Free Republic

Eighty-three percent of the programs directly funded and administered by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) were canceled Monday by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Rubio took to social media to announce the latest step in the Trump administration’s efforts to cleanse the deep state from government institutions. The decision came after a six week review of the programs, Rubio set out, citing their funding as antithetical to the core interests of the United States: After a 6 week review we are officially cancelling 83% of the programs at USAID. The 5200 contracts that are now cancelled spent tens...

The State Department has suspended flights bringing previously approved refugees to the United States, cutting off access to protection in advance of the timeline set by President Trump in a new order pausing the program. An email reviewed Wednesday by The Associated Press, the U.S. agency overseeing refugee processing and arrival told staff and stakeholders that “refugee arrival to the United States have been suspended until further notice.” The suspension of flights indicates early action on an order that didn’t direct movement from agencies until Jan. 27. The State Department did not return a request for comment, but a page...

The View will look a lot different when it returns for Season 28 in September. The talk show’s hosts revealed in the Friday (August 2) Season 27 finale that they’re moving studios during the upcoming break. The new stage will be in a “brand-new, state-of-the-art” studio in downtown Manhattan

You are undoubtedly familiar with many efforts of the fascist left to use its control of government offices, bureaucracies, and other institutions to delegitimize and silence mainstream conservative speech: things like the Censorship Industrial Complex, otherwise known as pressure by government functionaries to induce social media platforms to shut down wrongthink on topics ranging from Covid to climate change to Trump; de-monetization of perfectly reasonable sites like PJ Media or Watts Up With That; the political prosecutions of presumptive Republican nominee Trump, including locking him in a courtroom to prevent him from campaigning; and many more such. This week along...

On Monday’s broadcast of NPR’s “All Things Considered,” White House National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby said that the White House doesn’t understand why Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu canceled a planned Israeli delegation to the U.S. over the U.S. abstaining from a vote on a U.N. ceasefire resolution because the resolution is “a non-binding resolution that has absolutely no effect on Israel’s ability to defend itself.” And is consistent with U.S. policy of wanting a ceasefire in conjunction with the release of hostages. Kirby said, [relevant remarks begin around 3:35] “We’re perplexed by this decision. Because, first of all,...

Oscar-winning actress Susan Sarandon issued an apology on Friday for her polemic, antisemitic comments made during a pro-Palestinian rally in New York City last month. The incident led to her separation from top Hollywood talent agency UTA. Sarandon, addressing the crowd at Union Square on Nov. 17, asserted that Jews were "getting a taste of what it is like to be Muslim in this country, so often subjected to violence." The New York Post reported that she "intended" instead to express concern about the rise in hate crimes. In an Instagram post, Sarandon said, "This phrasing was a terrible mistake,...

BREAKING: Jordan cancels summit between Biden, King Abdulla, President Sisi and president Abbas planned for tomorrow in Amman, Jordanian foreign minister says

A Christian ministry claiming it was "debanked" by Bank of America filed a consumer complaint this week to Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti to determine whether their accounts were closed due to religious discrimination. Indigenous Advanced Ministries – a Memphis, Tennessee-based nonprofit engaged in charitable efforts for orphaned children in Uganda through various partnerships – was warned without explanation by Bank of America in April that the organization was "operating in a business type we have chosen not to service at Bank of America" and would be closed within 30 days. In May, Bank of America sent another letter stating...

The late Chicago baseball legend Minnie Miñoso was also known as “Mr. White Sox” and the “Cuban Comet.” Now he will be known, too, for a South Side school that newly bears his name. Minnie Miñoso Academy — the building formerly known as George McClellan Elementary, located just a few blocks west of Sox ballpark Guaranteed Rate Field — was celebrated Thursday with a back-to-school bash ahead of opening day in Chicago Public Schools on Monday. Miñoso’s son, Charlie Rice-Miñoso, and Sox mascot Southpaw were among those on hand to welcome families to the re-christened campus. The building bearing his...

Martha’s Vineyard can’t turn the page on Alan Dershowitz. The Harvard Law professor and longtime island denizen says his works have been banished from the local book fair. “I’ve been canceled,” Dershowitz, 84, told Newsmax host Greta Greta Van Susteren Friday. “My books are not allowed to be sold at the Martha’s Vineyard Chilmark book fair because I defended Donald Trump. Until I defended Donald Trump, my books were featured every year at the book fair.”

Esteemed physicist Dr. John Clauser, who holds multiple degrees from the California Institute of Technology and Columbia University, won Nobel Prize in Physics in 2022. As a scientific expert, Clauser does not believe there is a man-made global warming crisis. This doesn’t sit well with left-wing climate activists. “I don’t believe there is a climate crisis,” Clauser explained. “The world we live in today is filled with misinformation. It is up to each of you to serve as judges, distinguishing truth from falsehood based on accurate observations of phenomena.”

