Free Republic

Trump administration sends memo to Congress declaring 'non-international armed conflict' with drug cartels The Trump administration sent a memo to Congress on Thursday saying that the United States is now "in a non-international armed conflict" with drug cartels, which administration officials have designated as "terrorist organizations." "The President directed these actions consistent with his responsibility to protect Americans and United States interests abroad and in furtherance of United States national security and foreign policy interests, pursuant to his constitutional authority as Commander in Chief and Chief Executive to conduct foreign relations," the memo states. The notification to congressional lawmakers came...

GOP leaders historically argued spending cuts, not tax increases, should address national debt"... In the meantime, Republicans should take with a grain of salt increased revenue and ask themselves whether the goal is to balance a bloated budget with increased taxes or instead limit the size and scope of government. This important question once differentiated conservatives from liberals — I hope the current fad for import taxes doesn’t entice all conservatives to forget the goal of a small, constitutional federal government."

President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order on Friday to rename the Department of Defense the "Department of War," a White House official told Reuters Thursday. The order would authorize Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Pentagon and subordinate officials to use "secondary titles" such as "Secretary of War," "Department of War" and "Deputy Secretary of War" in official correspondence, public communications and ceremonial contexts, according to a White House fact sheet.

Armed Venezuelan F-16 fighter jets buzzed a US Warship in a “show of force” on Thursday after the US military blew up a Tren de Aragua drug trafficking vessel. CBS News reported: Two armed Venezuelan F-16 fighter jets flew over the USS Jason Dunham on Thursday, according to multiple Defense Department officials who described the action as a “show of force.” The Dunham, an Aegis guided-missile destroyer, is among a flotilla of U.S. warships dispatched to the region in recent weeks that the Pentagon says have been deployed to target criminal organizations and narco-terrorism. CBS News was unable to determine...

The Republican National Committee was dealt a blow by a unanimous decision of the Third Circuit Appeals Court in the RNC's effort to discard undated and misdated ballots in Pennsylvania. The three-judge panel said in the 55-page ruling that the affected ballots needed to be counted and failing to do so was unconstitutional. Pennsylvania voters are required to write the date on the envelope for their mail-in ballots. "The date requirement imposes a burden on Pennsylvanians' constitutional right to vote," the court ruling reads. "And it culminates in county election boards discarding thousands of ballots each time an election is...

After the great rebuke of 2024, many Democrats seem to think their party needs to become more moderate. But there’s another theory potent on the American left that believes Donald Trump’s election shows not just that American democracy is in danger, but that it doesn’t really work at all. What the country needs isn’t just a new policy agenda; it might need the kind of constitutional revolution — from adding new states, to packing the Supreme Court — that some Democrats already flirted with under Joe Biden. That’s the kind of argument that my guest today, Osita Nwanevu, makes in...

Wholesale inflation increased much more than expected in July, raising concerns about a resurgence of inflationary pressures in the economy. The Bureau of Labor Statistics on Thursday released the producer price index (PPI) for the month of July, which showed an increase of 0.9% from the prior month and 3.3% from a year ago. Those PPI figures were much hotter than the forecast of prices rising 0.2% on a monthly basis and 2.5% from last year that was estimated by economists polled by LSEG. Core PPI, which excludes volatile components like food and energy, also rose 0.9% from last month...

Boycott, eh? US exports of liquor and wine to Canada have plummeted by more than 60% in the first half of the year as furious Canucks snub American booze because of President Trump’s trade war. Shipments of popular US-made whiskeys, rums, gins and other liquors through June to Canadian provinces was around $43.4 million, according to the Distilled Spirits Council — a 62% drop from the approximate $114 million during the same period last year. Wine exports have suffered even more severely, falling approximately 67% based on federal trade statistics provided by the US trade group. The data was first...

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York released a troubling quarterly statement as the total household debt in the US increased by $185 billion in the past three months, up 1% from last quarter, when total household debt reached $18.9 trillion. Total household debt in the US now sits at $18.39 trillion. Housing debt increased 1.1% from April to June, now standing at $149 billion. Mortgage balances increased by $131 billion, notably the largest cause of household debt. Mortgage originations increased at a modest pace with $458 billion of debt added, while HELOC balances grew by $9 billion to $411...

