Free Republic

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) warned President Trump on Tuesday that only Congress can authorize a military strike on North Korea, as tensions with Pyongyang continue to escalate. “The American Civil Liberties Union strongly urges you to uphold the Constitution, and the fundamental principle of separation of powers, by recognizing the sole authority of Congress to declare war — and to refrain from the use of force against North Korea in the absence of explicit congressional authorization for the use of force,” the group wrote in a letter to Trump on Tuesday. “This drumbeat of threats over the past...

President Obama and his tame Congress (excluding Republicans who sit there but don’t inhale) are spending responsibly; that means: they spend and we’re responsible. The Republicans grabbed their fix under Bush; they can only envy what their successors are pulling off. Few seem concerned that the President and Congress (including Republicans) have presented no plan for U.S. debts; spending stays in the red; debts grow. Why not, they can always print more money, right? Wrong: paper money is worthless; only the wealth it stands for has value. When you print money without increasing real wealth, it just takes more paper...

Mr. SMITH of Texas: "Madam Speaker, by a 5-to-1 ratio, Americans believe the media are trying to help Senator Obama win the Presidency. The following partial list of the 'Best of the Worst'' examples of media bias shows why Americans are right to be concerned. "One, Senator Obama has led Senator McCain in news coverage for 12 consecutive weeks, according to the Nonpartisan Project For Excellence in Journalism. "Two, journalists who gave money to Senator Obama outnumber those who contributed to Senator McCain by a 20-1 margin, according to Investors Business Daily. "Three, while the media often label Governor Palin...

The Financial Times online edition (subscription required for full article) has noted from an interview that Barney Frank, the democratic House Financial Services Committee chairman, is working on legislation to repeal the ban on online gambling in the US that was passed last year. "Working on" is hard to define without more information It is not clear at all if this is a "total repeal" or just a loosening of the laws. It is also a question as to whether or not this legislation could even make it to the White House through Congressional votes, and it is unclear of...

Former 4th Congressional District Rep. Ron Klink ended weeks of speculation on Wednesday by saying that he would not try to win back the seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Melissa Hart. "I'm not running," Klink said. "It was not in the cards." Earlier this month, Klink confirmed that he had been contacted by people who wanted him to enter next year's Democratic primary. Many Democrats think that Hart, R-4, Bradford Woods, will be vulnerable because of her close ties to President Bush, especially since Democrats have a 15,000-voter advantage in the district. Vulnerability, however, is not something Hart has...