Free Republic

In 2020, Democrats invented a fake water leak, and used it as an excuse to send Republican poll watchers and news reporters home. Then the Democrats went back inside, and continued counting the votes.

EDGERTON, Wis. - Last week, Gov. Tony Evers signed a bill that would expand the Safe Haven Law, allowing parents to anonymously and safely surrender their newborns to hospitals, fire stations, police stations. The update came months after southern Wisconsin was shaken by the news of an abandoned newborn child found dead in a cornfield just outside of Whitewater. "They (residents) felt like this baby's life really mattered and they wanted to do something to make sure that if somebody else found themselves in this situation that they had an option," Rep. Ellen Schutt (R-Clinton) said. Now that the bill...

A group of Republican lawmakers are attempting to stop the Pentagon from taking out a Confederate monument belonging to Arlington National Cemetery.Led by Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA), the group of lawmakers penned a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Monday that demands he leaves the Reconciliation Monument, also known as the Confederate Memorial untouched until at least the conclusion of the fiscal year 2024 appropriations process.The monument was set to be taken out by the Pentagon’s Naming Commission, a group formed to rename and remove military installations named after the Confederacy. This came in the wake of the 2020...

NATIONAL BOUILLABAISSE DAY National Bouillabaisse Day on December 14th gives seafood lovers everywhere a reason to celebrate. This flavorful fish stew hits the spot on cold winter’s day, too. #NationalBouillabaisseDay The French are known for many great recipes. Their food inspires travel to France for a taste of authentic dishes. Bouillabaisse tops the list of must-have cuisine while visiting France. The tasty stew originates in the port city of Marseille. It is traditionally made using bony rockfish, saffron, fennel seed, and orange zest. However, in the culinary world, strong opinions bounce around about the proper ingredients for an authentic bouillabaisse....

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — The mother of a transgender girl sobbed in federal court Wednesday as she contemplated having to move away from her Navy officer husband to get health care for her 12-year-old if Florida's ban on gender dysphoria treatments for minors is allowed to take affect The woman, who testified as Jane Doe to protect the identity of her child, said her daughter went from being anxious and upset to a thriving, happy straight-A student after being allowed to live as a girl about eight years ago, a decision she made with her husband after multiple visits to...

Trump argued that he was immune from E. Jean Carroll’s defamation suit because of presidential immunity. This was always a questionable argument: While Carroll sued Trump over statements Trump made while he was president, immunity would require Trump to act in his official capacity as president in claiming that Carroll was making up her story of being sexually assaulted by Trump in the 1990s. The controversy, like Paula Jones’s lawsuit against Bill Clinton, involved an alleged sexual assault that happened before Trump was president, so the argument would have to be that the president’s defense of his personal reputation is...

Ms Furlow-Smiles hired suppliers operated by her friends who charged fraudulently inflated prices to Facebook and paid her cash kickbacks - Robin L Marshall A former Facebook diversity and inclusion tsar has pleaded guilty to stealing more than $4m (£3.1m) from the tech giant to fund her lavish lifestyle. Barbara Furlow-Smiles, a global diversity executive at Facebook between 2017 and 2021, syphoned off cash through an “elaborate scheme” involving fake suppliers and cash kickbacks, US prosecutors said. The Atlanta resident was “motivated by greed”, US Attorney Ryan Buchanan said, “ignoring the insidious consequences of undermining the importance of her DEI...

On January 1, 2024, the new requirement to file a beneficial ownership information (BOI) report with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) goes into effect. More than 32 million entities – mostly small businesses – will have to file this report, which is required by a federal law called the Corporate Transparency Act. Violations of this law can result in a civil penalty of $500 per day the violation continues and criminal penalties of up to $10,000 and two years in prison. January 1 is fast approaching. Now is the time for all small business owners to start preparing. Below...

They were anything but in and out. Burger lovers were so desperate to try Idaho’s first In-N-Out they waited up to eight hours in line — with some even camping out overnight. The excitement for the California-based chain’s celebrated patties, fries, and shakes was so intense that hundreds were already waiting for the drive-thru when it opened in Meridian on Tuesday at 9 a.m., much earlier than typical hours, the Idaho Statesman reported. The demand meant it was anything but fast food — with signs soon warning those joining the massive line to expect seven- to eight-hour waits, the outlet...

Propelled by the exciting notion that words that mean nothing can often mean anything, favorite words of the left took on new meanings in 2023. Meanings that had less to do with the word itself, than with associating a particular word with a vast array of feelings, designed to mangle the original meaning and grant it a new, improved definition....

Not surprisingly, yesterday Hunter Biden stiffed the Oversight Committee's request for him to appear for a deposition under oath behind closed doors. Instead, he chose to come to the venue and make a bunch of whiny statements while trying to set the rules: “Let me state as clearly as I can: My father was not financially involved in my business, not as a practicing lawyer, not as a board member of Burisma. Not in my partnership with a Chinese private businessman. Not my investments at home nor abroad and certainly not as an artist." As he has done for his...

