Free Republic

“USA! USA! USA!” the crowd chanted as Terry Bollea, better known as Hulk Hogan, a professional wrestler, took the stage Thursday at the Republican National Convention to endorse Donald Trump.

WASHINGTON — Sheila Jackson Lee, a Houston Democrat who was one of the longest serving members of Texas’ Congressional delegation and a longtime advocate for progressive causes, died on Friday amid her battle with pancreatic cancer. She was 74. Jackson Lee began her congressional career as an underdog, defeating four-term U.S. Rep. Craig Washingtonin the 1994 Democratic primary, before establishing herself as a fixture in Congress and Houston with ties to the highest reaches of the Democratic Party. Jackson Lee was a progressive fixture on Capitol Hill for decades. She was an early opponent of the Iraq War and advocate...

Despite the fact that Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries bullied the DNC into a temporary delay in holding a so-called "virtual roll call" to nominate President Joe Biden weeks before the Democrat National Convention, the DNC decided today to stick to their plans to nominate Biden early and lock him in as the candidate in early August. Chaos reigns still in the Democrat Party, as does the civil war that threatens to demolish the party even before they likely lose spectacularly this November.

President Trump recently floated the idea of eliminating the federal income tax. That tax became a fixture in 1913 when Congress ratified the 16th Amendment. The first U.S. Tax Code was about 400 pages. Today, with everything included, it’s more than 70,000 pages! Initially, the income tax was 1% on all incomes above $3,000 ($95,000 in today’s dollars) and applied to only 3% of the population. Today, the graduated rates start at 10% for families earning more than $30,000 and go up to 37% for families earning above $609,000. The rates vary greatly: The top 1% of taxpayers pay 45%...

A photo emerged of media magnate Rupert Murdoch sulking alongside Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) during Sen. JD Vance’s (R-OH) speech at the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Wednesday night. (snip) “Rupert was in an ornery mood. He was lashing out at event staff and spewing profanity. He doesn’t like losing and this was a huge loss for him. At one point Don Jr’s face appeared on the Jumbotron and Rupert shook his fist and screamed something unintelligible,” a source who witnessed Murdoch’s tantrum said.

The DNC’s Rules Committee on Friday made the case for proceeding with Joe Biden’s virtual nomination while also outlining next steps in the process and how virtual roll call voting would work despite rumors of Biden dropping out, ABC News reported. In a letter distributed to other members of the rules committee on Wednesday morning and signed by Leah Daughtry and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, co-chairs of the Democratic National Convention Rules Committee, the committee declared its intent to “propose a framework for the best path forward” in their upcoming Friday meeting. Of course, this sudden new rule is being...

https://x.com/Perpetualmaniac/status/1814376668095754753

Dems return to Tammany Hall tactics with backroom dealings to boot Biden Smoke-filled Rooms? Should Biden opt to step aside, it is far from certain that Vice President Kamala Harris would be the automatic stand-in on the party ticket. As Democratic powerbrokers attempt to pressure President Joe Biden into bowing out of reelection, his departure could set up a messy selection process for his replacement that circumvents the primary electorate and threatens to send the party back to the days of Tammany Hall. Biden, 81, has faced calls to step aside as the party nominee in the wake of his...

In a shocking display of political manipulation, the left-wing establishment, terrified of the rising right, has trampled on democratic principles by enforcing a cordon sanitaire to block Orban’s Patriots for Europe from their rightful positions, betraying the will of millions of voters.A disgraceful spectacle is unfolding in the European Parliament. The left-wing establishment has united to exclude Viktor Orbán’s new “Patriots for Europe” group from offices that are rightfully theirs. This coordinated effort, known as a cordon sanitaire, is a blatant attack on democracy, showing the left’s desperation as they face the growing power and influence of right-wing voices in...

On the surface, this GOP convention is the most ebullient and unified in decades. Beneath it, many elected officials are deeply uneasy. The source of that agitation is Donald Trump’s running mate. At a glance, Mr. Trump’s choice of Sen. J.D. Vance makes sense, as he appears to be a prototype of Mr. Trump. Protectionist. Passionate. America First. But he isn’t Mr. Trump—not at all—in ways that are hugely consequential for the conservative movement and its future. In choosing Mr. Vance now, Mr. Trump sets him up for 2028, which means a monumental internal fight is coming. We’ll soon find...

