Free Republic

"Despite Political Complaints, Congestion Pricing Is Working in NYC.."

Energy Secretary Chris Wright hinted that he would soon take action canceling billions of dollars' worth of Biden-era green energy loans that he said do not promote American energy security and are too risky for taxpayers. In an exclusive interview with the Washington Free Beacon, Wright took aim at how the Department of Energy's Loan Programs Office dished out billions of dollars in loans during the final months of the Biden administration. While Wright stopped short of naming particular projects he may cancel loans for, he said the Trump administration would only look to support projects that directly benefit Americans...

Key Points President Donald Trump said China “agreed to open” after the two countries agreed to temporarily slash most of the tariffs on each other’s goods. Trump said that was “maybe the most important thing” to come out of trade talks with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, U.S. trade representative Jamieson Greer and their Chinese counterparts. The U.S. and Chinese officials said they struck an agreement to pause most tariffs and other trade barriers for 90 days. ********************************************************************** President Donald Trump said Monday that China “agreed to open up” after the two countries announced they would temporarily slash most of the...

For many weeks now, self-identified democratic-socialists Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) have been jetting around the country in private aircraft for their their "Fighting Oligarchy Tour." Federal Election Commission reports show that this campaign has spent more than $221,000 on private jet travel in the first quarter of 2025. Fox News' "Special Report" host Bret Baier asked "don't these private flights cost around $15,000 per hour? Isn't this the way that oligarchs travel?" "Yes it is," Sanders admitted. "Fortunately, not all oligarchs are bad people. Some of them are earning brownie points by funding the needs...

Last week, a U.S. congressman announced a plan to introduce a bill that would mandate producers of high-performance AI processors to track them geographically in a bid to limit their usage by unauthorized foreign actors, such as China. Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas then introduced a legislative measure later in the week. The bill covers hardware that goes way beyond just AI processors, and would give the Commerce Secretary power to verify the location of hardware, and put mandatory location controls on commercial companies. To make matters even more complicated, geo-tracking features would be required for high-performance graphics cards as...

Orange, CA – Records obtained by Operation Rescue confirm that on March 21 Planned Parenthood sent another hemorrhaging woman to the emergency room. This time, from its killing center located in Orange, CA. Planned Parenthood Orange commits abortions up to 24 weeks, well into the second trimester, and it has a history of rushing women to the emergency room after botched abortions. In the last five years, alone, it has injured 11 women – and never had to face any investigation or discipline for even one of those incidents in radically pro-abortion California. In 2024, Operation Rescue also obtained 911...

Omaha, NE – A 38-year-old woman was urgently transferred to the hospital after undergoing a dilation and curettage (D&C) abortion at the Planned Parenthood in Omaha, Nebraska, on February 3, 2025. According to 911 records secured by Operation Rescue, the woman was experiencing “heavier bleeding.” The 911 dispatcher, seeking to assess the urgency of the situation, asked the caller whether the bleeding was “pouring” or “squirting”—terms used to determine the potential for life-threatening hemorrhage. The clinic employee hesitated and then chuckled, saying she wasn’t “all the way down that end” to observe the bleeding directly. Such a careless attitude raises...

members at a funeral in Connecticut spiraled into a melee in which one man was stabbed and a woman grazed by gunfire, police said. Witnesses and police described a chaotic scene as people threw punches and gunshots rang out as people screamed and the crowd of about 150 mourners poured out of Gospel Lighthouse Apostolic Church, north of downtown Hartford. Police said there was shooting both inside and outside the church. “You can imagine what 150 people scrambling out of the church looked like,” said police Lt. Aaron Boisvert, who said bullets damaged the interior. No arrests were announced. Police...

Being a female, I don't have any personal experience with barbershops; however, I wonder how many modern men today visit one. (Yes, I know that some shops cater to women, but for the purpose of this post I'm talking about the barbershop as a male-centric business.) Back when I used to get my hair cut regularly at a local Supercuts (before I finally realized that they didn't know what they were doing and were butchering my hair) I noticed that the place was loaded with male clientele. It was always a little surprising to me, because in my opinion there's...

The banking industry is attempting to take programs from Indiana’s state treasurer because he works to protect Christians and conservatives. ndiana lawmakers amended a proposal that had attempted to give some of state Treasurer Daniel Elliott’s powers to big banks angered by his strong defense of taxpayers, Christians, and conservatives. Yet the program is still at risk of being turned over to the state’s powerful banking lobby, which has donated to all the politicians who control the $3 billion local investment pool targeted by the changes. The provision inserted by Republican Sen. Travis Holdman, a former bank CEO, initially attempted...

