Free Republic

Vladimir Putin’s top security official has vanished during efforts to end the war in Ukraine, amid swirling health rumours and claims he could be caught up in a corruption probe. Sergei Shoigu, 69, is a Russian army general and currently the secretary of the powerful Russian Security Council. He served as defence minister for most of the war in Ukraine before being replaced one year ago, and is a very well-known member of Putin's entourage. Speculation is swirling in Moscow after he missed the Red Square parade on Friday amid claims his absence was health-related. But an explanation that he...

First lady Melania Trump made a rare public appearance on Capitol Hill on Monday to push a bipartisan bill aimed at combatting revenge porn and deepfake sex images. The former supermodel spoke about the horrors of artificial-intelligence-powered deepfake pornographic images that have swirled online and called out Democrats for not being more publicly supportive of the proposed Take It Down Act. “It’s heartbreaking to witness some teens, especially girls, grappling with the overwhelming challenges posed by malicious online content,” the first lady, 54, said during the panel session with lawmakers. “I was heartened to learn that [GOP] Senator [Ted] Cruz...

A manhunt is underway for three North Korean soldiers who allegedly ‘murdered’ five Russian servicemen during friendly fire. The wanted men were sent to fight with Russia as part of an estimated 11,000-strong contingent dispatched to bolster Vladimir Putin’s armed forces in the war, according to reports. The three are accused of shooting their Russian comrades – all marines – then going on the run with their army weapons. The report could not be immediately independently verified, but a poster appearing to show the photos of the wanted North Korean men has been spread online. They have been missing for...

It’s long been known that in the military, rank has its privileges, and none are more privileged than flag officers—generals and admirals. As it turns out, the most privileged of all is the Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, a former general. It has long been known Austin went AWOL for an unspecified “medical procedure. He didn’t bother to tell President Biden he was “out of the office” and incapacitated, nor did he bother to tell just about anyone else. Any veteran, and anyone actively serving in the military, understands being AWOL is a career ender. It’s just not something one...

About 1,700 soldiers from a Ukrainian unit equipped by the West and trained in France went AWOL before a shot was even fired.At least 50 members of the new 155th mechanised brigade, one of the few to operate the Leopard 2 battle tank, disappeared while elements of the unit were being drilled in France. The mass exodus came before the brigade was deployed to Pokrovsk, the key logistics hub anchoring Ukraine’s defence against Russian advances in the eastern Donetsk region.Entering the battle in recent days, it suffered heavy losses, reportedly including some of its tanks and armoured vehicles.It prompted the...

FBI Director Christopher Wray and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas didn't show up or offer testimony at an annual Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing that took place Thursday.Their absence marked the first time in 15 years that both heads have not attended the annual hearing, according to the committee's chairman, Rep. Gary Peters, D-Mich."Their choice to not provide public testimony about their departments' efforts to address wide-ranging national security threats robs the American people of critical information and the opportunity for public accountability of what the federal government is doing...SNIP

The Democratic chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee blasted the heads of the FBI and Department of Homeland Security on Thursday, issuing a rare but sharp rebuke of the two officials for failing to appear for a public hearing. Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) said both Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and FBI Director Christopher Wray “refused to appear” before the panel for its annual hearing about threats to the homeland, saying it was the first time in 15 years officials have done so.

Democrats confirmed two more Biden judicial nominees to lifetime posts Wednesday in narrow votes, in part due to the absences of Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Mike Braun (R-IN). If the two senators had voted, the nominees would not have been cleared Wednesday because Vice President Kamala Harris would have been unavailable to break the 50-50 tie.

An elected official in charge of voter registration and tax collection in Texas hasn't swiped into her office for around four years .. Tax Assessor-Collector Ann Harris Bennett, who is responsible for the records of over 2.5 million voters, last accessed her office building in late 2020 according to county records that were seen by the newspaper. The Democrat, who assumed office in 2017 and is not seeking re-election in November, has oversight over voter registrations in Harris County, the most populous in Texas, which includes the city of Houston. County records also show Bennett has only sent 18 emails...

