Free Republic

And on Donald Trump’s side? Which past Republican presidents, vice presidents and nominees are lining up behind him? We didn’t see any of them speak in support of him at the GOP convention in July, but surely they’re out there. Here, presented for the first time, is an exhaustive list of the previous Republican presidents, vice presidents and nominees to these posts who have publicly said they will be voting for Trump in November: 1. Sarah Palin. That’s it. That’s the whole list. The 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee reaffirmed her support for Trump in March 2023. Former Republican presidential...

Alaska Democrats have mounted a lawsuit against one of their colleagues as they fight to take an imprisoned congressional candidate off the state’s election ballot. The Alaska Democratic Party sued the Alaska Division of Elections on Wednesday to keep Eric Hafner off the November ballot, according to the Alaska Beacon. Although Hafner is running for Alaska’s sole House seat as a member of their party, top Democratic leaders in the state are furious at Hafner, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence in New York. “This is about someone who is incarcerated, an unqualified candidate that shouldn’t have been moved...

Alaska Republicans are looking to avoid a repeat of the midterms, when they lost the state’s lone House seat to Rep. Mary Peltola after the party failed to coalesce around a single opponent in the Last Frontier’s ranked-choice system. Peltola finished first in this week’s top-four nonpartisan primary, followed by Republicans Nick Begich and Lt. Gov Nancy Dahlstrom (R), according to the latest tallies from Decision Desk HQ. But Dahlstrom, backed by former President Trump, bowed out of the race on Friday as her party looks to consolidate support. “I entered this race because Alaskans deserve better representation than what...

In what may be a surprise blow to Democrats' chances of holding a key red state seat in the U.S. House, Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom announced Friday she is suspending her campaign for Congress. Dahlstrom was in what was essentially a three-way race with incumbent Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola and Republican Nick Begich III, who comes from a prominent political family in The Last Frontier. While Dahlstrom did not immediately endorse Begich, she suggested in comments announcing her withdrawal that her reason for running was to see Peltola defeated. "I entered this race because Alaskans deserve better representation than...

In a significant win for Alaska voters, the state Supreme Court has decisively ruled in favor of allowing a measure aimed at repealing the controversial ranked choice voting system to remain on the November ballot. The ruling affirms that Alaskans will have the opportunity to reject this confusing system that has muddled the state’s electoral process and left many voters frustrated. In 2022, Democrat Rep. Mary Peltola “won” reelection in Alaska to a full term in the House in November after she defeated Sarah Palin in a special election to replace Rep. Don Young. Peltola was the FIRST DEMOCRAT to...

The Alaska Supreme Court affirmed a lower court decision Thursday that allowed a question on whether to keep the state’s new voting system to appear on the November ballot. Alaskans narrowly adopted a 2020 ballot measure that put in place open primaries and ranked choice general elections. The voting method was first used in 2022 and is again being used this year. Supporters of the method say it yields more centrist candidates willing to work across the political aisle. But a group filed a petition earlier this year seeking to repeal the voting method, arguing that the voting system is...

JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska - The chief of the National Guard Bureau, Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson, awarded the Alaska National Guard the National Guard Excellence in Diversity Award for its diversity and inclusion efforts. The award, bestowed July 31, began in 2019 and has five categories. It’s presented annually to states and territories, units and individuals who consistently and significantly contribute to diversity and inclusion initiatives and build measurable milestones to achieve success. Alaska won in the “Exemplary States and Territories” category. In a letter to AKNG leadership announcing the award before he retired, Hokanson said: “The dedication of the...

Ads criticizing a relatively unknown GOP candidate for Alaska’s U.S. House seat could change the dynamics of the competitive race after the primary later this month. Gerald Heikes, a Palmer resident and perennial candidate for public office in Alaska, has no money to spend on building a campaign website or advertising his positions. But a Democrat-backed group is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars highlighting Heikes’ anti-abortion stance in a quest to bolster Democratic incumbent Rep. Mary Peltola’s chances at reelection. Alaska’s U.S. House seat is one of a handful that is seen as winnable by both Democrats and Republicans,...

Three groups of Russian nuclear-capable bombers and fighter escorts buzzed the airspace in Japan's northern waters on Tuesday one week after similar long-range sorties near the U.S. coast off Alaska.

The presidential campaign of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Monday that it has secured ballot access in three more states and has submitted signatures for certification in nine others. The campaign will also host a ballot access briefing on Wednesday afternoon. In a press release on Monday, the Kennedy campaign announced that the ticket of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Nicole Shanahan secured ballot access in three more states, including Alaska, Indiana, and Nebraska. According to certification paperwork shared by the campaign along with the release, Kennedy will appear on the Indiana ballot under the We The People Party...

