Free Republic

A federal judge temporarily blocked an Arkansas law that requires parental consent for children to create social media accounts. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks of the Western District of Arkansas granted the preliminary injunction in response to a motion by Netchoice, a trade group for technology companies that has members including Facebook parent company Meta; TikTok; and X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. The law had been set to go into effect Friday. “We’re pleased the court sided with the First Amendment and stopped Arkansas’ unconstitutional law from censoring free speech online and undermining the privacy of Arkansans, their...

Republican Congressional members have urged President Joe Biden to veto an anti-Israel resolution slated to be brought before the U.N. Security Council on Monday."As the UN Security Council once again moves to consider another one-sided, biased, anti-Israel resolution, it is imperative that the United States maintain its position that only direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians can yield progress," Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy wrote in a letter to the president.The missive was co-signed by Steve Scalise, the Majority Leader and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul."If the U.N. Security Council takes action on Monday to punish Israel,...

Former Gov. Larry Hogan (R-MD) said Wednesday on CNN’s “Inside Politics” that he was “embarrassed and disgusted” during the GOP debate when the six presidential candidates raised their hands when asked if they would support former President Donald Trump even if he convicted of a crime. Hogan said, “That was the low light of the entire debate. I was embarrassed and disgusted by it. The fact that we have to let the court cases play themselves out. Everybody is presumed innocent until proven guilty no man is above the law. But for six people to raise their hand and say...

Republican Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Marco Rubio of Florida are teaming up to push the Biden administration to review the planned acquisition of Forbes magazine. The pair sent a letter Wednesday to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warning her that the planned buyout involves entities tied to Russia and the Chinese Communist Party, which previously tried to purchase the outlet. "Forbes reportedly holds a significant market share among younger Americans, with tens of millions of monthly users," the lawmakers wrote. "This puts Forbes in a unique position to collect and store sensitive personal data on these populations and influence...

MAGNOLIA, Ark.—Slipping a handgun into his belt, the mayor of this small town hopped out of his 1995 Ford pickup and went in search of further evidence of a new energy boom. On the other side of freshly painted gate, Mayor Parnell Vann pointed out a squat blue spire of valves, bolts and pressure gauges attached to a long-dormant well—a telltale sign someone means to bring it back to life. On the thick-wooded back roads, crisscrossing fields where oil drillers gave up long ago, Vann found two more similar wells that day. These days, companies in the area aren’t looking...

Mark Lowery, Arkansas’ treasurer and a former legislator who sponsored the state’s voter ID law, has died from complications from a stroke, his office said. He was 66. Lowery’s office said the former state lawmaker died Wednesday morning at a Little Rock hospital. Lowery experienced two strokes over the past several months, the most recent in June. His office announced Tuesday he was leaving office on Sept. 30. “We are devastated,” Chief of Staff Stephen Bright said in a statement. “Losing Mark represents a huge loss for the entire staff. Mark was an incredible leader and a humble public servant...

A small, quiet Arkansas town home to just 11,100 people is set to become the epicenter of the US 'white gold' boom. Magnolia, a blue-collar town in the state's southern region, was once a locus for oil but is on track to become a major producer of lithium, dubbed 'white gold' because of its soft, silvery-white look and the fact it powers most modern tech - from cellphones to laptops and electric cars. Exxon Mobil is planning to build one of the world’s largest lithium processing facilities near the town, with a capacity to produce 75,000 to 100,000 metric tons...

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) is planning to build one of the world's largest lithium processing facilities in Arkansas, with a capacity to produce 75K-100K metric tons/year of lithium, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.At that scale, the plant's production would equate to ~15% of all finished lithium produced globally last year.The giant project could be built in stages, with modular trains constructed together or in separate locations near its future lithium production sites in south Arkansas, according to the report.Other companies including Standard Lithium (SLI) and Tetra Technologies (TTI) are planning to build capacity in the area.The Smackover formation, a geologic...

Things are reportedly growing tense between Donald Trump and his former press secretary, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R), who is apparently drawing the ire of Trump’s camp for her neutrality in the 2024 presidential primary. Sanders had told Trump’s campaign that she wouldn’t be making an endorsement until after her first legislative session, two sources familiar with the discussions told Axios. But that session ended in May, and with still no endorsement from Sanders, Trump is reportedly growing increasingly irate. In March, Trump said that he “never asked” Sanders for an endorsement, but “nobody has done more for her...

A new study claims red states like Florida and Texas are the worst in the nation to "live and work" despite these states leading the nation in net migration. CNBC's annual "Top States for Business" report broke down its rankings based on each state's commitment to "Life, Health and Inclusion." While Texas and Florida led the nation as best for business, the outlet slapped the red states for inadequate policies supporting abortion, child care, the LGBTQ community, and voting rights. Texas ranked as worst in the nation to "live and work", along with Oklahoma, South Carolina, Arkansas and Florida. The...

