Free Republic

Longtime journalist Katie Couric asked if Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., had a problem with being "ridiculously good-looking." During an interview on Couric's "Next Question" podcast released Thursday, the former "Today" co-host remarked on how Newsom has been described as "slick" and whether that was a reference to his hairstyle. Newsom acknowledged that the comments had caused him to play into a "character." "Do you have a 'Zoolander' problem?" Couric asked, referencing the 2001 Ben Stiller comedy. After Newsom began laughing at the comment, she followed, "Are you just ridiculously good-looking, as Vogue said? No, seriously. What do you do about...

(Snip) The Air Force’s preparations for war were fascinating. Because the number of aircraft and pilots is fixed and known, and because it was clear a race would develop between Iran’s launch capability and the Air Force’s ability to destroy launchers and missiles, the solution devised by the Air Force was to increase the number of waves. How? Fly to Iran and back three times a day. Every pilot. And how is that done? With stimulant pills. That was the trick they planned. And it worked. When every pilot does this three times a day instead of once or twice,...

7 March 2026 Saturday of the 2nd week of Lent (optional commemoration of Saints Perpetua and Felicity, Martyrs) Saints Felicitas & Perpetua Church, San Marino, CAReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: Violet. Year: A(II).First readingMicah 7:14-15,18-20Have pity on us one more timeWith shepherd’s crook, O Lord, lead your people to pasture,the flock that is your heritage,living confined in a forestwith meadow land all around.Let them pasture in Bashan and Gileadas in the days of old.As in the days when you came out of Egyptgrant us to see wonders.What god can compare with you: taking fault away,pardoning crime,not cherishing anger for everbut...

"President Donald Trump announced on Saturday, March 7 that the United States now formally and 'legally' recognizes the current Venezuelan government with Delcy Rodríguez as the leader."

I believe it’s safe to say that every true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ has their confidence in Christ, and what’s also true is that we have a firm assurance in the validity and accuracy of the Scriptures. With that said, what many people are feeling and saying about Israel amid rising geopolitical tensions, resurgent antisemitism and questions about how Christians should think about the Jewish homeland and the Jewish people must be tested against the Bible. Just as the church has been tested throughout the ages as to whether or not it would obey God’s Word, so today...

Over the years, people have told me that the Rapture must happen after the seven-year Tribulation. More often than not, they support their belief by offering an assortment of statements supposedly confirming their assertion. Of course, those who adhere to Replacement Theology combine the Rapture and Second Coming since they reject the tenets of Premillennialists, such as a literal seven-year period of judgment and Jesus’ thousand-year reign over the nations that includes a restored Israel. Some amillennialists say they believe in a “post-Tribulation Rapture,” but that’s highly misleading since they view the judgments of Revelation chapters 6-18 as either an...

CNN was accused of pushing out “pro-Iran regime propaganda” by the Trump administration on Thursday after a reporter for the network said it appeared daily life was continuing despite the ongoing war. Senior international correspondent Frederik Pleitgen said during a segment that all the shelves in shops are stocked, “even with fresh things,” as he casually held a cup of coffee. “Fuel seems readily available, and you just don’t see any degree of panic anywhere,” he said.

The epidemic of sexual misconduct targeting children in government schools is back in the headlines, and it is even worse than previously known. According to the latest estimates, a shocking 17 percent of students in government schools will be victims of some sort of sexual abuse at the hands of teachers and faculty. That represents about 8 million children. Perhaps even more alarming than the exploding level of abuse is the fact that teachers’ unions and the political establishment continue protecting the perpetrators, critics and advocates say. Even in conservative states such as Texas, teachers rape and sexually abuse children...

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, commonly referred to as the SAVE Act, has cleared a significant hurdle in the Senate after two Republican senators who had not yet endorsed a provision to bypass the “zombie” filibuster reversed course. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), who is currently locked in a. tight Senate primary with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, had not yet endorsed the idea of using the “talking filibuster” to advance the key election integrity bill. Under this procedure, the minority party, in this case Democrats, would be forced to physically stall the bill using the two-speech limit and physical...

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) announced on Friday that he will be retiring at the end of his term, potentially leaving his seat vulnerable to a Democrat in the midterms. Issa issued the announcement to retire soon after the deadline to register as a candidate in a district that became vulnerable to Democrat control after being redrawn last year. “This decision has been on my mind for a while, and I didn’t make it lightly,” Issa said. “First, we built the right campaign infrastructure, support has been overwhelming — including from President Trump — and our polling was unmistakable: We would...

