Free Republic

Former Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) was sentenced Wednesday to 11 years in prison for trading bribes for political favors. Federal prosecutors levied allegations of bribery, extortion and acting as a foreign agent against Menendez, then-chair of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in fall 2023. Last summer, he became the first public official ever convicted of acting as a foreign agent while in office. A New York jury found the senator and his wife, Nadine, accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, gold bars and luxury cars from three New Jersey businessmen. In exchange, Menendez protected the halal meat...

“Grasping at straws” doesn’t even begin to properly define The Washington Post’s latest barking mad line of attack against X owner Elon Musk: Virtue-signaling on his video game ethics. The seriousness of Post technology reporter Drew Harwell’s insane 1,694-word agitprop against Musk to rile up the gamers across the cyberverse could be summed up by his headline: “Does Elon Musk cheat at video games? An investigation.” Yes, he actually called this an “investigation.” The piece just went downhill from there: “The world’s richest man has admitted to paying to boost his online warriors into global leaderboards, raising questions about his...

It’s no surprise that everything is more expensive these days.

We’re only a little over one week into President Trump’s second term, and already the Press Secretary’s office has had to debunk three “fake news hoaxes.” “Debunking Latest Fake News Hoaxes,” reads the press release from The Office of Communications. “President Donald J. Trump has been subjected to more manufactured Fake News hoaxes than any president in history,” the memo explains, “and it hasn’t gotten any better in his second term.” It starts with the biggie: HOAX: Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX), and media outlets claim President Trump’s directive to pause radical, wasteful government spending means an...

A type of Trema micrantha. (Daniel Pineda Vera/iNaturalist/CC BY 4.0) Scientists have discovered cannabidiol, a compound in cannabis known as CBD, in a common Brazilian plant, opening potential new avenues to produce the increasingly popular substance. The team found CBD in the fruits and flowers of a plant known as Trema micrantha blume, a shrub which grows across much of the South American country and is often considered a weed, molecular biologist Rodrigo Moura Neto of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro told AFP in 2023. CBD, increasingly used by some to treat conditions including epilepsy, chronic pain and...

39:49 VIDEO AT LINK............. Thanks to Ransomnote for the link!...........

Watchdog group to lend Hill Dems a hand on oversight A left-leaning watchdog group is working to gather materials that could feed Congressional investigations into the Trump administration. The nonprofit group American Oversight, which shared its plans first with POLITICO, is preparing for a scenario where Democrats reclaim the majority in either the House or Senate in the 2026 midterms, which will give the party the ability to issue subpoenas, schedule committee hearings and launch agency probes. Dubbed the “Parallel Investigations Initiative,” it will look similar to what American Oversight did during the first Trump administration, when Republicans also enjoyed...

[Catholic Caucus] McElroy’s appointment to Washington is a seriously misguided political moveCatholic America is reeling from the surprise of the new presidency’s political appointments at every level, which are decisively reshaping the political landscape.One of the most unexpected developments has not come from the White House but from the Vatican: the retirement of Cardinal Wilton Gregory as Archbishop of Washington left a vacancy for Rome to fill following his resignation in 2022. This appointment has suddenly acquired political significance that eclipses accompanying pastoral and spiritual considerations.According to the Catholic journal the Pillar, the papal nuncio to the United States, Cardinal...

Report: Tony Dungy in consideration to run for Michigan senate seat Source: http://On3.com Coach Dungy is one of my all time sports heroes. He is always ready to share his testimony as a follower of Jesus Christ. I love and admire him.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) called the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)’s rescission of its funding freeze memo President Trump’s “first major loss” of his second White House term. “This is Trump’s first major loss. When we fight, we win. We may not have majorities in the House and the Senate, but we DO have the power to loudly educate and mobilize against the mass looting the Trump admin is attempting against our veterans, healthcare, education, and more,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a Wednesday post on X, less than an hour after the news about the reversal broke. The Office of...

