Free Republic

Downtown San Francisco has last another retail giant, Nordstrom, which will be closing both of its stores as the city continues to be plagued by soaring crime. According to a memo from Chief Stores Officer Jamie Nordstrom to employees, the company has decided not to renew its leases for its San Francisco Centre Nordstrom store and the Market Street Rack store. “We’ve spent more than 35 years serving customers in downtown San Francisco, building relationships with them and investing in the local community,” Nordstrom wrote. “But as many of you know, the dynamics of the downtown San Francisco market have...

Police have searched the home of former President Jair Bolsonaro in the Brazilian capital, Brasilia, as part of an investigation into his Covid vaccination records. Police suspect the ex-leader's vaccination record was forged so he could gain entry to the US. Officers seized the mobile phone of the former president and that of his wife and arrested some of his close aides as part of the operation. Mr Bolsonaro has denied any wrongdoing. The former president is a vocal opponent of Covid vaccinations, who repeatedly spread false information about the vaccine and its alleged side effects.

Ron DeSantis’ poll numbers continue to collapse, with another survey showing a not-so-sweet 16. A survey of 436 likely GOP Primary voters conducted April 24-27 by McLaughlin and Associates shows DeSantis mustering just 16% in a crowded field including Donald Trump and other declared and potential candidates. The former President leads the field, with 52% support. DeSantis is firmly in second place, 10 points ahead of Mike Pence (6%), and 12 points ahead of Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy (each with 4%). Undecided voters make up 7% of the sample, and no other name polled has more than 2% support....

NEW - Iran seizes second oil tanker in a week — US Navy(Navy Video Of It In Link Below)https://twitter.com/disclosetv/status/1653709518247698437

Serbia's Interior Ministry said Wednesday that a 14-year-old student opened fire at a school in Belgrade, killing eight children and a security guard, while injuring six more children and a teacher. Photo by Andrej Cukic/EPA-EFE May 3 (UPI) -- Serbian authorities said that a 14-year-old boy suspected of killing eight classmates and a security officer at his school in Belgrade Wednesday morning had planned the attack for "a long time." Seven girls and one boy were among those killed in the rampage at Vladislav Ribnikar Elementary School in the upscale Belgrade section of Vracar. One of the six children who...

The USG doesn’t want the Flynn case to be heard in Florida. The government has filed a 22-page motion to change the venue to DC.They start with precedent; in short, the Plaintiff’s choice of venue shouldn’t be disturbed unless the defendant (in this case, the government) can show that it is clearly outweighed by other considerations and that the Plaintiff’s choice of venue is granted less weight when the original venue lacks any significant connection to the claim. (snip) By this logic, the USG wouldn’t fare very well bringing cases ANYWHERE but DC!!

Brazil’s Federal Police searched former President Jair Bolsonaro’s home and seized his phone Wednesday in what they said was an investigation into alleged falsification of COVID-19 vaccine cards. Several other locations also were searched and a half-dozen people faced arrest, police said. The president confirmed the search on his residence while speaking with reporters, as did his wife Michelle on her Instagram account. She said her phone wasn’t seized, contrary to media reports. A federal police official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the person wasn’t authorized to speak publicly, said that Bolsonaro will be deposed at Federal Police...

The Navy's appointment of a non-binary drag queen as its first 'digital ambassador' has sparked fury, disbelief and mockery of the Department of Defense. Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, whose stage name is Harpy Daniels, announced on TikTok in November that she would be the Navy's first 'digital ambassador,' highlighting her journey from performing on board beginning in 2018 and growing to become an 'advocate' for those who 'were oppressed for years in the service.' On her new deleted Instagram page, she listed her pronouns as 'she/her' but also called herself non-binary. While Kelley's appointment is not new, and she...

The Russian presidential administration said Wednesday that the Kremlin was attacked by drones overnight in an attempt on President Vladimir Putin’s life. Moscow residents had reported hearing two explosions behind Kremlin walls shortly after 2 a.m. local time, after which the lights went out. Footage shared by residents in a local Telegram channel captured the incident, as smoke was seen filling the sky above the Kremlin. Videos also appeared to show part of the Kremlin on fire. Now, authorities say it was a brazen attack by Ukraine using two drones, both of which they say have been destroyed. No injuries...

VIDEO If the Russians had sent a couple of drones to attack the White House Correspondents Dinner while Biden was speaking there, would that have made Sleepy Joe more likely to order that charges against Julian Assange be dropped? Well, no more likely than the Russians are now more disposed to release imprisoned Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Dershkovich following the drone attack upon the Kremlin in an attempt to assassinate Vladimir Putin.Oh, and one possible side effect of such an attack upon the Kremlin is that it could lead to a thermonuclear war that could destroy all life on...

