Free Republic

John McCain’s campaign was left gasping for breath this summer, when the Arizonan seemed to run out of money, support and hope. Since then, the opening has been there for any of the other Republican candidates to put Mr. McCain—this contest’s initial front-runner—out of his misery. But here we are, just weeks before the first primary votes will be cast, and Mr. McCain has slowly nursed his way back to relevance and a plausible, if not likely, nomination scenario. It’s a turn of events that says as much about Mr. McCain’s rivals, each of whom seem to be equipped with...

What's with Laura Ingraham? This morning Peggy Noonan wrote an op ed which included the following criticism of President Bush: "Every major domestic initiative of his second term has been ill thought through and ended in failure. His Iraq leadership has failed. His standing is lower than any previous president's since polling began.", Laura loved Noonan's op ed. Go gal, kick him when he's down. Ingraham is taking herself too seriously. Yesterday she was aghast over security chief Chertoff's "gut feeling." I don't know why. I would appreciate any source regarding security even Chertoff's gut. She also found Chertoff less...

One big question when Democrats took over Congress was which industry would be first to feel the new majority's populist rage. Oil? Pharma? Banks? Corporate America just got its answer, direct from the angriest man to have been empowered in the past election: Republican Sen. Trent Lott. Like many Gulf Coast residents, Mr. Lott was soon reminded by his insurer, State Farm, that his policy only covered wind damage--not flood damage.

What the Foley incident has taught us: First, no law was broken and under age pages were not subjected to Foley's buggering. Second, all deviates in congress must be ferreted out to preclude their hitting on our children. And not blowing the whistle on this threat could be used against a politician in a future election -- a threat right up their with bribery (although William Jefferson's (D-LA) case is an exception). The threat of a stealth gay congressman is so great that it can contribute to a lost election. While Foley has not been accused of having sex with...

...HR64 is one of the most powerful university statements on academic freedom. It states: "The faculty member is entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing his/her subject. The faculty member is, however, responsible for the maintenance of appropriate standards of scholarship and teaching ability. It is not the function of a faculty member in a democracy to indoctrinate his/her students with ready-made conclusions on controversial subjects. "The faculty member is expected to train students to think for themselves, and to provide them access to those materials which they need if they are to think intelligently. Hence, in giving instruction...

Until June, the (Seattle) school district's Web site declared that "cultural racism'' includes "emphasizing individualism as opposed to a more collective ideology,'' "having a future time orientation'' (planning ahead) and "defining one form of English as standard.'' The site also asserted that only whites can be racists, and disparaged assimilation as the "giving up'' of one's culture. After this propaganda provoked outrage, the district, saying it needed to "provide more context to readers'' about "institutional racism,'' put up a page saying that the district's intention is to avoid "unsuccessful concepts such as a melting pot or colorblind mentality.'' The Supreme...

(snip)A recent article in 5280 Magazine extolled the fine efforts of Denver Public Schools Superintendent Michael Bennet to turn around this underperforming district. As a demonstration of the difficulty of his task, we saw a paper submitted by a 10th grader at a DPS high school who was assigned to "write down five things the U.S. government is currently doing that might be unconstitutional." The student offered two: "1. Bushe cold have help the Katrina people whin it hapin. 2. Bushe should't be tipin in to people's phone."(bold added)

First, some background: Ten years ago, Osama bin Laden declared war on the United States to "expel the infidels from the Arab peninsula.'' One theme of his Aug. 23, 1996, fatwa was that for all its military power, America was weak. It had fled from terrorist attacks in Beirut, Aden and Somalia, and it would flee Saudi Arabia, as well. Bin Laden said of his terrorist cadres: "These youths love death even as you love life.'' The truth of those words became clear on Sept. 11, 2001, when 15 Saudi-born terrorists led a suicide attack on the symbols of American...

Although Democrats didn't promise much -- they benefited heavily from unhappiness with the war in Iraq -- they still succumbed to exaggeration. Their sound bites ran ahead of plausible solutions. Consider three familiar themes. Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy; inaction on the minimum wage; and Republican opposition to negotiating Medicare drug prices with the pharmaceutical companies. All are of a piece. The Republicans are lackeys for the wealthy business class; they don't care much about the poor. (snip) But what can the Democrats do? Let's see.

In a column written by Thomas Friedman for the New York Times, he asks "How dumb are we? It's your typical Bush hit piece, but one of his assertions caused me to up chuck my oatmeal. George Bush, Dick Chenet and Don Rumsfeld think you're stupid.They think they can take a mangled quip about President Bush and Iraq by John Kerry - a man who is not even running for office but who, unlike Bush and Cheney never ran away from combat service- and get you to vote against all Democrats in this election.(bolf type is mine) The person that...

