Free Republic

State lawmakers passed redrawn congressional lines Wednesday that create four more GOP-leaning seats in Florida, making it the eighth state to complete mid-decade redistricting in the 2026 election cycle — and most likely setting up a historic legal challenge in the state. (Snip) Under the new plans, seats held by Democrats Jared Moskowitz and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, both of South Florida, would also be transformed into Republican-leaning districts.

U.S. — The growing rift between the political right and left in the country became even more evident this week, as a new poll showed that a majority of Democrats believe the Lincoln assassination was staged. Though long held to be a historical fact, a plurality of Democratic voters went on record in a research study to confirm that they now suspect that President Abraham Lincoln was never actually assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, and that the entire incident was simply an elaborate hoax. "That whole situation was suspicious," lifelong Democrat Dean Stinson posted on social media. "Sure, the...

A seventeen-second video shows a dark-haired man rapping his pale knuckles gently below the tinted windows of a silver minivan. He stands back, shoving his hands into the pockets of his puffer coat, his boyish face twisted into a severe expression. The car drives off, and the camera pans to follow it down the suburban Minneapolis road. No words are spoken. Splashed across the screen, a bright red and white caption reads, “ICE was circling a local elementary school. I knocked on their door to have a conversation, but they ran away instead.” The man is Matt Little, 41, a...

European Great Tits and 36 other bird species on the continent are more afraid of women than they are of men, according to a recent study—and researchers have no idea why. In the study, men could get about a meter closer to birds than women could before the animals flew away, according to the results. This pattern remained regardless of what the men and women were wearing, what their height was or how they tried to approach the creatures. That suggests birds may be able to suss out the sex of a human, though the researchers aren’t sure how. “I...

An Indian real estate agent in Ontario, Canada has claimed to a judge that it was a “cultural misunderstanding” when he lured a boy into his vehicle and abducted him. He is now facing deportation from the country. Manoj Govindbalunikam, 37, was given an 18-month sentence earlier in April after being convicted of abducting a 9-year-old boy in August 2023. He pleaded not guilty to abducting the boy and then buying the young lad ice cream as well as toys. Police later found photos of him with the boy in his yellow Chevrolet Camaro. While in court, Govindbalunikam’s lawyer asked...

U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) jumped in the first quarter of 2026, compared to the previous quarter’s growth, the Commerce Department reported Thursday – a sign that the nation’s economy remains solid. Real (inflation-adjusted) GDP increased at an annual rate of 2.0% in the first quarter after rising just 0.5% in the last three months of 2025, according to the report providing an advanced estimate of GDP. A second, updated estimate will be published May 28, to eventually be followed by the third (and final) estimate. "The core of the economy remained solid in Q1, driven by the AI buildout...

The family of four noted in their report that the suspected UFO was within a few miles of the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) at Twentynine Palms, about 125 miles east of Los Angeles. However, the sighting also took place roughly 115 miles from Edwards Air Force Base, the world's largest airfield - and a famous testing ground for experimental aircraft and prototypes since the 1940s.

A New Orleans sheriff has been indicted with 30 felony offenses in connection with a jail break last May, in which 10 inmates escaped. On Wednesday, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill announced that Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson had been indicted by a special grand jury convened to investigate the May 16 escape at the Orleans Justice Center. “While Sheriff Hutson did not personally open the doors of the jail for the escapees, her refusal to comply with basic legal requirements and to take even minimal precautions in the discharge of her duties directly contributed to and enabled the escape,”...

Fast-rising gas prices lifted the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge to 3.5% in March, its highest rate in almost three years, new data showed Thursday. The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index rose 0.7% from February, a faster-than-expected acceleration from the previous monthly pace of 0.4%, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. The annual rate of inflation, which jumped from 2.8% in February, is now running at its fastest pace since May 2023. The PCE Price Index is the inflation gauge the Federal Reserve uses for its 2% target rate. The sharp hike in energy prices, an aftershock of the Middle East...

Ford Motor Company says it will earn more money this year than previously expected after receiving a larger tariff refund than cross-town rival General Motors (GM), with both brands now forecasting improved financial results. Ford reported it will receive a one-off tariff refund of $US1.3 billion, nearly three times the $US500 million that GM expects to be refunded. The automaker also said it has effectively halved its expected tariff costs for 2026 to $US1 billion, due to both the refunds and its lower reliance on imports into the US, where it builds 83 per cent of its North American model...

