Free Republic

In this year's census, the law should count for something. But unfortunately, a very troubling pattern has emerged here in Washington--a complete disregard for the national definition of marriage. First, Congress refused to exercise its constitutional authority when the District of Columbia imposed same-sex "marriage" on the city, deliberately violating the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Soon after, John Berry, head of the Office of Personnel Management, decided to use federal dollars to pay for same-sex couples to enjoy the same benefits as married spouses. The latest disregard for DOMA comes from the Commerce Department, which is actively encouraging people...

As if anyone needed more reasons to doubt the data coming out of our government. Earlier today the Commerce Department reported that January retail sales data came at a nice and bubbly 0.5% sequential increase, and an even nicer and bubblier 4.7% YoY. This presumably beat expectations which were looking for a sequential beat of 0.3%. Yet here comes the much more reliable Gallup data to throw some salt in yet another economic data fabrication. According to daily Gallup consumer polling, which due to its lack of proximity to the government propaganda complex is vastly more reliable, the January average...

Hoaxes: Despite failures at Copenhagen, the fraud of the IPCC and the farce of Climate-gate, the administration wants an agency to monitor climate change. Why must we fund one-stop shopping for climate charlatans? As the climate freezes, there's no freeze on federal employment that will grow even more with the establishment of a new agency, the Climate Service office. The new agency was announced Monday by Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and Jane Lubchenco, head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). This ministry of climate change propaganda will operate in tandem with NOAA's National Weather Service and National Ocean...

In his book, Joys of Yiddish Leo Rosten defined Chutzpah as "A boy, having just been convicted of murdering his parents, begs the judge for leniency because he is an orphan. A modern example may be ACORN, the corrupt community organizing group. Remember those 14 states where ACORN is being investigated for voter fraud, that did not deter the government from giving the community organizing group. Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) called for a probe of the Democrat's favorite voting fraud group. Admittedly his call for an investigation was shocking because of the fraud testimony indicated a relationship with the Obama...

We all know Gov. Bill Richardson likes to travel, and we all know he has a sweet tooth for executive jets like the $5.5 million Cessna purchased by his administration. But he's probably going to be flying a lot more on commercial airlines — in coach — once he's confirmed as Barack Obama's commerce secretary. Sure, the federal government has jets, but their use by Cabinet secretaries and others is restricted. Also, as a federal employee, Richardson will face restrictions on how he can finance travel on private jets and rules on when he can accept free plane rides from...

(CNN) - Gov. Bill Richardson showed up to his press conference with President-elect Barack Obama Wednesday morning without the beard he has been sporting since dropping out of the presidential race in January, sparking his new boss to tell reporters he is "deeply disappointed with the loss of the beard." "I'm going to answer this question about the beard," said Obama, when Richardson was asked where the facial hair went. "I think it was a mistake for him to get rid of it. I thought that whole Western, rugged look was really working for him. "For some reason, maybe because...

President-elect Barack Obama just made it official: Bill Richardson is leaving New Mexico to take a job as U.S. Secretary of Commerce. The text of his announcement is posted below. But the money line of the news conference had to be when Obama said he misses the now clean-shaven governor's beard. Obama interjected in response to a reporter's question directed to Richardson about the missing beard. "I think it was a mistake for him to get rid of it, I thought that whole Western rugged look was really working for him," Obama said, grinning. "For some reason, maybe because it's...

Mar 21, 2008 WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States slapped sanctions on British and Armenian firms Friday for unauthorized re-exports of aircraft to Iran, officials said. The US Commerce Department suspended export privileges of British-based Balli Group PLC and related companies, Armenian-based Blue Airways, and Iran-based Mahan Airways for 180 days. A statement said US officials learned that the companies "knowingly re-exported three US origin aircraft to Iran in violation of the Export Administration Regulations and are preparing to re-export three additional US origin aircraft to Iran in further violation of the (rules)." In addition, the agency said "false statements...

The call has gone out from on high at the Commerce Department for a few good men and women. Heeding President Bush's recent appeal for government civilians to serve stints in Iraq helping with the embattled rebuilding mission, Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez sent an agency-wide memo last week imploring workers to sign up for a year in Iraq. "I am asking all Commerce employees to consider supporting this important effort," he wrote. Gutierrez noted that volunteers would work "under challenging circumstances with access to few amenities." On the bright side, he said, they "may" be eligible for overtime pay...

