Free Republic

Wisconsin farmers face a major threat to their livelihoods, as the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) is pushing a radical fee hike that could devastate auction barns, livestock dealers, and farm families statewide. The proposal would increase licensing fees for auction markets by an astonishing 1,700 percent — from $420 to $7,430 — placing enormous burdens on those who work tirelessly to keep Wisconsin’s agricultural economy alive.As U.S. Representative Tom Tiffany (R-Wis.) warned, this is not merely a matter of dollars and cents: “Democrats cannot manage a budget, so they shift the burden onto you.” “Not...

While Hillary Clinton lays relatively low and Michelle Obama kicks back in an island paradise, Chelsea Clinton has become a relentless, vocal critic of President Trump and his policies. With a signature mix of mild sarcasm and exasperation, she routinely serves up sharp commentary on the 45th president to her 1.5 million followers on Twitter. Clinton, like both of her parents, must carefully balance her resistance against the risk of appearing like a so-called sore loser. Indeed, #MAGA supporters love taunting Clinton with reminders of her mother's defeat. If the trolling irks or intimidates Clinton, it doesn't show. Instead of...

I thought I would see Charlie Kirk again.On April 10, 2025, I went to my first political event. Having closely followed politics globally and nationally for nearly five years, I was more than a little excited to attend a Turning Point USA gathering where Charlie Kirk was set to speak. I was bouncing on my toes as my father, brother, and I approached the large crowd around the tent.I remember debating heavily with myself whether I should go ask Charlie Kirk a question, because I never disagreed with him on anything. In the end, I decided I was content to...

Political change mimics a supertanker in its inertia. Turning direction proceeds imperceptibly at first. Then advances sporadically, punctuated by specific accelerating events. Progress in the new direction proceeds over decades, interspersed by backsliding episodes. Glenn Reynolds examines the operative political dynamic. The Left’s “strategy has consisted of using bullying and propaganda to convince 80% of the population that the views of 20% of the population are in the majority.” Mass gaslighting is ancient. Regimes systematically manipulate reality, making individuals doubt their perceptions, memories, and sanity. Historical revisionism (e.g., the 1619 Project) becomes necessary to support regime lies. America’s current gaslighting...

Hillary Clinton slammed President Donald Trump’s administration on Thursday for trying to “intimidate” late-night host Jimmy Kimmel. ABC announced on Wednesday that Kimmel’s show would be suspended indefinitely after the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Brendan Carr threatened to take action against the network. Carr’s threat came after Kimmel’s comments on the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk prompted outrage from Trump’s MAGA base. CNN’s Fareed Zakaria asked Clinton whether the suspension of Kimmel was an example of “state censorship.” “I think this is a very clear example of using the power of the state to suppress speech. It is...

Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick showed his true character this week with his response to the death of Delta State University student Demartravion “Trey” Reed. On Monday morning, Delta State University Police found Reed’s body hanging from a tree near pickleball courts. The Bolivar County Deputy Coroner’s Office ruled out foul play after their initial examination. “Based on the preliminary examination, we can confirm that the deceased did not suffer any lacerations, contusions, compound fractures, broken bones, or injuries consistent with an assault,” the Bolivar County Coroner’s Office said. “At this time, there is no evidence to suggest the individual...

In February 2023, a routine cataract surgery resulted in the death of 56-year-old Bart Writer.[1] According to a now-settled lawsuit, the surgical team members—namely the surgeon, Carl Stark Johnson, MD, and the anesthesiologist, Michael Urban, MD—were playing a game called “music bingo” during the procedure. (Music bingo, as described in the case, involved naming musical artists or songs as letters, to fill a bingo card while songs were played from Urban’s cell phone.) This game was allegedly regularly played during what were considered simple or routine surgeries. Is the OR a place for fun and games? According to notes obtained...

​Microsoft has confirmed that the September 2025 Windows security updates are causing connection issues to Server Message Block (SMB) v1 shares. The list of platforms affected by this known issue is quite extensive, as it includes both client (Windows 11 24H2/23H2/22H2 and Windows 10 22H2/21H2) and server (Windows Server 2025 and Windows Server 2022) platforms. In a service alert seen by BleepingComputer, Microsoft said this known issue affects those connecting to SMBv1 shares over the NetBIOS over TCP/IP (NetBT) networking protocol. "After installing the September 2025 Windows security update (the Originating KBs listed above) or later updates, you might fail...

In a bid to stave off an infusion of law-enforcement assets into his city by President Trump, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson declared that "the idea that law enforcement is the solution to reducing crime is a sickness. Folks commit crimes because they are desperate. Sending armed cops after them just accelerates that desperation leading to more death and destruction." Johnson went on to praise Gov. JB Pritzker's (D) "Peacekeepers" initiative, saying "rather than give up on folks with criminal records we are going to give them a chance to refocus their efforts in ways that will help the community become...

