Free Republic

China claims the President Trump started the trade war against China by imposing his reciprocal tariffs: This is a complete lie. China has been waging a full-scale trade war against America for decades—President Trump just happens to be the first President to stand up to China—and they don’t like it. Case in point: China steals anywhere between $225 and $600 BILLION of American technology and intellectual property every year. Depending on the range of the estimate, this is roughly equal to—perhaps double—the value of the trade deficit in goods, which stood at $295 billion in 2024.

Stores selling secondhand clothes, shoes and accessories are poised to benefit from President Donald Trump’s trade war even as businesses the world over race to avert potential damage, according to industry experts. American styles carry international influence, but nearly all of the clothing sold domestically is made elsewhere. The Yale University Budget Lab last week estimated short-term consumer price increases of 65% for clothes and 87% for leather goods, noting U.S. tariffs “disproportionately affect” those goods. Such price hikes may drive cost-conscious shoppers to online resale sites, consignment boutiques and thrift stores in search of bargains or a way to...

United States Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff left the Kremlin on Friday afternoon after talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to a RIA Novosti correspondent. Witkoff's motorcade was seen exiting the Kremlin around 5:19 pm local time, suggesting the meeting lasted under three hours, shorter than the four-and-a-half-hour discussion held during their previous encounter two weeks ago.

A Milwaukee County circuit judge has been arrested by the FBI over allegedly helping an undocumented immigrant "evade arrest," according to FBI Director Kash Patel. Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested on obstruction charges, according to Patel. "The FBI arrested Judge Hannah Dugan out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin on charges of obstruction -- after evidence of Judge Dugan obstructing an immigration arrest operation last week," he posted. "We believe Judge Dugan intentionally misdirected federal agents away from the subject to be arrested in her courthouse, Eduardo Flores Ruiz, allowing the subject -- an illegal alien -- to evade arrest.

A copy of the peace proposal given to the U.S. by Ukrainian and European officials earlier this week includes "robust security guarantees" including from Washington, and no talks on territorial concessions until a "full and unconditional ceasefire in the sky, on land and at sea" has been implemented, Reuters reported on April 25.The document, reprinted in full by the news outlet, contains numerous points that show the diverging viewpoints of the U.S. on one side, and Ukraine and its European allies on the other as they seek to end Russia's full-scale invasion.The Trump administration has so far refused to offer...

Former Libertarian National Committee Chair Nicholas Sarwark is calling on the Libertarian Party to use President Donald Trump’s recent tariff proposals as a chance to “reboot” the party and reassert itself as a leading voice for free markets and limited government. In a recent opinion piece for MSNBC, Sarwark, who chaired the Libertarian National Committee from 2014 to 2020, compares Trump’s economic approach to that of former President Richard Nixon, noting that Nixon’s use of wage and price controls in the early 1970s helped spur the creation of the Libertarian Party. Sarwark argues that, like Nixon, Trump’s use of tariffs...

The U.K. is expected to scale back earlier proposals to deploy thousands of ground troops to Ukraine, as officials warn the risks are now considered "too high" for such a mission.The original plan, which included protecting Ukrainian cities, ports, and nuclear power plants, is being reconsidered in favor of a more limited and strategic presence. A source involved in the discussions told the Times, "The risks are too high and the forces inadequate for such a task. This was always the U.K.’s thought. It was France who wanted a more muscular approach."On March 15, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer presented...

Steve Forbes explains why the Trump Administration's proposed peace plan to end the Russia-Ukraine War would constitute a big win for Vladimir Putin and only make the world more dangerous

President Donald Trump told Time magazine in an interview published Friday that he will “very willingly” lead the U.S. into attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities if the regime does not make a deal to stop its program. Trump was, as usual, bullish about the prospects of making a deal and avoiding war, especially given the economic pressure he has restored on the regime. He added that he had not stopped Israel from attacking Iran on its own, but had not made it “comfortable” for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to make that choice. Asked if Netanyahu would “drag” the U.S. into...

WASHINGTON, April 24 (Reuters) - The U.S. agency that manages disasters plans to require nearly all employees, including full-time headquarters and regional staff, to be deployed to emergency zones, according to a draft memo to agency employees seen by Reuters. SNIPThe administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has said it will move FEMA's disaster preparedness work to state and local governments. He has floated shuttering the agency altogether.The notion that FEMA office staff could be called on to support disaster response is not new, but mandatory deployment minimums will likely create anxiety for them, said Michael Coen, former FEMA chief...

