Free Republic

An unimaginably horrific crime occurred on Monday in Austin, Texas, area and not enough people are talking about it. And it's a crime Texas voters might want to be thinking about when they make their way to the ballot box this November to choose a new senator.A 62-year-old man had just visited his mother in a nursing home in Round Rock and taken her for a walk in a local park. After he got her settled back in at the home, he returned to the park on his own and sat down on a bench, minding his own business.***according to...

US President Donald Trump said he did not regret going to war against Iran despite the impact the conflict may have on the November US midterm elections. "I don't believe in the word 'regret.' You can always question yourself a little bit," Trump said in an interview with Fox News host Laura Ingraham when asked if he regretted the Iran war due to the impact it may have on the elections. "If I had it do again, I would do exactly as I did," Trump said in the interview broadcast on Thursday on The Ingraham Angle show. Trump dismissed suggestions...

President Trump on Wednesday told the crowd at the Republican National Committee’s first midterm convention in Dallas not to boo the absent Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), telling them that “John is working hard.” Trump mentioned Thune’s name after he said Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) “will go down as the greatest Speaker of the House in the history of our country.” He then added that Thune was “here” before asking where he was, prompting boos from the audience.The president added that Senate Republicans will in general have “great, great success.” Thune and Trump have been at odds with each...

The Supreme Court Thursday rejected a bid to implement a new congressional map in Missouri that would have likely given Republicans an extra seat in the House of Representatives.In an order with no noted dissents the high court imposed a stay on the map while a lawsuit brought by opponents of the redistricting gambit makes its way through the legal system.For now, Missouri must use the map implemented following the 2020 census, which has returned a House delegation of six Republicans and two Democrats. The new map would have carved up parts of Kansas City to weaken the Democrats’ grip...

A University of California, Irvine lecturer appeared to endorse violence against conservative activist Nick Shirley ahead of his scheduled appearance Wednesday before the Harvard Republicans. The remarks are drawing attention to campus political rhetoric surrounding Shirley, whose investigations and viral videos have made him a prominent conservative voice online. "In the comments of the Harvard Republican Club’s recent Instagram post announcing Nick Shirley’s visit to campus, UC Irvine and Chapman lecturer Matthew Goldman appears to endorse a potential act of violence against Shirley, just before the one-year anniversary of Charlie Kirk’s assassination," *** In screenshots shared by Yard Report, Goldman...

The Trump administration is proposing to remove the federal tax-exempt status of private schools that use race-based admission or diversity, equity and inclusion in certain school policies and programsThe proposed regulation by the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service would cover admissions, scholarships and loans, athletics, educational policies and other programs administered or supported by private schools. While the regulation is still open to public comment, if finalized, it would apply beginning on May 31, 2027.The regulation would apply to tax-exempt private elementary and secondary schools, colleges, universities, professional schools and trade schools. The Treasury Department...

Residents of an upscale Queens neighborhood are enraged over a brazen serial squatter who moved into a local $1.1 million home — and it’s not the first time he’s pulled off the scam, according to a report. Accused con man Vernon Glass parked himself in the million-dollar home in the quiet, tree-lined community of Bayside more than two years ago, after the 2018 death of elderly homeowner and longtime resident Richard Klibschon, ABC Eyewitness News reported. *** The home at 2340 205th St. had remained vacant after Klibschon, who lived alone and had no family, passed away, according to the...

Mayor Zohran Mamdani signed an executive order recognizing 9/11 Friday — and then gave the symbolic pen to his controversial aide who once represented an al-Qaeda terrorist with links to the attack on the Pentagon.Administration officials were gathered at City Hall for a pair of executive orders — ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks — one establishing a Day of Remembrance and another beefing up security against future terror threats. After Mamdani signed the last of the documents, Hizzoner gave Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch the ceremonial pen, and whispered, “Can you pass this?” Tisch awkwardly handed...

A coalition of 17 states, lawmakers and advocacy organizations has filed 12 friend-of-the-court briefs urging the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold that parents and teachers have constitutional rights to know about their children despite public school gender policies.The briefs were filed in Mirabelli v. Bonta, a case involving California’s “Parental Exclusion Policies,” which the Thomas More Society led as counsel for a class of parents and teachers challenging the policies. In December, U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez issued a permanent injunction blocking the policies, saying that parents have the right to know and public schools cannot socially...

