Free Republic

The Washington Post announced widely expected, significant layoffs on Wednesday, with entire departments being shuttered in what the company is calling a "significant restructuring." On a webinar with Post employees who were asked to stay home, executive editor Matt Murray announced a significant headcount reduction. The Post is shuttering the sports desk in its current form, dialing back its international footprint, making Metro more "nimble and focused" and eliminating Books. A third of the company has been affected, Fox News Digital has learned. "The Washington Post is taking a number of difficult but decisive actions today for our future, in...

The one thing Newsom is good at is destroying the Golden State If I was the leftist governor of the largest state in the U.S. and my unspoken goal and unholy plan was to destabilize and destroy my state, there are certain policies I would impose, and executive orders I’d make, while insulating myself from my own policies: Cut water off to rural areas in the state; remove dams and hydroelectric plants. Limit water deliveries to farmers and ranchers, forcing farmers and ranchers to shut down. Create a housing shortage. Raise the minimum wage so high, restaurant owners are forced...

Pedro Sánchez’s government is pushing dangerous new regulations that threaten your internet freedoms. Announced just yesterday, these measures could turn Spain into a surveillance state under the guise of “protection.” Here’s why they’re a red flag for free speech and privacy: 1. Ban on social media for under-16s with mandatory age verification: This isn’t just about kids—it requires platforms to use strict checks, like needing IDs or biometrics. ⚠️ Danger: It sets a precedent for tracking EVERY user’s identity, eroding anonymity and opening doors to mass data collection. What starts with minors could expand to all, stifling open discourse. 2....

"Paul and Timothy, bond-servants of Christ Jesus" (Phil. 1:1). A faithful slave fulfills the will of his master. The metaphor of Christians as slaves to Christ is common in Paul's writings. It is one his readers would have readily understood because of the prevalence of slavery in the Roman Empire. Peter, James, John, and Jude used the same metaphor of their own ministries, as did Jesus in Mark 10:45: "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." In Philippians 2:7 Paul refers to Christ as a...

Summary Anger is growing among Labour backbenchers over Keir Starmer's handling of the Lord Mandelson scandal It comes after the prime minister told Parliament he was aware of the former business secretary's ongoing friendship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein when he appointed him as UK ambassador to the US last year Starmer said he was misled about the "sheer depth and extent" of Mandelson's relationship with Epstein Asked on BBC Newsnight if the prime minister should step down, Labour MP Barry Gardiner said: "I think he needs to think very hard about what is in the country's best interest" MP Rebecca...

“ 'We too have heard the reports about a ransom letter in the media. As a family, we are doing everything that we can,' Guthrie said in the clip. Guthrie then said to the potential kidnappers that 'we are ready to talk' but wanted proof that they weren't potentially using fraudulent images of her. 'We live in a world where voices and images and images are easily manipulated. We need to know, without a doubt, that she is alive and that you have her. We want to hear from you and we are ready to listen. Please, reach out to...

It’s the same dark money, with new signs. Anti-ICE protests in Minnesota may appear to be “grassroots” efforts organized by concerned citizens, but they’re really funded with megadonor money — some coming from China. A so-called “ICE Out” march drew an estimated 15,000 left-wing political activists to a frozen, snow-covered Minneapolis on Friday, with attendees chanting “ICE out now” and demanding an end to federal immigration enforcement in the city.

With the US relationship with Europe increasingly frayed, and a major nuclear arms treaty set to expire this week, longtime pacifist Germany is starting to think differently about its nuclear posture. German Chancellor Frederich Merz recently revealed that Germany is in discussions with other European powers about establishing Europe-wide nuclear deterrence. And while it’s highly unlikely that Berlin would acquire its own nuclear weapons, European countries such as Germany are beginning to look beyond the US for protection. Germany hopes that the French will allow discussions about their nuclear strategy on a European level, Emil Archambault, a defense expert at...

Polish immigration authorities have returned 25 Pakistani nationals to their country of origin as part of a government clampdown on illegal immigration. The migrants, who were flown back to Pakistan on a military plane, were subject to deportation orders issued for breaching Polish regulations. The Border Guard did not provide specific details of the deportees’ transgressions but described the flight as “discouraging the misuse of migration procedures." Most forced removal decisions are issued for illegal border crossings and failure to comply with an order to leave. The interior minister, Marcin Kierwiński, was unequivocal on social media, however. “Zero tolerance for...

