Free Republic

Sen. John Fetterman dressed for a day on a basketball court Saturday to greet President Biden in Philadelphia — then stumbled over his words as he spoke to the media. The Pennsylvania Democrat, in baggy shorts, sneakers, and a light blue hoodie, was unable to pronounce words such as “delegation” and “infrastructure” as he made a garbled one-minute statement after Biden toured the collapsed I-95 overpass that has snarled traffic throughout the northeast. “This is a president that is committed to infructure,” said Fetterman, 53, who continues to grapple with the effects of a stroke he suffered last May as...

A top prosecutor in the classified documents case against former President Trump was once cited for unethical behavior in a federal drug case, court records show. Karen Gilbert, 59, who now has a leading role in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s prosecution of former President Trump, was forced to resign as chief of the narcotics section of the Miami U.S. Attorney’s office for her role in secretly taping a defense lawyer in 2009, court papers show. The case involved Dr. Ali Shaygan, a Florida family medicine physician, who faced 141 counts of illegally dispensing pain medication. In June 2007, James Brendan...

People who used Google search between 2006 and 2013 could be eligible for a portion of a $23 million settlement in a class action lawsuit against the Big Tech giant. Google is accused of sharing users’ search queries with third-party websites and companies without their consent from Oct. 25, 2006, to Sept. 30, 2013, according to a notice of proposed settlement of the class action suit. (pdf). While Google has not made any admissions of wrongdoing, it has agreed to enter into the settlement (pdf) to avoid burdensome and costly litigation, according to the Kroll Settlement Administration, which is involved...

Russia is using attack helicopters equipped with long-range missiles to gain an upper hand on the key southern front of the Ukrainian counter-offensive, according to Britain’s Ministry of Defence (MoD).Moscow has deployed more than 20 extra helicopters to Berdyansk airport, which lies approximately 100km behind the front line, since Kyiv launched its offensive earlier this month, the ministry said in an intelligence update.“In the constant contest between aviation measures and counter-measures, it is likely that Russia has gained a temporary advantage in southern Ukraine, especially with attack helicopters employing longer-range missiles against ground targets,” said the MoD.It indicated earlier in...

On June 14, 2023, supporters of President Donald Trump honored him on his 77th birthday with a motorcade through Anaheim, Fullerton and Placentia in North Orange County, California.

[Catholic Caucus] Cardinal Tagle traces synods to Vatican IIMakes recording to liberal priests meeting in San DiegoPope Francis with Cardinal Tagle at the Spanish Steps in Rome Dec. 8, 2022.Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle suggested that pockets of resistance to Pope Francis’ invitation to synodality within the global Catholic Church is rooted in fear of change and insecurity about Catholic identity.“Maybe we need to individually and as communities really confront the forces of resistance,” the Filipino prelate said in a recorded discussion with Holy Cross Fr. Stephen Newton, executive director of the Association of U.S. Catholic Priests.The recording was played June...

Though Bangladesh's incumbent Awami League Government is taking strong action, Sheikh Hasina has a very serious challenge on her hands On the face of it, any talk of Islamist terrorism posing a threat to Bangladesh or the latter becoming a global staging ground for it appears absurd. Things have been improving since the savage terrorist strike at the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka on July 1, 2016, which left 20 persons (guests at the eatery), all five of the terrorists, two police officers and two members of the bakery’s staff, dead. According to South Asia Terrorist Portal’s Datasheet Bangladesh, from...

Nato needs to brace itself for the prospect of Ukraine’s counteroffensive failing to achieve major success. Indeed, so far, Kyiv has attained only limited gains. But those who expected a lightning breakthrough were always going to be disappointed. This is not German panzers against Polish horse cavalry, nor is it American shock and awe against demoralised Iraqi forces in antiquated tanks with no air cover.Instead, we are seeing something closer to an attritional style of warfare, with attacking forces battering against heavily fortified defences. Current operations are at the stage of reconnaissance-in-force along four separate axes of advance, with Ukrainian...

