Free Republic

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem has declared that the terror group will not give up its weapons, warning that such a move would mean "the end of Lebanon." According to Qassem, Hezbollah is prepared to pay additional prices in order to preserve its military capabilities. "The weapons in our hands are meant to defend ourselves, our resistance, our people, and our homeland," he said. Qassem also claimed that relinquishing the weapons would weaken Lebanon and advance Israel’s strategic objectives. Warning the Lebanese government against implementing plans to disarm militias, Qassem claimed such plans are being promoted under pressure from the United...

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For a year, Wall Street’s dominant theme has been the so-called K-shaped economy, in which the well-to-do have powered financial activity despite lower earners’ struggles. This week, the nation’s largest banks reported a broadly disappointing set of quarterly earnings, the first stumble after a yearlong spree of rising markets and softening regulations paid off handsomely for the finance set. Results at Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo all fell short of expectations, and their shares fell. Troubles ranged from delayed merger deals (JPMorgan) to stubborn expenses (Citi) to questions about the efficacy of artificial intelligence tools (Bank...

Black female professionals have seen a steep drop in employment over the last year. They are turning to each other for pep talks and résumé advice.When Nneka Obiekwe started a WhatsApp group chat in September, she was just trying to help her out-of-work friends. A consultant and skilled networker, Ms. Obiekwe, 37, is the kind of person friends turn to when they are looking for a referral or connection to a hiring manager. But since March, she had been receiving pleas every few weeks. By autumn, her network was tapped out. Most of the people reaching out were, like Ms....

WASHINGTON (AP) — When President Donald Trump announced the audacious capture of Nicolás Maduro to face drug trafficking charges in the U.S., he portrayed the strongman’s vice president and longtime aide as America’s preferred partner to stabilize Venezuela amid a scourge of drugs, corruption and economic mayhem.Left unspoken was the cloud of suspicion that long surrounded Delcy Rodríguez before she became acting president of the beleaguered nation earlier this month.In fact, Rodríguez has been on the radar of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration for years and in 2022 was even labeled a “priority target,” a designation DEA reserves for suspects...

As part of his strategy for isolating the radical mullah-ruled government of Iran in the world community, President Trump has announced plans to issue a 25% tariff against all countries that continue to do business with the current Iranian regime. This is a counterproductive approach for three reasons. First, and most immediately, this kind of threat hurts the Administration’s case in defending its program of IEEPA tariffs, the country-by-country process of negotiating trade deals based on the “reciprocal tariff” approach that the President came up with in 2025. As revolutionary and unanticipated as that idea was, it has produced a...

Hankey, 82, had lived in California all his life and had built his Hankey Group financial services empire there since 1972. But he says he read about the proposed new tax this fall and by December was looking for property in Nevada

Twenty-three states run by Democrats have refused to share their voter registration data with the federal government. US Attorney General Pam Bondi has argued that "clean voter rolls are the foundation of free and fair elections, Every state has a responsibility to ensure that voter registration records are accurate, accessible, and secure. Otherwise, ineligible voters will be able to cancel out the votes of eligible voters. This is why we are suing." US District Judge David Carter dismissed the suit saying, "right there in her statement is the clear intent to limit the opportunity to vote. Democracy is only safe...

President ⁠Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday that he had ordered imports of electricity and additional power equipment to be accelerated as much as possible as Ukraine confronts its worst wartime energy crisis. The ‍government has declared an energy emergency as ‍the system, damaged by relentless Russian strikes, is meeting only 60% of electricity needs. The situation ⁠is exacerbated by exceptionally cold temperatures. "All decisions for this are already in place, and the increase in imports must ​proceed without delay," Zelenskyy said in a post on X after a meeting with top government and military officials. The energy ministry ‍said scheduled...

Bill Ackman quote tweeted a graph showing the partisan gap between young men and women almost doubled in 25 years. https://x.com/zarathustra5150/status/2011851505834352809?s=20 Women moved radically left. Men stayed roughly where they were. https://x.com/BillAckman/status/2012003297146912926?s=20 Good question. Most answers I've seen are either tribal ("women are emotional") or surface-level ("social media bad"). Neither traces the actual mechanism. Let me try. First, notice what Wanye pointed out: https://x.com/xwanyex/status/2011813443209146730?s=20 We've been told for a decade that men are "radicalizing to the right" and that this is dangerous. The actual data shows the opposite. Men barely moved. Women moved 20+ points leftward. The story we are...

