Free Republic

Mediators moved closer Wednesday to extending the ceasefire between the United States and Iran and restarting negotiations to salvage the fragile truce before it expires next week. A senior Iranian military official threatened to halt trade in the region if the U.S. does not lift its naval blockade, underscoring tensions that are overshadowing the diplomacy. The U.S. blockade on Iranian ports and renewed Iranian threats have imperiled the week-old agreement, but regional officials said Wednesday they were making progress, telling The Associated Press that the United States and Iran had given an “in principle agreement” to extend it to allow...

Disgraced ex-Congressman Eric Swalwell’s “best friend” on Capitol Hill, Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego, admitted he had heard rumors that Swalwell was “flirty” with women — but never confronted him about it. Swalwell resigned from his California congressional seat on Tuesday after five women accused him of sexual misconduct and rape, which Gallego said completely blindsided him after Swalwell insisted the allegations were fake. “I fell for it,” the Democrat said outside of his office in Washington, DC, adding that Swalwell “became very good at being a predator” and “extremely proficient at lying to us, lying to his family, lying to...

There’s nothing funny about what Jewish comics have faced in the post-Oct. 7 world. One of the first targets was Jerry Seinfeld, arguably the least offensive comic of his generation. Seinfeld has endured repeated interruptions while on tour and in public from pro-Palestinian disruptors. Roughly two years ago, he attended a Bari Weiss-led event dubbed “State of World Jewry” in Manhattan when protesters jeered at him, calling him a “genocide supporter.” The legendary comic later faced on-stage harassment. He was able to take the heckling in stride, as he did when mocking protesters in a June 2024 appearance at the...

President of the Slovenian National Assembly Zoran Stevanović has announced plans to pursue a referendum on Slovenia’s potential withdrawal from NATO. Stevanović, leader of Resnica.ca (Party of Truth), confirmed the initiative in remarks reported by the Slovenian press, stating that the proposal is part of a broader commitment to a more independent and sovereign foreign policy approach. “I promised the citizens a referendum on exiting NATO, and we will organize this referendum,” Stevanović said. He added that Slovenia should regain control over its strategic decisions, arguing that “Ljubljana must become the center of decisions for Slovenia, not Brussels.” His comments...

The radical left’s war on the American Republic just took a terrifying leap forward in the Commonwealth of Virginia. On Tuesday, far-left Governor Abigail Spanberger officially signed legislation that would enter Virginia into the controversial National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC). This dangerous move effectively strikes a match to the U.S. Constitution. Virginia becomes the 19th jurisdiction to join the compact, bringing the total to 222 electoral votes, just 48 shy of the 270 needed to activate the plan. According to the League of Women Voters, “Six additional states with 65 electoral votes (Arizona, Michigan, New Hampshire, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and...

Maritime intelligence experts say that more ships in and around the Strait of Hormuz seem to be adopting tactics to avoid detection since the U.S. blockade on vessels coming in and out of Iranian ports went into effect on Monday. “Now, we are starting to see vessels going dark or using ‘zombie’ or random identification,” Ami Daniel, the chief executive of Windward, a maritime intelligence data provider, said in an interview on Tuesday. In the weeks after the American-Israeli attack on Iran in late February, Iranian exports went “uninterrupted” and had “almost no need to go off radar,” Mr. Daniel...

This YouTube video is from conservative commentator Dr. Steve Turley, titled "GOP BLOWOUT! Republicans DEMOLISH Dems in Special Elections!!!". It was uploaded today (April 15, 2026) and already has tens of thousands of views.770232 What the video covers: Turley analyzes recent special election wins by Republicans in heavily Latino/Hispanic districts, arguing these results show a continuing (or accelerating) shift of Latino voters toward the GOP. Key examples he highlights: West Miami, Florida (mayor race): Republican Eric Diaz Padron won 71-29 (a 42-point margin), beating Trump's 2024 margin in the area by 11 points. The district is overwhelmingly Hispanic. West Miami...

Uber has done its best to kill taxis, and now it's turning on drivers — starting with the drivers on its own app. The company is putting $10 billion into buying either robotaxi fleets or stakes in robotaxi companies, in hopes of cutting those pesky drivers out of its profit margins. From Reuters: Uber has committed more than $10 ​billion to buying thousands of autonomous vehicles ‌and taking stakes in their developers, breaking from its asset-light "gig economy" business model to avoid disruption from robotaxis, ​the Financial Times reported on Wednesday. Reuters could ​not immediately verify the report. Uber did...

Eric Swalwell’s hotshot attorney has come out swinging after a bombshell new rape claim was leveled at the former congressman. Sara Azari took to the airwaves late Tuesday saying “regret is not rape,” pushing the idea the politician’s alleged victims were just ashamed by any sexual activity they had. She launched a staunch defense of him and praised his “tremendous amount of accountability” for stepping down amid the scandal. She told NewsNation: “The fact that, you know, a day later, years later, or whatnot, you maybe had shame around what you did, or maybe you were in a relationship and...