2024 GOP presidential candidate Asa Hutchinson is in danger of not reaching enough donors to attend the GOP's debate stage in August. As of Thursday, Hutchinson only has about 5,000 of the 40,000 donors needed, admitting his campaign has work to do. "I'll be very straightforward with you — I'm not there yet," Hutchinson told Hugh Hewitt's radio show. However, Hutchinson is confident he can gain enough donors to qualify for the August 23 debate in Milwaukee. Of those, the Republican National Committee requires at least 200 unique donors from 20-plus states and/or territories. Hutchinson criticized the RNC for its...

The Arkansas Supreme Court is flipping conservative for the first time in history following Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders nominating U.S. Attorney Cody Hiland to the vacant position. “I am pleased to announce that I have selected another former prosecutor and a U.S. Attorney, Cody Hiland, for this role,” Sanders said during a press conference at the Arkansas State Capitol, in which she honored the life of Democrat Supreme Court Justice Robin Wynne, 70, whom she referred to as a “legal titan.” Wynne, who was elected to the Supreme Court in 2014, passed away nearly two weeks ago.

The Delaware federal judge likely to sign off on Hunter Biden’s guilty plea next month was nominated to the bench by former President Donald Trump — but was backed by the First State’s two Democratic senators and has donated to both parties. US District Judge Maryellen Noreika was randomly assigned to preside over a hearing on the first son’s plea deal, which is set for July 26 in Wilmington federal court. SNIP Those donations include $5,200 to Sen. Tom Cotton’s (R-Ark.) 2014 Senate campaign, $5,000 to Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign, $2,300 to John McCain’s presidential run in 2008, and...

Hunter Biden, 53, the controversial son of President Joe Biden, appeared in a court in Little Rock, Arkansas, on Friday, for a deposition about his finances in a long-running child support dispute with the mother of his child. Biden was compelled in 2020 to acknowledge that he is the father of Navy Joan Roberts, now four years old, after he took a court-ordered paternity test. He pays $20,000 per month to Navy’s mother, Lunden Roberts, whom he allegedly met when she was performing as a stripper. Fox News reported that Hunter Biden was in court Friday to testify about his...

BENTONVILLE -- A Colorado man was sentenced to 20 years in prison after admitting he threatened the lives of a judge and probation officer. Theodore Howell, 29, of Denver, pleaded guilty Monday to threatening a judicial officer/juror and terroristic threatening. He was charged as a habitual offender. Nathan Jeffrey, a probation officer, reported to the Benton County Sheriff's Office he received a text message threatening to kill him from Howell, according to a probable cause affidavit. Jeffrey said he knew the phone belonged to Howell because it was the same phone number Howell had for being on probation, and Jeffrey...

Outgoing Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R-AR) said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) should not try and relegate the COVID vaccine. Anchor Chuck Todd said, “You spent a lot of 2021 trying to get some skeptics to take the backseat in Arkansas, so I’m curious what you think of this.” Discussing requesting his state’s Supreme Court convene a grand jury to probe wrongdoing related to the coronavirus vaccine on Fox News, DeSantis said, “Like anything, you take an MRNA shot, the way to view it is what are the benefits and the drawbacks? It seems like...

Former Arkansas state Sen. Jeremy Hutchinson received a 46-month prison sentence for his role in a bribery and tax fraud scheme, the Department of Justice announced Friday. Hutchinson, 48, of Little Rock, pleaded guilty in 2019 to filing a false tax return in the U.S. District Court of Eastern Arkansas. He also pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit federal program bribery in the U.S. District Court in Western Arkansas, according to a DOJ news release. Sentencing is still pending in the U.S. District Court of Missouri on a plea deal reached in a separate case, according to...

Republican presidential candidate former Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R-AR) said Tuesday on ABC’s “The View” that if he became president, he would not pardon former President Donald Trump should he be convicted of crimes.Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin said, “Governor, it takes courage to get in when you are taking on someone with as strong as a presence as Donald Trump. You’re taking him on directly, criticizing him for things like January 6, saying it should disqualify him from seeking the White House. Why are you speaking out so forcefully when others haven’t? Do you think the Republican Party would benefit from...

Republican presidential candidate Asa Hutchinson vowed Sunday not to issue “blanket pardons” for rioters convicted in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, if he is elected. “First of all, there would be no blanket pardons. Secondly, it was a very serious offense, challenging the fundamentals of our democracy and attempt to overturn the election, and so I view it as seriously, and any pardon application be viewed just like any other pardon application that I viewed as governor. And I would do that as president, but no blanket pardons,” the former Arkansas governor said...

Republican presidential candidate and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) said on this week’s broadcast of “Fox News Sunday” that the government should not interfere with parents’ decisions on hormone treatments for transgender children Anchor Shannon Bream said, “Let’s talk about another hot-button issue, transitions for patients and people under the age of 18. People have argued that your position is not truly conservative. You vetoed a bill that would have prohibited hormone treatment or puberty blockers for people under the age of 18.”