North Korea finally confirmed Tuesday that US soldier Travis King is being detained in the country — nearly a month after he bolted across the border. King told investigators that he had decided to enter North Korea because he “harbored ill feelings against inhuman mistreatment and racial discrimination within the US Army,” officials said. The 23-year-old also expressed his willingness to seek refuge in North Korea or a third country, saying he “was disillusioned at the unequal American society,” the North Korean official news agency, KCN, said in a statemen

American soldier Travis King had shown signs of possibly defecting from the Army nearly a year before he fled into North Korean territory, telling military officials while serving in South Korea that he would not “return to post or America.” *** It was not the first sign of trouble for the Wisconsin native, who was facing assault allegations over a fight at a club on Sept. 25. [On] Sept. 4, while serving at Camp Bonifas near the southern end of the Demilitarized Zone that separates North and South Korea, King skipped out on his daily formation and took off to...

The mother of the US soldier who has been detained in North Korea after crossing into the country without authorization said the risky behavior was unlike her son. The 23-year-old Army private, Travis King, was stationed in South Korea and was on a tour of the demilitarized zone between the two countries Tuesday when he strayed from the group and ran across the border. “I can’t see Travis doing anything like that,” Claudine Gates, of Racine, Wisconsin, told ABC News. She said she last spoke to her son a few days ago and just wanted him to come home. King...

#3,841 I think this vid gives a good overview of what happened. It starts with some crazy woman saying ANY SUV THAT COMES NEAR US YOU NEED TO SHOOT THEM SHOOT ALL THE SUVS IT COULD BE ALL OF THEM etc etc At 0: 45 you hear screaming tires and at around 1:00 the jeep crashes and gunshots start. I marked the place where the jeep crashes. On the pic the crash already occurred. Rumor is that there was a shootout before with another group. That's why the crazy woman yells to shoot any suv that comes near. 14 and...

A reflection On My PastI first wrote this account in 2010 when I was still writing for the Chico Enterprise Record newspaper. I did edit some of it to reflect more accurately the years since the events took place, but otherwise it is as I originally wrote it. Have you ever wondered how people get from point A to point B? I don't mean in a physical mileage way, but rather an emotional, phycological, and spiritual way. We all take in our surroundings and make decisions based upon the way we see things happening, and the way we feel. Then...

The jigsaw puzzle of William Howard Hughes Jr.'s life has many missing pieces. After disappearing into thin air in 1983 he was wanted across the globe by numerous agencies, from the Air Force to the FBI to Interpol. At one point it was thought that he defected to the Russians. Some suggested he sabotaged the disastrous Challenger space shuttle launch. Even after his recent capture, much of this unlikely story remains a mystery for the ages. Here’s what we found out. Born in Seattle in 1950 to a father who worked in the airline industry, Hughes had three sisters. He...

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is yet to release a statement on the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s raid of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago mansion on Monday.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Tuesday dodged a question about the FBI's Monday search of former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home during a Kentucky press conference. "I'm here to talk about the flood and recovery from the flood," McConnell, R-Ky., said when asked about the raid. [cut] The minority leader's refusal to talk about the search warrant served on Trump's private home comes as Senate GOP leadership has been slower than their House counterparts to comment on the raid.

ore than 24 hours after the FBI’s “unannounced raid” on former President Donald Trump’s home, some in Senate GOP leadership including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have refused to condemn the rogue agency’s actions against their party leader. While House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy rushed to condemn the Department of Justice’s “intolerable state of weaponized politicization” the night of the raid and even announced plans to “conduct immediate oversight of this department,” neither McConnell, Senate Republican Policy Committee Chair Roy Blunt, nor Senate Republican Whip John Thune had publicly mentioned a word to their constituents, the press, or their colleagues...

It is known that Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu removed Lieutenant General Vladislav Yershov from his duties. He was the commander of the 6th Combined Arms Army of the country. According to preliminary data, 2,000 servicemen were missing from the 6th Army alone. Of these, about 180 people are conscript soldiers. It is known that now General Eroshov is under house arrest. [google translation]

Despite the Russian invasion of Ukraine continuing to escalate, President Joe Biden remains at his private estate in Delaware. Fox News reported that Biden remains at his private residence in Delaware and that the media is having difficulty making contact with the administration.