Free Republic

An Oregon federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from sending the National Guard into Portland, as the city contends with hundreds of protestors at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility. It's a major blow to Trump, who called Portland a 'war-ravaged' city under siege by Antifa terrorists, when he announced last week that federal agents would be deployed there. U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut, a Trump appointee, made the ruling after the city and the state sued the federal government. The temporary restraining order expires in 14 days on October 18, Immergut wrote in her order. The Department of...

Kerry: Bush officials 'so discredited' they're not relevant to Syria debate By Julian Pecquet - 09/05/13 08:41 PM ET Bush administration officials are “so discredited” by the war in Iraq that their criticism of President Obama on Syria is irrelevant, Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday. Kerry's comments on MSNBC's “All in with Chris Hayes” come after former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on Wednesday called Obama the nation's “so-called commander in chief.” And Bush's hawkish ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, said Tuesday he'd vote “no” to avoid “taking sides.” “It just doesn't make a difference to...

ANNAPOLIS (AP) — Maryland's highest court yesterday rejected a case filed by Republican lawmakers to overturn taxes approved during last year's special General Assembly session. The suit by the lawmakers and a Carroll County businessman stated the Democrat-controlled Assembly violated a constitutional provision when the Senate took a long break without permission of the House. As a result, they said, the whole session was invalid. During the session, lawmakers raised more than $1.3 billion in new taxes to help close a budget shortfall. The state Court of Appeals rejected the claim without comment after a hearing Tuesday. A longer ruling...