Free Republic

On this Independence Day, let me pay homage to America’s founding fathers who wrote “The Declaration of Independence”, which changed my life by bringing me to the United States in 1988. I was born in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China, right before the start of the Chinese Cultural Revolution. I lived with my parents and two younger brothers in government housing which had just two small rooms with an outdoor kitchen that my Dad built. There was no indoor plumbing and heating. The free community housing had a mud floor, good for growing mushrooms. Eight families in the community shared one...

I am proud to be an American. Yes, I know that our system of government is not perfect, but I firmly believe that it is the best in the world. We are an exceptional country -- not because our people are exceptional but because we have a different and exceptional structure of government. I am grateful that I was born an American. We declared our independence from Great Britain 243 years ago this week. It happened after years of overreaching rule by King George III and Britain's insistence on taxation without representation. We had had enough. The taxation began in...

President Trump’s July 4 “Salute to America” parade will feature the typical fireworks display but will also include a bevy of military hardware as the White House seeks to emphasize the U.S.’s military might. While the military’s display of force has sparked criticism among Democrats who say the parade will echo those of authoritarians and cost taxpayers upwards of $2.5 million, the president has repeatedly hyped the event. “People are coming from far and wide to join us today and tonight for what is turning out to be one of the biggest celebrations in the history of our Country, SALUTE...

Happy Birthday America! Let’s celebrate.So if the Dems want to skip the annual Independence Day parade – ostensibly due to the cost – let them. They’re only spoiling it for themselves. I suspect they would have complained about the cost of our actual independence as well as they certainly don’t seem to approve of any of the nation’s founding principles.  Is there anything about America the Dems don’t want to destroy?So while they hope, as they don’t pray, for rain on our parades I say let’s force them to boycott everything American: burgers, hot dogs, potato salad, baked beansIn fact,...

<p>Nike has pulled its Betsy Ross American Flag shoe from the shelves. Why? NFL has-been Colin Kaepernick’s complaining that the Betsy Ross flag a symbol of white supremacy. Nike said they didn’t want to potentially “offend” anybody. Surprise to Nike, they are offending a significant portion of the American public. But spitting on America, and her freedom has become a way of life in 2019. Not only for Nike and Kaepernick but also Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) and soccer’s Rapino as well.</p>

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Ahead of Trump's planned July 4 military parade, several dozen Imperial walkers began to arrive in Washington throughout the week. The AT-ATs were dropped off by U.S. Space Force Star Destroyers just outside the city and then slowly marched toward the capital (rather than being dropped right next to their target, for some reason). Military bands solemnly played the Imperial March in honor of their arrival. Trump was seen at the White House, pointing excitedly at the looming all-terrain armored transports through an Oval Office window. "Wow, look at those guys!" he said while gleefully clapping his hands. "Do...

CANONSBURG, Pa. (KDKA) — A protest is planned for one of the area’s biggest Fourth of July events. Participants are pulling out of the annual Canonsburg Fourth of July Parade, fearing the planned protest. “We’re going to shut it down,” Trey Willis Sr. said on his Facebook Live video discussing the protest. Willis Sr. told KDKA that the demonstration will remain peaceful, but protesters want their voices heard. He expects 100-200 people will join him in protest on the morning of the parade. “We’re intending to just shed light on the practices coming out of the district attorney’s office,” Willis...

As America gears up for its 243rd birthday, Washington, D.C., is expecting a larger Independence Day show than usual, this year featuring controversial tanks and a speech from President Trump. Trump will address crowds at his “Salute to America” event, which also features a lengthy fireworks display and aircraft flyovers. He's been touting the event since February as "one of the biggest gatherings in the history of Washington, D.C." Democrats have questioned the costs of Trump's event. The president will also have some competition for attention throughout the day, including a counter-event featuring a Baby Trump blimp, a Trump Robot...

I don’t have time to report on AOC’s latest border histrionics so I leave that responsibility in your capable hands. I would just like to suggest she get her incredibly smart ass self back to Washington where Congress could be working on fixing our “refuge” status designation and funding border security in order to stem the flood of immigrants on the southern border. I don’t think that responsibility falls within the purview of  border patrol agents. I’m just going to remind you that you only have 2 days to stock up on sparklers for your 4th of July celebration.You’ll want...

National Park Service acting director P. Daniel Smith faces plenty of looming priorities this summer, from an $11 billion backlog in maintenance needs to natural disasters like the recent wildfire damage to Big Bend Park. But in recent days, another issue has competed for Smith’s attention: how to satisfy President Trump’s request to station tanks or other armored military vehicles on the Mall for his planned Fourth of July address to the nation. The ongoing negotiations over whether to use massive military hardware, such as Abrams tanks or Bradley Fighting Vehicles , as a prop for Trump’s “Salute to America”...

