Free Republic

Former President Donald Trump has moved into his biggest 2024 lead yet over President Joe Biden as voters appear unconcerned about his legal woes. In the just-released Rasmussen Reports survey, Trump moved ahead of Biden 47%-40% with support from women and independents. Trump was trailing Biden 42%-45% in February, the last time the national polling firm conducted a 2024 head-to-head survey. Trump announced his candidacy in November. Wednesday’s survey is the first 2024 general election testing since the Manhattan hush money indictment against the 45th president was released last week. It was conducted before Tuesday’s hearing, during which Trump pleaded...

Now that Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover is complete, many people are suddenly turning to Mastodon in their hunt for alternative venues for tweet-like social media consumption. Mastodon hews close to Twitter’s overall style, with “toots” instead of tweets and “boosts” instead of retweets, along with mentions, hashtags, and a chronological feed. The key difference is that Mastodon has no ads, no creepy data mining, and no centralized ownership. It can be a little tricky to set up, though, and you may quickly discover that its attempts to clone Twitter are at odds with its decentralized nature. But don’t let that...

COULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED TO A BETTER PERSON! Well ... I won't even pretend that we at the Neal Boortz Show haven't enjoyed this story immensely. Every once in a while it seems that someone gets exactly what's coming to them, and this is what happened to Michael Duga. Who is Michael Duga? Perhaps you remember a few weeks ago when we did a Boortz Power Lunch to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project. We really did want former Georgia Senator and wounded Vietnam veteran Max Cleland on the air .. not to talk about politics, but to talk about our wounded...

[R]esearchers led by the University of Zurich (UZH) has now discovered another component that contributes to SARS-CoV-2 immunity – previous antibody responses to other, harmless coronaviruses. “People who have had strong immune responses to other human coronaviruses also have some protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection,” says Alexandra Trkola, head of the Institute of Medical Virology at UZH. In their study, the researchers used a specially developed assay to analyze antibody levels against four other human coronaviruses in 825 serum samples taken before SARS-CoV-2 emerged. They also examined 389 samples from donors infected with SARS-CoV-2. Combining these analyses with computer-based models enabled...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The nation’s capital is tightening its public COVID-19 restrictions in the face of spiraling virus numbers locally and around the country. Mayor Muriel Bowser said Monday that the District of Columbia will remain in Phase 2 of its reopening plan, but she announced a number of adjustments, “so that we can get the virus under control in our city until we get to the other side where a vaccine will be widely available.” Starting Wednesday, Nov. 25, the maximum limit for outdoor gatherings will be reduced from 50 to 25 people and indoor gatherings will be limited...

Caracas (AFP) - Embattled President Nicolas Maduro on Sunday raised the minimum wage by 50 percent in Venezuela, a country with astronomical inflation. Maduro said he was raising the minimum wage to 40 bolivars, about 60 dollars at the highest official exchange rate, or $12 on the black market. "To get the year started, I have decided to raise the minimum wage," the president sad on his weekly show on state television. ... Venezuela has been rocked by low prices for its key export, oil. Now in its third year of a deep recession, it is facing severe shortages of...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers approved legislation key to securing a hallmark Pacific trade deal by a comfortable margin on Wednesday, advancing President Barack Obama's efforts to strengthen U.S. economic ties with Asia. Related Stories House OKs Fast-Track Trade Bill Fox Business 'Fast track' trade bill clears Senate hurdle MarketWatch Obama quest for fast-track trade bill on ice in U.S. House Reuters Clinton says she'd vote against 'fast track' trade bill Associated Press Obama quest for fast-track trade bill on ice in U.S. House Reuters After a six-week congressional battle including two brushes with failure, some fancy legislative footwork and...

A research team from The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), Mayo Clinic and other institutions has identified a new class of drugs that in animal models dramatically slows the aging process—alleviating symptoms of frailty, improving cardiac function and extending a healthy lifespan. The new research was published March 9 online ahead of print by the journal Aging Cell. The scientists coined the term "senolytics" for the new class of drugs. "We view this study as a big, first step toward developing treatments that can be given safely to patients to extend healthspan or to treat age-related diseases and disorders," said TSRI...

VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran has tripled its monthly production of higher-grade enriched uranium and the U.N. nuclear watchdog has "serious concerns" about possible military dimensions to Tehran's atomic activities, the agency's chief said on Monday. As International Atomic Energy Agency head Yukiya Amano voiced his concerns at an IAEA meeting, U.S. President Barack Obama told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Washington "has Israel's back" and would not let Iran get nuclear arms. Amano told a news conference at the IAEA in Vienna there were indications of unspecified "activities" at an Iranian military site which his inspectors want to visit as...