The Johnstown Flood Museum in downtown Johnstown has been closed indefinitely due to flooding caused by a valve failure on the building's third floor, museum officials said. Water poured through the walls, resulting in damage to the facility. Fortunately, items of historic importance, such as artifacts and archives, were not affected, officials said. The damage primarily involves carpets, drywall, and ceiling tiles, which need to be dried out or replaced.

President Donald Trump has announced plans to open a facility on Guantanamo Bay to house 30,000 illegal migrants. The U.S. military base in Cuba has historically been used to hold terror suspects since 9/11 and detainees include some of the accused masterminds. Trump's move is part of his unprecedented crackdown on the border on illegal migration since the moment he entered office last week. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has conducted raids across the country and deportation flights have left the United States daily. Trump said the facility with 30,000 beds will be used to keep the 'worst of the worst'...

Washington -- The United States will impose tariffs on the countries that "harm" America, President Donald Trump has said, as he named China, India and Brazil as high-tariff countries. “We're going to put tariffs on outside countries and outside people that really mean harm to us. Well, they mean us harm, but they basically want to make their country good,” Trump told House Republicans at a Florida retreat on Monday, the first after he became the president for the second term last week. “Look at what others do. China is a tremendous tariff maker, and India and Brazil and so...

A new UCLA study found that the Eaton fire disproportionally impacted Altadena’s Black community and that systemic inequality and redlining contributed to fire vulnerability.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan announced he would not fight the Trump administration’s campaign to deport illegal immigrants. During the 2025 Detroit Policy Conference, Duggan said that while he supported lawful immigration, the city would not resist Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents’ efforts to remove people in the United States illegally. “Detroit is not a sanctuary city,” Duggan said. “We are a welcoming city. A welcoming city means if you are in this country lawfully as an immigrant, we encourage you to come here. We support your success. If you are in this country illegally, we should not be shielding you...

Jackson Reffitt, the teen who reported his Trump-supporting father to authorities following the January 6 protests, is now complaining he feels “unsafe” after President Donald Trump’s pardons. Jackson testified against his own father, Guy Reffitt, accusing him of making threats and requesting a maximum sentence. He also accused the January 6 defendant of slowly losing himself over the years and falling “into a horrible community to find a place in this life.” Guy was accused of being a member of The Three Percenters and “lighting the match,” which they say triggered the protests. Despite Guy not setting foot on the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — After thirty minutes of intensely questioning HHS Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr., senators took a brief break to announce that the next line of questioning was sponsored by Pfizer. According to sources, Pfizer booked the most primetime questioning slot, while Moderna's lower Senate sponsorship level bought the opening statement. "The next round of questions, which will be centered on shielding vaccine manufacturers from lawsuits, is brought to you by Pfizer," announced Senator Elizabeth Warren. "We are deeply thankful to Pfizer and all of our corporate sponsors who make this show happen. Now, Mr. Kennedy, isn't it...

Federal government appropriates billions to benefit states (highways, etc.). Could DOGE begin to audit and look for government waste at the State or even local level? Tie the federal funding to, say a 'suggested' lists of cuts? Trump administration is open to new ideas. Might be a way to end the Dem/RINO money machines through grift. Link is to the DOGE - very Spartan - website. .

"If you are raping someone, if you're molesting someone, you are essentially murdering their soul. Those people never actually fully recover. I've actually sat on a committee with a very prominent [female House Democrat] who actually talked about the fact that she was molested as a child. And so you can see that it impacts and really hurts people,"... Luna said. Two of her three bills, all of which are being introduced in the 119th Congress on Tuesday, would require sentences of death or at least life imprisonment for those charged with a wide range of crimes related to children....

NATIONAL CORN CHIP DAY On January 29th, grab the queso or salsa and celebrate National Corn Chip Day. Recognized each year across the country, the day encourages corn chip lovers to whip up their favorite dips and toppings. #NationalCornChipDay The corn chip or friotes are not to be confused with the tortilla chip. Both are made from cornmeal which is baked or fried in oil. Differing steps for processing the corn separate the tortilla from the corn chip. The corn for a tortilla chip is soaked in a lime-water solution that breaks down the hulls. This process creates a crisper,...