Free Republic

So far, American consumers have been shielded from much of the impact. But as the world of international shipping adjusts to his policies, the president is facing a potential reckoning. With the US-China trade war starting to gum up container traffic between the world’s two biggest economies, freight companies are warning of plunging bookings and a surge in “blank sailings” – where ports are skipped or voyages are called off altogether. Earlier this week, America’s most powerful retail executives trooped into the White House to deliver a blunt prognosis: tariffs on Chinese goods risked causing “empty shelves” in two weeks...

Giuffre's death occurred in Australia, where she had been living with her husband and children since 2019. Giuffre herself was American. One of Jeffrey Epstein's most vocal and prominent accusers, Virginia Giuffre, died on Thursday by suicide at the age of 41, her family announced Friday. Giuffre's death occurred in Australia, where she had been living with her husband and children since 2019, NBC News reported. Giuffre herself was American. "It is with utterly broken hearts that we announce that Virginia passed away last night at her farm in Western Australia," her family said in a statement to NBC. "She...

It’s big news: Judge Hannah Dugan, a Milwaukee County circuit judge, was arrested today because she allegedly assisted an illegal alien in escaping when ICE agents showed up at the courthouse to arrest him. If you’re like me, you’re not surprised that a leftist judge broke the law. Instead, you’re extremely surprised that the federal government is making her pay the price for her illegal conduct. The underlying allegations are simple: In a criminal complaint, the U.S. Justice Department said Hannah Dugan, a Milwaukee County circuit judge, refused to turn over the man after immigration agents showed up to arrest...

United States District Judge John A. Kronstadt sentenced the following members of the same family: Evelyn Taylor, 41, of South Los Angeles, was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison; Laron Taylor, 38, of California City, was sentenced to 54 months in federal prison; Latrice Taylor, 42, of Buena Park, was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison; and Raschell Taylor, 35, of San Bernardino, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison. The defendants were ordered to pay $567,334 in restitution.

Virginia Giuffre, one of the most prominent survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s sexual abuse, has died by suicide, her family said Friday. Giuffre, 41, died in Neergabby, Australia, where she had been living for several years. Giuffre was one of the earliest and loudest voices calling for criminal charges against Epstein and his enablers. Other Epstein abuse survivors later credited her with giving them the courage to speak out.

A new assessment from the FBI suggests that some Venezuelan government officials are ‘likely facilitating’ members of the violent gang Tren de Aragua from Venezuela to the United States to undermine public safety in the U.S. Immediately after taking office, President Trump designated Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization in his executive order, Designating Cartels And Other Organizations As Foreign Terrorist Organizations And Specially Designated Global Terrorists. The executive order stated: Over the years, Venezuelan national and local authorities have ceded ever-greater control over their territories to transnational criminal organizations, including TdA. The result is a hybrid criminal...

***** Tunes For Our Troops The Freeper Canteen Music Dedication Presents: ~ Colors ~ *****~ Support The Artists You Hear Throughout The Canteen! ~ ***** Warning: Not all music may be appropriate for children! Please click with caution. Thank you!Tunes For The Troops This music is provided for the entertainment of our Troops, Veterans, Allies & Their Families! Enjoy the variety of musical selections that the Canteen DJs provide throughout the thread. Please ping any DJ with your requests for the Troops! All music is removed on Monday.Thanks to all the DJs for their time & effort providing entertainment...

This was a really interesting couple of pieces I came across this morning, especially after writing that piece on all the student loan defaults. It seems there might be a trend back towards the trades beginning to appear among the Gen Z crowd. Some of the reasons seem obvious to me - the bloated cost of a college education, for one, and the ubiquitous nature of the sheepskin being required for even entry-level jobs now. If everyone needs a college degree, doesn't that necessarily dilute the value of earning one? ...That’s in part because of the cost of getting a...

The “Tesla Takedown” effort appears to be falling flat. Over recent months, left-wing activist groups have waged war on Elon Musk and his automotive company Tesla in an attempt to reduce his immense financial power and damage his reputation. These activists are particularly upset about Musk’s work with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where he and his team are seeking to expose and remove waste and fraud across the federal government. After reaching all time highs in the wake of Trump’s landslide election victory, Tesla stock has fallen significantly since the start of 2025 when it reached a valuation...

