Free Republic

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has given $1.5 million to a group supporting the repeal of Alaska’s voting system, according to a report filed with the state Friday. Ballot Measure 2, which will appear on the November ballot, seeks to repeal Alaska’s ranked choice voting method, along with open primaries and campaign finance laws that were themselves adopted by ballot measure in 2020.

Jail records obtained by Fox 49 News show former Tallahassee Mayor and Florida gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum is in the Baldwin County Jail in Alabama tonight. The "TMZ" website quotes Baldwin County Assistant District Attorney John Oxford as saying the 46-year-old Gillum was jailed after reportedly failing a drug test. In July he was pulled over for erratic driving, and later charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance, a felony and second-degree possession of marijuana, which is a misdemeanor. He was booked into the Daphne City Jail before being transferred to the Baldwin County Correctional Facility but was released...

Sawyer Merritt:I don't think most people understand the massive scale of investment Tesla & SpaceX are making in Texas right now.Everything the two companies are/going to build across the state: • Terafab (Grimes County) • Gigasat factory (in Bastrop, currently under construction) • Optimus factory (at Giga Texas, currently under construction) • Advanced technology fab (at Giga Texas, currently under construction) • Tesla Project Crystal Sun (big solar cell plant in Fort Bend County. Late 2026 construction start date) • Expanded Starlink terminal production facility (in Bastrop, currently under construction) • Further Starbase expansion (in Starbase) • Tesla Megafactory 3...

Todd Blanche's uphill battle to be confirmed as attorney general ended on Saturday with a 50-49 vote in the Senate, after President Donald Trump's former lawyer managed to win key Republican support.

Charlie Hatcher, the former state agricultural commissioner, rode support from prominent establishment Republicans to a victory over the CONTROVERSIAL congressman backed by President Donald Trump. He is a heavy favorite in the general election for the deep-red district. While Ogles had arguably the most important endorsement in a GOP primary in the form of Trump, Hatcher had backing from current Gov. Bill Lee, former Gov. Bill Haslam and other prominent Republicans, like former Trump Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.

Terafab Texas will produce chips for Optimus robots, self-driving Cybercabs and space-based data centers SpaceX announced this week that its planned semiconductor plant that is expected to become the largest building in the world at more than 100 million square feet will be built in Grimes, Texas, outside of Houston. "Terafab Texas will be the largest and most valuable building on Earth by far," owner Elon Musk wrote X Thursday. "And it will be stunningly beautiful." The factory is a joint effort with Musk’s electric car company, Tesla. "This facility will house the manufacturing, packaging and testing of advanced logic...

Weddings are a joyous occasion, and I’ve heard of at least three in my social circles in the upcoming months. But two of these weddings are diverting from the norm of a weekend celebratory affair, choosing instead to hold their nuptials on a weekday. “A weekday?!” one might well say. “How inconsiderate! I can’t take a whole day off from work just to attend a wedding!”But perhaps that’s the whole point – not to be inconsiderate, of course, but to trim costs. After all, setting a wedding for a weekday reduces the costs of venues, caterers, florists, and other services,...

ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – Two St. Johns County teenagers are facing felony charges after a tip to FortifyFL led investigators to what officials described as homemade firearms, explosive components and plans to commit an armed robbery. St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office deputies and the St. Johns County School District safety team began investigating on April 27 after receiving information through FortifyFL. Detectives said they identified two Switzerland Point Middle School students as the suspects: Julian Davis, 14, and a 13-year-old. NOTE: News4JAX is naming Davis because of the nature and seriousness of the charges against him. Between April 27-30,...

Shockwaves spread across the sports world Wednesday as former NBA king LeBron James announced he would not be playing for the Philadelphia 76ers during the 2026-2027 season and would instead join the Minnesota Lynx of the WNBA midseason. James cited an identity change from LeBron to Lebronya as the reason for the unexpected switch. “Yeah, once I saw the openness and the opportunity were there, it was an obvious decision for me,” James explained. “Clearly another NBA championship, a few thousand more points — it would have been nice. But how much more meaningful to win a championship as who...

Terrifying footage shows a Russian drone hunting a street vendor in Ukraine – as Moscow intensifies its drone and missile attacks against the country. The nerve-wracking video, which has sparked allegations of war crimes from Ukrainian officials, shows a vegetable vendor being chased around his van stand by the low-flying craft before it explodes just as he dives behind his vehicle. The vendor, a man in his 50s, survived the blast but suffered shock and shrapnel injuries, officials said. An explosion occurring between two vehicles, with the Ukrainian National Police emblem visible in the corner.A Russian drone taunted and hunted...

