Free Republic

A six-day immigration sweep in Florida in April resulted in the arrests of more than 1,100 people, the Trump administration said on Thursday as it increasingly relies on local law enforcement to help speed deportations.

Seriously, what is the point of defending Europe? Well, maybe to defend the Louvre and some monuments to a once-great culture? I can't think of many other reasons, now that the continent has descended once-again into the 1930s-style of fascism (no, not the Nazis of the late thirties and 40s, but more Mussolini-style fascism). Elections are being canceled, censorship is running amok, people are getting arrested for speaking, and now the most popular party in Germany is on the edge of getting banned because it threatens the power of the German elite. There is no doubt that the AfD is,...

TUSKEGEE, Ala. (AP) — A runaway kangaroo named Sheila shut down a stretch of interstate in Alabama on Tuesday before state troopers and the animal’s owner wrangled the wayward marsupial. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said the kangaroo was spotted Tuesday hopping along the side of Interstate 85 in Macon County, which is between Montgomery and Auburn. The sight snarled traffic, and state troopers shut down both sides of the interstate for the safety of motorists. The animal’s owner and troopers were able to capture it, Capt. Jeremy J. Burkett of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said.

New York Magazine’s Ben Terris saved the most important part of his extensive profile of Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman for last: “I didn’t find any indication that the stroke had left him cognitively impaired,” he wrote in its concluding paragraphs. That is not the impression that a reader would have gathered from the worried former Fetterman staffers, jilted progressive activists, and anecdotes detailing the senator’s declining mental health that preceded this observation. The piece paints a portrait of a broken man, a shadow of his former self, plagued by depression and demented episodes. None of that was especially apparent to...

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — President Donald Trump offered some encouraging words and advice for graduating students at the University of Alabama on Thursday in a speech interspersed with impressions of transgender weightlifters, accusations that judges were interfering with his agenda and attacks on his predecessor, Joe Biden. The Republican’s jolting speech was standard fare for Trump and well received by the crowd in deep-red Alabama, which backed him in all three of his presidential runs. “You’re the first graduating class of the golden age of America,” the president told the graduates.

Megyn Kelly, Maureen Callahan, Mark Halperin, and Link Lauren reach new heights of trolling with "Blonde Origin."

[Catholic Caucus] Chinese Catholics plead with cardinals: ‘Do not let our suffering be in vain’(Stella Maris Media) — First and foremost, the Church in China mourns the loss of our Holy Father, Pope Francis. Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescat in pace.Now that the pontificate of Pope Francis has come to an end, and the cardinals are preparing to gather in conclave to elect the next Holy Pontiff, I write this open letter to you – cardinal electors – with a burdened conscience and a deep sense of urgency.This is not a letter campaigning for...

At a White House event marking the National Day of Prayer, President Donald Trump stood flanked by religious leaders of every stripe—Christian pastors, Jewish rabbis, Hindu swamis, Buddhist monks, and Muslim imams. But in typical Trump fashion, what began as a carefully choreographed moment of spiritual unity soon veered into campaign trail chaos, as he launched into an unscripted anecdote involving imams, death, and what he mistakenly called “38 virgins.” “I love them. They were great,” Trump said, recalling a meeting with Muslim leaders in Michigan during the 2024 campaign. “They said, ‘We don’t want to die.’ I said, ‘You...

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration on Friday proposed a $163 billion cut to the federal budget that would sharply reduce spending in areas including education and housing next year, while increasing outlays for defense and border security. The administration said the proposed budget would raise homeland security spending by nearly 65% from 2025 enacted levels. Non-defense discretionary spending — a slice of the budget that excludes the massive Social Security and Medicare programs as well as the rising cost of interest payments on the nation’s debt — would be cut by 23% to the lowest level since 2017, the White...

A tour van collision left at least seven dead near Yellowstone National Park after both vehicles caught on fire on Thursday evening. A deadly collision near Yellowstone National Park left seven dead after a tour bus crashed into a Dodge Ram pickup truck, according to Idaho police. Thursday night at 7.15pm on a highway near Henry's Lake State Park, 16 miles west of Yellowstone, the two vehicles collided before both caught on fire. The driver of the pickup truck was reported to have died along with six others in the tour van, which was carrying a group of 14 people...

The US and Ukraine have signed a deal that will give Washington access to some of the war-torn country's natural resources.Months in the making, it sets up an investment fund that Ukraine hopes will cement US assistance as the country struggles to repel Russia three years after the invasion. The Ukrainians have now published the deal and there have been public statements from both sides. Here are seven key takeaways.snipThere were some concerns in Kyiv that the resources deal could hinder Ukraine's ability to join the EU, if it gave preferential treatment to US investors, as Kyiv and Brussels already...