Wanna make some extra cash? Or meet an ex-state senator who still smokes? The U.S. government plans to roll out a new platform in July for what it calls "challenges" -- essentially nationwide contests where citizens can submit entries to a variety of predetermined topics. The ultimate point being to raise awareness of something. You might remember the $2,500 contest from earlier this year that asked entrants to shoot videos explaining USA.gov and post them to YouTube.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – California wage earners will soon notice a little less money in their paychecks. Starting Monday, employers in the cash-strapped state are required to withhold 10 percent more in state income taxes to help ease the budget problems. It's part of a plan to artificially inflate state revenue by $1.7 billion through next June. Brenda Voet, a spokeswoman for the state Franchise Tax Board, says it's technically not a tax increase since workers will get their money back after April 15.

NEW YORK - Having a big belly in your 40s can boost your risk of getting Alzheimer's disease or other dementia decades later, a new study suggests. It's not just about your weight. While previous research has found evidence that obesity in middle age raises the chances of developing dementia later, the new work found a separate risk from storing a lot of fat in the abdomen. Even people who weren't overweight were susceptible. That abdominal fat, sometimes described as making people apple-shaped rather than pear-shaped, has already been linked to higher risk of developing diabetes, stroke and heart disease....

Scarlett Johansson smiles after being pinned with gunnery sergeant rank during a meet and greet Jan. 20 in the United Service Organizations building at Camp Buehring, Kuwait. The 23-year-old bombshell met with nearly 600 service members at Camp Buehring, Kuwait Jan. 20 during her five-day United Service Organizations (USO) tour to the Gulf region Scarlett Johansson poses for a photo with Marines of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit Jan. 20 in the United Service Organizations building at Camp Buehring, Kuwait. The 23-year-old bombshell met with nearly 600 service members at Camp Buehring, Kuwait Jan. 20 during her five-day United...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 7, 2007 – As ground forces in the U.S. troop surge in Iraq make more progress against insurgents, Army aviation assets back them up with crucial mobility, medical and combat support, an officer in charge of a deployed aviation brigade said today. The combat aviation brigade of 3rd Infantry Division has been deployed since May in support of Multinational Division Center. The brigade’s 128 helicopters have flown more than 65,000 hours in support of many different missions, Army Col. Daniel Ball, the brigade commander, told military analysts in a conference call from Iraq. The aviation brigade has conducted...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 17, 2007 – From stocking hats to shower shoes, a West Virginia-based group is actively filling requests from U.S. troops serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait, sending them about 50 boxfuls of care packages each week. The West Virginia National Guard's 150th Aviation Regiment is working with American Supports You supporter Boatsie's Boxes so the group can have a large space to fill, pack and ship holiday care packages as part of Operation Christmas Stocking. Courtesy photo   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “‘Boatsie’s Boxes’ began when my son, Patrick, a master sergeant in the United...

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Al-Qaida's latest offensive appears to be taking place on computer and television screens, and uses techniques associated more with Madison Avenue than Fallujah. Although viewership is difficult to measure, analysts say the group's videos seem to be reaching a wider audience than ever, piggybacking on the popularity of blogs and video-sharing programs like YouTube. Key to the operation are two broadcast anchors, Libyan firebrand Abu Laith al-Libi and an American fugitive, Adam Yehiye Gadahn. "You're losing on all fronts, and losing big time," Gadahn, also known as Azzam al-Amriki, told President Bush in an Internet...

SAN DIEGO - It isn't every day on the campaign trail that New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson proclaims himself a Californian, or that Hillary Rodham Clinton pledges to be a president who respects gay relationships. But with trendsetting California set to move its primary to next Feb. 5, candidates are scrambling to adjust to a new reality in which the state's votes, and not just its money, may have a decisive impact on the nominating process. California's enhanced role in the political calendar was on full display this weekend, with nearly all the major Democratic contenders flying in to address...

A chemical in male sweat can boost mood, brain activity and sexual arousal in heterosexual women, according to a new study released just in time for Valentine's Day. The study offers the first direct evidence that humans secrete a scent that can affect the physiology of the opposite sex, said researchers at the University of California, Berkeley. Their findings were published this week in The Journal of Neuroscience. "This is the first time anyone has demonstrated that a change in women's hormonal levels is induced by sniffing an identified compound of male sweat," said study leader Claire Wyart, a postdoctoral...

Taking Mayor Bloomberg's view one step further, Sen. John McCain warned that the American economy would collapse if 11 million illegal aliens are sent packing. "What are we going to do with 11 million people?" McCain asked at a dinner at the New York Yacht Club......... "You going to send 'em all back? Mayor Bloomberg testified at a hearing last week that the economy of New York City would collapse [without illegal immigrants]. I would argue the economy of America would collapse." The Arizona Republican is co-sponsor of a bill....that would provide for a guest-worker program and a path to...

CAMP TAQADDUM, Iraq (July 3, 2006) -- People go to convenience stores to buy pampers and baby formula or stock up on chips and dip for the next day's big game. But in Iraq, military stores known as post exchanges, play a far more important role. At this sprawling logistics base centered between the restive cities of Ramadi and Fallujah, service members now have a brand new post exchange - PX for short - where they can stock up on goods ranging from basic hygiene items to 'high-tech' equipment like laptop computers and DVD players. Built in a former mess...