Abdul El-Sayed’s Democratic primary win in Michigan is a watershed moment for the Palestine movement in the United States. El-Sayed ran on a platform that consistently centered Palestinian humanity and an end to US military funding to Israel—principled positions that his opponents viciously attacked him for.

Dozens of suspected bot accounts on X/Twitter are amplifying content from New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his circle, and reportedly can be traced to New York City Hall IP infrastructure, the World Zionist Organization told The Jerusalem Post exclusively. As part of its activities against the waves of antisemitism online, WZO’s dedicated Department for Combating Antisemitism was presented with data and findings collected by cyber experts specializing in the field. The information included an analysis of IP addresses and mapping of activity patterns and distribution networks of suspected bot accounts. WZO’s technological examination of activity on the X...

Former NBA player Royce White told OutKick/Fox News Digital that he apparently plans to declare for the 2027 WNBA Draft, as he now claims to be transgender. There are now two former NBA players to announce such a decision, after Enes Kanter Freedom made his announcement earlier on Friday. "I'm transgender. I'm a woman. I identify as sometimes identifying as a woman for purpose of basketball, professional basketball, so I'll be declaring for the WNBA draft in 2027 as well," White said. "I think I’d be unstoppable. But I’m a team-first guy. I’m a pass-first kind of player. I do...

Former NBA player Brandon Clarke died of a lethal combination of drugs, according to officials. The County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner announced on Friday the 29-year-old passed away from “the effects of heroin and cocaine.” It added that the manner of his passing was an accident. Clarke died inside of a San Fernando Valley home on May 11, and according to the LA County DME, medical personnel first located him “unresponsive in his bedroom” at around 5 p.m. He was ultimately pronounced deceased at 5:15 p.m. Drug paraphernalia was discovered near his body and the initial investigation...

After a hacker exfiltrated the data of 633,000 Maricopa County, Arizona, voter records in 2020, zero prosecutors at any level of government would prosecute despite urging from the FBI. Documents released Thursday morning by the White House Government Transparency Task Force detail the massive data breach, an investigation by the FBI, a suspect who admitted to the crime, and a years-long attempt by the FBI to get someone to prosecute, only to close the case due to a lack of prosecutor interest. “The suspect, perhaps to the chagrin of his attorney, admitted to all of the conduct involved, including that...

I've recently been rewatching the HBO comedy series Veep – it's about a fictional female vice president whose narcissism, unbridled political ambition, and cringey mishaps make Kamala Harris look sober and competent. The show is oddly timeless, as the political issues that come up on repeat are things like "filibuster reform" and getting kids to put down the computer games and exercise. And, it's really funny (and, as a warning, often unnecessarily crude). The show doesn't ever mention political parties, so it rather satisfyingly mocks the entire Swamp. In one particularly funny episode, the vice president (who's also running for...

The Department of War on Friday revoked former Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall's eligibility for access to classified intel after he leaked classified information about Air Force One to the media. The Biden-era Air Force Secretary leaked sensitive information about President Trump's Qatari-gifted Air Force One jet to The New York Times. Full statement from Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell: Effective immediately, the Department of War has REVOKED former Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall’s eligibility for access to classified information and his ability to hold any sensitive position. This action follows his unauthorized disclosure of classified information...

Labour council in Cambridge has installed squat toilets said to be favoured by international visitors and are charging users £1 per visit. The public toilets - which include three 'squat-style flushing toilets' - on Silver Street, opposite Queens' College at the University of Cambridge, cost Cambridge City Council £1million to build. They replaced a 1980s block that was repeatedly flooded by the River Cam, which runs next to it. The council said the style of toilet was 'preferred by some international visitors'. Locals have since criticised the 'crazy' £1 charge to use the toilets, which opened last month. Heather Boyd,...

This video reports on a busy, late-night session in the *U.S. Senate* as they concluded business before the August recess. Here is a summary of the key events: * **Confirmation of Attorney General:** The Senate narrowly confirmed *Todd Blanche* as the 88th *U.S. Attorney General* in a 50-49 vote (0:46-0:56). The confirmation process faced several delays and opposition from Democrats regarding concerns over how he might lead the *Department of Justice* (0:22-0:37). * **Interim Spending Bill:** Lawmakers passed a bipartisan interim spending bill (90-6) to keep the government funded through December 11th, significantly reducing the immediate risk of a government...

On Tuesday morning, we published an episode arguing that Starship's heat shield doesn't need to be perfect. It needs to be serviceable. On Tuesday afternoon, on SpaceX's very first earnings call as a public company, Elon Musk went further than we ever dared. Quote: "I'd consider the heat shield problem solved at this point." And that was just one hour of this call. A ship catch attempt at the end of this month. Operational Starlink V3 satellites on Flight 14. One Starship launch per day within a year. Boots on the Moon in 2028. All of it on the record,...