Free Republic

More than two years after President Joe Biden pledged to build 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations throughout the United States only seven are operational across four states. The Washington Post reported Friday on the sluggish pace the allocated $7.5 billion in infrastructure funds have been put to use. The bulk of the funds, $5 billion, are to go toward building fast chargers along major interstates - what's being called the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure or NEVI program.

Jerome Powell and The Federal Reserve have to make a decision about tightening monetary policy or loosening it. It’s a Presidential election year and The Fed will probably do what is necessary to support The Biden Administration’s re-election. But let’s look at the various conflicting economic indicators that are causing confusion at The Fed. First, the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation wasn’t hotter than expected in February, which could keep a mid year interest rate cut on the table. The year-over-year change in the so-called “core” Personal Consumption Expenditures index — which excludes volatile food and energy prices —...

St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones has announced new plans to make convenience store owners more responsible for the crimes committed on or outside their property. Mayor Jones, St Louis' the first black female mayor, told leaders at the the Black Mayors' Coalition on Crime in Memphis that St Louis needs to combat violent crime and theft around convenience stores. 'We have a lot of violence around convenience stores and gas stations,' Mayor Jones said on Thursday.

If the answer isn't given, I will eventually give it.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro blocked the name of Maria Corina Machado, the winner of the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD) primary, from appearing on the July election ballot. Recent polls show that she is favored to defeat Maduro in that election. Machado expressed a willingness to step aside and allow Dr. Corina Yoris to run in her place, but Maduro rejected her as well. Presidential Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said "obviously, we're deeply concerned by the Venezuela National Electoral Council's decision to prevent the registration of either of the democratic opposition party's candidates. You can't have a democracy if the ruling...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The federal government is asking a court to halt California’s enforcement of a rule requiring prison guards to be clean-shaven, saying it amounts to religious discrimination for Sikhs, Muslims and others who wear beards as an expression of their faith. The civil rights complaint filed Monday by the U.S. Justice Department says the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s prohibition on facial hair denies on-the-job accommodations for officers of various religions. It seeks a temporary court order “allowing these officers to wear beards while CDCR fully assesses options for providing them with religious accommodations while complying...

RNS) — The Rev. Carma Wood didn’t become LGBTQ-affirming overnight. Rather, she said, it was due to the Holy Spirit’s prompting over several decades, not to mention personal experience, study and Scripture. “I have found the primary emphases woven throughout biblical texts to reflect a radical inclusivity found perhaps most profoundly in the person and ministry of Jesus,” she told Religion News Service. Now, Indiana Ministries — a jurisdiction of the Christian movement known as Church of God (Anderson, Indiana) — is investigating Wood, a retired Church of God pastor living in Anderson, and 16 other ministers for signing a...

https://www.odmp.org/officer/26983-police-officer-jonathan-diller More to follow pending the media handling of this incident

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk urged European nations to step up investment in their defense, saying the continent isn't ready for the current "prewar era." Tusk made the remarks during a recent interview with various European newspapers. "I don’t want to scare anyone, but war is no longer a concept from the past," he said before referring to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "It’s real and it started over two years ago." On Friday, Italian news agency AGI reported that Italian fighter jets at a Polish military base in Malbork intercepted two Russian spy aircraft in the Baltic Sea. The Russian...

Top staffers for Democrat John Fetterman are leaving his office for more progressive jobs as the Pennsylvania senator moves more to the center on key issues. The everyman Democrat, who loves Carhartt hoodies and dawning a disheveled goatee, has staunchly supported Israel's war on Hamas and denounced calls for a ceasefire. He's also expressed support for increased U.S. border security, another position that puts him at odds with his party. The freshman Democrat was elected after securing support from some of the most liberal members of Congress in 2022. The towering 6 foot 8 inch senator, previously supported Democrat Socialist...

