Free Republic

Jamie Raskin says expanded background checks on private firearm sales will be among his priorities as expected House Judiciary Committee chairman. Republicans argue the proposal would burden hobbyists, friends, and people selling firearms from personal collections. Gun rights advocates warn that expanded background checks would create a registry that could enable future confiscation. Raskin also said he would scrutinize antitrust deals and perhaps pursue another impeachment of President Donald Trump. SNIP

A soft-spoken Democrat with liberal views, Rockefeller served five six-year terms representing West Virginia ‌in the Senate and became a prominent critic of the Iraq War. WASHINGTON — John D. “Jay” Rockefeller IV, the progeny of one of America’s most famous and wealthiest families who during three decades in the Senate sought expanded healthcare for the poor and excoriated President George W. Bush’s handling of the Iraq War, died Friday at his home in Washington, The Washington Post reported. He was 89. His family did not ​provide a cause, the newspaper added. Rockefeller, a tall, soft-spoken Democrat with liberal views,...

Many years ago, I wrote a brief post on the birthday of the brief-reigning Roman Emperor Claudius II Gothicus. This post was little more than a summary of his reign (from AD 268-270) based on the scanty sources we have for that period during the so-called Crisis of the Third Century. At the end, however, I included a notice about the supposed familial link between Claudius and Constantine. Claudius has been on my mind a bit lately, and so I decided to ask my preferred AI bot what it thought of this thesis. The initial result didn't surprise me: Constantine...

Salon, we hardly knew ye. After nearly 31 years, the darling online magazine of the Left has shut down. To commemorate the outlet’s stunning and brave transition into the ash heap of history, I’ve compiled a list of the 10 greatest hits to ever grace the digital pages of our dearly departed Salon.com. 10. The Legend of Zelda” is classist, sexist and racist Because nothing screams “vital political commentary” quite like demanding a full Marxist breakdown of a 1998 Nintendo 64 cartridge … 15 years after it hit shelves. Salon treated readers to a deep dive into “Ocarina of Time,”...

Republicans were eviscerated in an election President Donald Trump and his opponents saw as a referendum on his second term. The outcome bodes ill for the GOP, which now faces strong Democratic majorities in Congress and the prospect of endless investigations and legislative stonewalling. One prominent Republican with an eye for 2028 decided to attack the president’s record just before the midterms. In an interview with Stephen A. Smith, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis lambasted the Iran War and other failures of the administration. “We just got to be honest. Gas is higher. It hurts people, working-class people, and it’s higher...

Key FactsRubio has spoken to White House officials about stepping down, according to Bloomberg.Rubio’s office denied the report, with State Department spokesperson Dylan Johnson telling Bloomberg, “this is complete and total fake news based on the word of anonymous sources, benefitting a tabloid. The secretary has not discussed leaving his role and he will continue to proudly serve in President Trump’s administration long after this fake news is revealed as yet another baseless hoax.”Bloomberg’s report follows an earlier report in British outlet The Independent that cited anonymous sources saying Rubio is considering resigning.Rubio is frequently floated as a potential 2028...

This year’s Rockefeller Center Christmas tree was cut down on Thursday and will be trucked to New York City to usher in the holiday season. The 76-foot (23-meter) Norway spruce is expected to arrive Saturday following its journey from a yard in West Edmeston, New York. The conifer is approximately 75 years old and measures 50 feet (15 meters) in diameter. The tradition dates back to 1931, when crews building Rockefeller Center put up a small Christmas tree with handmade garlands.

Senior congressional Democrats have been studying a 181-page dossier that identifies hundreds of executives and companies for them to investigate after they take control of the House and Senate next year. The document, drafted by the think tank Groundwork Collaborative and reviewed by The Washington Sun, argues that the party should respond to the results of the election by aggressively probing large corporations, including the biggest tech giants, artificial intelligence labs, natural gas firms, private prisons and nursing home operators, among dozens of others. House Democrats on the Judiciary and Oversight committees have been reviewing the document, according to multiple...

..since I, as well as most posters here I assume, consider FR as more than just the best conservative news aggregator, but a conservative community of both fellowship as well as debate, then consistent with this I also would encourage ownership to treat it more as such, with regular explanations for problems, particular needs, and future plans. I also believe that presenting a list of operating [and admin] expenses, meaning where donor's money is going, would elicit more. Also if needed, accept user help with technical issues, for I am sure many would gladly do so. But most importantly, please...

I have a few thoughts about the recent electoral debacle that conservatives just faced. Sure their is blame to place on Trump. He is polarizing, revengeful, verbose and at times insufferable. But I voted for him twice and would vote for him again if possible. You see I am a conservative and vote for ideology rather than emotion. I am also an evangelical christian. I believe in the sovereignty of God while He still allows us free will. I often argued with my Sunday school teacher who believed we were a wicked nation headed for prophetic oblivion. In retrospect he...