David Allan Coe, the outlaw country music legend and pioneer songwriter behind hits such as “You Never Even Called Me by My Name” and “Take This Job and Shove It,” has died. He was at 86. David died Wednesday in a hospital, his rep told the New York Times without elaborating further. “David is a musical treasure,” the representative said. “Even in his years of declining health, David appreciated all of the fans.” A cause of death has not yet been confirmed. “One of the best singers, songwriters, and performers of our time [and] never to be forgotten,” his wife,...

Florida Democratic Rep. Angie Nixon temporarily disrupted final passage of a Gov. Ron DeSantis-backed redistricting bill by shouting in a bullhorn during the vote.

The U.S. national debt now exceeds 100% of gross domestic product, crossing a once-unthinkable threshold, on the way toward breaking the record set in the wake of World War II. As of March 31, the country’s publicly held debt was $31.265 trillion, while GDP over the preceding year was $31.216 trillion, according to data released Thursday. That puts the ratio at 100.2%, compared with 99.5% when the last fiscal year ended Sept. 30. That figure will likely climb for the foreseeable future because the federal government is running historically large annual deficits of nearly 6% of GDP, which add to...

[Catholic Caucus] The Pope of What?There is no doubt in my mind that Leo is the true and valid pope. The question in my mind is, “the pope of what?”“He is the pope of the Catholic Church,” you might say. Your answer assumes that the Church of Rome is the Holy Catholic Church that was founded by Jesus Christ. You believe that. But you do not — cannot— know that.There is a difference between knowing and believing. I define “knowing” as when you learn something that is consistently verifiable and universally accepted. “Belief” is a conclusion that you reach about...

The shipwreck of a WWI US combat vessel has been discovered off the Cornish coast by a team of divers – 108 years after it sank. The US Coastguard Cutter TAMPA has been missing since being torpedoed by a German U–boat in 1918. Now, it has been found, 50 miles offshore in Newquay by the Gasperados Dive Team. All 131 lives on the vessel were lost including those from the American navy and coastguard, and British civilians. Dominic Robinson, 54, a member of the Gasperados Dive Team, says they have been searching for the last three years for the ship...

As I recover from foot surgery in Chicago, my break from the Walk Across America has given me time to do more than reflect. I’ve seen so many things on my walk so far through small towns, big cities, ghettos, suburbs, open-air drug markets, posh farmers markets and even the occasional country market. Throughout it all, I’ve seen Americans of so many stripes, and they’re all moving forward, moving with a sense of purpose in their work and in their belief in God. And when I returned home to the South Side of Chicago, I was struck by the stillness...

A planned Muslim-led city in the heart of Texas is one step close to becoming a reality after a judge said the state must comply with developers. The East Plano Islamic Community (EPIC) mosque is hoping to create a new neighborhood for its followers just outside of Dallas, close to the town of Josephine. Initially called EPIC City, the project was rebranded as The Meadow last year. The master-planned city will include 1,000 homes, a mosque, green spaces and schools. Hundreds of locals have spoken out against the idea, along with state legislators including Governor Greg Abbott and Attorney General...

A few days ago, I wrote about hate being the lifeblood of the democrat party. Things have gone downhill quickly since then. Let's get right to it. Almost six years ago, the late and great Scott Adams said Republicans will be hunted. That was prescient. Then the other day I saw a post from Elon Musk on X. In it he said"If they’re willing to die to assassinate, imagine what they will do if they gain political power"Indeed. We are in war. A declared war. A not-so-civil war. On April 22 Hakeem Jeffries declared war on Republicans: “We are in...

A former Chick-fil-A employee in North Texas is accused of stealing more than $80,000 by processing 800 fake macaroni and cheese tray refunds to himself, authorities said. According to Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office online booking records, Keyshun Darnell Jones was arrested on April 18. He was charged with several felonies, including property theft between $30,000 and $50,000, money laundering between $30,000 and $50,000, and evading arrest, records show. According to the Grapevine Police Department, an investigation was opened in November 2025 after a Chick-fil-A franchise owner in the city, located in the Dallas-Fort Worth multiplex, reported a theft. While detectives...

California’s soaring cost for its dragged-out high-speed rail construction was inflated by another recent political embarrassment for the state: labor icon Cesar Chavez.