According to the bookies, Sir Keir Starmer is odds-on to leave No 10 this year, and if they are right, history might look back on Feb 4 as the day his departure became inevitable. With two U-turns in the space of a day, with his political guru Morgan McSweeney standing on a trapdoor, and with Angela Rayner biting at his ankles, Sir Keir’s authority has been shredded. Even before the Mandelson row exploded underneath him, Sir Keir was the least popular prime minister on record, dismissed by the public as useless and by his own MPs as a deadbeat. Rumours...

[Catholic Caucus] Fr. James Martin tells Stephen Colbert that Pope Leo plans to continue Francis’ LGBT agendaFr. James Martin said that 'the message I got from (Leo) was that he’s continuing Pope Francis’ mission and message of welcome and inclusion and he wants that to be broadcast.' During an appearance on left-wing comedian Stephen Colbert’s late night talk show Tuesday, celebrity priest James Martin revealed that Pope Leo told him he plans to continue Pope Francis’ LGBT agenda.After explaining that during an audience with Leo last year where “initially we talked about ministry to LGBT Catholics,” Martin said that “the...

Census projections add new urgency to the party’s quest to build a competitive coalition.Last week, the U.S. Census Bureau released new population estimates. While the big takeaway from the data was that country’s population growth has slowed since last year—largely a result of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown—it also reinforced another trend we saw in the first part of the decade: several blue states are experiencing a major slowdown in growth while key red states are leading the pack. And if these projections materialize in the 2030 census, they could have a profound effect on American politics in the next...

It was a story that received blanket media coverage in March 2021. It alleged that white middle schoolers in Plano, Texas, viciously "tortured" SeMarion Humphrey, their black classmate, forcing him to drink their urine at a sleepover as they shot him with BB guns. A Black Lives Matter activist group charged the local public school district with doing "nothing" to stop "this racially motivated hate crime" as violent protests broke out outside the home of Asher Vann, the white child alleged to have organized the brutal attack.

I'm SO excited!

Around 55,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday. The first day of US-brokered Ukraine-Russia talks in Abu Dhabi were "substantive and productive", top Ukrainian negotiator ⁠Rustem Umerov said Wednesday, without providing details. Follow our liveblog for the latest updates.

The Trump administration has made no secret of its desire to push the monetary easing pedal to the metal, even as the engine is already near the red line. They intend to push the system as hard as possible today and worry about the consequences later. One reason may be to inflate the stock market ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. There are several indicators that the Trump administration intends to run it hot in 2026. The first — and most important — is that Trump will likely succeed in consolidating control over the Federal Reserve. Jerome Powell’s term as...

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President Donald Trump’s Small Business Administration (SBA) is stopping the issuance of small business loans to foreign nationals, requiring that a business be 100 percent owned by a U.S. citizen or U.S. national to receive such a loan. This week, the SBA published a memo requiring that, beginning next month, applicants for the agency’s primary small business loan be American citizens or American nationals. “… effective March 1, 2026, SBA hereby revises Standard Operating Procedure 50 10 8 Lender and Development Company Loan Programs guidance related to businesses owned by non-U.S. citizens,” the memo states. […] Closing the small business...

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Wednesday said another "prolific leaker" who disclosed information that put federal law enforcement officers at risk has been caught. Noem announced the revelation in a post on X. "I plan to refer this individual to @TheJusticeDept for criminal prosecution," Noem wrote. "We are agnostic about your standing, tenure, political appointment, or status as a career civil servant—we will track down leakers and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law." Noem has made the prosecutions of leakers within her agency a top priority as the Trump administration continues its crackdown on illegal immigration....

President Trump said Wednesday that he is endorsing Clay Fuller in a special election for former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-Ga.) seat in Georgia’s 14th congressional district. “As District Attorney for the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit, and Air National Guard Officer, Clay knows the Wisdom and Courage required to Defend our Country, Support our Brave Military/Veterans, and Ensure PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post, offering Fuller his “Complete and Total” endorsement.