Free Republic

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The Government Accountability Office has informed Headline USA that it will soon begin reviewing the FBI’s use of “assessments”—a constitutionally dubious practice that allows the bureau to target groups and individuals without evidence of criminal wrongdoing. FBI assessments have come under recent scrutiny in relation to the DOJ’s targeting of parents who hotly protested COVID-19 restrictions and other issues at school board meetings. A report published Tuesday by the House Weaponization Subcommittee revealed that the FBI conducted at least 25 assessments of school board threats—only one of which resulted in a full investigation, and none of...

Every few years, the idea of a flat income tax — with a tax form you could fill out on a postcard — is floated, either in D.C. or in various state houses (though not in the states that are growing massively now because they have no income tax). It would seem to make sense and be fair. No (or very very few) deductions and simple rate (or maybe two or three at the most) for everyone. Do a simple math problem and done — easy-peasy. The concepts are even usually discussed as being cost-neutral — if you pay (net)...

I will summarize the following article from the anti-Trump National Review, titled "A Second Trump Administration Would Be Bonkers":Republicans shouldn’t vote for Trump again because Democrats will act more violently than they did after Trump won the first time. Here it is:If Donald Trump’s Truth Social post about his impending arrest made it feel like our politics was about to reach another level of insanity, just wait.The impending Alvin Bragg prosecution offers a taste of what our national politics will be like post–November 2024 if Donald Trump wins the presidency again.The Left freaked out in 2017, and that was before...

The Patriarchate of Jerusalem, represented by Patriarch Theophilos III, along with the Holy Synod and the Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre, the clergy and the faithful, condemns the heinous terrorist attack that took place during the Sunday service, at the hands of two Israeli radicals, which targeted the Church of Gethsemane in Jerusalem, where the Tomb of the Virgin Mary lies. The Patriarchate also denounces the attempt to cause physical harm to Archbishop Joachim, who was leading the service, as well as the attack on one of the priests in the church.

One of the things I often have to remind people about, including lawyers who should know better, is that each state has its own unique laws and procedures. What is no big deal in most places may be a fiasco in another. For Donald Trump, the upcoming New York "falsifying business records" charge he may be facing would be laughed out of court almost everywhere, as no money was stolen and no harm to anyone seems to have been done. Unfortunately for him, he is stuck in the Empire State. And as unfair as it sounds, I think Mr. Trump...

Like the old EF Hutton ads, when Treasury Secretary Janet “Too Low For Too Long” Yellen speaks, people listens. Particularly when she reverses course after bailing out he Silicon Valley/Big Tech buddies by guaranteeing deposits. Then in a US Senate hearing AFTER Fed Chair Powell tried to calm markets, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Senators yesterday that ‘Blanket insurance’ of bank deposits is not being discussed. Look out below! So why did the Biden Administration and Janet Yellen bail out Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), regulated by San Francisco Federal Reserve (run by Mary Daly)? And then tell the US Senate...

(Daily readings from the USCCB)“How can you believe, when you accept praise from one another and do not seek the praise that comes from the only God?” John 5:44It’s quite normal and healthy for a parent to praise a young child for the good that they do. This healthy positive reinforcement is a way of teaching them the importance of doing good and avoiding what’s wrong. But human praise is not an infallible guide of what is right and wrong. In fact, when human praise is not based in the truth of God, it does great damage.This short Scripture quote...

For the second time in a matter of weeks a clearly disappointed Jill Biden took time Wednesday to publicly air her grievances with men. A Women’s History Month event at the White House provided the backdrop for her lamentation men are failing women in their pursuit of equality and rights. Speaking ahead of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, AP reports Biden didn’t mince words as she said women find themselves relitigating “battles that we thought we had won a long time ago.”

As a colleague once told me about a friend's divorce, the marriage reached a point where it could not be saved and the couple could no longer live in peace together. They call it "irreconcilable differences" and it was obvious to anyone watching that the couple had reached such a point.Are we there as a country? I wonder, reading what goes on every day.Over in Los Angeles, a teen is arrested with two stolen guns after threatening the school but DA George Gascon declines to charge. In New York, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has a terrible case of Trump...

The latest report by the House Judiciary Committee declares that there was “no legitimate basis” for the Biden Administration’s efforts to label parents protesting at school board meetings as domestic terrorists and place them under federal investigation. As reported by Fox News, the Judiciary Committee and its new subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government have completed an interim staff report on the matter of the federal government’s handling of parents’ rights groups, who were “voicing concerns about controversial curricula and education-related policies.” “From the initial set of material produced in response to the subpoenas, it is apparent that...