Deep beneath the thick ice that covers East Antarctica, scientists are revealing new discoveries about a mystery that has been hidden beneath the continent’s frozen exterior for half a billion years. According to newly published research, clues to the formation of a mountain range the size of the Alps tucked away below Antarctic ice are being revealed, offering geologists a unique glimpse at the processes behind their formation. The Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains, initially discovered by Soviet scientists during an expedition in 1958, have puzzled researchers for decades. Now, these massive features beneath Antarctica’s frozen surface, which were formed long ago...

Shocking doorbell footage shows the moment a New York town official shot and wounded a DoorDash delivery driver who had stopped to ask for directions. John J. Reilly III, 48, an elected highway superintendent in Chester and a federally licensed firearms dealer, is under investigation for shooting the unidentified 24-year-old driver in the back when he stopped outside his home on May 2 after his phone died, according to New York State Police. Disturbing video first obtained by News12 shows Reilly walk out his front door and fire multiple shots at the delivery driver’s car in the street after he’d...

Canada’s national debt has reached a point where the entire Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue is now being used to cover interest payments. Every dollar collected from GST is funneled directly to bondholders, leaving nothing for essential government services. The numbers are staggering. In the last fiscal year, $55 billion was collected in GST, and $55 billion was paid out in interest on government debt. The Bank of Canada holds 20 percent of these bonds, meaning it is effectively paying itself interest on the debt it owns. This raises serious concerns about the sustainability of Canada’s fiscal policy. When...

A member of the House of Lords has called on the British government to nominate U.S. President Donald Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to prevent a war between India and Pakistan. Lord Sarfraz, a Pakistani-heritage businessman and Conservative politician, submitted a formal request on Monday that Prime Minister Sir Kier Starmer’s government nominate President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize “in recognition for his instrumental role in averting a full-scale war between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan.” “India and Pakistan were at the brink – once again – but like never before. The nuclear-armed neighbours had...

Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, said Democrats were eyeing the "safest White boy" in the 2028 presidential race, hinting at "one specific candidate" being floated by the party's donors, during a podcast conversation this week. "It is this fear that the people within the party, within the primary system, will have about voting for a woman because every time we voted for a woman, we’ve lost, so far," she said in a clip posted to Instagram. "And I think that that’s a natural fear because we just want to win." SiriusXM host Clay Cane posted the clip to Instagram on Friday,...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a law ratifying the agreement on mineral resources between the United States and Ukraine, APA reports, citing Unian. It should be noted that on May 1, Washington and Kyiv signed an agreement granting the US access to Ukraine’s mineral reserves. The Ukrainian Parliament later ratified the deal.

Looking forward to The Five this afternoon on FOX, and hoping Harold Ford is on. I wonder if he will eat his words concerning his take on the tariffs.

An 89-year-old Florida grandfather appears to have been attacked and killed by a black bear during the early morning hours of May 5th, near Jerome, Florida. Jerome is a rural area on the opposite side of the state from Miami, between the Big Cypress Wildlife Management Area and the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park, part of the Everglades.The relative of 89-year-old Robert Markel called 911 to report that a bear had killed Markel’s dog as the relative had watched, and that the elderly relative was missing. The call was made about 7 a.m. From fox4news.com:“No, he’s gone completely. His whole...

VIDEOOne of the most AMAZING scenes in cinematic history came, believe it or not, in the film "Beach Blanket Bingo" when Don Rickles hilariously broke the fourth wall by temporarily stepping out of his role as Big Drop and doing his regular shtick on the cast members. As you can see everybody reacted to Rickles improv comedy as their real selves, not as their movie characters. Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello took Rickles' ribbing in good humor although you can tell they were a bit uncomfortable. However, the most fascinating reaction to Don Rickles was by Jody "Bonehead" McCrea. See,...

A retired British police officer was arrested for “thought crime” comments criticising the spread of antisemitism in the country.Former special constable Julian Foulkes, 71, was arrested and received a police caution, a formal warning given by police to someone who admits guilt to a minor offence, over comments he made on social media, The Telegraph reported on Saturday. The arrest took place in November 2023. It came after Foulkes commented on X over the storming of an airport in Dagestan in which an antisemitic mob attempted to hunt down Jewish passengers. In response to a pro-Palestinian activist’s posts threatening to...