Free Republic

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his generals have an artful knack for keeping the Russian military bear off-balance. On Sunday, they renewed their offensive in the Russian Kursk Oblast, once again catching the Russian high command, Kremlin, and many pundits by surprise. Reports of a demoralized Ukrainian army fighting to retain terrain captured during the August Kursk offensive — of which at least 40 percent has been lost — have circulated among western media and Russian milbloggers since November. So too reports that Ukraine’s 155th Mechanized Brigade — trained and equipped by France — was under-resourced in “first person view...

A top Iranian general has accused Russia of lying to Tehran by saying its jets were attacking Syrian rebels while they were instead bombing the open desert. In a rare break from Iran's diplomatic line on Syria, Brig. Gen. Behrouz Esbati partially blamed Moscow for the fall of Bashar Assad's government during a speech at a mosque in Tehran. An audio recording of the speech was published on Tuesday by Abdullah Abdi, a journalist in Geneva who reports on Iran. "We were defeated, and defeated very badly. We took a very big blow, and it's been very difficult," Esbati said...

A state of emergency has been declared in the Russian city of Engels after a Ukrainian drone strike hit an oil depot that supplies Russia's nuclear bomber planes. Saratov regional governor Roman Busargin said that two firefighters had been killed while tackling the blaze. A huge fire exploded at the “Kristal” oil complex, as well as multiple explosions, in the city of Engels after long-range strikes, said Ukraine’s military. It added that the oil depot supplied fuel to the “Engels-2” military airfield, where Russia’s nuclear bomber fleet is based. “The strike of the oil depot creates serious logistical problems for...

Russian vodka enthusiasts are seething after the Finance Ministry implemented a 17 percent price hike for a half-litre bottle on New Year's Day. Russia holds the title as the world's largest vodka producer, accounting for over 30 percent of global production. Domestic consumption makes up more than 90 percent of Russia-made vodka, making it one of the country's most beloved beverages. As of January 1st, a bottle will now set consumers back 349 rubles (£2.53), up from 299 (£2.16) - a jump of 50 rubles. This follows a 6.4 percent increase in June 2024, meaning that within the last six...

A while back somebody over at Ace of Spades mentioned that with 2 or 3 exceptions, every member of Dubya's administration turned into a Democrat. My first thought was "that can't be right", and then I got thinking. And it wasn't pretty. So I decided I'd go through and get the backup behind Ace's assertion. After going back and editing, this post feels like Apocalypse Now's Captain Willard and his trip up the river that starts out OK and slowly but surely becomes a nightmare. I report; you decide: Press SecretaryAri Fleisher - Not as bad as most of this...

In August, a day after Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic nomination for president, a conservative-against-conservative argument erupted on social media. Steve Hayes, the editor and CEO of The Dispatch, called out his fellow conservatives for “fluffing” the progressive Harris and “embracing” the “nutty” Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “What a mess the modern conservative movement is,” he sighed. The pile-on was swift. Sarah Longwell, publisher of The Bulwark, was first. “Honestly, what are you talking about Steve?” she wrote. The problem with the conservative movement, she said, was the capitulation to Donald Trump, not the opposition against him. Hayes shot back:...

Former President Donald Trump is known for rewarding loyalty and attacking his political enemies. Despite that risk, many current and former high-profile Republicans publicly opposed him and threw their weight behind Vice President Harris in the 2024 election. Now, anti-Trump conservatives are regrouping, says Craig Snyder, former director of Haley Voters for Harris. "These are people who had significant career and personal investments in Republican politics and who threw it all away, burned the bridge — knowingly burned the bridge — because they couldn't abide Donald Trump and they wanted to support Vice President Harris," Snyder said

Senator Mitt Romney (R-MA) said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that January 6, 2021 will be seen “as a very dark day in American history.” Host Jake Tapper said, “Four years ago next month you were running for your life from the mob on January 6. And now the person that you said was responsible for that day is about to return to the White House. He says he’s going to pardon a lot of the people that have been convicted for the crimes committed on that day. What do you think the legacy of January 6 will...

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) reportedly said that President-elect Donald Trump’s victory puts Americans in “a very, very dangerous world,” stressing that he plans to spend his final two years in the Senate pushing back against the growing Trump-fueled isolationism within the GOP. The 82-year-old Kentucky Republican, who last month stepped down from his role as the longest-serving party leader in Senate history, has a complicated record with the incoming president. While McConnell has worked to significantly move the country to the right — much of it under the first Trump administration — he is no fan of Trump and his...

President-elect Donald J. Trump has promised to unravel President Biden’s major legislation when he takes office next month, but Mr. Biden is hoping to salvage his most prized policies with help from an unlikely source: Republicans.With just weeks left in office, Mr. Biden and his aides have emphasized that his signature economic legislation, the Inflation Reduction Act, overwhelmingly benefits Republican districts, in the hopes that Mr. Trump would face blowback from his own party if he repealed it.The administration is also racing to award hundreds of millions of dollars in grants and finalize environmental regulations to lock in Mr. Biden’s...

