Free Republic

Testifying before the Senate last month, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon spoke eloquently of what a wonderful country we live in and about the freedoms we enjoy. ... While I was glad to hear Dimon speak proudly of America and our freedoms, I am concerned that his bank fails to live up to such lofty ideals. He referred to religious freedom as a “foundational belief,” but his bank recently decided to close the account of the National Committee for Religious Freedom, a nonpartisan, faith-based nonprofit organization dedicated to defending the right of everyone in America to live one's faith freely....

Lagos, Nigeria (CNN)The US government is honoring an 83-year-old Muslim cleric who hid 262 Christians in his home and mosque during an attack in central Nigeria. Imam Abubakar Abdullahi, along with four religious leaders from Sudan, Iraq, Brazil and Cyprus, were awarded the 2019 the International Religious Freedom Award, which is given to advocates of religious freedom. Abdullahi was recognized for providing shelter for hundreds of Christians fleeing attacks from Muslim herdsmen who had launched coordinated attacks on Christian farmers in 10 villages in the Barkin Ladi area of Plateau State on June 23, 2018, the award organizers said in...

Later this week, the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will host the first-ever “Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom” at the State Department headquarters in Washington, D.C. The fact that this meeting is being held is about as important as what will come out of it.True, the substance matters. It’s crucial that activists and government officials from around the world hear tales of persecution from individuals whose plight has been overlooked or who have been beyond the reach of all press coverage. It is important that organizations know how to access government funds available to help them aid the persecuted. It...

LONDON (Reuters) - Sam Brownback, the U.S. Ambassador for International Religious Freedom, complained to the British ambassador in Washington D.C. about the treatment of an English right-wing activist who is in jail for disrupting a trial, according to three sources familiar with the discussion. Brownback raised the jailing of Robinson during a meeting with Darroch that covered a range of “religious freedom issues”, the British official confirmed earlier this week.

Sam Brownback, the U.S. Ambassador for International Religious Freedom, complained to the British ambassador in Washington D.C. about the treatment of an English right-wing activist who is in jail for disrupting a trial, according to three sources familiar with the discussion. Brownback raised the case of the activist known as Tommy Robinson in a June meeting with Sir Kim Darroch, Britain's Ambassador to the United States, according to a British official and two sources close to the organizers of a pro-Robinson demonstration planned for London on Saturday. Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, though he also uses other aliases,...

Departing Gov. Sam Brownback wants Kansas residents to observe his final full day in office with prayer and fasting, but some critics are opting for pizza and beer. The governor's office issued its last proclamation, designating Tuesday as a "Day of Prayer and Fasting." He's resigning at 3 p.m. Wednesday to become U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom. Critics posted plans on Facebook for a 24-hour "Bye Brownback" pizza and beer party starting at 3 p.m.

If you thought Kansas emerged from its long budget crisis to reject deep-red politics and move back toward the center, think again. A year ago, many voters concluded that Republican Gov. Sam Brownback’s experiment in cutting income taxes had ended in failure, opening the door to a more moderate agenda. But now an even more aggressively conservative figure could win next year’s race for governor. Secretary of State Kris Kobach, a Harvard-, Yale- and Oxford-educated lawyer, leads a large field of likely candidates after building a national reputation as hardline provocateur on immigration and voter ID laws. His visibility rose...

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Senate panel narrowly approved the nomination of Sam Brownback to be U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom despite complaints from LGBT rights groups over the Kansas governor's views on same-sex marriage and gender identity. On an 11-10 vote Thursday, the Foreign Relations Committee recommended that the full Senate consider President Donald Trump's selection of Brownback for the State Department post. The committee also approved several other Trump nominees for ambassadorships. Among them was Richard Grenell to be U.S. envoy to Germany. Grenell would be the first openly LGBT ambassador for Trump if he's confirmed

WASHINGTON, D.C., August 8, 2017 (LifeSiteNews) — The nation’s largest homosexual activist group lambasted President Trump’s pick to serve as ambassador at large for international religious freedom. “Gov. (Sam) Brownback’s appointment would promote discrimination, not religious freedom,” Human Rights Campaign’s Brian McBride charged. Brownback will only perpetrate Trump’s “discriminatory ideologies in other nations.” “HRC is deeply disappointed by Trump’s nomination of this anti-LGBTQ politician,” the organization said in a press release, adding that nomination of Brownback is “a weapon to advance discrimination.” Yawn. Brownback is a bold, pro-life and pro-marriage conservative who has defended the right of Christians and others...

