Free Republic

Senator John Kennedy (R-La.) read excerpts from the pornographic children’s books “Genderqueer” and “All Boys aren’t Blue” during a Senate Judiciary hearing Tuesday, prompting a Democrat witness who opposes “book bans” to admit that the words were “disturbing.” Democrats decried the banning of such books during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to examine “How Censorship Limits Liberty and Literature.” The Democrats’ three witnesses included Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, who crafted legislation in his state to outlaw book bans on pornographic books for children, and Cameron Samuels, a 17-year-old student activist who uses “gender neutral pronouns they/them” and compared...

A Republican election lawyer with ties to three of former president Donald Trump’s GOP primary opponents has joined a crowded field of individuals and groups exploring whether the former president can be kept off the ballot for his role in fomenting the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Jason Torchinsky, a partner with the Virginia law firm Holtzman Vogel, has in recent days initiated conversations about the idea of trying to disqualify Trump with a range of figures, including a Democratic secretary of state, fellow election lawyers and a retired federal judge who has helped lead...

Gov. Ron DeSantis says he’d take a hard line against North Korea if necessary, including a preemptive military strike in the event evidence said they were gunning for the U.S. first. On Tuesday’s CBS Evening News, the Florida Governor said he would do so if “you knew that there was definitely someone was about to launch a missile at you.” “Of course, you take action to prevent and protect your people, but that would require a certain amount of evidentiary threshold,” DeSantis told Norah O’Donnell. “I don’t think you just go willy nilly.” DeSantis also said he would keep North...

Why aren’t I 50 points ahead?

Former NYPD Commissioner Howard Safir – who oversaw a historic decrease in crime in the late 1990s and left an indelible mark on the nation’s largest police force – died in Annapolis, Maryland, on Monday. He was 81. Safir, a Bronx native with a decades-long career in law enforcement, was named the city’s top cop by then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani in 1996, and served until 2000 – establishing the NYPD’s Courtesy, Professionalism & Respect program, a motto that is still painted on the side of every police vehicle to this day. “A public servant for more than three decades, Commissioner Safir...

On Tuesday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Senate Majority Whip and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) responded to a question on the crime surge in Washington, D.C. and what can be done for crimes committed without a gun by stating that “it’s hard to put your finger on it for any given city.” And “Some of this is going to take addressing issues that are really deep-seated in terms of poverty and the way children are being raised,” Durbin also stated that he knows that lack of gun control is a part of the crime issue in...

Two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep has been banned for four years for two separate anti-doping rule violations, the International Tennis Integrity Agency said Tuesday. Halep, 31, has been provisionally suspended since October 2022 after testing positive for banned blood-booster Roxadustat at the US Open last year. Halep said she would appeal to sport's highest court, saying she "refused to accept" the decision. "I am continuing to train and do everything in my power to clear my name of these false allegations and return to the court," Halep said in a statement. "I intend to appeal this decision to The...

Socrates has remained one of the most fascinating characters in the history of philosophy, but did his heritage survive in popular Arab fables too? Socrates is one of the most iconic thinkers of Western philosophy. His thought process was oral, and recounts of his life have survived through others’ writings, notably Plato’s. It is not a coincidence that Socrates did not actually put anything into writing. He never committed to any axiom, except human ignorance, and he created the thought process of “birthing” the truth. Socrates is the epitome of the wise fool. In the ancient world, Greek philosophical schools...

The Chicago Police Department announced the arrest of the suspect who allegedly unleashed two violent dogs on police officers Sunday. Chicago resident Vernia Jones, 31, was charged with one felony count of aggravated battery of a peace officer, the Chicago Police Department told Fox News Digital. She also faces two misdemeanor counts of resisting or obstructing a peace officer. The incident happened when officers were patrolling in the 4000 block of West Wilcox Avenue in West Garfield Park shortly after 11:20 a.m. on Sunday. Police reported that a female suspect "attempted to intervene" in the officers' investigation and let two...

If you think, like Elon Musk, that instead of fighting, Ukraine and Russia “should agree to a truce,” the recent interview with General Andrey Mordvichev, one of Russia’s top commanders in Ukraine, should give you pause. Asked about the war’s expected duration, he said the quiet part out loud: There is still “plenty of time.” According to him, “If we are talking about Eastern Europe, which we will have to, of course then it will be longer.” In other words, the Kremlin is in the conflict for the long haul. Not only it is committed, as Russian President Vladimir Putin...