Demand for fake weaponry has shot up as Ukrainian troops on the front line contend with increasing Russian strikes and dwindling supplies. Mykhailo Roman, 32, an architect who produces dummy weapons out of plywood, metal and plastic drainpipe, said he has been working overtime in recent months. The married father-of-one runs a small architecture firm in Vynohradiv, a village just 10 miles from the Hungarian border in south-west Ukraine that is largely untouched by the ravages of war. By day, he mostly designs houses. But in his evenings, he has turned his skills to building a Potemkin army.

dent has drawn a wide range of opinions from viewers. One viewer pointed out, "I'm fasting. That's your problem." This comment succinctly captures the essence of the situation. The individual fasting should not impose their religious practices on others. Another viewer chimed in with a humorous take, "Do you want some? It's lovely!! Well played!", applauding the woman's response to the man's unsolicited advice. The consensus among viewers seems to be that the man's actions were inappropriate. "Your religion's rules only apply to you," one viewer pointed out, emphasizing the importance of respecting individual choices and beliefs. Many viewers admired...

From Foreign Policy magazine comes a breathtakingly obtuse article by Jon Hoffman of the Cato Institute. The article’s title, “Israel Is a Strategic Liability for the United States,” only hints at the venom that Hoffman directs at Israel. The piece is a lengthy denunciation of the “special relationship” between the United States and Israel and of Israel’s conduct of the war against Gaza, which–astonishingly–never once mentions Hamas’s October 7 massacres, or the fact that Gaza started the war. In Hoffman’s view, it is as though Benjamin Netanyahu suddenly took it into his head to massacre Palestinians. The article is too...

The Brazilian Supreme Court denying a request from former President Jair Bolsonaro... In southern Russia three foreign nationals detained accused of planning a terrorist attack... The Indian Navy rescuing 23 Pakistani nationals from Somali pirates... Russian Aerospace Forces attacked a terrorist base in Syria's Homs Region... The US is sending more bombs and F-35 fighter jets to Israel... Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu authorizing Israel's foreign and domestic spy chiefs to resume hostage talks... In Rockford, Illinois Christian Soto...suspect in series of stabbing attacks, speaking of "laced" marijuana... The Moscow terrorists were headed for Kiev Ukraine's capital city... A 16-year...

Join with fellow FREEPERS to pray for AMERICA: For those in Authority in Government, Family, Military, Business, Agri-Business; End to Sex Slavery; Healthcare, Education, Churches, and the Media. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. (1 John 5:14)Forum threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to debate of any kind.

On Friday's episode of "Greg Kelly Reports" Greg explained how America's values have declined, talked about former President Donald Trump's civil fraud case in New York, discussed media outlets lying on Donald Trump

Rachel Gilson, a self-described same-sex attracted woman who spoke at the Southern Baptist Convention’s women’s conference in 2023 has now appeared in a promo video released by Preston Sprinkle’s Center for Faith, Sexuality, and Gender. The video portrays God as perfectly accepting of homosexual and transgender lifestyles devoid of any true repentance. In the video appear multiple homosexuals, lesbians, and “transgender” people who argue that one should be able to live out who they really are, including rebelling against who God created them to be, and feel welcomed and accepted in the Church. Here’s that clip: In 2019, during a...

After Politico published a leaked draft of the Supreme Court’s upcoming decision on Roe v. Wade in 2022, former Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary professor, Karen Swallow Prior, took to social media to express her disdain for President Trump who is responsible for placing conservative justices in the nation’s high court. Prior argued that even though she claims to be pro-life, having Roe v. Wade overturned was not worth having Trump in office for four years. After Prior’s statement, she continued to argue that she would have been in favor of waiting longer to overturn Roe v. Wade so long as...

In a recent “sermon,” false teacher Ashley Wilkerson, the self-described “pastor” of Pacific Coast Church posited an extraordinary claim—that the early church was teeming with female apostles whose names were subsequently altered in Scripture to mask their identities and contributions as women. This assertion, while striking, is completely absurd and crumbles under the weight of scriptural fidelity, historical scrutiny, and orthodox understanding. Firstly, the apostolic office, as delineated in the New Testament, is not a title bestowed lightly. It is marked by direct commissioning by Christ Himself or, as seen in Paul’s case, a clear, divine calling. The primary roles...

"I don't know a single person in Canada who's not struggling right now""Everyone is on the brink of LOSING everything""We're literally just working to scrape by to survive""It's almost impossible to leave Canada because that's expensive""There's this huge feeling of hopelessness all across Canada now""I would love to be a mother but that would literally bankrupt us at this point"Justin Trudeau has ruined Canada