Free Republic

Yes, yes. I know "unhinged" and "socialist" go together like peas and carrots, but it is a headline. Now, on to the story. New York City does elections the new-fangled way, using ranked-choice voting to ensure that the outcomes take forever to tally, the results tend to lean left, and voters are maximally confused. That makes predicting outcomes particularly difficult, although you can balance the difficulty by assuming that the worst outcome possible is the most likely. Throw in the fact that a plurality of New York City voters will reliably make the wrong choice when it comes to electing...

A Tennessee state law banning gender-affirming care for minors can stand, the US supreme court has ruled, a devastating loss for trans rights supporters in a case that could set a precedent for dozens of other lawsuits involving the rights of transgender children. The case, United States v Skrmetti, was filed last year by three families of trans children and a provider of gender-affirming care. In oral arguments, the plaintiffs – as well as the US government, then helmed by Joe Biden – argued that Tennessee’s law constituted sex-based discrimination and thus violated the equal protection clause of the 14th...

KhameneiUntergang (Downfall, 2004) is a movie about the last days of the Hitler regime, including Hitler's nine-millimeter-and-cyanide honeymoon with Eva Braun. We are now looking at the final days of Iran's theocracy, which is likely to collapse by the end of the week; one week after Israel began military action. It is well known from history that, when a country's leaders flee the battlefield, the war is over for them. At Gaugamela in 331 B.C.E., the massive Persian army collapsed when King Darius turned his chariot to run from Alexander the Great, who was personally trying to kill him. Once...

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and Catholic Charities USA are among more than 200 non-governmental organizations named in a congressional probe for aiding immigrants its leaders call “inadmissible aliens” during former President Joe Biden’s administration. U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Mark E. Green, R-Tenn., and Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations and Accountability Chairman Josh Brecheen, R-Okla., announced their investigation June 11. According to a June 11 press release, “The chairmen are examining whether these NGOs used taxpayer dollars to facilitate illegal activity, as the previous administration incentivized millions of inadmissible aliens to cross our borders — many of...

Heraclitus once stated, “a man never steps into the same river twice,” which implies that both the river and the man are continuously changing. The United States, and we as its citizens, are also constantly changing, but change can be managed and directed towards improvement and away from chaos. Among the most important decisions facing us is that of illegal immigration and who is going to do our work. Over the past decade, several political luminaries such as Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Chuck Schumer, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have declared that we need illegal immigrants to do the work that Americans won’t...

In the immediate aftermath of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s announcement that public employees would be back in office four days a week in July, many of the elected officials who have independent control over their agencies, like the Attorney General’s Office or the State Controller’s Office, held off on making abrupt changes to their telework policies.

A three-judge appeals panel heard arguments from lawyers Tuesday afternoon over the question of whether President Donald Trump can continue to control California’s National Guard as his administration carries out his deportation agenda, or if the troops should be returned to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s control. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer granted a restraining order last week, putting Newsom back in control of the Guard and calling Trump’s actions “illegal.” But lawyers for the Trump administration appealed, and the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocked Breyer’s ruling, pending Tuesday’s hearing. ... Brett Shumate, an attorney for the Trump administration, told...

Seriously ? —. Should Trump hear them out now or just let Israel finish the job ?

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei defiantly declared Wednesday that Tehran isn’t frightened by President Trump’s “absurd rhetoric” — as he rejected the United States’ demand to surrender in its war with Israel. “The US President threatens us. With his absurd rhetoric, he demands that the Iranian people surrender to him. They should make threats against those who are afraid of being threatened. The Iranian nation isn’t frightened by such threats,” Khamenei said in a statement on X. He vowed Iran would never back down and that any US strike would have “serious irreparable consequences.” “The US entering in this...

The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on the alleged cover-up of former President Joe Biden’s physical and mental decline. The hearing is scheduled to begin at 10:15 a.m.

Santa Ana councilmembers voted to drop work on a proposed policy that would have required the city’s Police Department to publicly post alerts about federal immigration enforcement activity. A letter from U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli was received June 7, warning city leaders that implementing the policy could endanger officers, disrupt criminal investigations and expose city staff and elected officials to federal prosecution. Discussing the letter during a closed session on Tuesday, June 17, the council voted 5-2, with councilmembers Benjamin Vazquez and Johnathan Hernandez opposed, to kill the proposal now. Councilmembers had asked city staff previously for more information about...