“An armed man who was posing as a member of law enforcement was arrested by Secret Service agents at the Arizona stadium where Charlie Kirk’s funeral will be held Sunday, according to reports. The man was detained by State Farm Stadium, home to the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals, in Glendale on Friday, the Secret Service told Fox News Digital.”

VIDEOAt a recent press conference in Great Britain with President Trump and Keir Starmer, the British Prime Minister brilliantly one-upped Trump on the subject of illegal immigration. After Trump finished talking about how the USA under his leadership has cut illegal immigration to zero while deporting hundreds of thousands since January 20, Keir Starmer put that record to shame by bragging that he had just deported ONE, count 'em ONE, illegal alien from Britain under the "One-In-One-Out" policy. How it works is that when Britain deports an illegal alien it must also import another illegal alien to replace the one...

President Kennedy made a famous remark about freedom of thought and speech which will end this note. The people who use the Charlie Kirk as an object of hatred, probably, mostly know near to nothing about the opinions and issues he talked about, and listened to, and himself learned from, with people of a wide variety of viewpoints. I don’t know most of what he said, either, but I do know that the Jimmy Kimmels are polluting the air with nonsense, which people will ultimately see through once they work through it, nonsense that secretly is aimed at quashing debate...

A deal to bring TikTok's U.S. platform under American ownership is done and should be signed soon, with domestic control of the app's crown-jewel algorithm, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Saturday.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A Concealed-Carry License holder fatally shot a man who was trying to break into a South Side apartment on Saturday morning, Chicago police said. Police said a 33-year-old man tried to break into a home in the 3400-block of West Monroe Street just before 7 a.m. A 28-year-old woman with a CCL was inside the apartment with multiple other people, police said. She discharged her weapon, striking the man in the body twice. The man was transported to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The CCL holder was taken to Area 4 for questioning. Investigators...

Dallas Jenkins sees the tragic murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk as an opportunity for himself and Christians in general to reflect on whether our words are perpetuating hatred or are following Jesus’ teaching to love our enemies. “I think that we can say safely ourselves, ‘Well, we’re not capable of firing a gun and killing somebody,’” said Jenkins, who is creator and director of “The Chosen,” as well as one of the show’s co-writers. “But there are enough crazy people out there, enough damaged people out there who could take our words,” Jenkins said, “if we say them enough,...

[Catholic Caucus] Catholic Coalition Asks Pope Leo XIV to Reject ‘Powerful Lobby’ Pushing Same-Sex UnionsSignatories, inspired by TFP founder Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, urge the Holy Father to revoke Fiducia Supplicans and speak with ‘absolute clarity, leaving no room for doubt or ambiguity.’A coalition of Catholic associations has submitted a “filial appeal” to Pope Leo XIV, respectfully calling on him to “confirm and reaffirm” the Church’s perennial teaching on homosexual relationships and unions in the face of a “powerful lobby” that is seeking their moral legitimization within the Church.The group further calls on Pope Leo to annul a 2017 papal...

India said on Saturday that the Trump administration’s move to increase U.S. H-1B visa fees to $100,000 per year was likely to have humanitarian consequences, warning of potential disruptions for families. India was the largest beneficiary of the U.S. H-1B skilled worker visas last year, accounting for 71% of approved applications. Companies will now have to pay the new $100,000 per year fee, which is set to take effect from Saturday midnight. (0400 GMT on Sunday). The move, announced on Friday, could further strain ties between India and the U.S., which hit their lowest point in decades after President Donald...

(Sep. 20, 2025) — Recently, I was advised by a fellow Texan, who supported an ineligible candidate for POTUS, that: “In order for your argument to have any merit at all, you must provide evidence that the authors of the Constitution intended that there be some class of persons who are born a citizen but are not natural born citizens. You could do that from their writing or from legal sources at the time, but you must prove that precise point, or you might as well be clucking like a chicken.” I wish to invite them and all other supporters...

Nigel Farage has criticised Keir Starmer's 'one in, one out' policy after more than a thousand people crossed the English Channel in small boats on Friday. The number of people making the crossing underlined the scale of the challenge facing Sir Keir Starmer's government as it battles to get a grip on the crisis. The latest Home Office figures showed 1,072 made the journey in 13 boats. Friday's arrivals take the number of people who have made the crossing so far in 2025 to 32,103 - a record for this point in a year. Reform leader Farage took to social...

Nearly a week after a Mexican immigrant was fatally shot by an immigration officer during a traffic stop in the Chicago area, his family in Mexico and community members continue to seek answers as they call for more transparency in the probe looking into the sequence of events surrounding his death. The Mexican Consulate in Chicago and local police confirmed the the FBI is leading the investigation into the death of 38-year-old Silverio Villegas González, a single father of two boys. A spokesperson for the FBI Chicago Field Office did not confirm or deny their involvement in the investigation, but...