California’s gasoline market is entering a period of acute supply shortages directly attributable to prior refinery closures, and the long-term systemic decline in in-state crude oil production which have been further exacerbated by the ongoing war in the Middle East. For California, there is a clear trajectory toward increasing supply deficit conditions through April and a high probability of physical shortages by May accompanied by consumer price increases at the pump.

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — An Atlanta man has been arrested in connection with three Monday shooting incidents — two of them deadly — in DeKalb County. Olaolukitan Adon Abel, 26, was taken into custody Monday. The first shooting happened outside a Checkers on Wesley Chapel Road shortly before 1 a.m. A woman, who has not been identified, was found with multiple gunshot wounds. She later died after being taken to the hospital, according to the DeKalb County Police Department. Arrest warrants state the woman, who was found with 14 gunshot wounds, got out of the car she was...

Finnish President Alexander Stubb says he exchanges messages with Prime Minister Mark Carney almost every day. Stubb is in Ottawa for his first official bilateral meetings with Canada's prime minister. The pair are working to develop trade and defence ties, according to Carney's office. "With shared interests, values and a commitment to international security, I look forward to hosting President Stubb to deepen our partnership to create stability, security and prosperity for both our peoples," Carney wrote in a statement. "With shared interests, values and a commitment to international security, I look forward to hosting President Stubb to deepen our...

A Department of Homeland Security employee was murdered by a convicted felon immigrant who was naturalized under the Biden administration during a bloody killing spree in Georgia early this week, officials said Wednesday. Lauren Bullis, who worked as an auditor at the federal agency, was shot and stabbed in Atlanta when 26-year-old Olaolukitan Adon-Abel allegedly went on his deadly rampage on Monday morning. Bullis, a 40-year-old auditor for the DHS, had taken her dog out for a stroll when she was targeted as part of three random attacks allegedly carried out by the madman across the city. Adon-Abel’s alleged rampage...

Explosions in Tehran near a Basij checkpoint injured three people after IEDs detonated on Imam Khomeini Street. Security forces are securing the area amid concerns of additional devices, with no fatalities confirmed so far. Multiple explosions were reported on Imam Khomeini Street in Tehran, with Iranian media indicating the blasts occurred near a Basij checkpoint in District 10, close to Jeyhoun. According to state-linked Fars News Agency, two homemade explosive devices based on liquefied gas detonated in the area. At least three people sustained superficial injuries in the incident, with no fatalities reported. Field reports indicate the explosions were not...

Tamica Brown, has been arrested in Florida after she reportedly stole more than $120,000 in SNAP benefits from over 200 victims. Brown allegedly drained people's accounts using stolen EBT card numbers. She then bought various store products and would resell them on street corners. But Democrats told me there’s no fraud?!

Joe Biden will be remembered as a historic President, but for all the wrong reasons. I and many Americans will remember Biden as he was above- evil incarnate. He was easily the most abusive and corrupt President in history. Joe Biden demonized Republicans, calling them a "clear and present danger." In a fiery prime-time speech, President Joe Biden launched an all-out assault on former President Donald Trump and “MAGA Republicans,” saying they “pose a clear and present danger” to American democracy. And as a means of dealing with that threat Biden chose censorship, in part by floating a Disinformation Governance...

It's a game to watch Watching the media scurry all over cyberspace to explain away why their TDS-afflicted economic catastrophe forecasts aren’t panning out. Take the surprisingly tame inflation on the month, despite the ongoing Iran War. Despite a 4 percent increase on the year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported April 14 that the Producer Price Index of wholesale prices increased 0.5 percent month-over-month for March, which was much less than the 1.1 percentage increase forecasted by economists as conflict over the energy-critical Strait of Hormuz ensued. Core prices, which exclude volatile food and energy indicators, also came in...

Russia has offered to help China with any potential energy shortfall, as the war in the Middle East heightens geopolitical divisions and threatens global commodity supplies. “Russia can certainly fill the resource gap that has arisen in China and other countries interested in working with us on an equal and mutually beneficial basis,” Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday, according to comments reported by Russian news agency Interfax. Russia’s top diplomat also commented on China and Russia’s ability to withstand the economic impact of “aggressive” U.S military operations against Iran, which have sent global oil and gas prices soaring.

According to a U.S. Central Command social media post, six merchant vessels turned around in compliance with the U.S. blockade once it went into effect Monday morning. CENTCOM spokesperson Capt. Tim Hawkins declined to provide USNI News with the names of the six ships.The Strait of Hormuz continues to be a point of contention in the ongoing war between Iran and the U.S. Iran wants control of the waterway as part of the agreement between the two countries. International maritime law treats the Strait of Hormuz as an international passage open to all, while Iran argues it is made up...

It often seems that modern day American leaders and many of the American people are eager to intervene in conflicts…Over 75 years ago, the exact opposite could be said. With Europe locked in battle, President Franklin D. Roosevelt supported the idea of America going to war, giving Great Britain the backing it needed, but FDR faced his own struggles. The United States didn’t want to intervene. During an emergency cabinet meeting called by Roosevelt immediately after the war erupted in Europe, it was agreed that the United States would remain an outside influence unless directly threatened or attacked… The United...