Oil tanker Niovi, sailing under Panamanian flag, captured by Iran in Strait of Hormuz Iranian forces captured a foreign vessel on Wednesday, the second ship to be harassed and seized by the Middle Eastern country in a week, the U.S. Navy said. The Niovi, a commercial oil tanker flying the Panama flag, was passing through the Strait of Hormuz between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman when it was overtaken by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN)

Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.), assistant House Democratic leader, is throwing his weight behind Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) in the California Senate race to replace Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.). “Barbara Lee is the voice Americans need now in the U.S. Senate,” Clyburn said in a statement. “She stands by what she believes in, and she doesn’t back down. In the House, she is an extremely accomplished legislator with a record of delivering historical achievement to end poverty, eradicate HIV and AIDS, and work for global peace and security,” he continued. “In the Senate, she will use all of her experiences to...

Nordstrom has announced it is closing all of its San Francisco stores, blaming the 'changed dynamics' of the city which has seen numerous major chains turn-tail in the face of soaring crime. The retailer told employees it would not be renewing its leases at the Westfield Mall or at the Nordstrom Rack across the street. The mall location will shutter at the end of August, and the Rack store will remain open until July 1, according to the Washington Post. Nordstrom chief stores officer Jamie Nordstrom blamed the state of San Francisco in recent years for reducing foot traffic 'and...

Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) latest gun control push includes the claim that there have been “over a dozen” mass shootings in America since Friday. Pelosi tweeted this claim Tuesday and did not include any citation to substantiate it: We have had over a dozen mass shooting since last Friday, leaving families and communities devastated — and still, Republicans would rather ban books than assault weapons. Democrats will never stop fighting to keep America's children safe from guns. -NP — Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) May 2, 2023 The Associated Press, USA Today, and Northeastern University maintain a database of mass shootings, defining...

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — The University of California, Santa Cruz has received two separate reports of incidents of antisemitism and hate. In a statement, they say one happened on campus and the other to a student in downtown Santa Cruz.

A new BBC report has pointed to ‘evidence’ in a documentary that Russian navy ships were stationed near the site of the blast that destroyed the Nord Stream pipeline three months before it happened, in a clear insinuation that it was Russia that blew up its own pipeline.The report states that “Russian ships able to perform underwater operations were present near to where explosions later took place on the Nord Stream pipelines, according to an investigative documentary.”“The vessels were reportedly located using intercepted Russian navy communications,” it adds.The BBC says that the “suspicious Russian ship movements in the run-up to...

Hollywood legend Woody Harrelson said that fellow actor Matthew McConaughey is his biological half-brother. Harrelson made the claim during an interview with Esquire to promote his new HBO show, “White House Plumbers.” The statement is a follow-up to comments previously made by McConaughey last month. In a new interview with Esquire, Harrelson claims that when McConaughey was born in 1969, McConaughey’s dad told his mom, “That ain’t my son” and refused to go to the hospital with her. Harrelson said that he “knew that detail” years before Mary Kathleen McCabe insinuated she may have had an intimate relationship with Harrelson’s...

The Mississippi native is best known for anchoring America’s 4x100 relay to gold, leading a legendary squad of Tianna Bartoletta, Allyson Felix and English Gardner, in Brazil. Three-time Olympic medalist Tori Bowie, a Mississippi native who sprinted to gold at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games, has died, officials said Wednesday. She was 32. Bowie’s death was announced by her management company and USA Track and Field. No cause of death was shared. “We’ve lost a client, dear friend, daughter and sister," Icon Management Inc. said in a statement. "Tori was a champion … a beacon of light that shined...

States are realizing there is a much-needed alternative to today’s watered-down, useless standardized tests: the Classic Learning Test.The days of needing flashcards to study SAT vocabulary words to get into college are over — but not just because more and more schools have decided to jettison standardized testing entirely. Today’s SAT is a shadow of its former self, having been dumbed down and manipulated over the past several decades to serve political ends. In its current form, the test has outlived its usefulness.In fact, Florida lawmakers have affirmed as much in a recent education bill that passed the Florida House...

You know a few months back when all of those wacky, conspiratorial conservatives came up with that baseless accusation that the Democrats were coming for your gas stoves? What ignorant and stupid rubes! Well, would you look at that? New York State, starting in 2026, is going to ban gas stoves and heat from almost all new buildings. They're doing this, of course, to fight the evil sun monster that's causing the earth to heat up. It's not happening. Actually, it is happening and it's a good thing. That's the pattern you see (sometimes with a few extra steps) over...