Laura Ingraham! You can ignore Laura many times throughout the day! One of the problem with Ingraham is that, if you disagree with her you will never get on her show. The screener just hangs up. And, I don't know how they do it, but if you email her a criticism, it will not be accepted. Thank God for Michael Medved where disagreement is celebrated. Below is a schedule to help you avoid Ingraham. with links to places for streaming! From 9-noon Eastern Time 920 WGKA 870 KRLA 1360 WKAT WITH 1230 560 WIND 55KRC From noon-3 pm Eastern Time...

The Empire Strikes BackNEW YORK - What is happening to the Republican Party in New York state is the national GOP's nightmare. The once thriving political organization of Nelson Rockefeller, Al D'Amato and George Pataki is in shambles. And the way the Republican coalition has broken up should have national Republicans scurrying for a new game plan. For many Americans, "New York'' evokes the liberal salons of Manhattan. But Manhattan is a small piece of the Empire State. Political change has been driven by the populous suburbs of Long Island and Westchester and Rockland Counties, and in the vast stretches...

Responding to an invitation from President Kim Il-sung of North Korea, and with the approval of President Bill Clinton, I went to Pyongyang and negotiated an agreement under which North Korea would cease its nuclear program at Yongbyon and permit inspectors from the atomic agency to return to the site to assure that the spent fuel was not reprocessed. It was also agreed that direct talks would be held between the two Koreas. The spent fuel (estimated to be adequate for a half-dozen bombs) continued to be monitored, and extensive bilateral discussions were held. The United States assured the North...

1. Liberals believe individuals should doubt their own truths and consider fairly and open-mindedly the truths of others. (snip) Liberals are skeptical of censorship and celebrate free and open debate. 2. Liberals believe individuals should be tolerant and respectful of difference. It is liberals who have supported and continue to support the civil rights movement, affirmative action, the Equal Rights Amendment and the rights of gays and lesbians. (snip) 3. Liberals believe individuals have a right and a responsibility to participate in public debate. (snip) the elimination of obstacles to voting; "one person, one vote;" limits on partisan gerrymandering; campaign-finance...

... if McCain were to reevaluate his positions on the Middle East, he might make a very effective president. He has the ability to lead and a good sense, domestically, of where the country ought to go. Indeed, I talked to several liberals who know McCain and who opposed the Iraq war but who still wouldn't mind seeing him in the White House. Gary Hart laments McCain's embrace of the neocons, but still likes the idea of a McCain presidency and was worried that his enthusiasm might "sink his chances." A former top aide to a leading Democratic presidential contender...

The failure to find WMDs in Iraq, the shrieking of America’s doves, and the constraints of international diplomacy have all prevented the Bush administration from speaking honestly and openly to the American people about the true nature of the threat we face. And pretty much everyone else has taken their eyes off the ball. Iraqi WMDs? Not nearly as important as what Saddam could and would have bought and built with the help of North Korea and A. Q. Kahn. Troubles in Iraq? Not nearly as important as the deterrent effect of an America willing to brave 3,000 casualties for...

"When a 16-year-old boy is not safe from sexual solicitation from an elected representative of the people, we should question the moral direction of our nation," a conservative advocacy group said on Monday. The group also said Foley's behavior raises the "real issue" of homosexuality and child abuse. Family Research Council President Tony Perkins noted that so many people -- Republicans and Democrats -- are "shocked" by former Rep. Mark Foley's sexually explicit instant messages to a teenage boy -- a House page at the time. But we shouldn't be shocked, Perkins said: "This is the end result of a...

Oct. 6, 2006 - Republicans booed their likely next House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, when she rose to speak Wednesday evening “not only as Democratic leader but as a mother and grandmother.” Some shouted “Jefferson,” a lame attempt to find equivalency between a disgraced Democrat, Louisiana Rep. William Jefferson, currently under investigation for allegedly taking kickbacks, and Florida Republican Mark Foley, (snip) What Foley did was not about being gay but about abusing his power over young students—and it was compounded by the actions of his colleagues whose silence made them complicit.(snip) The public is right to be disgusted with Foley’s...

The Democrats are touting the Iraqi war as the cause celib of al-Qaed recruitment but, a Golden Carp agent recently attended an al-Qaeda jobs fair and found the truth.The scene: several would-be recruits are being addressed by, Saddam, an al-Qaeda leader. He points to a PowerPoint presentation and speaks; look, here is a story from AP, which we refer to as the "al-Qaeda Press," -- see, they confirm that we are not terrorist but freedom fighters and that our organization has expanded worldwide. They also provide valuable employment for several of our members.. Without a doubt we are winning our...

.. Seen from afar, the congressional debate over the war and terrorism comes across as a Washington event designed to show that Democrats are wimps on national security and to boost Republicans as true defenders of the homeland. Or Republicans are portrayed as clueless warmongers hell-bent on sending other people's sons and daughters into battle... In reality, the struggle on Capitol Hill is not about terrorism. It's about gaining and holding power in the fall election. And it is a disgusting sight to behold... Self-regarding members of Congress, intent on keeping their jobs, have forgotten all about enemies who are...