Free Republic

Groups on the left know full well that allowing the enhanced subsidies to expire as scheduled wouldn’t cause a catastrophe for most families. As the government shutdown winds on, Democrats continue to hold the federal government hostage because, they claim, “premiums will double” if Congress does not extend Covid-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies. I’ve debunked that topic in detail here and elsewhere, but to quickly summarize the argument: 1) The federal government will still pay on average 75-80 percent of enrollees’ premiums if the enhanced subsidies expire. 2) Nearly half of Exchange enrollees currently pay nothing in out-of-pocket premiums for benchmark...

Hillary Clinton released new merch on Friday blasting President Trump’s demolition of the White House’s East Wing. The items for sale include a sticker and a hat with an image of the White House that read: “Not his house. Our house.” (snip) “If you’re hopping mad about Trump destroying the White House, we’ve got a new hat or sticker for you,” Clinton, who lost to Trump in the 2016 presidential election, wrote in an Instagram post. “Your purchase supports progressive groups working to build a fairer, more inclusive America for everyone — and win elections!” The post is accompanied...

Democratic donors reportedly backed out of a major fundraising event for former Vice President Kamala Harris, with one even sending a “profanity-laced rejection,” according to a report Wednesday. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Democratic National Committee (DNC) has been struggling to raise money during President Donald Trump’s second term in office. According to several people “familiar with the conversations,” the DNC attempted to reach out to major donors earlier this year through the San Francisco-based fundraiser, but most had declined. “Upon receiving the invitation, one replied with a profanity-laced rejection,” the report read. “Others said they didn’t want...

A North Texas woman has been arrested in connection with a violent July 4 attack on a federal immigration detention center in Alvarado where masked assailants opened fire on police and vandalized vehicles, according to arrest records. Janette Goering was arrested at her home in Carrollton on Oct. 21, according to the DFW Support Committee, a group formed by friends, family members and supporters of those arrested in connection with the incident at the Prairieland U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Detention Center. She is in the Johnson County Jail and is being charged with aiding in the commission of...

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Department of Justice is preparing to send federal election observers to California and New Jersey next month, targeting two Democratic states holding off-year elections following requests from state Republican parties.The DOJ announced Friday that it is planning to monitor polling sites in Passaic County, New Jersey, and five counties in southern and central California: Los Angeles, Orange, Kern, Riverside and Fresno. The goal, according to the DOJ, is “to ensure transparency, ballot security, and compliance with federal law.”“Transparency at the polls translates into faith in the electoral process, and this Department of Justice is committed...

A lot of people have asked me if I will get involved in the NYC mayor race by supporting a candidate that can defeat Zohran Mamdani. TBH, I’m torn and undecided. Like every other city run by democrats, NYC is a broken kleptocracy. Taxes are astronomical and services are pathetic to nonexistent. Anarchy and socialism are the next logical steps in this story arc. It's what the people of NYC have been asking for for years and it looks like it's what they are about to get. Trying to fight against this tide seems like throwing good money after bad....

In a reckless and malicious move that’s drawing fire from conservatives, Illinois State Representative Margaret Croke sent out an email on Friday listing detailed descriptions of vehicles suspected to belong to ICE agents operating in Chicago neighborhoods. The flyer, titled “Updated List of ICE Vehicles Seen Today,” includes make, model, color, and partial license plate info for cars believed to belong to agents working in the area. Croke urged recipients to report suspicious activity to hotlines, claiming that ICE actions are “unlawful and undemocratic” and offering resources to connect illegal aliens with attorneys or social services. Conservatives, including the popular...

The plan follows Republicans in Texas, Missouri, and North Carolina who have redrawn congressional maps to help the GOP gain more House seats in next year's midterms. Virginia Democrats are planning to attempt to redistrict the commonwealth's congressional maps to help their party ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.Don Scott, the leader of the state's Democrat-controlled House, wrote in a letter to colleagues Thursday stating the chamber will reopen an existing special legislative session Monday afternoon, NBC News reported. Legislators are expected to use the session to start the effort to draw new maps.In Virginia, only the governor can convene...

Chelsea Clinton rebuked the Trump administration’s complete demolition of the White House’s East Wing in an op-ed published Thursday, calling it “a reflection of how easily history can be erased when power forgets purpose.” In the op-ed published by USA Today, Clinton wrote President Trump “has the right … to pave over the Rose Garden (and denude it of roses) as well as turn the East Wing into a ballroom.” She also noted Trump’s reported requests to change exhibits at Smithsonian Institution museums and national parks, saying “a disregard for history is a defining trait of President Trump’s second administration.”...

Democrats have slammed President Trump's privately funded ballroom constructionThe White House pushed back on reports claiming President Donald Trump will likely name the upcoming White House ballroom after himself, saying any name designation for the event space will come directly from the president. "Any announcement made on the name of the ballroom will come directly from President Trump himself, and not through anonymous and unnamed sources," White House spokesman Davis Ingle told Fox News Digital Friday. Reports spread like wildfire Friday afternoon that Trump planned to name the ballroom after himself, with ABC News publishing a report that administration officials...

