Free Republic

More than a week into his administration, President Joe Biden’s legislative agenda seems to have hit a wall in Congress. Biden, who served in the United States Senate for 36 years before his ascension to the vice presidency, was pitched as a “master legislator” by allies and supporters during the 2020 campaign. The president, himself, bolstered that image with constant references to his history of working across the aisle to craft bipartisan compromise. “Compromise is not a dirty word, it’s how our government is designed to work,” Biden told the National Education Association last July. “I’ve done it my whole...

There is a scene in Peter Jackson's film "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" when Bilbo Baggins and his dwarf companions stand at the entrance to Mirkwood Forest, through which they must travel to reach their destination. Once lush, green and verdant, Mirkwood has become infested with evil. Bilbo hesitates to enter, saying, "This forest feels ... sick." This country feels ... sick. Even the briefest foray into social media, editorial commentary or what passes for "news" makes it abundantly clear: America is sick. She is sick because her people have been fed a steady diet of propaganda, political theater...

Liz Cheney and Kevin McCarthy are making two very different bets on Donald Trump — and the one who guesses right may find themselves with a future leading the GOP. The decision by Cheney, the No. 3 House Republican, to split with the minority leader and embrace Trump’s impeachment marks the most dramatic rift in the upper rungs of GOP leadership since Trump took office. It caps a years-long tussle between the party leaders over how closely the GOP should align itself with Trump and where the party should go after he leaves office.