Cain and Abel, meet David and Daniel. Ex-New York Gov. David Paterson is accusing his brother of cheating him out of his inheritance — by allegedly tricking their elderly mother into giving him over $7 million before her death. A bombshell lawsuit filed by the former governor claims his younger brother Daniel Paterson, 67, duped mom Portia into transferring the massive sum from her estate to his account through “undue influence, coercion and excessive persuasion.” The sneaky move allowed Daniel and his attorney wife Eloise to bypass a long-standing will ordering the brothers to split their mom’s estate 50-50 —...

Pundits on the right might want to take a break from their heathy, if not exactly helpful, squabbling to remember how we got to where we are and who deserves the blame. A useful starting date is July 14, 2015, the day United States signed on to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or, for our purposes, the Iran deal. President Barack Obama saw the deal as his signature foreign policy achievement and gave away the farm to secure it. In addition to lifting sanctions on Iran, the U.S. paid the Iranians $1.7 billion in cash. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir...

Accused Minnesota assassin Vance Boelter expressed fears the US was “turning against Israel” years before he allegedly carried out a sickening political assassination, a former work acquaintance claimed. Boelter, 57, appeared to become increasingly frustrated by society in the years leading up to the twisted attack and had warned that the US was losing its “Judaic/Christian foundations,” Charlie Kalech, CEO of a web design firm commissioned by Boelter, told ABC News. Kalech’s firm, J-Town, was chosen by Boelter because it is Jerusalem-based and he wanted to show support for Israel, he said, adding that he worked with Boelter for more...

The Supreme Court will be announcing opinions from the bench at 10:00 a.m. this morning.Scotusblog will be live-blogging the opinions the opinions at Scotusblog and we will be following along and trying to make sense of the court's decisions.There are 20 cases remaining undecided for this term. A list of the cases can be found at October 2024 cases.All opinions from the October and November sitting have been announced. The only remaining case from the December term is Skrmetti.Issue(s): Whether Tennessee Senate Bill 1, which prohibits all medical treatments intended to allow "a minor to identify with, or live as,...

Galatians 6:9, “And let us not grow weary in well doing, for in due season, we shall reap, if we faint not.” I confess today that I’m tired, I’m weary. But I haven’t grown weary in well doing. In fact, that’s what gives me the power and strength to get up every day and press on. But I’m very tired and weary of the biblical illiteracy and lack of knowledge of the Lord and His ways that so many who claim His name demonstrate all the time. Jesus told us not to worry. Scripture tells us over and over again...

Dwindling enrollment has left about 150 Chicago schools half-empty, while 47 operate at less than one-third capacity, leading to high costs and limited course offerings, a joint report from Chalkbeat Chicago and ProPublica reveal.

A report on the largest survey ever of trans Americans’ health was released on Wednesday, June 11, and its findings reaffirmed what many academics, health care providers and trans people already know: gender-affirming care saves and improves lives, but transphobia often dissuades people from pursuing or continuing it when they need it most. Over 84,000 trans, nonbinary and gender nonconforming people aged 18 and up responded to the 2022 U.S. Transgender Survey, spearheaded by Advocates for Trans Equality (A4TE). Of respondents who had transitioned, 9% had gone back to living as their sex assigned at birth at some point in...

In a defiant response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s call for the "unconditional surrender" of Iran, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei rejected the demand outright, Reuters reported. Speaking from Tehran, Khamenei stated, “We will not bow to foreign demands or abandon our rightful cause. Iran will continue its path to secure its independence and sovereignty, regardless of the threats or ultimatums from the United States or any other nation.” In a public meeting with his national security team, Trump affirmed that the U.S. would stand by Israel "until the Iranian threat is neutralized." Khamenei's refusal to surrender comes as Israel's airstrikes...

Key Points: * A touring helicopter crashed at Destin Executive Airport on Thursday evening. Four passengers sustained non-life-threatening injuries and were transported to a local hospital. * The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office and Destin Fire Rescue responded to the scene. * The crash is currently under investigation by the OCSO Airport Security Unit. What were all the sirens about Thursday night in Destin? About 6:45 p.m. June 12, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office and Destin Fire Rescue responded to reports of a touring helicopter crash on the runway at the Destin Executive Airport off Airport Road in Destin, according to...