-snip- "Vladimir, STOP! Lets get the Peace Deal DONE!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social account on Thursday. He said in a post Friday that after a "good day in talks and meetings with Russia and Ukraine" they "are very close to a deal, and the two sides should now meet, at very high levels, to 'finish it off.'" "Most of the major points are agreed to. Stop the bloodshed, NOW," Trump added. Driving the news: Putin's advisers Yuri Ushakov and Kirill Dmitriev also attended the meeting. Ushakov said in a briefing with reporters that the meeting was "constructive and...

Where Things Stand "When the truth comes out, do not ask me how I knew. Ask yourself why you didn't." — "The Researcher" on X [Link at his site] Click photo of Norm Eisen to play video. “Fighting fascism,” for the American Jacobins who lead the Democratic Party, means opposing any attempt to flush the corruption out of the entrenched bureaucracy, just as their pet phrase “our democracy” actually refers to the matrix of grift and despotic activism that drives their political operating system. That is exactly how and why the USAID was so crucial to spread captured taxpayer spoils...

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) I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone: for kings and all those in authority that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ~ 1 Timothy 2:1-2 Religion Forum Threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to...

I do almost all of my banking online or the drive-thru and rarely go into the lobby. Today I did...and what was before, every wall having a promotional poster written in Spanish language was gone! Not one! The last time I was in there...maybe 6 months ago...theres NO English posters. It made me think about me going to a Banco-de-Mejico in Cancun. There werent any english posters there. Of course not. Mexican businesses are there to promote the State of Mexico. Its was nice today to feel like Im in the USA again. Huntsville, Alabama.

One of the surviving roommates of the four University of Idaho students allegedly killed by Bryan Kohberger didn’t immediately call police because she thought her friend was passed out drunk – not realizing she was likely already dead, a new court ruling reveals. After a night out partying, Dylan Mortensen “heard strange noises and crying” before opening her bedroom door and seeing “a man dressed in black with a ski mask on walking by her bedroom door,” around 4:00 a.m., according to a new decision by Boise District Court Judge Steven Hippler. Mortensen then got on the phone with the...

Democrat Senators erupted in anger Friday over news of the arrest by the Trump administration of a Wisconsin judge for helping an illegal alien evade arrest by ICE agents by helping him sneak out the back of her courtroom. (If you do the link, be sure and cover your eyes because she is a looker as in the opposite direction)

Just received tickets for an Antiques Roadshow this summer and was wondering if any FReepers have ever attended one. Any advice? Good, bad or indifferent. Thanks.

As of today, we have four senior officials of the ATF which have been given the choice of retire or be fired... they elected to retire. Deputy Director - Marvin Richardson Chief legal counsel - Pam Hicks Assistant Director of Office of Enforcement Programs - Megan Bennett Senior policy counsel - Erik Epstein Hopefully more will be "retiring" in the near future - namely anybody brought in during the tenure of Obama or Biden.

A federal judge on Friday blocked President Trump’s executive order to strip federal workers of their ‘collective bargaining’ rights. Last month President Trump issued an executive order blocking hundreds of thousands of federal workers in HHS, Veterans, Treasury and other federal agencies. The National Treasury Employees Union sued the Trump Administration in response to the executive order. US District Judge Paul Friedman, a Clinton appointee, blasted Trump earlier this week during a hearing on this case. “So, he’s willing to be kind to those that work with him, but those that have sued him, those that have filed grievances, those...

SMITHVILLE, Mo. (KCTV) - A Smithville woman could spend up to three decades behind bars after a tip about possible child sex crimes led to her arrest. The Clay County, Missouri, Sheriff’s Office says that a 4-month investigation resulted in the arrest of 44-year-old Melissa Bottom, of Smithville, for the alleged possession of child pornography. The Sheriff’s Office indicated that detectives served a search warrant on Thursday, April 24, at Bottom’s home in the area of NE Armory and Lora St. Investigators received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in December 2024. Investigators said...

ATTENTION: INVASIVE MOSQUITOES DETECTED IN A PART OF SOUTH SAN JOSEUpdate: Invasive Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, first detected in the county in large numbers last year, have been found again this year in a neighborhood where they were detected last year. This reappearance means the mosquito’s eggs successfully survived the winter and are hatching now that the weather is getting warmer.This mosquito is an aggressive daytime biter and can spread diseases like dengue and Zika. These diseases aren’t in the county right now, but finding this mosquito again is a serious health concern because it means the mosquito is successfully surviving...