Free Republic

Like a magician’s greatest trick, sometimes the most dramatic illusions happen when the audience desperately wants to believe. This weekend, the left-wing corners of social media convinced themselves they were witnessing the ultimate disappearing act. The frenzy started innocently enough. President Trump hadn’t made a public appearance for two days—a lifetime in the age of 24-hour news cycles. By Friday morning, Reddit threads were buzzing with speculation. Twitter’s algorithm caught the scent of blood in the water, and suddenly #WhereIsTrump was trending nationwide. The Pentagon’s pizza tracker—that peculiar barometer of government crisis—showed an unusual spike in deliveries. Even The Simpsons...

WASHINGTON — Online rumors of President Trump’s demise were greatly exaggerated — much to the dismay of creepy leftist critics. The president took a brief hiatus from public appearances this week, sparking morbid theories and social media posts speculating he had died. But the haters had their hopes dashed Saturday morning when Trump appeared alive and well at the White House. Trump was photographed in a white polo, black pants and his signature red MAGA hat about 8:45 a.m. , appearing alongside his granddaughter, Kai Trump, as they loaded up in a vehicle headed for his golf club in Sterling,...

The founder of the conservative ministry Focus on the Family has died.Dr. James Dobson was 89 years old.The Dr. James Dobson Family Institute announced his death on Thursday, saying he died “following a brief illness.”Dobson got his start as, what The Associated Press called, " a politically influential child psychologist" who coached Christians on how to be good parents.

James Dobson, the influential conservative Christian therapist, author and radio personality who founded Focus on the Family, has died at the age of 89. The Dr. James Dobson Family Institute announced Thursday morning that Dobson had passed away following a brief illness. He is survived by Shirley, his wife of 64 years, two children, and two grandchildren. “Dr. Dobson was a pioneer — a man of deep conviction whose voice shaped the way generations view faith, family and culture,” said Gary Bauer, senior vice president of Public Policy at the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, as quoted in the announcement....

An investigation is underway after a death on the Carnival Dream cruise ship based out of Galveston, Texas, according to reports. At around 4:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday, July 23, passengers woke up to the sounds of sirens alerting them to an incident on board the ship as it was traveling to Costa Maya, Belize, KHOU and the Houston Chronicle reported. One passenger reported hearing an announcement saying that medical assistance was needed on the Serenity Deck, according to the outlets

The New Zealand government has been accused of covering up data on the nation’s Covid “vaccine” deaths in order to support its own narrative that the mRNA injections are “safe and effective.” The government’s Royal Commission has been tasked with investigating the nation’s COVID-19 response. However, the body is facing intense criticism for ignoring key scientific data and creating a narrative that unquestioningly supports government policies and the “safety” of mRNA “vaccines.” The inquiry, now in Phase Two, is focusing on the mass “vaccination” campaign. However, the Commission is being accused of dismissing credible concerns and cherry-picking evidence to back...

Hulk Hogan, the WWE wrestler and ally of President Donald Trump, has died at the age of 71. Hogan suffered a cardiac arrest and emergency responders were called to his home in Clearwater, Florida where they were unable to revive him, according to TMZ. The former WWE fighter was rumoured to be unwell earlier this year, apparently suffering from neck problems. Hogan emerged as a key ally of Mr Trump during the election campaign, memorably ripping his shirt off at the Republican National Convention (RNC).

Bill Cosby said that when he learned of the death of Malcolm-Jamal Warner, who played his son on "The Cosby Show," he spoke with Phylicia Rashad, who played the mother. "We were embracing each other over the phone about a dearly beloved friend ... Malcolm was always embracing relationships with everybody he worked with," Cosby told "CBS Weekend News" anchor Jericka Duncan in an interview. Warner's death shocked the entertainment world Monday when it became known that the performer drowned in Costa Rica the day before during a family vacation. The 54-year-old was apparently pulled out to sea by a...

Florida operates three separate rail systems: Tri‑Rail, Brightline, and FEC Freight. Tri‑Rail currently runs on the old CSX corridor to the west, while Brightline and FEC Freight share the Florida East Coast (FEC) main line. But now, Tri‑Rail is actively testing on the FEC tracks — with dozens of daily tests into downtown Miami Central on the same rails used by Brightline and freight since June 2023 . Moreover, under the Coastal Link plan, Tri‑Rail is slated to begin regular passenger service along this corridor — effectively merging all three rail services onto one aging track . Picture this: 110...