President Biden made excuses for China Saturday, saying that President Xi Jinping never meant to fly a spy balloon over sensitive American military sites earlier this year. “I don’t think the leadership knew where it was, and knew what was in it, and knew what was going on,” Biden told reporters as he headed to Philadelphia for his first campaign rally of the 2024 election. “I think it was more embarrassing than it was intentional.” The conciliatory comments came as Secretary of State Antony Blinken continued a two-day visit to Beijing, his first diplomatic trip there since he called off...

A connected world that’s leaving so many feeling disconnected is counterintuitive and troublesome, yet it’s humanity’s new reality. And this new reality is impacting the next-generation workforce at an alarming rate. Seventy-three percent of Gen Z report feeling alone either sometimes or always—the highest level of any generation. The mental health challenges experienced by Gen Z are like nothing any other generation has faced. Only 45 percent of Gen Z report “excellent” or “very good” mental health, which is the lowest of any generation. Ninety-one percent of Gen Z adults say they have experienced at least one physical or emotional...

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"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. "For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." "For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil." Matthew, Chapter...

A pregnant woman was shot and killed in her car at a Seattle intersection on Tuesday. Eina Kwon, 34, a mother of a 2-year-old child, was senselessly murdered while sitting in her car with her husband. Her unborn child died following the shooting.

Downtown San Francisco's fall from grace is unfolding quickly. Landlords large and small are waving the white flag over the increasing pressures facing the city, stemming in part from the downsizing of some of the largest employers and the inertia of remote work. In May, foot traffic to San Francisco offices was down nearly 60% compared to 2019 — the largest deficit of the major US urban centers tracked by Placer.ai, and it shows. The city's 18 million square feet of empty office space is so vast that it could house 92,000 people, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Since...

A Laramie church elder who lost presentation privileges at the University of Wyoming in December now is suing the university’s president and dean of student affairs, alleging they violated his free-speech, equal protection and due process rights. Todd Schmidt, an elder at Laramie Faith Community Church, set up a table at the UW Union breezeway on Dec. 2 displaying a sign that read, “God created male and female and Artemis Langford is a male.” Langford is the first transgender inductee into the Wyoming chapter of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. Ryan O’Neil, University of Wyoming dean of students, reportedly asked...

Just under the radar in recent months, there have been warnings. Warnings from power companies, warnings from electric car manufacturers, warnings from local governments, and even warnings from the federal government itself. There will be rolling blackouts. They say it’s because of climate change – that the weather isn’t quite perfect enough for the solar panels and wind turbines they keep installing. Or they say it’s because we haven’t moved quickly enough, so we haven’t yet installed all the solar panels and wind turbines we should have by now. After all, there are still a few square feet of farmland...

TOPLINE 2024 Democratic presidential contender Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—an environmental lawyer with anti-vaccine views and a strong family dynasty at his back—has higher favorability numbers than either President Joe Biden or former President Donald Trump, according to a new poll by The Economist and YouGov, even as Biden maintains a lead in the 2024 primary. KEY FACTS Kennedy Jr. was viewed favorably by 49% of respondents and unfavorably by just 30%, leaving him with a net rating of 19 points—higher than any other candidate in the poll, which surveyed 1,500 adult respondents from June 10 to 13. Biden had a...

Ron DeSantis has signed a law banning automakers from selling cars direct to consumers in Florida – but it contains a carve-out that will benefit his political backer Elon Musk and his Tesla company.House Bill 637 requires most automakers to sell to Floridians through third-party car dealers, who sometimes add exorbitant markups to vehicles’ sales tags.Drafted by lobbyists for dealers, who have made substantial donations to DeSantis, the law could have been a big blow to Tesla owner Elon Musk, who hosted his glitchy presidential campaign launch on Twitter.Tesla cuts out the middleman by operating its own dealerships. Forcing it...

We live with a new type of tyranny, where we find ourselves dissidents. It is not like any previous tyranny. It is not revolutionary in nature. Instead, it operates very scientifically and technocratically by convincing those it tyrannizes to demand their own enslavement, under the guise of comfort.Prior dissidents were at least dissidents of a tangible, kinetic revolution. We are dissidents of what the willfully tyrannized perceive as their secure position within the rightful order of things. This needs to be factored in to how we think about “converting” and “awakening” others amid the ongoing insurgency.(Via Daily Mail) – A...