US President Donald Trump's misplaced tariff policies are hurting America's allies but will fail to tank the Chinese economy, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday. -snip- In a tongue-in-cheek post on Telegram on Labor Day, Medvedev, who serves as deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, argued that Trump deserved an "exemplary labor" award for "starting the tariff battle." The US's neighbors, as well as its allies in Europe, were "suffering" and "crying" from the duties imposed by Washington, he wrote. "They are all in a really bad position, facing the need to bow down in a ritual known...

Apple reported its highest March-quarter revenue in over two years, reaching $95 billion, as customers rushed to purchase devices ahead of potential new U.S. tariffs. As a result of the ongoing trade war with China, the tech giant announced that the majority of U.S. iPhones would come from India, while iPads and other devices would be imported from Vietnam. The Wall Street Journal reports that Apple announced a significant surge in revenue for the March quarter, driven by strong demand for iPhones and other devices as customers moved to make purchases before the introduction of new U.S. tariffs in April....

Performance reviews ... Senior Executive Service, top bureaucrats serving throughout the government and across administrations, swelled to around 8,000 under Biden. Most live in Washington, D.C. They typically earn an annual salary between $183,000 and $250,000. An overwhelming majority, 96% .. receive above-average performance ratings even as public trust in government continues to crater. But standards will soon tighten. It is called “forced distribution.” The new OPM rule .. eliminates Biden-era requirements that evaluated executives based on their promotion of diversity, equity, and inclusion. The stated goal is instead an evaluation of job performance, not political ideology. Now only top...

French President Emmanuel Macron is reportedly pressuring cardinals to block Cardinal Robert Sarah, a conservative African prelate challenging the Church’s progressive path. French President Emmanuel Macron is facing renewed criticism after it was revealed that he is trying to influence one of the most sacred processes in the Catholic church—the papal conclave. The allegation, made by Cardinal Péter Erdő, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest, centers on purported communications between Macron and several French cardinal electors aimed at blocking the candidacy of Cardinal Robert Sarah. The Cardinal has said that “the West no longer knows who it is, because it no longer knows...

A Rochester woman’s racist remarks have gone viral, and a successful crowdfunding campaign purportedly started by the woman in the aftermath has shocked community leaders. ROCHESTER – Video of a mom who allegedly directed racial slurs at a little Black boy at a city park has gone viral, prompting a fundraising standoff between the NAACP and an apparent white supremacist move to support the woman. As of Friday morning, the woman has increased her goal to $1 million, after raising $305,200.

SESAME STREET — Following President Donald Trump's executive order to strip federal funding from PBS, residents of Sesame Street were forced to pack their bags and move in with Oscar the Grouch just to survive. Trump signed the order late Thursday directing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to end federal funding of PBS and NPR, leading to the mass layoff of hundreds of muppets, including those who live on Sesame Street. "Elmo unemployed! HAHAHA! Elmo feels just like a grown-up! HAHAHA!" said Elmo as he moved into Oscar's garbage can without asking. "Elmo's house is in foreclosure! HAHAHA!" Oscar...

Hagai Lerner, who lost his sight while fighting in Gaza four months ago, lights torch at Independence Day ceremony in Kiryat Arba, together with Ram Cohen, who was also injured.

Eight years ago, a renowned psychiatrist publicly shared his concerns about the practice of medically and surgically “transitioning” children to appear as the opposite sex. He had no idea uttering such a commonsense viewpoint would end up costing him his job.In 2017, Dr. Allan Josephson of the University of Louisville had joined a Heritage Foundation panel entitled “Gender Dysphoria in Children: Understanding the Science and the Medicine.”His remarks were well-informed and thoughtful: “[G]ender dysphoria is a socio-cultural, psychological phenomenon that cannot be fully addressed with drugs and surgery,” he explained. “Thus, doctors and others should explore what causes this confusion...

Our Constitution does not forbid government entities from working with religious groups, and the ‘separation of church and state’ is an ahistorical misnomer.Sometimes, a phrase takes on a life of its own and becomes so rhetorically powerful that it can be deployed almost mindlessly, without real consideration of its original meaning. “Separation of church and state” is one such phrase.Consider a couple of examples.In 2011, middle-schooler Brian Hickman auditioned to dance to a contemporary Christian song for his public school’s talent show. Days later, Brian’s mom was told by the school principal that the “separation of church and state” prohibited...