Free Republic

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- Employees at Pho 21 restaurant in South San Jose had an unexpected showdown last weekend with what could be considered an attempted "robot kidnapper." Surveillance footage from the restaurant captured the bizarre incident at around 7:40 a.m. last Saturday. A man entered the restaurant, asked to use the restroom and then emerged with a much stranger plan. He can be seen on surveillance talking with an employee and then, instead of leaving the shop, grabbing one of the restaurant's three robot servers and trying to haul it out the front door toward his car, which...

On Jan. 20, Donald Trump was sworn in, for a second time, as the president of the United States. As the country begins to see the early effects of a second Trump term (including the signing of dozens of executive orders), SFGATE set out to decipher what his new administration and its proposed policies could mean for the food, agriculture and restaurant industries in California. Trump has made no secret of his disdain for the Golden State, consistently referring to Gov. Gavin Newsom as “Newscum” in Los Angeles wildfire-related posts on Truth Social. The president has also touted plans for...

“Lawmakers in the House passed a bill this week aimed at reforming policing in this country. It's called the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act…this bill would ban chokeholds and make it easier to pursue misconduct claims against officers, among other reforms. The lead author is Congresswoman Karen Bass from California,” reported NPR on March 5.Well, Rep. Karen Bass certainly qualifies as an expert on “police misconduct,” considering that for decades she’s been providing aid and comfort to a police state that jailed and tortured political prisoners at a higher rate than Stalin’s during the Great Terror and murdered more...

President Trump ramped up his mass deportation crackdown on Saturday as he focused ICE's efforts on Los Angeles. Illegal migrants in the sanctuary city were reportedly rounded up in a sweep of early morning raids, a day after Trump visited the area to survey wildfire devastation. Arrested migrants were held at ICE detention centers in California, which were expected to fill up so quickly due to Trump's raids that federal agents have been scouting for more detention spaces, the New York Post reported. Sources told the outlet that ICE agents avoided areas of the city that have been destroyed by...

The Trump administration’s mass-deportation offensive expanded into Los Angeles Saturday with pre-dawn roundups, part of a West Coast operation expected to run seven days a week, sources told The Post.Immigration agents avoided sections of the city suffering the most damage from the devastating wildfires burning through parts of Southern California, the sources noted.The effort was part of the major crackdown in large cities across America that President Trump promised on the campaign trail and has focused on booting criminal migrants, sources added.

President Donald Trump sparred with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, who was traveling abroad in Ghana when California’s fires broke out, Friday after she pushed back on rebuilding the state as quickly as possible. Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., met Trump at the tarmac before the Republican president toured the devastation and held a roundtable meeting with state leaders and lawmakers. California’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies were widely blamed for Los Angeles’s incompetent, lesbian-led fire department and a Ghana-bound Bass as flames raged on without reprieve. Trump did not hesitate to call out Bass in their televised meeting, slamming...

President Donald Trump got into a heated exchange with embattled Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass as they clashed over her handling of the wildfire crisis. It came after Trump was greeted by California governor Gavin Newsom on the tarmac as he arrived in Los Angeles to view the devastating aftermath of the recent wildfires. The two men then engaged in a very awkward handshake as Newsom - a Democrat who Trump has derided as 'Newscum' - humiliatingly thanked the president for coming. Newsom, who Trump has blamed for failing to prevent the fires, said his state needed 'a lot of...

A California ballot initiative proposing that the state become its own country and secede from the United States has been filed and cleared for signature gathering. If the measure makes it onto the November 2028 ballot, it would ask voters: “Should California leave the United States and become a free and independent country?” local news outlet KCRA3 reported on Friday. The guidelines would require 50 percent of registered voters to participate and a “yes” vote from 55 percent of voters, which would indicate “a vote of no confidence in the United States of America,” according to the report. The measure...

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration shut down a highly trained, all-volunteer team of certified firefighters in early 2024—a move that rendered the California National Guard incapable of sending a complete firefighting force to Los Angeles until 10 days after the deadly fires broke out in the city, the Washington Free Beacon has learned. Launched in 2020, Team Blaze was an on-call strike force staffed entirely with certified firefighters of the California State Guard, a volunteer militia force that reports directly to Gov. Gavin Newsom. Former State Guard commanding general Jay Coggan said its members attended regular trainings at their own...

President Donald Trump on Friday said he wants California to implement voter ID laws before he would approve federal funds to help it recover from massive wildfires there and said he might eliminate the federal emergency response agency."I want to see two things in Los Angeles: Voter ID so that the people have a chance to vote. And I want to see the water be released and come down into Los Angeles and throughout the state. Those are the two things. After that, I will be the greatest president that California ever has ever seen," Trump said during a visit...