Wastewater SCAN data show that human metapneumovirus, or HMPV, is rampant in Northern California — specifically San Francisco, Marin, Vallejo, Napa, Novato, Santa Rosa, Sacramento and Davis, per reports. The virus peaked sharply in January and remains elevated in early March, although the seasonal winter wave is now tapering. “It is a single-stranded RNA virus, like flu and COVID,” Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst, told Fox News Digital. “The virus is increasing not only in the west, but also around the country.” The wastewater data also show that HMPV is rising sharply in the Midwest and Northeast.

Explanation: Centered on maximum eclipse, these two total lunar eclipse sequences look almost identical. Yet the one shown on top is composed of images recorded in February 2008, while at the bottom is the recent March 2026 total eclipse of the Moon. Why are they so similar? Because these two total lunar eclipses are from the same Saros cycle. The Saros cycle was discovered historically from observations of the Moon's orbit. With a period of 18 years, 11 and 1/3 days, the cycle predicts when the Sun, Earth, and Moon all return to the same relative geometry for a lunar...

Republican support for the war may not be as solid as it appears – and that could have implications for a U.S. intervention in Taiwan.In the days following the Israeli-U.S. strikes on Iran, both chambers of the U.S. Congress – the Senate and the House of Representatives – voted on a War Powers Resolution aimed at halting U.S. President Donald Trump’s military action, which was not given congressional authorization. Although the measure failed in both chambers – with nearly all Republicans voting against it and publicly supporting the administration – a closer look suggests that Republican support for the...

One of the UK's two aircraft carriers has been placed on advanced readiness to sail from Portsmouth, the BBC understands. The crew of HMS Prince of Wales have been told they must be ready to leave in five days, defence sources said. This may raise speculation the carrier could be deployed to the Mediterranean to help defend British interests threatened during the conflict in the Middle East. Before this, the ship's "notice to sail" was 14 days. Meanwhile, more US B-1 Lancer bombers have arrived at RAF Fairford. The government has been accused of not acting fast enough to protect...

An Iranian sailor who was killed when the warship Dena was struck by the US near Sri Lanka had called his father shortly beforehand, saying American forces had issued two warnings for the crew to abandon the vessel, a source close to the family told Iran International.The Iranian navy warship's commander refused to allow the crew to abandon Dena despite the imminent threat, the source added.The sailor’s father said some crew members argued with the commander, and the 32 crew members who survived were mainly sailors who managed to escape on lifeboats, according to the source.A US submarine torpedoed Dena...

Apostolic Vicar of Northern Arabia: "May this journey of Ramadan and Lent unite us also in these difficult moments""As leader of the Catholic Church of the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia, and as Bishop of the Kingdom of Bahrain, and in the name of the entire Catholic Christian community — priests, religious men and women, and lay faithful — whom I represent, I wish to address you in these difficult days, marked by the pain and uncertainty of war, with words of encouragement and hope." Almost a week after the start of the war in the Gulf area (see Fides,...

"I think 47 years of western policy to Iran has been rubbish. You know why? Because they focused only on the hard power nukes, missiles, foreign mercies, never on the rights of the Iranian people. Ladies and gentlemen, as you know, John Stewart is my guilty pleasure. I know everyone on the right can't stand him, but I kind of like him. I think he's consistently funny. Yeah, he has a case of Trump derangement syndrome, but it's not as severe as someone like, I don't know, Rosie O'Donnell. I feel like people on the right treat John Stewart like...

A mid-air Southwest flight was forced to land in Georgia after a passenger triggered a security alert, coming amid escalating tensions in the Middle East. Southwest Airlines Flight 2094, bound for Fort Lauderdale, Florida, from Nashville, Tennessee, was abruptly diverted Friday night to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, according to Fox 5 Atlanta News. The incident was set-off by a passenger, described as a 'possible security matter,' though what exactly happened has not been confirmed. A TikTok video from inside the plane claimed there was a bomb threat mid-flight, capturing the panic of passengers on board. In the footage, passengers can...

President Donald Trump met Friday afternoon with CEOs of major defense industry companies at the White House as the war against Iran ended its first full week.After the meeting, Trump said in a social media post that “we discussed Production and Production Schedules” and “they have agreed to quadruple Production of the ‘Exquisite Class’ Weaponry in that we want to reach, as rapidly as possible, the highest levels of quantity.”Trump did not explain what he meant by “Exquisite Class Weaponry.” The term is used in the defense industry to describe one-of-a-kind technology or systems.Trump said the meeting included CEOs of...

By Dr. John BergsmaYou know we are “picking up steam” in the season of Lent when the Lectionary starts turning to the long readings from the Gospel of John (John 4, 9, 11). The Church turns to these texts from John at this point in the liturgical calendar, because John is, in so many ways, a mystagogical document, a gospel intended to takes us deeper into the mysteries, that is, the sacraments. If one is not initiated into the sacraments, John remains—in many respects—a closed book. I can attest to this from personal experience. Although I have always loved my...