Free Republic

In the following list, 99 senators are ranked according to their overall composite liberal or conservative scores based on National Journal's 2006 vote ratings

Death toll up to 17,400; overdue report describes PETA's deadliest year ever WASHINGTON, Jan. 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- An official report from People for The Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), submitted nine months after a Virginia government agency's deadline, shows that the animal rights group put to death more than 97 percent of the dogs, cats, and other pets it took in for adoption in 2006. During that year, the well-known animal rights group managed to find adoptive homes for just 12 pets. The nonprofit Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF) is calling on PETA to either end its hypocritical angel-of-death program,...

Mohammed, and its most common alternative spelling Muhammad, are now more popular babies' names in England and Wales than George, reflecting the diverse ethnic mix of the population. The Office for National Statistics said there were 2,833 baby boys called Mohammed in 2006. The name is 22nd in the list of most popular boys' names, moving up a place from last year. Spelled Muhammad, it is the 44th most popular name and enters the top 50 for the first time along with Noah, Oscar, Lucas and Rhys. There were 2,833 babies called Mohammed born in 2006 and 1,422 called Muhammad....

Report estimates county's illegal immigrant cost at $256 million in 2006 By: GIG CONAUGHTON - Staff Writer SAN DIEGO ---- A county-commissioned study estimated that illegal immigrants directly cost the county of San Diego and taxpayers $101 million last year, and indirectly cost an additional $155 million in unpaid medical care. However, the estimates in the $40,000 study, which the county Board of Supervisors voted to pursue in May 2006, were largely based on anecdotal information rather than hard statistics. Supervisors sought the study in the hope of presenting federal officials with a bill for the costs of illegal immigration...

Karl Rove, President Bush's political lieutenant, told a closed-door meeting of 2008 Republican House candidates and their aides Tuesday that it was less the war in Iraq than corruption in Congress that caused their party's defeat in the 2006 elections.

Increasing numbers of foreign tourists are choosing to holiday in Sweden - and they are spending more money than ever, according to new figures from Visit Sweden. The number of 'guest nights' spent in the country in 2006 increased by 9 percent compared to the year before. While the most frequent visitors are from neighbouring countries, new budget airline routes mean that more and more Russian and Chinese tourists are coming. "The foreign tourists we're targeting with our marketing of Sweden are very interested in different and exotic experiences. Reporting on the internet, in newspapers and on television has proven...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In a big turnaround from a year ago, the U.S. Army will achieve its 2006 goal of 80,000 new soldiers despite lingering reluctance by some potential recruits to join amid the Iraq war, officials said on Friday. ADVERTISEMENT Adding recruiters, sweetening enlistment bonuses, accepting older volunteers and even tolerating more tattoos helped the active-duty Army rebound from fiscal-year 2005 when it fell almost 7,000 recruits short of 80,000, officials said. "We will make our 80,000 mission (for new recruits) for the fiscal year," said Maj. Gen. Sean Byrne, the Army's director of personnel management. Fiscal 2006 ends...

Dear Cyber-lobbyist: The following is a summary of theVEA perspective on 2006 General Assembly Sessions to date: 2006 Sessions 1 & 2: Winning Ugly in Overtime From your GR Director A thorough search of soul and gray matter (a limited commodity here) leads me to what seems the best analogy for the 2006 General Assembly Sessions. It has been like the experience of going to see your favorite basketball team play. They play horribly, but win in overtime despite the atrocious play. You leave disappointed by the sloppiness of the play, not focusing on the fact that they achieved the...

2006 General Assembly Wrap-Up on Sexual Orientation Issues 4/10/2006 By Linda Wall Virginians can breathe a sigh of relief because all legislation pertaining to “sexual orientation” was defeated. A deliberate plan to force Virginians to accept homosexuality was implemented by “sexual orientation” activists. Former Governor Warner and Governor Kaine participated on the scheme to make homosexuality a protected class with special rights. It was as if an invisible “wall of Jericho” had been erected almost overnight around Virginia and the future looked bleak. Warner laid the foundation for the wall when he hijacked a section of the budget to use...

This year’s "Top Five" list highlights the myth that heavy regulation promotes environmental health. “In their zeal to promote their eco-political agenda, many environmentalists ignore evidence that overbearing regulation is counter-productive,” said Pacific Legal Foundation Vice President Dave Stirling. “A balanced approach—one that takes into account the human factor, the effect on jobs, the economy, and people’s ability to provide shelter and support for their families—is actually the most promising and humane way to protect the environment.” LIE NO. 1: THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT HELPS ENDANGERED SPECIES Truth: The ESA puts species in danger and undermines constitutional property rights. For...

Skyrocketing energy prices propelled Exxon Mobil Corp. to the top of the 2006 Fortune 500 list, and consigned Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to the No. 2 spot on the magazine's annual ranking of the nation's largest publicly traded companies. Fortune compiled its list based on companies' 2005 revenues. Exxon Mobil raked in $340 billion in revenue, a 25.5 percent increase over 2004, and had $36.1 billion in profits, the most by any U.S. company in history. Other oil producers also rose in the rankings, boosted by crude prices that topped $70 a barrel and gasoline prices that surpassed $3 a gallon...