Free Republic

The parent company of ChatGPT has hired attorney Ann O’Leary — a former top aide to both Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom and failed 2016 Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton — to be its vice president of global policy. Jenner & Block, a law firm where O’Leary served as a partner, announced in a Jan. 13 press release that she would be joining OpenAI to “lead global policy efforts.” Newsom appointed O’Leary as his chief of staff following his 2018 election victory, a role she held until her resignation in December 2020. Prior to working in the Newsom administration, O’Leary worked...

For decades, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has been treated like an untouchable authority on child health — the gold standard that parents, doctors, schools, and lawmakers were told to trust without question. But today, that image collapses. Children’s Health Defense (CHD) and multiple plaintiffs just filed a federal lawsuit alleging the AAP spent decades running a racketeering operation that sold parents false safety assurances about the childhood vaccine schedule. This isn’t another “vaccine debate” lawsuit. It’s a RICO fraud case—the same legal weapon used against organized crime and the tobacco industry. The allegation is blunt and devastating: the...

On his first day in office, Jay Jones, Virginia’s 49th attorney general, announced a broad slate of legal actions and policy reviews that he said are aimed at protecting Virginians, lowering costs and defending constitutional and civil rights. In a statement released from Richmond, Jones said his office will begin joining or advancing multiple lawsuits involving the federal government, while also launching a 30-day review of all existing litigation involving the Commonwealth. The review will assess which cases Virginia should continue, withdraw from or newly enter.

A Christian church service was invaded by anti-ICE protesters in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Sunday with former CNN anchor Don Lemon apparently leading the disturbance. Lemon livestreamed the intrusion of Cities Church, a Southern Baptist congregation, as shouts of "ICE out!," "Hands up, don't shoot" and "Justice for Renee Good!" echoed through the building. Good was the anti-ICE activist fatally shot by a federal agent this month when she allegedly tried to run over an officer with her vehicle. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was not amused, as it shared a clip of the video and stated: "Agitators aren't just...

Summary Subpoenas prepared for Minnesota governor and Minneapolis mayor Minnesota Democrats alleged to have impeded immigration agents Walz says Trump has 'weaponized' federal justice system WASHINGTON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation of Minnesota officials, including Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, over an alleged conspiracy to impede immigration agents, a source familiar with the probe said on Friday. The source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said subpoenas were prepared for Walz and Frey as part of the inquiry, but it was not immediately clear whether they had been...

The State Department will officially terminate foreign assistance to Somalia after the African nation’s government demolished a warehouse containing 76 metric tons of food donated by America, a senior administration official told The Daily Wire. On January 3, “at the direction of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (HSM) and the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS), authorities at Mogadishu Port demolished the World Food Programme (WFP) Emergency Response Warehouse with no prior notification or coordination with international donor countries, including the United States,” a diplomatic cable from the United States Embassy in Somalia dated January 6 said. The move “likely resulted in...

00:30:30 AMNA NAWAZ: I also want to put to you another piece of news today. We heard from the Border Patrol, Bovino, who said on FOX the Department of Justice is also sending additional prosecutors to Minnesota to process those immigration cases. What's your reaction to that? KEITH ELLISON: Well, I mean, quite honestly, I mean, it -- I'm not shocked, 00:31:09 because the -- President Trump is making sure that he is targeting our state, which is odd because we are not a state that has the most immigration in America. Many other states have dramatically higher rates of...

A federal judge on Wednesday blocked President Donald Trump's administration from withholding $80 million to administer Minnesota's food stamp program while the state reviews the eligibility of 100,000 households amid claims ​of widespread fraud.

A Michigan county clerk alleged that the jury pool for a circuit court has recently included non-citizens who are ineligible for jury duty. “Non-citizens are coming through at an alarming rate,” Macomb County Clerk Anthony G. Forlini said in a press release. “Our jury service summonses are based on random draws from the driver’s license bank. Frequently non-citizens slip through because citizenship was not flagged in the Secretary of State database.” Why It Matters Citizenship is a key requirement for jury service at the state and federal levels. Michigan law states that in order to qualify as a juror, an...

The federal investigation into last year's fatal UPS plane crash in Louisville showed one of the key defects found on the plane's failed engine was a known issue among Boeing's service team, albeit one Boeing didn't believe would lead to a "safety of flight condition." In an update to its ongoing investigation into the crash of UPS Flight 2976, the National Transportation Safety Board said its team found fatigue cracking and overstress failure across much of the bearing race inside the area that attached the plane's left engine to its wing. NTSB investigators then went back into Boeing service data...