(Last Updated On: March 16, 2023) NATIONAL TAMALE DAY Sweet or savory, National Tamale Day on March 23rd celebrates a traditional Mexican dish made from a cornmeal dough and filled with a variety of meats, vegetables, or fruit. #NationalTamaleDay Traditional tamales are made with a dough called masa. When making tamales, you spread the dough on a corn husk or banana leaf before adding the fillings. Then you wrap the leaves around the entire package and steam it into a fragrant, mouthwatering meal. While they are popular street food in South America and the southern United States today, the tamale...

Shares of Jack Dorsey's Block Inc. [stock symbol SQ] plunged over 18% after short-seller Hindenburg Research announced the payment company was its latest short position. "Our 2-year investigation has concluded that Block has systematically taken advantage of the demographics it claims to be helping..." ...the short seller opened accounts in the name of former President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and then opened a Cash App card, called the Cash Card, under the "obviously fake Donald Trump account," the report said.

Anarcho-tyranny in the USAThe city of Philadelphia has announced an agreement to pay a $9.25 million settlement in connection with the police response to protests after the death of George Floyd in 2020. While dozens were killed and billions of dollars of damage were done during the riots that raged across America for weeks in the summer of 2020, it is the participants themselves who will be paid restitution by the government.Law and order in the United States have now descended to a level of anarcho-tyranny in which the government funds rioters with the tax money of their victims. The...

At least one Proud Boys member on trial for the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol had a previously-concealed FBI informant set to appear as a witness in their case, a defense attorney said Wednesday. Former Proud Boys national chairman Enrique Tarrio and members Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl and Dominic Pezzola are all on federal trial after being accused in a June 2022 indictment of conspiring “to oppose the lawful transfer of presidential power by force.” The government revealed Wednesday that a witness scheduled to appear in the defense case Thursday had been an FBI confidential human...

Insurers have been advised that they shouldn’t be charging for Truvada and Descovy as HIV prevention and that associated clinic visits and labs must also be free.... Truvada, which contains a pair of antiretroviral medications also used to treat HIV, was approved for use as HIV prevention in 2012. Research indicates that when taken daily, the tablet reduces men’s risk of contracting the virus from sex with other men by more than 99 percent. PrEP reduces women’s risk of HIV by at least 90 percent... Descovy, which is associated with improvements in bone density and kidney function tests compared with...

In Jonathan Nolan's excellent television series, Person of Interest, stars Jim Caviezel and Michael Emerson intervene each episode to avert violent crimes predicted by an artificial intelligence. SNIP This much is clear: in both the television series and America today, Big Government is not the victim; it is the perpetrator. Around the country, almost every problem Americans endure is a result of Big Government action or inaction. Government overspending and central bank money-printing have crushed the value of ordinary Americans' income and savings. The Intelligence Community's use of the PATRIOT Act and other unconstitutional tools to violate Americans' Fourth Amendment...

India's government has presented the nation with a challenge: to lead development and deployment of 6G, both within its borders and elsewhere. Prime minister Narendra Modi yesterday opened an area office and innovation center of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and used the occasion to launch a 6G vision statement that he said is part of India's desire to "provide universal connectivity in the Global South". "Global South" is a term often used to describe nations with low-to-middle incomes, located in Africa, Asia, Oceania, Latin America and the Caribbean. India has already used tech to make a play for influence...

A source familiar with the matter suggested Bragg and his team "are having trouble convincing the jury to swallow the case." The grand jury investigating former President Donald Trump for his alleged involvement in a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels on the eve of the 2016 election was told not to show up on Wednesday. However; it has been reported that they are set to reconvene on Thursday. The news comes amid reports that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is "having trouble" convincing members of the grand jury to hear the case. According to the Daily Mail,...

Can We Call It an Invasion Now?With two porous land borders to defend, as well as increased attempts at illegal entry by sea, American sovereignty is now more conceptual than real.By almost any significant metric, this is not America’s finest hour. We do not appear to be respected or feared economically, militarily, or in any other way by rival nations. Americans do not feel confident about the future, and we are seemingly more polarized along partisan lines than ever before.Adding to our collective sense of dread is the sight of our nation’s geographic integrity slipping away. Almost daily we see...

Nearly six years ago, a space object roughly the size of a football field baffled scientists as it zipped through our solar system. The irregular shape and motion of the object, dubbed ‘Oumuamua, led to one of the most controversial astronomical mysteries, with theories that ranged from asteroid to alien probe. But a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature offers another answer: ‘Oumuamua is a typical comet that expelled gas in an odd way as it traveled through our solar system. “We’ve gone through every weird, crazy, possible theory—ideas that stretch the imagination to match all of these observed...