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) sidestepped any specifics Tuesday when asked about Rep.-elect Sarah McBride (D-Del.), who will be the first transgender member of the House, amid an effort by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) to ban transgender women from single-sex facilities such as women’s restrooms in the Capitol. “We welcome all members with open arms who are newly elected representatives of the people. I believe it’s a — it’s a command. We treat all persons with dignity and respect,” Johnson said at a press conference Tuesday when asked about McBride. “And I’m not going to engage in silly debates about this,”...

Mitch McConnell is a RINO and is a traitor to the people of this country. He staged a COUP against the incoming president and should have been hauled out of the Senate in chains, for he has abused his personal power to try to obstruct what the American people voted for to protect the swamp. Mitch McConnell engineered a coup against Trump’s agenda by calling for early leadership elections in the Senate to ensure that the RINOS would select his replacement to obstruct the American people again as he did throughout the previous Trump Administration. ... There were three candidates:...

Former President Mike Pence is urging Senate Republicans to block Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s nomination as the Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary. President-elect Donald Trump, Pence's former running mate, announced Kennedy's nomination on Thursday, a decision that has raised concerns from public health experts. Kennedy, a former 2024 presidential candidate who went on to back Trump's campaign, has been incredibly critical of vaccinations, including suggesting that childhood vaccines are linked to autism diagnosis. Pence, however, took a different issue with Kennedy's appointment, saying in a statement Friday that making Kennedy the HHS secretary would be "an abrupt departure from...

Liz Cheney, a staunch “Never Trump” former Republican representative, has joined Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris in key swing states in the final days of the campaign to warn voters that Donald Trump does not respect the “rule of law” or the U.S. Constitution. “[When] you think about, what are you looking for in somebody you hire, you're looking for somebody that you can trust, you're looking for somebody who's going to be responsible, who's going to operate in good faith,” Cheney told the Detroit Economic Club on Oct. 22. But new evidence has emerged suggesting that Cheney may have...

Four former supporters of GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump are planning a fireside chat in Pennsylvania to make their case against the 45th president. The former supporters include former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., and former White House aides Cassidy Hutchinson, Alyssa Farah Griffin, and Sarah Matthews, according to CNN. Cheney, Matthews and and Hutchinson have all endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president. The fireside chat is slated Oct. 9 outside of Philadelphia. A source told the outlet that the women will “offer a warning about the threat Donald Trump poses to democracy and the rule of law." They will...

Donald J. Trump has made his revisionist account of the Capitol attack the foundation of this campaign, even when there is little political advantage.When a moderator asked Donald J. Trump about Jan. 6, 2021, at the presidential debate, the former president slipped immediately into a now-familiar revisionist history of the attack on the U.S. Capitol. He falsely claimed that he had nothing to do with the assault, blaming it on former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the police officers who protected the building that day against a mob of his supporters. But then Mr. Trump made a brief but telling...

Former Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ) said Wednesday on ABC’s “The View” that Vice President Kamala Harris should not do another debate with former President Donald Trump. Christie said, “You know, look, in the end last night, she did what she had to do.” Co-host Whoopi Goldberg said, “Yes, she did.” Christie continued, “Which was she’s the lesser known person with the lesser profile, she needed to show those undecided voters that she belonged on that stage.” Co-host Joy Behar said, “Right.” Christie continued, “Last night she showed she belonged on the stage. And that’s why, look, I saw her campaign...

A former governor of New Jersey and a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 and 2024. Tens of millions of Americans will be watching the first debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump on Tuesday night. Many of these folks will be Republicans and independents who, like me, have decided that they are unwilling to vote for Mr. Trump. I’ll be honest: I don’t have much of an opinion of Ms. Harris yet, because I don’t know her well. If she’s an unknown quantity to me, you can bet she’s also one to the countless everyday Americans she...

Democratic political pundit James Carville argued the recent endorsements Vice President Kamala Harris has received could net her support from Republican voters, including those who have never voted for a Democrat before. The past week saw Harris net two more endorsements ahead of Tuesday’s presidential debate, with the first from former Wyoming Republican Rep. Liz Cheney and the second from her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney. When asked what kinds of voters these two endorsements appeal to, Carville contended the endorsements could push voters hesitant to support Democrats to finally take the plunge, especially those who dislike former President...

Since Vice President Kamala Harris took over the Democratic ticket, she’s received support from many prominent conservatives — who are largely endorsing Harris out of their opposition to Donald Trump. They have said that the former president is amoral, crude, and “simply untenable” — so much so that they will be defecting from their own party when they vote for president in November.