A Latino running group has been run out of a historically black Los Angeles neighborhood after opponents told organizers to find somewhere else to pound the pavement. Barrio Athletics announced that its Sunday 5K moved from Leimert Park in Crenshaw to Elysian Park near Dodger Stadium following “careful conversation with community leaders.” What started as a neighborhood dispute over the run quickly turned into showdown over who belongs in one of LA’s most important cultural enclaves.Barrio Athletics had planned to meet at Leimert Park at 9 a.m. and run along Crenshaw Boulevard, but community members immediately objected, saying the event...

The Wall Street Journal dropped a bombshell new report on Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) late Thursday, detailing allegations that the Democrat has routinely dodged constituents, skipped Senate business, and frustrated his own staff while devoting increasing attention to conservative media and Israel.The Journal based its report on interviews with more than a dozen former staffers and lawmakers, along with internal records and messages. *** Here are five of the most striking revelations. 1. Fetterman canceled on paralyzed veterans — to attend a Fox News interviewThree paralyzed military veterans from rural Pennsylvania traveled to Washington in June for a long-awaited meeting...

President Donald Trump is privately discussing with senior aides whether to declare the U.S. war with Iran over, even as the Pentagon extends troop deployments into 2027 and the conflict continues to disrupt shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, The Wall Street Journal reported.The apparent contradiction underscores the uncertainty surrounding the administration's strategy. Trump has told advisers he favors declaring an end to the war and believes the combination of economic pressure and U.S. military dominance has put Washington in a winning position.The Journal reported that Trump has argued Iran's economy is collapsing and that U.S. forces have achieved "almost...

Austria’s government is beginning to work on a proposal to constitutionally ban “political Islam,” after Chancellor Christian Stocker called for the legislation and Integration and Europe Minister Claudia Bauer said she would draw up a proposal for the coalition partners. *** Stocker first raised the possible legislation in an interview with Heute on August 28. The chancellor expressed his intention to implement a constitutional law on political Islam, which he called “incompatible with democracy and Western values.” In a statement, Stocker said, “I do not want our children and grandchildren to grow up in an Islamic state.”Stocker argued that everyone...

The new U.S. Department of Justice Program, which aims to give nonviolent offenders an opportunity to have their Second Amendment rights restored after an extensive review process, is already yielding success.As TTAG readers are aware, federal law disables the firearms rights of many citizens who have been convicted of crimes without regard to whether they actually pose a threat of violence. Attorney General Todd Blanche announced on August 17 a finalized federal regulation allowing eligible individuals prohibited from possessing firearms to apply to restore their federal firearm rights. According to Blanche, the final rule would protect Second Amendment rights while...

Back in July, a new chain of gas stations called the Freedom Fuel Network popped up in the Northeast, seemingly out of nowhere, with extremely attractive prices. It seemed to have friends in high places right from the very start, with its first retail site promoted by the White House’s official X account, and President Donald Trump lauding the company for “stepping up” as “a VERY smart Retailer.” The federal government denied that it was subsidizing Freedom Fuel or involved with the company on any level, so, naturally, people wondered how it managed to swoop in with gas 30 cents...

A text message sent by Vice President JD Vance on behalf of the Republican National Committee urged people not to donate if they couldn't afford groceries. The fundraising text sent in the Vice President's name told recipients: 'If you can't give right now, don't. Groceries cost what they cost.'*** The appeal then offered an unusually frank admission about the Republican Party's finances. 'Now the part I owe you honesty about,' the message said. 'The Republican National Committee needs money. That's true of every party committee, and anyone who tells you otherwise is doing the exact thing I just apologized for....

Twenty-five years after the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks, the cost to taxpayers for the U.S. War on Terror is approaching $10 trillion. Initial costs for two conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan were more than $8 trillion. An additional $2 trillion will be incurred by U.S. military spending after the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack against Israel and conflicts in Yemen and Iran. Iraq and Afghanistan war costs: $8+ trillion*** Afghanistan: $2 trillion The [Biden] administration left $7 billion worth of U.S. military equipment behind and turned control of the country back to the Taliban. *** Cost on veterans: $2.5 trillion...