@RandPaul The true cost of the tariffs 👇

@RepThomasMassie On September 3rd at 10:30am ET, @RepRoKhanna and I will be hosting a press conference at the Capitol joined by survivors of Epstein and Maxwell's abuse — several of whom will be speaking out for the first time. The survivors deserve justice and Americans deserve transparency.

We’re having a News Conference tomorrow in the White House. I’m going to make our Capital safer and more beautiful than it ever was before. The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY. We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital. The Criminals, you don’t have to move out. We’re going to put you in jail where you belong. It’s all going to happen very fast, just like the Border. We went from millions pouring in, to ZERO in the last few months. This will be easier — Be prepared! There will be no “MR. NICE GUY.”...

Nothing says "saving democracy" and "preserving norms" like totally rigging the system. It's like calling sterilizing and mutilating children "care." A complete inversion of reality wrapped up in comforting words. Since at least 2016, the Democrats have focused all their attention on rigging elections, both within their own party and for the electorate as a whole. As the Democrats have seen their coalition disintegrate, they have responded by employing ever more Byzantine tactics to ensure victory. Not that victories have been ensured, yet...they have only stacked the deck in their favor...so they move on to the next step. Let's take...

Right-wing activist and Trump adviser Laura Loomer sparked a wave of backlash after slamming the US Army for honoring a war hero because he is not 'US born' and spoke at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. Loomer penned a long post on X criticizing Army Secretary Dan Driscoll for recognizing the brave sacrifice of Florent Groberg, who tackled a suicide bomber in Afghanistan and saved the lives of his fellow soldiers. A Friday post from the US Army was sent out on the 13-year anniversary of Groberg's selfless act, which left him with catastrophic injuries and a Medal of Honor....

Whether you pronounce the delectable fruit (yes, it’s a fruit) as tomato or tomatto, Trump’s Mexican tariffs are forcing many dining establishments to either raise prices and risk losing customers, revamp menus or swallow the cost and bleed margin, said Sapana Grossi of Shah Grossi Law Firm, a business attorney specializing in the food and beverage industry.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he will impose a 100% tariff on computer chips, likely raising the cost of electronics, autos, household appliances and other goods deemed essential for the digital age.“We’ll be putting a tariff on of approximately 100% on chips and semiconductors,” Trump said in the Oval Office while meeting with Apple CEO Tim Cook. “But if you’re building in the United States of America, there’s no charge.”The Republican president said companies that make computer chips in the U.S. would be spared the import tax. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a shortage of computer chips...

During her nine hours speaking with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche last month, Ghislaine Maxwell said nothing during the interview that would be harmful to President Donald Trump, telling Blanche that Trump had never done anything in her presence that would have caused concern, according to sources familiar with what Maxwell said. The Trump administration, meanwhile, is considering publicly releasing the transcripts from the interview, multiple sources familiar with the internal discussions told ABC News. Maxwell's meetings with Blanche took place for nine hours over two days.

Six months into Donald Trump's return to the White House Marjorie Taylor Greene has about had it with the Republican Party. The conservative firebrand who surged onto the political scene in 2021 and has been an ever-present figure in the House GOP and MAGA orbit ever since told the Daily Mail in a 45-minute call this week that it may be time for her to walk away. 'I don't know if the Republican Party is leaving me, or if I'm kind of not relating to Republican Party as much anymore,' she revealed. 'I don't know which one it is.' Her...

The US plans to impose tariffs of 39% on Swiss imports as of August 7, the White House said on the night of Thursday-Friday – a rate even higher than the 31% announced by Trump in April. The tariff hike also deviates “significantly” from the draft of a joint declaration of intent which had been the result of intensive discussions between both sides in recent months, according to the Swiss government, which approved the draft on July 4. As such, a spokesman for the finance ministry spoke on Friday of “great regret” that the US intends to impose steep unilateral...

"What if I told you that the Supreme Court just dropped a bombshell that is about to obliterate the Democrat party's chances of ever coming back to national power again?"