Free Republic

the first time since 1996, foreign central banks now hold more gold than U.S. Treasuries (U.S. debt) in their reserves, marking a historic turning point in global reserve management. Data published by Visual Capitalist reveals that, in the course of 2025, the share of gold in central bank reserves surpassed that of U.S. debt holdings, a trend driven by rising geopolitical uncertainty and a quest for asset diversification. Between 2021 and 2025, central banks - particularly in emerging markets like China, India and Turkey - significantly increased their gold holdings. This move reflects a broader strategy to reduce reliance on...

In what must be the mother of all cons, Democrats are raking in the votes and expect to take the House at midterms with their buzzword 'affordability,' which first popped up during the successful Zohran Mamdani New York City mayoral campaign and has been on a roll since. It's a flim-flam. They plan to focus on impeaching President Trump on Day One, something they aren't saying much about on the national news or in their commercials, and if they retake the Senate and nuke the filibuster, get Trump thrown out of office. That's their plan, that's their agenda, even as...

With two-thirds of the printed copies of his book--"Young Man in a Hurry: A Memoir of Discovery"--remaining unsold, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-Calif) claims he bought these copies "to ensure it would be a best-seller. My plan is to give autographed copies to everyone who donates to my presidential campaign. I think my sly and speedy action here demonstrates my ingenuity as leader and gives me an early lead for the 2028 Democratic nomination for president." "Another factor that will put me ahead of my Democrat rivals is that I was born a poor black child with a low IQ and...

The U.S.-Israel war against Iran was to a great extent predictable. The United States feared Iran becoming a nuclear power. Israel feared that as well, and was also concerned about the Islamist forces – in this case, Hezbollah – that Iran supported in Lebanon. For the United States, the latter was at most a secondary concern, but the nuclear threat was potentially existential. The United States attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities almost one year ago, damaging but not destroying the program. In subsequent negotiations, Iran rejected the U.S. and Israeli demand that it end its nuclear program, and so war was...

How Trump Is Running the Most Aggressive Geopolitical Play in a Generation—and Why It Has to Be This Way From 1973 to 1977 the National Hockey League was the wild west, and Bob “Gasser” Gassoff—a 5’10”, 190-pound wrecking ball who skated for the St. Louis Blues—was one of the best enforcers in the game. His job was not to score. It was to protect the players who did. High-stick, slash, board or manhandle a Blues skill player and Gasser would drop the gloves and answer the bell, over and over, until somebody turtled or a referee had the stones to...

An animal rights activist who attempted to 'free' a crayfish by stealing it from a restaurant and throwing it into the sea has claimed she was the victim of a police 'witch-hunt' after being convicted of criminal damage.

A UC Berkeley Institute of Government Studies poll released last month found 52% of California voters inclined to back the tax, 33% opposed, and 15% undecided. Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom opposes the measure and has warned it could push wealthy residents to leave. Several billionaires and business leaders have criticized the proposal as anti-innovation and economically risky.

The president of Turning Point USA’s University of Georgia chapter says the organization has strayed from the mission it had under the leadership of Charlie Kirk. Caroline Mattox wrote on Instagram that she could not in good conscience stay with an organization that has “strayed so far from its original purpose and principles.” Mattox is not the first TPUSA chapter president to express dissatisfaction with the organization’s current direction. The University of Arkansas chapter cut ties with TPUSA last month. Former President Dino Fantegrossi also expressed the sentiment that TPUSA had strayed from its original mission.

SCOOP: The Madison Metropolitan School District in Wisconsin sent out a message notifying parents that May 1st classes will be canceled so teachers can join anti-ICE protests Your students are forced to lose out on their education so teachers can be left-wing political activists. SHUT IT DOWN

Chaos at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner turned surreal as a brief shooting scare involving Donald Trump triggered panic—while viral videos showed journalists fleeing with food and wine, sparking a “Wine Gate” controversy. Pre-event remarks by press secretary Karoline Leavitt about “shots fired” added an eerie twist, as the FBI now probes the incident amid global scrutiny.

