Free Republic

Sky's Matt Barbett asked Reform UK 's Nigel Farage whether Jim Ratcliffe was "right to apologise" for saying Britain has been "colonised by immigrants". 'I think it's probably in the dictionary definition, correct, but perhaps people aren't quite ready for it,' says Nigel Farage about Jim Ratcliffe's use of the word 'colonisation'.

Over the course of 2025, the average tariff rate on U.S. imports increased from 2.6 to 13 percent. In this blog post, we ask how much of the tariffs were paid by the U.S., using import data through November 2025. We find that nearly 90 percent of the tariffs’ economic burden fell on U.S. firms and consumers. [...] We highlight two main results. First, 94 percent of the tariff incidence was borne by the U.S. in the first eight months of 2025. This result means that a 10 percent tariff caused only a 0.6 percentage point decline in foreign export...

BREAKING: Judge blocks Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth's attempt to discipline/demote Sen. Mark Kelly over his comments re Trump-ordered boat strikes. Judge Richard Leon (GWBush) says admin is trying to strip 1st Amendment rights of military retirees. Doc: https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2026cv0081-37

JUST IN: Judge BOASBERG has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of Venezuelan men illegally deported under the Alien Enemies Act and who are currently in countries other than Venezuela. https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436.247.0_4.pdf

So, I think a lot of people are under the impression that I've always been, like, far-right, and that's why I'm so, like, strong-minded about being a conservative. And I want to kind of share my walk-away story and the fact that, yes, I was a Democrat, and why I'm not anymore. So, for a little background, yes, I was raised in a conservative household, um, and I had a wonderful childhood. My parents were amazing people. They were not homophobic or racist or anything. They just believed in smaller government, no taxes, be a modest, good person, don't do...

The Super Bowl now plays like America’s divorce proceedingsThe country still shares one screen, but not one meaning. One side will dominate the other, or separation will harden into something more permanent.The Seattle Seahawks trampled the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX, but the postgame chatter barely touched football. Fans and pundits argued about anthems, halftime, commercials, and what the whole spectacle “said” about America.For better or worse, the Super Bowl serves as the premier civic liturgy of the American empire, a night when strangers share the same screens and offices share the same small talk. When that...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — With debate ongoing over the Republican-proposed SAVE Act to shore up U.S. election integrity, Democrat lawmakers countered by proposing their own legislation, the STEAL Act, to ban voter ID in elections. The bill, which has the full title of Shield The Election From Legitimacy Act, would make it illegal for anyone to present valid identification when voting in an election, thereby preventing any safeguards against fraud from being put in place. "This legislation is vital to the survival of our party," said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. "With Republicans seeking to discriminate against people by only allowing...

And hey, if we can pick up the island on the cheap, Secretary of State Marco Rubio might want to don a seersucker suit and start a new gig as the territorial governor and enjoy presiding over a revitalized Havana. It's worth putting out there just to annoy the lefties.

Link only: Original: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2026/02/16/the-babies-kept-in-a-mysterious-los-angeles-mansionArchive: https://archive.is/WEHIY

"New footage shows a Raytheon Coyote Block 3NK reusable interceptor taking down an entire drone swarm using its onboard non-kinetic electromagnetic (EM) weapon." Video at link.

Former Norwegian Prime Minister Thorbjørn Jagland has been charged with "gross corruption" over his ties with the US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, police have said. The charge was brought after the Council of Europe lifted Jagland's immunity, which he enjoyed because of his past diplomatic role. He denies criminal liability and is willing to cooperate, his lawyer says. Emails released by the US government are thought to show that Jagland planned solo and family visits to Epstein's homes in Paris, New York and Palm Beach after the billionaire was convicted of a child sex offence. Three of Jagland's properties were...

Why 95% of enterprise AI projects fail to deliver ROI: A data analysis American enterprises spent an estimated $40 billion on artificial intelligence systems in 2024, according to MIT research. Yet the same study found that 95% of companies are seeing zero measurable bottom-line impact from their AI investments. The pattern is remarkably consistent across industries. Companies invest millions in AI infrastructure, train models on internal data, deploy systems to assist sales teams or automate marketing workflows—and then watch as adoption stalls or results disappoint. The technology works in demos but fails in daily operations. MIT's Project NANDA calls it...

An Ohio State professor was suspended for allegedly attacking a journalist who was trying to confront the university’s former president after footage of the assault went viral. Luke Perez, an assistant professor in the Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture, and Society, was in a Smith Laboratory hallway talking to two freelance reporters when he launched his alleged attack on February 9. One victim, identified as Michael Neuman, attempted to walk past Perez when the staff member snatched at the man’s phone before grabbing the journalist and dropping him to the floor, according to the footage initially shared by...

A parliamentary committee has unveiled a plan to tackle France’s collapsing birth rate. But with experts and the public sceptical, the proposals are proving deeply divisive. Lucie remembers feeling uneasy when she heard that the French government was planning to send a letter to adults aged 29 and over about infertility. The letter is still being drafted, its contents have not been made public but the initiative has already sparked strong criticism, even from abroad. "I found the approach extremely awkward and it's not the right way at all to raise awareness," she tells Euronews. At 27, Lucie is in...

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Gov. Tim Walz says he's cautiously optimistic about the Trump administration announcing an end to the ICE surge in Minnesota but is demanding the federal government take accountability for what happened during the surge, including "the incredible and immense costs."

The heated exchange centered around a recent resolution criticizing ICE officers — a move critics say was rushed through without public awareness.

New Mexico is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been in my life. For years, I hoped to retire to either there or Arizona and just soak up the beauty. I didn't even realize how much I'd love the area until I visited. But now, I wouldn't live there for all the money in the world. After all, who would want to live in a state that elected a governor who thought she could just suspend the Second Amendment in a city, basically? That was smacked down, thankfully, but that doesn't mean lawmakers there aren't still engaging in...

.@ElonMusk named No. 1 on the #Forbes250 Greatest Innovators list. See who else is in the Top 10: forbes.com/sites/alexknap… (Photo: Martin Schoeller)

Gallup will no longer track presidential approval ratings after more than eight decades doing so, the public opinion polling agency confirmed to The Hill on Wednesday. The company said starting this year it would stop publishing approval and favorability ratings of individual political figures, saying in a statement it “reflects an evolution in how Gallup focuses its public research and thought leadership.” “Our commitment is to long-term, methodologically sound research on issues and conditions that shape people’s lives,” a spokesperson for the agency said. “That work will continue through the Gallup Poll Social Series, the Gallup Quarterly Business Review, the...

Big Tech's data center build-out is facing mounting resistance from lawmakers.This week, Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) introduced the first bipartisan bill in Congress designed to prevent data center power usage from affecting consumers' electric bills.A week earlier, on Feb. 6, New York became at least the sixth state to have its legislators propose a bill to pause data center construction within state lines. This legislation would effectively shut out New York as a potential site for new data centers if it passes.