"What's the matter with Kansas?" In 2004, Thomas Frank asked the question fearing a "right-wing class war grown so powerful" that it induced "the common people" to vote against their own interests. Now, 13 years later, pundits are asking the same question—but under drastically different circumstances.

The Republican dominated Kansas Legislature that has soured on Gov. Sam Brownback’s vision for the state voted late Tuesday to roll back the governor’s signature tax cuts. Lawmakers voted to override Brownback’s veto of a tax plan estimated to bring the state more than $1.2 billion over a two-year span. The Senate vote was 27 to 13, and the House followed by agreeing 88 to 31 to supersede the Republican governor’s wishes on the tax plan and force the changes into law. Lawmakers marshaled together a coalition of moderate Republicans, conservatives and Democrats to overcome the governor’s opposition to seeing...

Governor Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, has reportedly been offered a new job as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture in Rome. Kansas Public Radio reports Brownback is preparing to leave Kansas to take the job in Italy. KPR reports that it has talked to an anonymous source that calls the appointment a 'done deal.' Gov. Brownback would fill the now-vacant position of U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Agencies for Food and Agriculture.

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback on Wednesday vetoed a bill that would undo his signature income tax cut and his allies prevented the Legislature from overriding him, setting up future confrontations over balancing the state budget. Less than two hours after Brownback vetoed the bill, the state House voted 85-40 to override him, giving supporters one vote more than the two-thirds majority they needed. But the vote in the Senate hours later was 24-16, which was three shy of a two-thirds majority. By not overriding the veto, lawmakers will have to draft another plan aimed at closing projected budget shortfalls totaling...

TOPEKA, Kan. (KWCH) A new President-elect. means new roles for Kansas politicians. Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach has advised Donald Trump on immigration for a while. Now, he's on Donald Trump's immigration transition team. The team helps transition President Barack Obama's policies to President-elect Donald Trump's policies. "I'm a member of the immigration policy transition team and there's going to be a lot to do there in part because Mr. Trump and Mr. Obama are diametric opposites when it comes to immigration policy so there will be a lot of changes," Kobach said. Kobach has supported Trump from the...

Got the experience, doing the right thing. His results don't look good. Popularity is in the toilet. At least we would know the direction the party is going in.

Kansas Governor Sam Brownback offered options on Wednesday for dealing with sinking revenue for the state's current and next budgets, including the sale of tobacco bonds. With the fiscal 2016 revenue estimated to drop by nearly $94 million and fiscal 2017 revenue expected to be $134.7 million less than previously projected, the Republican governor said Kansas could raise about $158 million through its first sale of bonds backed by its share of a 1998 multi-state settlement with U.S. tobacco companies.

Republican lawmakers in Kansas, weary of conflicts with a judiciary that has been pushing for more school spending, are beginning to act on a measure to expand the legal grounds for impeaching judges. The move is part of an intensified effort in red states to reshape courts still dominated by moderate judges from earlier administrations. A committee in the GOP-controlled Senate plans to vote Tuesday on a bill that would make “attempting to usurp the power” of the Legislature or the executive branch grounds for impeachment. …

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has become the first sitting governor to endorse Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida for president. The Rubio campaign announced the endorsement Monday. "Just like Governor Brownback, Marco has consistently defended life, small government and free enterprise throughout his career in public service," Rubio midwest spokesman Jeremy Adler said in a statement. Kansas Republicans will caucus Mar. 5. Brownback, a Republican who once ran for president, endorsed then-Texas Gov. Rick Perry in 2011. Perry was a candidate for the 2016 GOP nomination but withdrew. "Marco Rubio has a proven track record of protecting life, defending religious liberty,...

Kansas became the first state to ban a common second trimester abortion procedure when Governor Sam Brownback, a Republican, on Tuesday signed into a law an act to halt what lawmakers said are "dismemberment abortions." The law that goes into effect on July 1 prohibits the use of dilation and evacuation. The bill says the procedure can result in the fetus being extracted in pieces. Supporters in Kansas have called the procedure horrifying while women's healthcare groups have said it is considered the safest way to terminate a pregnancy in the second trimester. The law allows for the procedure to...

CONCORDIA Two school districts plan to end the academic year early to save money, citing financial pressures caused by reduced state aid for this academic year. The Concordia school district will release students May 15, rather than May 21. And the Twin Valley School District, which includes Bennington and Tescott, will dismiss May 8, rather than May 20. Concordia Superintendent Bev Mortimer said students have hugged her in thanks for the early release. “They remember me as the snow day lady,” she said. “We are popular with the kids but not the parents.” Kansas school districts are facing financial pressures...