Democrats swept Republicans off the map in nearly every purple and blue state, but in many of those same states, voters also approved conservative ballot measures by wide margins. Voters in eight states passed ballot initiatives strengthening voter identification requirements or explicitly restricting voting to American citizens. Oklahoma voters approved a voter ID constitutional amendment in August, bringing the year’s total to nine states. Ohio voters — who elected Democrat Amy Acton governor and sent Sherrod Brown back to the Senate — simultaneously approved Issue 3, a ballot measure that writes the state’s photo ID requirement into the constitution, with...

The U.S. economy added jobs at a much stronger than expected pace in October, while the unemployment rate moved lower as the labor market showed surprising strength. Nonfarm payrolls increased by a seasonally adjusted 165,000 for the month, compared with the Dow Jones estimate for 59,000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

A 97-year-old California man died at his own birthday party moments after dancing to the Bee Gees’ “Stayin’ Alive” — a “dramatic exit” that the fun-loving senior would have wanted. Los Angeles baker Eden Malinoff, 24, revealed the remarkable story of Vito, her neighbor, after throwing him a Halloween-themed birthday bash last week. In footage Malinoff posted to TikTok Monday, Vito was seen clapping, swaying and smiling, dressed in a black button-down shirt and dress pants, as the ‘70s disco classic played. The senior appeared to be having the time of his life before the celebration took a tragic turn...

It was epochal and marks a new era in our political history. And for once everyone rushed to name clearly what happened. The morning after the 2026 midterm elections, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was searingly blunt. For the Republican Party it was “close to an extinction level event.” Its effects will “reverberate for the next decade or more.” “It was a Watergate-level repudiation,” said Ted Cruz, soon to be Texas’ lone Republican senator, on a podcast. Ronna McDaniel, Republican National Committee chairman in the first Trump term, told Fox News on Wednesday the election wasn’t only a Democratic wave, it...

Listen up, Texans: most of you have never experienced living under Democratic rule, and there are some new realities you need to be ready for. Here are 12 things you can do now to prepare for the Dems taking over: 1. Forget the Alamo: It had a good run. 2. Practice riding your horse in a hijab: It's going to take some getting used to. 3. Start saying "you all" instead of "y'all": Contractions are hate speech. 4. Practice shooting with finger guns: We have some bad news about the real ones. 5. Trade in your cowboy hat for a...

A Florida Marine veteran was credited Thursday as a hero for fatally shooting a gunman who drove onto a Citibank Center campus and began hunting down workers in anger over a delinquent $2,500 credit card bill, officials said. During a press briefing detailing the tragedy, Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister identified the security officer as John Fraley, who confronted 35-year-old Jacob Pearson inside the corporate setting just after he shot and killed a female Citibank employee. "He is an individual that's afforded an opportunity to carry a firearm because the ones who were either previous law enforcement or military and...

The Red Baron employee who went viral last week for confronting a prankster has thanked supporters and asked them to help others after a fundraiser for his family collected nearly $800,000. The worker, identified on the fundraiser as Walt Z, left a comment on the GoFundMe started for him by Luke Oakenshield, a military veteran from Chandler, Arizona, who didn’t know Walt before the incident. As of Thursday, the collection had skyrocketed to $787,477 before the fundraiser was paused. “Your kind words have meant the world to my family and I this past week. I still cannot believe how much...

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito reportedly has no immediate plans to retire as conservative concerns mount over the future of the nation’s highest court following a bruising midterm wipeout that could keep Republicans out of power for years. Tuesday’s results saw Republicans lose at least seven seats across the country, giving Democrats a larger-than-expected Senate majority. The races in Mississippi and Alaska remain too close to call. Vice President JD Vance warned Wednesday that the heavy losses could leave the GOP shut out of Senate control until at least 2032. “The reason we lost is the war. The president himself...

During the third quarter of Wednesday's Kings-Lakers game, a fan sitting behind the basket got berated by LA star Luka Doncic for throwing the ball back to the ref ... too hard ... after it trickled out of bounds. That's right. "Too hard." Wait until you see this chest pass this fan launches at this female NBA ref. Better yet, wait till you see the absolute tantrum Luka throws after he sees it. Naturally, the fan was ejected.

The day before the midterm elections, PBS ran a piece claiming that “In the run-up to the midterm elections, experts have documented a surge of Islamophobia in political ads and speeches.” And now that Michigan’s Abdul El-Sayed will become the country’s first Muslim U.S. senator, it’s a certainty that any criticism of his statements or positions will be labeled as an attack on all followers of Islam. But as the country’s Islamic population grows and Muslims continue to gain access to the levers of power in the U.S., we need to do what we didn’t as a nation do...