There’s a deeper, darker truth lurking beneath the Somali-dominated, multi-billion-dollar Minnesota welfare fraud schemes that have commanded the attention of federal authorities and stoked nationwide outrage. And it may explain in part why for weeks, Democrats and regime media have been gaslighting the country, casting critics as bigots, and shooting the messengers who sent the long-neglected story viral — and why, now, state and local leaders are trying to turn Minneapolis into a powder keg. These dodges and diversions distract from the fact that the fraud is a feature of what we might call The Blue Model of government. Fueled...

A Bronx apartment building Mayor Mamdani showcased to highlight the talents of his new housing commissioner, Dina Levy, has racked up nearly 200 unresolved violations, The Post has learned. The 102-unit building at 1520 Sedgwick Ave. in Morris Heights as of Saturday had a staggering 194 open housing-code violations dating back to 2016 — including 88 “Class C” violations considered “immediately hazardous.” They included rat and roach infestation; broken doors and refrigerators; and mold, records show. Mamdani visited the affordable-housing complex best known for being the birthplace of hip-hop on Jan. 4 to introduce Levy, 54, a longtime tenants’ rights...

President Donald Trump will face an important obstacle — from within his own party — as he seeks to replace Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said Sunday he will block any Trump appointees to the central bank, including for the new chair, in light of revelations over the weekend that the Justice Department is investigating Powell for potential perjury charges. “If there were any remaining doubt whether advisers within the Trump Administration are actively pushing to end the independence of the Federal Reserve, there should now be none. It is now the independence and credibility of...

Hundreds of billions of dollars flowed through U.S. nonprofit organizations in 2024, tax filing data show, as major fraud cases — including in Minnesota — put new focus on how taxpayer-backed funds are overseen. The figures come from ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer and were independently reviewed by Fox News, which confirmed the state-by-state revenue totals.

The move by the five GOP senators to curtail Trump’s powers as commander in chief represents one of the biggest schisms between the Senate Republican Conference and the White House during the president’s first year of his second term. The votes enraged Trump, who lashed out at Sen. Susan Collins (Maine), one of the five Republicans, in a “profanity-laced” phone call after she supported the measure, reading her the riot act, according to one source. The Senate will vote this week on a motion to proceed to the war powers resolution and spend a chunk of the week debating it....

Marketplace plans from the Affordable Care Act no longer feel very affordable to many people, because Congress did not extend a package of enhanced subsidies that expired at the end of 2025. Last week, the House did pass legislation to extend the expired subsidies, and negotiations have moved to the Senate. Without a deal, an estimated 4.8 million will go without coverage this year. But even without a health plan, people will still need medical care. Many, like the Sorys, have been thinking through their plan B to maintain their health. The Sorys both lost jobs in November, within days...

Ibrahima Diop, the finance boss at Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS), has been placed on administrative leave, Alpha News has learned. Alpha News has reported extensively on Diop and questionable contracts with Frontier Transportation Services, hired by MPS to transport Homeless and Highly Mobile (HHM) students in passenger vans. Additionally, another transportation company under contract with the district was filmed dropping off children at the now-closed Quality “Learing” Center — a moment many observers believe was staged to make the site appear active. [snip] An article from transportation consultant Rob Carpenter first raised questions about MEISA, noting its apparent connections to...

Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal slammed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as "madeup, fake, wannabe law enforcement," asserting that ICE's actions violate both "legal law" and "moral law." Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner warned that law enforcement officials who commit crimes in Philadelphia will be arrested and charged. "So I'm with the DA," Bilal declared. "You don't want this smoke. Cuz we will bring it to you," Bilal said. In a dig at President Donald Trump, she warned that "the criminal in the White House would not be able to keep" ICE agents from heading to jail. Fox News Digital reached...

Recent (and not-so-recent) revelations about the massive fraudulent scams that have cost Minnesota at least $9 billion have exploded across the country and have certainly put the buffoonish Gov. Tim Walz and harebrained Minneapolis mayor and pretend-Somali, Jacob Frey, on the defensive. # Both Walz and Frey have obviously been complicit in these multi-billion-dollar schemes to defraud American taxpayers and have most likely benefited financially. # Now we know for sure, as if what we learned from DOGE was not shocking enough, that the American taxpayer has been robbed blind for decades for “causes” that have been fabricated. This has...

Geneva, N.Y. — A member of the Geneva City Council is facing charges in connection to a multi-agency narcotics drug trafficking probe. Ahmad Whitfield, 45, was arrested Wednesday after selling cocaine/fentanyl to another person, according to New York State Police. It came during an investigation in the Geneva area conducted by the NYSP Violent Gangs and Narcotics Enforcement Team, the Geneva Police Department, the Ontario County Sheriff's Office and the Seneca County Sheriff's Office. Whitfield was charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance and two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance, state police said. He was taken...