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” And with those words written in the Declaration of Independence the idea of America was born. In a few days our nation will be celebrating that day, July 4th 1776. It was that day, 243 years ago, when brave and enlightened statesmen, philosophers, doers, and revolutionaries came together in Philadelphia Hall to bring about a bold new worldview that put human – not that of...

President Trump has apparently taken charge of this year’s Fourth of July celebration in Washington, D.C., and will possibly give a personal address, angering some Democrats who fear the president will politicize the holiday. City officials in the nation's capital were notified of Trump’s plan to address the nation on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and move the traditional fireworks display from the Capitol Reflecting Pool to the nearby West Potomac Park, the Washington Post reported.

A man visiting Busch Gardens Tampa Bay was injured by celebratory gunfire on Wednesday. According to Tampa police, 36-year-old Scott Deel of Florahome, Florida was walking inside the theme park with his wife when he felt pain in his shoulder around 10 p.m. His wife then noticed he was bleeding. Investigators said the source of the pain was a bullet, most likely a result of celebratory gunfire from outside the park, but they are unsure where. it occurred around the same times fireworks were set off at Busch Gardens. The park's security responded, and gave him first aid. Tampa firefighters...

Former FBI Director James Comey on Wednesday shared a peek at his family’s Independence Day traditions. In an Instagram post, Comey shared a photo of several numbered pieces of paper with burnt edges, which he explained in a caption are printed with the Declaration of Independence. The former FBI chief said that every July 4th, his family assigns “parts” and reads the document aloud as a group. “The Comey family Declaration pieces (long ago made “authentic” by our kids burning the edges and soaking it in coffee),” Comey wrote in the caption. “As always on July 4th, we will assign...

FULL TITLE: BREAKING NEWS: Police swoop to grab woman with a 'Rise and Resist' t-shirt who climbed the Statue of Liberty on Independence Day and stayed there for two hours, as ICE protesters below unfurled an 'Abolish Ice' banner Police have snatched a woman wearing a 'Rise and Resist' t-shirt who climbed the Statue of Liberty on Independence Day and stayed there for two hours shortly after seven people were arrested for unfurling an 'Abolish ICE' banner. Police on ladders spoke to the woman just after 4.30pm but she refused to come down, so officers constructed a rope rescue system...

McCain is celebrating at his home in Arizona while he continues physical therapy to combat a deadly form of brain cancer. “One of the greatest privileges of my life has been marking Independence Day with America’s service members and diplomats selflessly serving overseas,” McCain said. “As I spend this Fourth of July at home in Arizona, my thoughts are with these courageous men and women fighting terrorism and tyranny around the world.” The 81-year-old was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer, in July 2017. Following his diagnosis, McCain left Washington and returned to his home...

Aloha from Hawaii Via Satellite is a concert that was headlined by Elvis Presley, and was broadcast live via satellite on January 14, 1973. The concert took place at the Honolulu International Center (HIC) in Honolulu (now known as the Neal S. Blaisdell Center) and aired in over 40 countries across Asia and Europe (who received the telecast the next day, also in primetime). Despite the satellite innovation, NBC did not broadcast an edited version of the concert in the United States until April 4, 1973 because the concert took place the same day as Super Bowl VII. The decision...

Meghan McCain wasn’t prepared for the gigantic water slides her mom, Cindy, gifted her for the 4th of July — but she will be after “a few beers!” Sen. John McCain‘s daughter shared videos of two huge, inflatable water slides on her Instagram story on Tuesday, saying they were “water park” quality. “Mom told me that she was getting us water slides; this is not exactly what I thought we were getting for the Fourth of July,” Meghan, 33, said with a laugh. “This is the biggest water slide in the world.” “Don’t ever say that Cindy McCain doesn’t go...

This is a dilemma: the 4th of July, is on Wednesday, so which weekend is technically “4th of July weekend” this year?  I checked my State’s fireworks schedule to see if that would give me a clue but it looks like those communities that don’t actually shoot them off on the 4th are split between the weekend before and after. This leads me to conclude that Wednesday is the perfect day for the 4th as you can log a 9 day, two weekend holiday by spending only 4 days from your vacation bank. I haven’t worked (for compensation) for a...

WASHINGTON — They wore white. They shook their fists in the air. They carried signs reading: “No more children in cages,” and “What’s next? Concentration Camps?” In major cities and tiny towns, thousands of marchers gathered across America, moved by accounts of children separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border, in the latest act of mass resistance against President Donald Trump’s immigration policies. “I’m hoping that decent human beings come together, and enough is enough, we’re taking out country back over, that evil is not going to prevail,” said Patricia Carlan, a grandmother of nine from Danville, Indiana, among...