Chicago's mayor Brandon Johnson is pushing a 'mansion tax' on sales of homes of more than $1 million, as his administration continues to push higher tax on households earning over $100,000. The newly elected mayor, who took over from his disastrous predecessor Lori Lightfoot in May of this year, wants to push a hike in taxes in order to fight homelessness in the city. Allies of Mayor Johnson, 47, have also announced plans to push a $12-billion plan for the city titled 'First We Get the Money'. The plan, seemingly named after a quote from the 1983 film Scarface, aims...

New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham's (D) illegal 30-day concealed and open carry ban is having trouble finding support in any of the other branches of the state government. Attorney General of New Mexico Raúl Torrez (D) wrote a letter to Lujan Grisham explaining his office will not defend her administration in lawsuits that have been filed against the the gun ban, saying it will not solve gun crime and it is unconstitutional. Though I recognize my statutory obligation as New Mexico’s chief legal officer to defend state officials when they are sued in their official capacity, my duty to...

Aaron Rodgers' devastating season-ending injury in his debut with the New York Jets on Monday night has reignited the debate surrounding artifical turf fields, prompting several NFL players to call out the league. An MRI on Tuesday confirmed that Rodgers, 39, suffered a torn Achilles on the fourth snap of his career with the Jets in the team’s overtime victory over the Buffalo Bills, according to multiple reports. He was sacked by linebacker Leonard Floyd and eventually carted off the field. Several of Rodgers’ teammates pointed to the field conditions at MetLife Stadium, specifically the turf, which was replaced earlier...

Full press conference following the 60 day sentence handed down to Owen Shroyer for exercising his First Amendment God given right to Free Speech. You can support Owen here You can support Alex Jones in his ongoing legal battles here

Dozens of bat rays acting as a fever (a fever is the name given to a group of bat rays) were captured on camera in the Monterey Bay. The video shows dozens of rays congregating together in the bay near Aptos. Eric Mailander captured the video. (Watch the video above) A group of rays is a common sight near Baja, Mexico, or Australia, but according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the ocean-dwelling creatures are also common in the Monterey Bay. "Several bays and wetland areas along the California and Pacific Coast of Baja, including nearby Elkhorn Slough, are important nursery...

Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO), the chief GOP opponent of opening an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, has changed his mind, stating on Tuesday it is a “good idea” to launch an inquiry into the president. Buck told NBC News the inquiry is a good idea because it removes a “distraction” and permits the House to focus on the next spending fight. He also noted that “nothing changes,” as House Republicans were already investigating the Biden family. When asked how he explained changing his mind to support the inquiry, Buck told NBC News he asked to review the powerful allegations...

A California bill that would make child sex trafficking a serious felony is one step away from Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk. Senate Bill 14, authored by Sen. Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, passed the state Assembly with a 79-0 vote and now heads back to the state Senate in order for that house to approve a change made to the bill two weeks ago. The Assembly-approved bill includes an amendment that lawmakers say ensures human trafficking victims, who can sometimes be forced to help traffickers, are not prosecuted under the proposed law. "We are one step closer to making the horrific crime...

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) on Tuesday suggested President Biden and former President Donald Trump may be too old to serve in the White House, saying in a new interview the presidency is “not a job for someone that’s 80 years old.” DeSantis, who is running for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024, told CBS News it’s justified for voters to have concerns about the age of presidential nominees. “ I think that’s absolutely a legitimate concern. The presidency’s not a job for someone that’s 80 years old, and there’s nothing wrong with being 80,” DeSantis said. “Obviously, I’m the...

Vaccinations for BA.2.86 will start on Sept. 11, focusing on care home residents, those at highest riskEngland will bring forward the start of its autumn flu and COVID-19 vaccination programmes as a precautionary step after the identification of highly mutated COVID variant BA.2.86, which has been found in Britain. Scientists have said BA.2.86, an offshoot of the Omicron variant, was unlikely to cause a devastating wave of severe disease and death, given immune defences built up worldwide from vaccination and prior infection. However, Britain's health ministry said annual vaccination programmes for older and at-risk groups would start a few weeks...

Infowars Host Owen Shroyer was sentenced to 60 days in prison on Tuesday for participating in the protests around the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Despite not having actually entered the Capitol building, Shroyer pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of illegally entering a restricted area on Jan. 6 in violation of a deferred prosecution agreement he’d made after disrupting a congressional hearing in 2019. As part of the 2020 deferment deal, Shroyer had agreed not to engage in “loud, threatening, or abusive language, or to engage in any disorderly or disruptive conduct, at any place upon the...