Officers from the Northern District Police on Monday arrested a 40-year-old woman from the north who is employed as a doctor at a medical institution in central Israel, on allegations of making repeated death threats against the journalist, Mohammad Magadli. The investigation, which began covertly several weeks ago, focused on a series of phone calls Magadli received from unrecognized numbers. In one of the calls that were disclosed, the suspect threatened: "Within a week, I'll get to you, and I'll eliminate you." Upon receiving the report about the threats, the police utilized advanced technological means that led to the identification...

House Oversight Chairman James Comer is cranking the investigation into Rep. Ilhan Omar’s husband, Tim Mynett, into overdrive – demanding a full accounting of shadowy international business trips and deals that stretch from the Horn of Africa straight into Kenya, Somalia and the glittering skyscrapers of Dubai. Omar has been making strange moves since February, after Comer fired off a no-holds-barred letter demanding every document and communication on Mynett’s travel and business dealings in Kenya, Somalia and the UAE.

First lady Melania Trump savagely criticized ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel as a “coward” after he referred to her as “an expectant widow” two days before Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner. “Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy- his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America,” Trump, 56, wrote in a post on X. The comic is facing severe backlash after Saturday’s shooting at the gala dinner, in which a Secret Service agent suffered minor injuries after a gunman charged a checkpoint in a bid to...

The aftermath of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting has taken a sharper turn after Elon Musk dropped a statement that is now driving intense debate across social media and political circles.In a post on X, Musk wrote, “If they’re willing to die to assassinate, imagine what they will do if they gain political power,” a line that didn’t just react to the incident, but expanded it into a much bigger warning about ideology, power, and what could come next.That single sentence reframed the entire conversation. It moved the focus away from one gunman and toward a broader fear that...

VIDEOThe most important thing about the "manifesto" written by the shooter at the White House Correspondents Dinner who wanted to assassinate President Donald Trump and those associated with him is that he sounds pretty much like the typical Democrat nowadays who consider Trump to be an "existential threat" to our country. Hopefully at least a few Democrats will realize where their violent TDS rhetoric is leading (such as the THREE assassination attempts upon the President) and ask themselves "Are we the Baddies?"

this got impossibly long and so i’m going to break it up into sections. this is section 1: theory there is an objective reality, but it can only be perceived and partaken of subjectively. we see what we expect to see, what we are told to seek, what we are taught to project and this makes the feedback loops of perception and reality into something both inescapable and unavoidable: your perceptions determine what meaning and substance you subjectively apply to the objective evidence of the world around you. (worse, it also biases which evidence you select to seek out in...

A video of Alex Lifeson, the guitarist of the band, “RUSH,” arguing with his parents about quitting high school to go into music. Alex’s dad wants him to follow him into the world of plumbing. If you are a fan like me, it’s an amazing video.

During the White House Correspondents' Dinner (WHCD) on April 25, 2026, a reported gunfire incident (described as shots fired in or near the lobby) caused panic, leading to an evacuation of attendees, including President Trump and other high-profile guests who were rushed out by security. In the chaos, viral videos emerged showing several guests—perhaps journalists, members of the press, or attendees—grabbing unopened bottles of wine and champagne from the tables as they left. One clip prominently features a woman picking up multiple bottles and walking out casually. Other people in the background are also seen carrying bottles. Key details: The...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a the wake of yet another failed assassination attempt against President Trump, leading Democrats across the nation announced they would observe the long-standing tradition of a five-minute pause in calling Trump "literally Hitler". "This is a time for healing, reflection, and lowering the temperature. Specifically, five minutes' time," said Representative Hakeem Jeffries. "Ugh, this five minutes is killing me. Has it really only been thirty seconds? Time passes so slowly when you're not calling someone Hitler." The coordinated pause began immediately after politicians had finished copying and pasting their public statements from the last assassination attempt...