U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, a long-serving Democrat from Texas, has passed away at the age of 74. * * * The Gateway Pundit reported in June that Jackson Lee had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Following the assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump, unity was expected to be the hallmark of the Republican National Convention for the presidential candidate. "I am running to be president for all of America, not half of America, because there is no victory in winning for half of America," Trump said. But the message of unity rings hollow for some in the LGBTQ community, who say they have repeatedly been the target of Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee, and others on the national stage. "It can be difficult to stay hopeful when anti-LGBTQ sentiment comes...

The body of a New Jersey dad reported missing just before Father’s Day was recovered 100 miles from his home, New Jersey State Police said, but the mystery of what happened to him is still unsolved. Family members reported Isaac Bishop, 33, of Irvington, missing on June 11, authorities said. His body was found June 30 around 2:30 p.m. in a heavily wooded area near 13th Avenue in Weymouth Township, Atlantic County, a state police spokesman confirmed. The cause of death was not disclosed and his family is searching for answers. “From Our Family: Thank you so much to everyone...

CrowdStrike Intelligence has since observed threat actors leveraging the event to distribute a malicious ZIP archive named crowdstrike-hotfix.zip. The ZIP archive contains a HijackLoader payload...Notably, Spanish filenames and instructions within the ZIP archive indicate this campaign is likely targeting Latin America-based (LATAM) CrowdStrike customers.

A campaign group made up of Democrats urging Joe Biden to stand down from November's election has released a new 30-second campaign advert arguing the president needs to step aside to "save democracy." The video was released by Pass the Torch, Joe, a group that says Republican nominee Donald Trump is "an existential threat" meaning "we need the strongest possible ticket to maximize our chances of defeating him." Concern about the age and mental capacity of 81-year-old Biden went into fever pitch following his first presidential debate against Trump on June 27, during which the Democratic incumbent at several points...

https://x.com/BillMelugin_/status/1814438582259507453?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwBill Melugin @BillMelugin_NEW: Per federal law enforcement source w/ knowledge of the security planning for Trump’s Butler, PA rally, the event was staffed by 22 Secret Service agents, including advance, assault, and sniper teams, 16 HSI agents, and it is believed there was no SS drone in the air.Per source, Secret Service did not request any tactical support from HSI (Homeland Security Investigations) beforehand, including the HSI elite Special Response team. HSI agents were assigned to “post standing” security duties at the street entrance and the media area, and were not responsible for the close proximity around Trump, or the...

ASPEN, Colo. (AP) — Iran is talking more about getting a nuclear bomb and has made strides in developing a key aspect of a weapon since about April, when Israel and its allies overpowered a barrage of Iranian airstrikes targeting Israel, two top Biden administration officials said Friday. Iran resumed progress on its nuclear program after the Trump administration ended U.S. cooperation with a 2015 deal that gave Iran relief from sanctions in return for allowing tougher oversight of the program. “What we’ve seen in the past weeks and months is Iran is actually moving forward” on developing fissile material,...

“But who?” The strongest argument against replacing President Joe Biden as the 2024 Democratic nominee is the notion that no suitable successor exists. But there is, and not just a good one but one of the most qualified people ever to run for the office: Hillary Rodham Clinton. For what feels like longer than two weeks, we have publicly and endlessly debated about Biden’s candidacy. Democrats have repeatedly called on him to make a decision. It is damaging, divisive and only serves to further improve Donald Trump’s chances. I have ferociously defended Biden in the past and demanded that Democrats...

Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán offered a simple solution to the illegal immigration crisis at a European summit on Thursday, arguing governments should simply stop letting illegal immigrants in. Orbán’s remarks came at the European Political Community summit at Blenheim Palace, the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. Reporters asked him, “What more can Europe do to tackle migration?” In response, the Hungarian leader said plainly: “Don’t let them in.”Along with his newfound role trying to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine, Orbán is known as one of the staunchest opponents of mass migration in Europe.In June, he commented that Germany...

BERRIEN COUNTY, Mich. (AP) — Part of an ancient Michigan cave where “The Great Train Robbery” was filmed has collapsed under heavy rain. A wall of Bear Cave in Buchanan collapsed this week, Adam Morris, the property manager at a campground that operates near the cave, told MLive.com. The wall collapsed at night and was already closed to the public due to flooding, Morris said. He didn't clarify what night the collapse happened. The cave will remain closed pending an inspection, Morris said. It was unclear how soon the inspection might take place. Storms on July 9, 10 and 15...