were called to the school around 10 a.m. Monday about an incident that happened Friday during recess on the playground, according to the police report, which states assault and menacing as the potential offenses. The school principal told officers that a group of Black students gathered several white students on a spot of the playground “and forced them to state, ‘Black Lives Matter,’ against their will,” the report stated. The principal said a few of the students who tried to...

This list only includes destroyed vehicles and equipment of which photo or videographic evidence is available. Therefore, the amount of equipment destroyed is significantly higher than recorded here. Small arms, ATGMs, MANPADS, loitering munitions, drones used as unmanned bait, civilian vehicles, trailers and derelict equipment are not included in this list. All possible effort has gone into avoiding duplicate entries and discerning the status of equipment between captured or abandoned. Many of the entries listed as 'abandoned' will likely end up captured or destroyed. Similarly, some of the captured equipment might be destroyed if it can't be recovered. When the...

Brent Eldridge had heard that prices for natural gas were high this winter, but nothing prepared him for how bad it could be. When he opened the envelope from Long Beach’s utility department, he couldn’t believe the total: $907.13, nearly eight times higher than his bill at the same time last year. “It made me want to puke,” said Eldridge, 48, a pastor. Household budgets in the Golden State, already stretched thin as prices soar for everything from rent to eggs, are being pummeled by monster gas bills. Southern California Gas Co. and Pacific Gas & Electric began warning customers...

I guess there is nothing to see here, an Executive at JP Morgan and Jeffrey Epstein's personal banker exchanged emails with Epstein where he said, "That was fun, Say Hi to Snow White", to which Epstein replied, "What character would you like next". In addition, Epstein sent pictures of young women in suggestive poses to this Executive using a JP Morgan email account. Ghislaine Maxwell is in prison for trafficking underage women, yet no one has been arrested for abusing these women...The Virgin Islands is suing JP Morgan over their dealings with Epstein and this just one exchange of emails,...

President Biden loves to demonize his opponents like Republicans over spending and the Federal budget. Biden argued that his budget won’t increase taxes on Americans making less than $400,000 a year and will ultimately cut the deficit by $2 trillion over the next decade. The president has yet to release his budget plan but has promised to do so by March 9. Of course, Biden ignores “the inflation tax” which is crippling American households (negative REAL hourly earnings growth for 22 straight months). And while he won’t raise taxes on Americans making less than $400,000 (he doesn’t have the authority),...

Among those declared "traitors to the fatherland" are award-winning writer Sergio Ramírez, poet Gioconda Belli and Catholic bishop Silvio Báez. All 94 are outspoken critics of President Daniel Ortega, who is in his fourth consecutive term in office. They are the second group of government critics to have their citizenship revoked after 222 government critics had theirs rescinded last week. Many of those on the list of 94 are living abroad. The judge described them as "fugitives from justice" even though many of them left Nicaragua before any charges were levelled against them. Other stripped of their nationality on Wednesday...

“ The blameless in their walk are [God's] delight" (Prov. 11:20). Your love for God brings Him joy. Our focus so far this month has been on the joy we experience in knowing and serving Christ. Before we turn our attention to the theme of godliness, I want you to consider two additional aspects of joy: the joy of pleasing God, and how to lose your joy. Pleasing God is our topic for today. Perhaps you haven't given much thought to how you can bring joy to God, but Scripture mentions several ways. Luke 15:7, for example, says, "There will...

Call it inflation, or supply chain issues, or the way it is, but buying a car these days is like looking for a new home. Check out this report at Fortune: The average monthly payment for a new car has soared to a record $777, nearly doubling from late 2019, according to Kelley Blue Book owner Cox Automotive. That’s almost a sixth of the median after-tax income for US households. Even used models have climbed to $544 a month on average. The sticker shock extends well beyond the US, where inflation is a thorny a political issue for President Joe...

It says the episode contains “information or material that has been properly classified and protected, and which is sensitive information such that its public release is injurious to Canadian national security, national defence, and international relations.” In it, Alexander describes the process he says led to him being kicked out of JTF-2. He says he refused to comply with the COVID-19 vaccination mandate and requests that he wear a mask.

Currently we are hearing a great deal of consternation from the Left about the planned sunsetting of Social Security and Medicare. To them, this signifies Republicans stealing food from the mouths of their babies. Can you not feel the pathos? For those who are not in the grips of emotion, conservatives have been warning about these entitlements, or payments made to citizens instead of to an agency, since they began with the income tax in 1913. Our forefathers back then told people that any free program becomes an alternative to the responsible way of doing things, so people shift their...

President Biden arrived at Walter Reed Medical Center on Thursday morning to undergo his annual physical. Biden arrived for his physical around 9:15 a.m. The White House will publicly release a written summary of the president’s physical later in the day after it is completed, the press office said. Biden did not have a physical during the 2022 calendar year, which the White House chalked up to “scheduling around what has been a busy and evolving travel schedule in recent weeks.” His last physical was completed in November 2021, and his physician determined at that time that he was healthy...

VIDEOJudo is the art of using the force of an opponent's attack as leverage to throw him (or her) off balance. In 2016, then South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley attacked Trump as giving the "siren call of the angriest voices." Trump soon responded with this incredibly deft and effective verbal judo move by taking the force of her attack as leverage to throw her off balance to his overwhelming advantage.

Premier Danielle Smith said she stands with Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe in protecting private health information. ... Alberta became the second province after Saskatchewan to decline participation in any type of national healthcare “digital ID” program as a condition to receive funding for health care from the federal government. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith made clear to Albertans this past Friday that their personal medical information would not be shared with the federal government. “I agree and stand firmly with @PremierScottMoe in protecting Albertans’ private health information,” Smith tweeted. “I will ensure that any agreements with the Federal Government do NOT...