U.S. military developments in the Caribbean Sea, off the coast of Venezuela, are ramping up this week. Two additional narco-terror drug boats were destroyed with guided missiles, and there was news overnight that two Rockwell B-1 Lancer supersonic bombers entered Venezuela’s ADIZ before switching off their transponders in what appears to have been a simulated strike mission – a posturing maneuver that President Trump denies. Venezuela’s socialist regime is coming under intense pressure from the Trump administration for using cartel networks it controls to smuggle drugs into the U.S., contributing to the worst drug death crisis in American history, with...

LUMPKIN COUNTY, Ga. — NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal is missing a $180,000 luxury SUV. The Lumpkin County Sheriff’s Office says a 2025 Land Rover Range Rover was being delivered to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, when it was stolen. Effortless Motors, a California-based auto brokerage, confirmed that they customized the vehicle for and sold it to O’Neal. They say they arranged transportation to Louisiana through a third-party company. But a “sophisticated cyber-attack” targeted the transport company. The Range Rover never arrived at its intended destination. Channel 2’s Tom Regan learned from the sheriff’s office that GPS tracking suggests it’s possible the SUV...

France is backing away from a recent commitment to intervene more forcefully at sea to stop small boats from crossing the English Channel, according to multiple sources contacted by the BBC. There is evidence that France's current political turmoil is partly to blame, but it will come as a blow to the UK government's attempts to tackle the issue. In the meantime, dangerously overcrowded inflatable boats continue to leave the coast on an almost daily basis, from a shallow tidal canal near the port of Dunkirk. While the man in charge of border security in the UK, Martin Hewitt, has...

Trump ended all trade talks with Canada on ThursdayThe liberal Canadian premier who launched a $75 million anti-tariff ad campaign in the United States featuring former President Ronald Reagan will yank the effort after pressure from President Donald Trump.Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Friday afternoon that he would pause the ad campaign put out by his administration targeting Americans starting on Monday. That announcement came after Trump on Thursday said he had ended all trade talks with Canada over the ad, calling it an effort to influence American politics.“Our intention was always to initiate a conversation about the kind of...

Americans are likely to face even more flight interruptions after Congress failed to provide last-minute relief for air-traffic controllers and other federal aviation workers whose paychecks will stall due to the government shutdown. While Donald Trump's administration moved funds to delay impact on some areas – such as pay for the troops – lawmakers warn that next week aviation workers will not receive their paychecks. Around 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 TSA officers are facing work without pay, leading to surging absences and sick says. Since the shutdown began on October 1, staff absences have contributed to 53 percent...

25 October 2025Saturday of week 29 in Ordinary Time San Marcello al Corso - Interior after rebuilt. Pope Boniface I was consecrated hereReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: C(I).First readingRomans 8:1-11The Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in youThe reason why those who are in Christ Jesus are not condemned is that the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. God has done what the Law, because of our unspiritual nature, was unable to do. God dealt with sin by sending his...

Last February, Megan Garcia was putting her second-youngest son to bed when she heard what sounded like a mirror falling. She rushed down the hallway to the bathroom where her eldest son, Sewell, was taking a shower. Her husband, Alexander, was already standing in front of the locked door. “Sewell?” he called. “Sewell?” But there was no answer. From outside the bathroom, they heard the shower still running. Megan stuck the tip of a comb into the pinhole in the door handle and it opened. Sewell was lying facedown in the bathtub, his feet hanging over the edge. Megan thought,...

Former special counsel Jack Smith is asking that he be allowed to appear publicly after House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) demanded his testimony.“Given the many mischaracterizations of Mr. Smith’s investigation into President Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents and role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election, Mr. Smith respectfully requests the opportunity to testify in open hearings before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees,” his attorneys wrote in a letter to Jordan.Jordan requested a transcribed, closed-door interview with Smith earlier this month, accusing the former special counsel and his team team of launching “politically motivated...

On the evening of October 6, Argentina’s President Javier Milei performed an arena rock show, thrashing out nine songs in front of 15,000 fans in Buenos Aires to launch his new book, The Construction of a Miracle. “I want to thank The Forces of Heaven,” roared the libertarian economist, who was once in a Rolling Stones tribute band. “Because victory in battle doesn’t depend on the number of soldiers, but on the forces that come from heaven.” At exactly the same moment, Milei’s economy minister Luis Caputo was in Washington, appealing for help — not from heaven, but from the...

As an example of political self-harm by establishment political parties, the current Irish presidential election will be hard to equal. The latest opinion poll before Friday’s vote indicates that the far-Left independent candidate, Catherine Connolly, is likely to romp home in this two-horse race. With just two days to go, Connolly has an unassailable 19-point lead over her sole opponent, Heather Humphreys of the centre-Right Fine Gael party. Humphreys ended up being the establishment candidate, after the centrist Fianna Fáil party’s candidate was forced to withdraw from the election as a result of a minor scandal regarding overpaid rent of...