Bun Hay Mean, a 43-year-old comedian, was discovered dead on Thursday morning in Paris’s 17th arrondissement after falling from eight stories. BSPP firemen and police personnel have arrived on the spot. “It is with infinite sadness that we must announce the tragic passing of our friend, our immense artist, Bun Hay Mean,” his producer, Philippe Delmas, said in a statement. “According to the information we have, it was just before he left, and while trying to retrieve his phone, which had fallen into the gutter of his balcony, that Bun slipped and fell several stories,” the officer stated. The Paris...

Andrei Badalov, the vice-president of Russia's national oil pipeline, Transneft, has been found dead after allegedly falling out of a window of his home in suburban Moscow, law enforcement told Russian state media on Friday. The former businessman's body was discovered beneath a window of a house in Rublyovka, an upscale residential neighbourhood on the outskirts of the Russian capital, TASS, Russia's national news agency, says. The state-run oil conglomerate also confirmed Badalov's death, without elaborating on the circumstances, but said his work came during a “difficult and stressful period” due to wartime sanctions, according to the independent Russian newspaper,...

Like many Gen X Christians in the 1980s, I was not only captured by the explosion of Christian television and radio ministries, but I also had my personal favorites who really deepened my understanding of the Bible. One of those was televangelist Jimmy Swaggart. Much like Aimee Semple McPherson of the Foursquare Gospel movement, Swaggart was instrumental in putting the Assemblies of God and Pentecostalism on the map, making the gospel and a relationship with Jesus a dynamic pursuit rather than a rote obligation. Swaggart was a media pioneer. In 1969, he launched "The Camp Meeting Hour." Because of a...

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) – Emergency workers pulled more bodies Wednesday from the rubble of a nine-story Kyiv apartment building demolished by a Russian missile, raising the death toll from the latest attack on the Ukrainian capital to 28. The building in Kyiv´s Solomianskyi district took a direct hit and collapsed during the deadliest Russian attack on Kyiv this year. Authorities said that 23 of those killed were inside the building. The remaining five died elsewhere in the city. Workers used cranes, excavators and their hands to clear more debris from the site, while sniffer dogs searched for buried victims. The...

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea will send thousands of military construction workers and deminers to support reconstruction work in Russia’s Kursk region, a top Russian official said Tuesday, the latest sign of expanding cooperation between the nations. North Korea has already supplied thousands of combat troops and a vast amount of conventional weapons to back Russia’s war against Ukraine. In April, Pyongyang and Moscow said that their soldiers fought together to repel a Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk border region, though Ukraine has insisted it still has troops present there. Wrapping up a one-day visit to Pyongyang, Russian Security...

In June 2025, rumors abounded that Isra Hirsi, daughter of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota, had posted "death to the colonial empire" from Los Angeles to Rafah in Gaza on an Instagram story. Instagram stories are posts that disappear after 24 hours unless the accounts that post them highlight them on their profile page. For example, X user End Wokeness shared a screen capture of the supposed Instagram story alongside a photograph of Hirsi with her mother Omar (archived): As of this writing, the End Wokeness post had gained 10,000 and 660,000 views. The screen capture appeared...

Brian Wilson has left behind a multi-million dollar legacy. The former lead singer of The Beach Boys has passed away at the age of 82 after an ongoing battle with dementia. Before facing health struggles, he created a net worth of $100 million, made primarily from his time with the 1961 rock band. His net worth of $100 million could have been a lot higher if his father Murry hadn't sold the publishing company, Sea of Tunes, which controlled the rights of the majority of Brian's biggest hits. In 1969, he had made a deal with Irving Alamo Music for...

The number of vacant houses in Japan has surged to a record high of nine million – more than enough for each person in New York City – as the east Asian country continues to struggle with its ever-declining population. Abandoned houses are known in Japan as “akiya” – a term that usually refers to derelict residential homes tucked away in rural areas.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republican Sen. Joni Ernst was met with shouts and groans when she said “we all are going to die” as she addressed potential changes to Medicaid eligibility at a town hall in north-central Iowa on Friday.

Police said a man was angry about the type of cheese on a sandwich he ordered at Momty's Grill on 111th Street. He got into a shouting match with an employee, who called her son to help.

"Duck Dynasty" patriarch Phil Robertson is dead ... according to his daughter-in-law. Korie Robertson -- Phil's son Willie's wife of more than 30 years -- posted the news to Facebook Sunday ... saying Phil was a man of God, who always tried to remind people that death only meant returning to God's kingdom.