Free Republic

A top Democrat fundraising boss in Michigan shared a picture honoring her grandfather, a German who fought for the Nazis, on Veterans Day. Kelly Neumann, a fundraising co-chair for several Democratic candidates, shared images of her late grandfather, Albert Neumann, on Facebook in 2024. The unearthed post was a tribute to all of her family and friends who served in the miliary, including Albert, who she said was on the 'German side in WWI & WWII.' Historically, Nazis, also known as members of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP), was a totalitarian political party under the rule of German...

The Doomsday Clock, which has been ticking down to the end of the world for decades, is now officially closer to annihilation than ever before. On Tuesday, scientists with the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists moved the symbolic clock four seconds forward to 85 seconds to midnight. It's also the closest the clock has ever been to midnight in its 79-year history, meaning experts believe humanity has never faced a more dire threat of a world-ending catastrophe than it does in 2026. The group, which decides where the hands are set annually, cited multiple threats to global stability, including nuclear weapons,...

Founding Parliament-Funkadelic bassist Billy Bass has died of unspecified causes at the age of 74, two days shy of his 75th birthday. P-Funk bandleader George Clinton shared the news on social media Monday morning. Earlier this month, Clinton noted that the group was keeping Bass "in our thoughts and in our hearts," again without mentioning any specifics. As a teenager, Bass (real name: William Nelson) worked for Clinton at a barbershop. He was recruited to back his boss's vocal group, then known as the Parliaments. In his 2014 autobiography, Clinton recalled how Bass helped him write the band's first big...

My second book, The Abortion Companion: An Affirming Handbook for Your Choice and Your Journey, is about to come out, and I’m feeling fussy. I’m scrolling through the long-finished page spreads, noting a .com where they should be a .org, an additional helpline I should have listed, a “definitely” where I could’ve written “absolutely.” The work is finished, but it’s never finished. Later, on a break from that particular form of fussing, I’m sorting through an album in my phone titled “Repro Cakes.” I scroll past “Abortion. Any time. Any reason,” “Abortion Pills Forever,” and “No shame, no stigma” looking...

Although CENTCOM said that the "exercise is designed to enhance asset and personnel dispersal capability," military parties have used such drills in the past as cover for launching a surprise attack... ...During the (multi-day) training event, CENTCOM said that US forces "will deploy teams to multiple contingency locations and validate rapid set-up, launch and recovery procedures with small, efficient support packages. AFCENT will conduct all activities with host-nation approval and in close coordination with civil and military aviation authorities, emphasizing safety, precision and respect for sovereignty."

Even the very best jazz guitarists rarely receive the attention of the genre’s horn players, so give it up for the 50 best jazz guitarists ever.Even the very best jazz guitarists rarely receive the attention and plaudits that the genre’s horn blowers – saxophonists and trumpeters, in particular – receive. Perhaps that’s because, traditionally, the guitar, which superseded the banjo in jazz rhythm sections, was primarily perceived as a supporting and accompanying instrument rather than a viable vehicle for solo improvisation. Another reason why the spotlight didn’t fall on jazz guitar players in the music’s formative years was that...

Warriors coach Steve Kerr again used media availability to comment on national politics Monday night after Golden State completed a back-to-back against the Timberwolves in Minneapolis. After winning on Sunday, the Warriors dropped Game 2 in a rough 108-83 loss. The two games came under unusual circumstances. Sunday’s matchup was rescheduled after the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by federal agents near downtown Minneapolis, an incident that sparked protests across the city. Before Sunday’s game at Target Center, the Timberwolves held a moment of silence for Pretti. During the tribute, obscenities were shouted by fans directed at ICE. Kerr addressed...

Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott directed state agencies and universities to immediately freeze all H-1B visa petitions in a letter to state agency heads on Tuesday. Abbott wrote that the Texas economy should “work for the benefit of Texas workers and Texas employers.” The governor cited “recent reports of abuse” and the federal government’s “ongoing review” of the H-1B visa program. “No state agency controlled by a gubernatorially appointed head or public institution of higher education shall, without the written permission of the Texas Workforce Commission, initiate or file any new petition to sponsor a nonimmigrant worker under the federal...

President Donald Trump said Tuesday he continues to have confidence in Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and does not plan to ask her to step down despite mounting scrutiny following a fatal shooting by federal agents in Minneapolis and a subsequent reshuffling of immigration enforcement leadership in Minnesota. "I think she's done a very good job," Trump said as he departed the White House. "The border is totally secure." Asked directly by a reporter whether Noem would resign or be forced out of her Cabinet post, Trump replied, "No." Noem has faced increasing criticism following the Saturday shooting...

A Minnesota-based nonprofit focused on aiding Somalis and other East Africans is hiring someone to follow immigration agents and prevent them from making arrests. The Awood Center, named after the Somali word for “power,” released a job posting on Facebook Jan. 14 seeking an employee to assist in “rapid response,” a term activists use to describe following or recording suspected Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions in-person. The group’s rapid response program will “reach hundreds of Somali residents within days,” “prevent unlawful or coercive detentions” and conduct outreach at relevant facilities such as mosques, the job posting says. The Awood...