AOC might be the only potential Democrat candidate for 2028 who can sell out a decent-sized arena. Gavin Newsom can’t do that, Chris Van Hollen can’t, Kamala Harris can’t, and Pete Buttigieg can’t. To be fair, none of the candidates other than Sanders could in 2020, so this isn’t new, and it’s also not dispositive.

[OFFICIAL] To Maj.-Gen. Dix: WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, April 24, 1865. This department has information that the President's murder was organized in Canada and approved at Richmond. One of the assassins, now in prison, who attempted to kill Mr. SEWARD, is believed to be one of the St. Albans raiders. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. A DAY OF MOURNING FOR PRESIDENT LINCOLN. [OFFICIAL] By the President of the United States of America A PROCLAMATION. Whereas, by my direction, the Acting Secretary of State, in a notice to the public on the 17th of April, requested the various religious denominations to...

A top Russian general has been assassinated in a car bombing in the Russian city of Balashikha on Friday, authorities have confirmed. The city lies less than 20 miles east of Moscow. The deceased has been identified as Lt Gen Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy head of the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, who died when a “homemade” explosive device detonated under his Volkswagen Golf, according to TASS. Shrapnel ripped through the area and what appears to be a residential neighborhood. Crucially news of the blast and killing was breaking just prior to President Trump’s...

Progressive groups, emboldened by the Democratic grassroots' extreme dissatisfaction at their party's older establishment, are preparing to go big in their efforts to unseat Democratic lawmakers. Why it matters: Three months into the new Congress, more than half a dozen House Democrats already are facing primary challengers. That number is about to skyrocket. DNC vice chair David Hogg, whose group Leaders We Deserve is spending $20 million to primary incumbents to the chagrin of many House Democrats, told Axios: "Some truly generational leaders will be announcing their campaigns very soon." Usamah Andrabi, a spokesperson for Justice Democrats, told Axios the...

https://x.com/Bannons_WarRoom/status/1915570511570161785?t=3330s

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Apple aims to make most of its iPhones sold in the United States at factories in India by the end of 2026, and is speeding up those plans to navigate potentially higher tariffs in China, its main manufacturing base, a source told Reuters. The U.S. tech giant is holding urgent talks with contract manufacturers Foxconn and Tata to achieve that goal, the person, who declined to be named as the planning process is confidential, said on Friday.

I have the most important question in history. The question is… Why are Democrat politicians and judges so hysterical and desperate to protect illegal alien thugs, gangsters, gangbangers and terrorists? Here’s another one… Why do Democrat politicians and judges care more about foreign criminals who have illegally invaded our country, than they have ever cared about American citizens? This is the greatest mystery of all-time. This is a question that is so bizarre it’s unfathomable, unimaginable, and literally impossible to believe. We are living in the “Twilight Zone.” Let’s ask a few more detailed questions… Why are Democrat politicians and...

New Yorkers would be forced to pay 2.5 times the market rate for electricity generated by the Empire Wind One offshore wind farm if the deal goes through, according to an independent financial analysis. The Trump Administration paused construction of the controversial project — 54 turbines in the Atlantic Ocean some 14 miles south of Long Island — last week, saying it needs further review. The project has seen strong backing from Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams. Trump’s move was welcomed by those who claim the project is going to overcharge taxpayers. “New Yorkers are entitled to clean,...

Oklahoma State Senator Dusty Deevers, a evangelical pastor, said that the Supreme Court's Obergefell v. Hodges decision, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, is not "settled law," arguing that there is "no right to gay marriage." Why It Matters Deevers' comments come amid a broader conservative push in several red states to challenge the legal foundations of same-sex marriage. Conservative lawmakers in five states have introduced various measures encouraging the Supreme Court to strike down Obergefell v. Hodges, the landmark 2015 decision that established the nationwide right to same-sex marriage. Conservative Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito have previously...

Gov. Gavin Newsom praised a California congressman for trying to intervene on behalf of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a week after he was criticized by his fellow Democrats for calling the fervor over Garcia’s wrongful deportation to El Salvador a “distraction.” Newsom asked supporters Thursday to donate on behalf of Rep. Robert Garcia’s reelection campaign, saying he “made California proud” and “deserves our thanks” for flying to try and meet with Abrego Garcia, whom immigration officials initially deported on accident from Maryland to a Salvadoran prison known for human rights abuses. The U.S. Supreme Court and a federal judge found that...