A menorah set up for Hanukkah at Oakland’s Lake Merritt, in the heart of the city, was vandalized early Wednesday, leading to condemnation by local officials — and a motor rally around the lake Wednesday night by Jews with menorahs on their cars. Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, who had participated in a menorah-lighting ceremony at the site just days before, issued a statement blasting the “desecration and act of vandalism,” which appeared to be a blatant act of antisemitism. Oakland’s Jewish community is an essential part of Oakland’s diversity and strength and the City of Oakland takes incidents like the...

Company must stop false claims, turn over money to FTC, and notify consumers The Federal Trade Commission is taking action against Florida-based EXOTOUSA LLC. (d/b/a Old Southern Brass) for falsely claiming that certain company products were manufactured in the U.S, and that the company was veteran-operated and donated 10 percent of its sales to military service charities. The FTC’s proposed order would stop the company and its owner, Austin Oliver, from making these deceptive claims and require them to pay a monetary judgment. “This company and its owner’s brazen deception cheated consumers who wanted to support U.S. manufacturing, veteran-operated businesses,...

For at least two and a half thousand years, virtually all educated people believed that knowledge was the savior of humanity. Even Maimonides wrote in his “Guide for the Perplexed” that once all of humankind had knowledge, the world would be at peace. Then came the 20th century. The most educated nation in world history—a land to which all other nations looked for science, psychology, culture, philosophy, reason, and ethics—applied its knowledge to commit crimes against humanity that no barbarian could have imagined. “Does calling for the genocide of the Jews violate your institution’s code of conduct concerning bullying and...

The former home of the late Michael Nesmith, a member of the iconic made-for-TV band, The Monkees, is up for grabs. Nesmith, who died in 2021, lived in this three-bedroom, 3.5-bath home in Carmel Valley, CA, about 20 minutes from the coast. The house is listed for $3.5 million. The ranch-style pad is spread over 3,365 square feet, all tucked into a gated community called Sleepy Hollow. The dwelling sits on more than 6 acres, surrounded by majestic oaks and stunning vistas. The living room features a vaulted, beamed ceiling with large windows and a brick fireplace. This main room...

Amanda Blanc: 'No non-diverse hire at Aviva without it being signed off by me' Chief executive revealed policy to MPs on Treasury select committee yesterday The boss of Aviva has revealed senior white male recruits have to get a final sign-off from her and the chief people officer as part of the firm's drive to improve diversity. Amanda Blanc, who became the insurer's first female chief executive in 2020, said the policy formed part of its efforts to end sexism in the financial services industry. The 56-year-old told MPs on the Treasury select committee that 'there is no non-diverse hire...

Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a rare apology on Thursday when a pensioner complained to him about the price of eggs. During Putin's end-of-year question and answer session with the media and with members of the public calling in from across Russia, pensioner Irina Akopova was shown seated at her kitchen table and addressing the president by video link. She complained that prices for eggs, chicken breasts and wings had all skyrocketed. "Vladimir Vladimirovich, take pity on pensioners! We don't get millions in our pensions. Sort this out - we have no one to turn to," she said. "I'm very...

(Table of serial killing crime statistics by Race by Decade between 1900-2020. The second Race column, Black, increases from 23% of serial killings in 1900 to 54% in 2020.) The Radford/FGCU Annual Report on Serial Killer Statistics: 2023 was finally published!“The purpose of this annual report is to provide the most accurate statistics possible about serial killers and their victims.”Key findings: Since 1990, the majority of serial killers were Black (50.9%) followed by White (36.3%), Hispanic (10.6%), Asian (1.9%), and Native American (.4%). In all decades, the percentage of Black serial killers exceeds the percentage of Black citizens in the...

WASHINGTON — A Jan. 6 defendant whose attorney said was infected with "Foxmania" from watching too much Fox News pleaded guilty in connection with the attack on the U.S. Captiol. Anthony Alexander Antonio, a 29-year-old who lives in Delaware, pleaded guilty to a felony count of obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting. The guilty plea came the same day the Supreme Court agreed to take up a challenge to the obstruction of an official proceeding charge. At an early hearing in his case, Antonio's attorney Joseph Hurley said that Fox News “played constantly” in his home for...

Daily Readings from the USCCBFrom the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent are taking it by force.” Matthew 11:12Are you among those who are “violent” and are taking the Kingdom of Heaven “by force?” Hopefully you are! From time to time, Jesus’ words are difficult to understand. This passage above presents us with one of those situations. Of this passage, Saint Josemaría Escrivá states that the “violent” are Christians who have “fortitude” and “boldness” when the environment they find themselves in is hostile to the faith (See Christ is Passing...