A Ukrainian delegation arrived in the United States for talks Saturday on a U.S.-led diplomatic push to end the nearly 4-year-old war as Russian attacks again took aim at Ukraine's power grid, cutting electricity and heating in freezing temperatures. Kyrylo Budanov, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief of staff, said he arrived in the U.S. to discuss "the details of the peace agreement." Writing on the Telegram messaging app, Budanov said he, together with Ukrainian negotiators Rustem Umerov and Davyd Arakhamia, would meet with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll. Zelenskyy...

The White House announced on Jan. 16 the names of members appointed to the Gaza Board of Peace, which President Donald Trump created as part of phase two of a U.S.-backed plan to end the war in Gaza. Among the “founding executive board” members are U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, presidential special envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The board also includes private equity executive Marc Rowan, World Bank President Ajay Banga, and U.S. national security adviser Robert Gabriel, according to a White House statement. The board, to be chaired by...

President Trump is, Joe Manchin believes, the “most charming person in the world”. “I wish that people could see that part of him,” the former Democratic senator told The Times. “And I wish he could show more of that compassion. He’s a tremendous host and he talks to you and he listens to you and he engages with you. “He might do whatever he wants, but he still engages. We had a good rapport.” Manchin’s praise for Trump is in many ways remarkable, coming from a man who was once one of Joe Biden’s most important allies — if also,...

Democratic Minnesota state Rep. Brad Tabke posted over 20 updates to his X account Thursday documenting ICE agent sightings across Shakopee, Prior Lake, and Savage — suburbs about 25 miles southwest of Minneapolis. Throughout the day, Tabke shared the real-time locations of ICE agents and vehicles, including sightings near gas stations, a Panera, and shopping centers in the Southbridge area. Tabke also described how to identify unmarked ICE vehicles. “Every other car on Marschall and 101 today is ICE if you know what to look for: Missing front or front & back plate … Out of state plates … Tinted...

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — Following recent developments stemming from political protests and clashes with the federal government across the state, Minnesota announced that it had changed the official state bird to a screaming lesbian. After the recent spate of screaming lesbians, state officials agreed that a change was needed to modernize the official state bird and make it more fitting and identifiable as embodying what everyone thinks of when they think of Minnesota. "It's much more of a natural fit," Governor Tim Walz said in a statement to reporters. "Yes, we've had the loon as our state bird for many years,...

17 January 2026Saint Antony, Abbot on Saturday of week 1 in Ordinary Time St. Anthony the Abbot Catholic Church, Brooksville FL Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: A(II).Readings for the feriaReadings for the memorialThese are the readings for the feriaFirst reading1 Samuel 9:1-4,17-19,10:1The Lord chooses Saul as king; Samuel anoints himAmong the men of Benjamin there was a man named Kish son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah; a Benjaminite and a man of rank. He had a son named Saul, a handsome man in the prime of life. Of all the Israelites there...

Donald Trump has announced that he will impose increasing tariffs on eight European countries unless they agree to let the US take over Greenland. Britain, France, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Netherlands will be hit by a 10 percent levy on 'any and all goods' entering the US from February 1, the president announced on Truth Social on Saturday. Trump said that if no deal was reached by June 1, the tariff will increase to 25 percent. The president, who referred to himself as 'the tariff king,' called on Denmark to relinquish the mineral-rich territory by claiming world...

A total of 18 House races have shifted toward the Democrats ahead of the crucial 2026 midterms, according to The Cook Political Report. Newsweek contacted the White House and the Democratic National Committee for comment via email. Why It Matters The Cook Political Report’s recent shift in ratings for 18 U.S. House races towards Democrats indicates momentum ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. These changes could influence party control of the House, with Democrats needing just three more seats to secure a majority, according to the new analysis.

The next generation of Fords could be powered in part by high-voltage batteries made by BYD, with the US and Chinese car giants reportedly in talks for a supply deal. According to the Wall Street Journal, insiders claim Ford is discussing with BYD the prospect of buying batteries for its hybrid models, though a formal deal is yet to be reached. The report alleges the batteries would be used on Ford products not made in the US – likely due to high tariffs on Chinese products – and instead power hybrids made in other Ford factories around the world. It...

When we were kids, birthdays always felt like a big deal. We thought about it for months, right? There would be a special meal, a delicious cake, and maybe even a party with a few friends and balloons. Of course, we also had that very special birthday wish, and when our loved ones made that come true, we felt like the most special person on earth. As the years go by and life changes, birthdays become less about material things and more about gratitude for living another year. Then it seems that if we live for a very long...