British pop-rock band The 1975 has been banned from performing in Malaysia a day after the band’s frontman Matty Healy slammed the country’s anti-LGBTQ laws and then kissed his bandmate, bassist Ross MacDonald. The country, where homosexuality is illegal, also canceled the remainder of the Good Vibes Festival Saturday, which was supposed to run the rest of the weekend with several other acts. "There will be no compromise against any party that challenges, disparages and violates Malaysian laws," Malaysia’s Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said in a statement, according to Reuters. He added, "never touch on the sensitivities of the community,...

Several Fourth of July fireworks displays in Los Angeles County have been canceled due to new environmental regulations aimed at reducing pollution in local waters. Though some fireworks shows were able to comply with the new permit requirements, at least one company, Pyro Spectaculars, said that they were unsafe. The Los Angeles Times reported:[T]he L.A. Regional Water Quality Control Board adopted a protective fireworks display permit in late May, which requires new best practices aimed at reducing plastics and other pollution that could fall into oceans or marinas from fireworks displays.

Thousands of travelers are making one last ditch effort to get to their destinations for the Fourth of the July holiday after storms walloped the country, causing mass delays and cancelations. Nearly 100 flights have already been canceled as of early Monday morning and delays were at 661 and steadily climbing, according to FlightAware. More severe weather is expected to pummel at least 15 states from the Northeast and mid-Atlantic to the Southeast on Monday following a day of storms. Not only is air travel being snarled, but so it road traffic with millions of people along the Interstate 95...

Many Chicago Ridge residents say "Ridgefest" is like their vacation right here at home. Ridgefest has been around for over 30 years, but in the last couple of days, the village board decided to cancel the event, citing safety concerns. Chicago Ridge Mayor Charles Tokar said the board voted unanimously to cancel the fest, which would've included live music, carnival rides and nearly 20 vendors. The move comes a few weeks after hundreds of teens were seen fighting at a carnival in Tinley Park. The Chicago Ridge village board – and residents – felt local police may not be prepared...

Several Russian cities have announced they will scale back this year's Victory Day celebrations. Russian authorities have cited security reasons and attacks from pro-Ukrainian forces for the changes. Explosions and fires have occurred in Russia in recent weeks. But some have argued that the reduced events show the Kremlin is nervous about celebrations turning into shows of dissent against its invasion of Ukraine. Great pomp and shows of military might are the usual hallmarks of Victory Day, which marks the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany on 9 May 1945. One of the day's most recognisable events is the Immortal...

The New York City grand Jury investigating alleged 2016 indirect hush money payments by President Trump had their second session in a row canceled on Thursday. The investigation by Soros backed Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has apparently been thrown into chaos following the bombshell testimony of former federal prosecutor Robert Costello to the grand jury on Monday that undercut Bragg and star witness Michael Cohen. CNN reported on the Thursday cancellation (excerpt): The Manhattan grand jury investigating Trump’s alleged role in a scheme to pay hush money to an adult film star will not hear that case when it...

At least someone got to see “Batgirl.” A select group of folks — mostly people who worked on the show, both cast and crew, as well as representatives and executives — reportedly have been invited to private screenings of the “shelved” film on the Warner Bros. Studio lot this week, multiple sources told The Hollywood Reporter. One insider even described the viewings as “funeral screenings” before the footage is locked away in a vault — but it’s unknown if that vault is physical or digital. On Tuesday, the filmmakers behind the movie, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, said they...

A second venue has scrapped plans to host the premiere of a film featuring several prominent right-wing Pennsylvania figures, most notably State Sen. Doug Mastriano, who is the Republican candidate for governor. The movie, “Return of the American Patriot: The Rise of Pennsylvania,” was originally scheduled to premiere July 16 at Lititz-area theater Penn Cinema, but was canceled by the venue following pushback from members of the progressive advocacy group Lancaster Stands Up. After Penn Cinema dropped the showing, Steven Turley, a popular right-wing Youtuber who produced the film, announced the premiere would be held on the same date at...

A Lancaster County movie theater has canceled showings of an independent movie featuring prominent right-wing Pennsylvania figures, most notably State Sen. Doug Mastriano, the Republican candidate for governor, according to LancasterOnline. The movie, billed as an exploration of the populist right movement in Pennsylvania, was supposed to premiere July 16 at the IMAX theater in the Penn Cinema on Airport Road in Manheim Township. But the venue management cancelled it following pushback from members of Lancaster Stands Up, the newspaper reported. The group Lancaster Stands Up started after the 2016 election of Donald Trump as “a vehicle for everyday people...