ECONOMIC REPORT Durable goods orders soar 6.1% in March Aircraft orders up 71%; demand strong across the board By Rex Nutting, MarketWatch WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Orders for new U.S.-made durable goods increased 6.1% in March, led by strong demand for airplanes, machinery and electronics, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. The increase in new orders was the largest since May 2005 and far exceeded the 2.1% gain expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. See Economic Calendar. The stronger-than-expected report helped send bond prices falling again, with yields rising to the highest level in four years. See Bond Report. Orders rose an...

WASHINGTON - Consumers increased spending moderately in November even though the growth in their incomes slowed a bit, raising doubts about how strong the Christmas sales season will be. The Commerce Department said personal spending rose by 0.3 percent last month, slightly below the 0.4 percent gain that Wall Street had been expecting. Incomes rose by 0.3 percent last month, right in line with expectations. The holiday shopping season has turned in a mixed performance so far with the nation's retailers expected to increase discounting in the final days before Christmas in the hopes of making up for slower-than-expected sales...

Construction rises in December, making sector 'the shining light in the recovery'. By Jeannine Aversa ASSOCIATED PRESS Thursday, January 22, 2004 WASHINGTON -- Residential construction activity picked up in December, helping to make all of 2003 the best year for home builders in a quarter-century and underscoring the critical role the sector played in the economy's resurgence. The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that housing construction increased by 1.7 percent last month from November to 2.09 million units. For all of last year, the number of houses for which builders broke ground totaled 1.85 million, up from 1.7 million in 2002....

The federal agency that insures pension plans said yesterday that its deficit had grown from $3.6 billion to $11.2 billion in just a year and that it would try to deal with the escalating problem by overhauling its own investments, among other measures. The agency, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, said that two consecutive years of record failures by corporate pension plans and continuing adverse market conditions left it with a shortfall much greater than a year earlier, which had been the previous low point in the agency's 30-year history. People briefed on the new investment plan say the agency...

Wage increases for employees at almost all income levels are giving important and unexpected support to the nation's economy. If the gains continue, they offer hope that the rapid economic expansion of recent months could prove more durable than other spurts of growth over the last two years. Forecasters expect the Commerce Department to say in its quarterly report on Thursday that the economy grew about 6 percent in the three-month period ending in September, which would be the fastest pace since 1999. Most of that growth stemmed from a sharp rise in consumer spending, driven largely by a continuing...

WTO softwood ruling favours Canada Last Updated Tue, 27 May 2003 17:01:32 OTTAWA - The World Trade Organization has ruled in favour of Canada in its softwood lumber dispute with the United States. The preliminary ruling, which is not binding, was released to the federal government Tuesday. "Yet again, it appears that the U.S. is being told that its attempts to prove our softwood industry is subsidized are flawed," International Trade Minister Pierre Pettigrew said in a news release. A final report on the dispute is expected in July. The crux of the dispute is an American claim that Canada's...

The leftist attempt to paint the Enron bankruptcy as a Bush scandal includes a badly made-for-TV movie produced by CBS called "The Crooked E." The spin in the fictional world of Hollywood was that the Bush administration, wooed by Enron dollars, helped the corrupt executives steal from the poor and working class heroes. If you followed this spin, it was clear that Enron had no contact with the U.S. government prior to George W. Bush coming into office. According to CBS, Enron simply did not exist prior to George W. Bush. Yet the CBS TV sit-com and its leftist spin...

WINNIPEG - The U.S. Commerce Department on Tuesday imposed a 3.94 per cent tariff against Canadian wheat exports, a much lower duty than Canadian trade officials expected. The preliminary duties are the result of a U.S. Commerce Department trade law investigation into Canadian exports of durum wheat and hard red spring wheat into U.S. markets. American trade officials and American farmers allege Canada unfairly subsidizes the exports by undercutting the price of U.S. wheat. In its decision, the Commerce Department says a preliminary investigation shows material damage to farmers from the Canadian imports. The Canadian Wheat Board controls the sale...

The October 14 issue of Business Week featured an excerpt from a new book filled with old sophistries: The Politics of Fortune: A New Agenda for Business Leaders, by Jeffrey E. Garten (to be published by Harvard Business School Press). Garten is dean of the Yale School of Management and was Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade in the first Clinton Administration. Appearing just before Congress took up a resolution to give President George W. Bush authority to use military force against the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, the article was titled, "A Foreign Policy Harmful to Business?" Garten's...