The ruling requires the administration to keep processing new applications to export LNG as the Texas-led lawsuit proceeds. Attorney General Ken Paxton obtained a temporary injunction in his lawsuit against the Biden administration over their decision to halt liquefied natural gas exports. Joined by 15 other state attorneys general, Paxton secured the win Monday after a federal district court judge in Western Louisiana ruled that the new administrative plan should be paused as the case proceeds. “This ruling means [President Joe] Biden’s illegal ban does not prevent Texas natural gas from reaching market while the lawsuit continues,” stated Paxton in...

Alaska’s Supreme Court justices on Friday reversed a Superior Court ruling that struck down key components of the state’s correspondence school program. Nearly 23,000 homeschool students may continue to use their allotments of state education money to pay for private school tuition until the Anchorage Superior Court reconsiders the case. The Supreme Court made its decision a day after oral arguments in an appeal of the ruling in State of Alaska, Department of Education and Early Development v. Alexander, in which plaintiffs argued that it is unconstitutional for public education money to be spent on private school tuition. The justices...

Several dozen pro-abortion activists marched to Alaska’s Governor’s Mansion in Juneau to demand that Gov. Mike Dunleavy take down a pro-life flag that he flies next to the U.S. and Alaska flags. Chanting, “Our rights, our choice,” the protesters snaked through the State Capital – whooping and screaming as pedestrians looked on. One marcher, dressed in Game of Thrones’s styled battle garb, wielded a large metal sword, which she jabbed into the air while joining the cacophony of voices railiing against any effort to protect unborn babies from abortion. Organized by Juneau Pro-Choice Coalition, the June 22 rally took place...

ATF agents cut off the electricity to Bryan Malinowski's Little Rock home before executing their search warrant March 19. None of the agents wore body cameras, and they covered Malinowski's doorbell camera with tape to hide their actions. Fifty-seven seconds after kicking down the front door, Malinowski was fatally shot in the head. His wife, Maer Malinowski, was pulled out of her home wearing only bedclothes and forced into the back of a squad car, where she was held against her will for four hours in 34-degree weather, despite her frequent pleas to check on her dying husband. "If that...

The growing Chinese 'gate crashers' trend is sparking espionage concerns The FBI and Department of Defense have reportedly tracked more than 100 incidents of Chinese nationals posing as tourists to attempt to breach U.S. military bases and other federal sites. Those responsible, dubbed "gate crashers," range from Chinese nationals detected crossing into a U.S. missile range in New Mexico, to scuba divers caught swimming in murky waters near a U.S. government rocket launch site in Florida, several U.S. officials recently told The Wall Street Journal. The growing trend represents a potential espionage threat, as authorities believe the Chinese government in...

The crew working on a 475-foot-long bridge in Alaska’s Denali National Park was recently told by Denali National Park Superintendent Brooke Merrell that they could no longer fly the American flag from their trucks or heavy equipment, which are being used in the $207 million Federal Highway Administration project.

America’s attention to Arctic security has intensified in recent years. Our force structure has grown deliberately, a word that usually means “on purpose.” For this Alaskan, particularly when Russia and China practice war games with live ammunition in Alaska’s fishing grounds, “deliberate” can also mean “slowly,” or “not fast enough.” More intensive U.S. security “deliberation” might best be directed now toward Antarctica and the Southern Ocean, too. In geopolitics, the Antarctic has been quiet to date, or at least less competitive. A great circle air route over the South Pole has less traffic, and southern shipping has less strategic significance...

CNN — In a sweeping win for climate and environmental advocates, the Biden administration on Friday finalized a rule to ban fossil fuel drilling on nearly half of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, alongside other major conservation actions. The Interior Department will block oil drilling on over 13 million acres in the Western Arctic, including about 40% of the land of the NPR-A – a remote area that is home to protected animal species including polar bears and caribou. The reserve is more than 23 million acres of public land and an underground emergency oil supply for the US...

The new head of Boeing’s troubled commercial airplane unit said the planemaker faces a “pivotal moment” as it works to boost quality and address significant concerns from regulators and airline customers after a panel flew off a 737 MAX 9 jet in January. “This is a pivotal moment for us, and we have serious work ahead to build trust and improve our operations,” said Stephanie Pope, who was named president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes ... Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun announced he would leave by the end of the year, while the company’s long-time head of commercial airplanes, Stan...

Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy is inarguably the most witty person in the U.S. Senate. With a folksy quip or quotation always at the ready, Kennedy can effortlessly dismantle an opponent’s argument with his deadpan delivery while keeping the whole room in stitches. And the reason why his delivery hits so well is that he makes sense — the common kind, which has become almost extinct in these woke times. For example, discussing some of his Democratic colleagues who support transgender athletes in women’s sports on Fox News’ “The Story,” Kennedy once said, “One of my Democratic colleague’s witnesses testified that...