Please, Don, may I have some more? President Trump was greeted warmly by Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom as the commander in chief exited Air Force One upon arrival in Los Angeles Friday — making nice after Trump blasted his management of the crisis. Trump, 78, and Newsom, 57, talked briefly and animatedly after the president descended the steps of his jet — with the governor alternately pointing, making a fist and giving a thumbs up. The awkward greeting, in which both men patted each other on the shoulder, ended with Newsom, who had not been officially invited, giving first...

President Trump received a firm handshake from California Gov. Gavin Newsom as he exited Air Force One upon arrival in Los Angeles Friday — with the Democrat making nice after Trump blasted his management of the crisis. “I appreciate the governor coming out and meeting me,” Trump told reporters on the tarmac. “We want to get it fixed.” “You got hit by a bomb,” Trump said — likening the scenes of wildfires to the devastation of World War II. “Most importantly, thank you for being here,” Newsom told Trump. “We’re going to need your support. We’re going to need your...

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) will be standing on the tarmac with hand outstretched to greet President Donald Trump when his plane lands to begin a visit of the fire-ravaged Los Angeles area on Friday afternoon. “I look forward to being there on the tarmac to thank the president, welcome him, and we’re making sure that all the resources she needs for a successful briefing are provided to him,” Newsom said on Thursday, according to Politico. Newsom previously admitted while he had invited Trump to California, he had not had any contact with the president before his visit, but planned...

Residents of Watsonville, regardless of their voter registration or citizen status, can now apply to serve on city commissions. Commissions that advise the Watsonville City Council on issues around the library, land use, and parks and recreation all have openings available to city residents. In November, Watsonville passed Measure V, allowing undocumented residents and those younger than 18 to apply for commission positions. People interested in serving on a city board or commission can submit an application online, in person, or by mailing it to the City Clerk’s Office, Civic Plaza Building, 275 Main St., Top Floor, Watsonville 95076. Applications...

President Trump will venture into deep-blue California on Friday for a closely-watched visit that could determine disaster aid for the state and how Trump will work with Democratic governors throughout his four years in office. Trump’s trip to fire-ravaged Los Angeles comes after he traded barbs with California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). The president will also make trips to North Carolina, which was hit hard by Hurricane Helene, and to Nevada, two states he won in November. The trip to Los Angeles also marks a big moment for Newsom, who has been floated as a potential 2028 contender but who...

Nicole Kidman, Kate Winslet, Sandra Bullock, Viola Davis, Helen Mirren... Carlos Gascon? Even though one of these things is not like the other, they all have something in common: They've been nominated for an Academy Award for "Best Actress." Look, I couldn't care less about the Oscars, and I'm sure most of you agree. Hollywood has long proven that it is out of touch with reality and out of touch with the rest of the country. But as a woman — an actual biological woman in case we have any confused liberals lurking around — I'm so sick of...

San Francisco’s gourmet doughnut cafe George’s Donuts & Merriment is receiving online backlash just weeks after opening due to a sizable donation its co-owner’s startup made to President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee. Hims & Hers, a San Francisco-headquartered telehealth company co-founded by George’s Donuts co-owner Andrew Dudum, recently made a $1 million donation to Trump’s inaugural committee, according to a report by the San Francisco Chronicle (Dudum is also the CEO of Hims). But despite the donation coming directly from Dudum’s health startup, the fallout over the large contribution is now extending to the cafe, with a barrage of negative...

More than 750 northern tidewater gobies were plucked from a lagoon ravaged by the Palisades fire and transferred to aquariums. A more complicated mission to rescue endangered steelhead trout from the same watershed is slated move forward Thursday. Watersheds seared by fire can take years to recover, experts say. The rescue team donned waders and marched into a murky Malibu lagoon scorched by the Palisades fire. Their mission: Save the lives of northern tidewater gobies, a tiny endangered fish. The destructive wildfire had stripped the slopes of the nearby Santa Monica Mountains and now rain could send a tremendous amount...

EXCLUSIVE LAFD Assistant Chief Kristina Kepner was accused of brutally assaulting ex-girlfriend... who claims boss Crowley 'covered it up' and promoted her A senior official at the Los Angeles Fire Department made 'homicidal and suicidal' threats, strangled and chased her girlfriend with a carving knife, court documents claimed. LAFD assistant chief Kristina 'Kady' Kepner then wrote a suicide note after cutting herself according to a 2021 domestic violence restraining order filed by the ex in a Los Angeles court. During an argument at their home, the LAFD official allegedly 'lunged' at her ex and began strangling her, while saying that...

A hiker was shot and robbed by “suspected cartel members” Wednesday while exploring an area along the edge of San Diego County near the U.S.-Mexico border with a group, U.S. Border Patrol El Centro Sector officials said in a social media post. The post, which had an accompanying video, appears to show the hiker being airlifted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection from where the shooting occurred in the Jacumba Mountains Wilderness, a federally-maintained desert area spanning San Diego and Imperial counties. Border Patrol says agents were dispatched to “rescue the hikers, evaluate them, and neutralize any threats.” The post’s...