(Kitco News) – After a price increase of more than 200% year-over-year has pushed the gold:silver ratio to multiyear lows, it may be time for silver investors to take profits, according to analysts at HSBC. "After a year-on-year rise of more than 200% in the silver price, you may wonder if it’s time to sell the family silver!” they wrote in an update published Tuesday. “The rally has flipped the gold/silver ratio (the number of ounces of silver that can be bought with one ounce of gold) from being unusually high in April 2025 to unusually low now, despite gold...

A pro-assisted suicide campaigner who has been accused of publishing material online that has reportedly been linked to the deaths of over 90 people in the United Kingdom, including the suicides of several teenagers, has invented a suicide gas chamber for couples to end their lives simultaneously. Dr Philip Nitschke, a former GP nicknamed ‘Dr Death’ who invented the Sarco gas chamber assisted suicide pod, has now invented what has been called the “Double Dutch” gas chamber suicide pod for couples to end their lives by suicide at the same time. Nitschke said that he received some feedback on the...

[Catholic Caucus] Pope Leo XIV appoints bishop who rejects Catholic teaching on sexualityFr. Cyril Villareal has proposed a ‘new way’ of evaluating marriage and sexuality, departing from natural law principles reaffirmed in Humanae Vitae and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Pope Leo XIV appointed Father Cyril Buhayan Villareal as the new bishop of Kalibo in the Philippines, drawing renewed attention to unorthodox theological positions he defended in an academic thesis on marriage and sexuality.On January 24, Pope Leo XIV appointed Villareal as bishop of the Diocese of Kalibo, located in the central Philippines. The decision has drawn attention over...

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday he told U.S. President Donald Trump that he meant what he said in his speech at Davos, and told him Canada plans to diversify away from the United States with a dozen new trade deals. Carney rolled his eyes and rejected U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s contention to Fox News that he aggressively walked back his comments at the World Economic Forum during a phone call with Trump on Monday. “To be absolutely clear, and I said this to the president, I meant what I said in Davos,” Carney said to reporters as...

Dear friends and family, Once again, we are sitting on the edge of our seats. Will Trump attack Iran or won’t he? I want to try to share the feelings here in Israel. On the one hand, most Israelis want a military operation—either by America alone or jointly with Israel—that would result in regime change in Iran. Iran is the proverbial head of the snake. If the Ayatollahs could be replaced with a “normal” regime, it would completely change the face of the Middle East. It would dry up much of the funding, supply lines, and support to Hamas, Hezbollah,...

The fury over CBP and ICE in the dysfunctional city has leftists attempting to elevate the armed insurgent’s status to a combination of martyr and saint. MS NOW took their brainwashing to the next level by adding beautification to the mix. They heavily enhanced his headshot and displayed the new and improved Pretti on Nicolle Wallace’s show.

Illinois governor doubles down on comparing current moment to Nazi Germany rise during podcast appearanceGov. JB Pritzker, D-Ill., said during a podcast on Tuesday that the current political "moment" was "slightly worse" than the COVID pandemic, despite the many deaths COVID caused. "I've Had It" host Jennifer Welch asked Pritzker how he was doing, and the governor said that while every day was a blessing, he's often asked about whether the current Trump administration was comparable the situation Americans were in during the COVID-19 pandemic. "It’s been challenging," he said. "I've been asked, is this like COVID, you know, the...

WASHINGTON — Composer Philip Glass announced Tuesday that he is withdrawing his symphony from the Kennedy Center, pointing to the arts center's values and leadership. "After thoughtful consideration, I have decided to withdraw my Symphony No. 15 'Lincoln' from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts," Glass announced in a statement posted to X. "Symphony No. 15 is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and the values of the Kennedy Center today are in direct conflict with the message of the Symphony," he continued. "Therefore, I feel an obligation to withdraw this Symphony premiere from the Kennedy Center under...

Minneapolis chaos followed leaders’ inaction on a costly fraud probe, with anti-ICE rhetoric fueling tensions that spiraled into violence, National Guard deployment, and lost lives. To think that everything leading up to this started with indifference over trying to resolve a situation that was costing taxpayers billions of dollars. Weeks ago, ICE agents were brought into Minneapolis to arrest Somali immigrants who were behind a real estate scheme that was costing U.S. citizens a great deal of money. It was a move made by President Donald Trump after Mayor Jacob Frey and Governor Tim Walz didn’t do anything about the...

Maine's legendary lobster lady has died at the age of 105 after spending years trapping the seafood with her son and becoming the state's first woman lobsterman. Virginia Oliver died on January 21 at a hospital near her Rockland, Maine home, according to the Boston Globe. 'She was a hard worker and a good mother,' her son, Max Oliver, told the outlet. For years, she and Max would go lobstering three times a week on her late husband's boat named after her. Her days would start at 3am, and she would meet her son to go out and check their...