Free Republic

Senator Ted Cruz joins Margaret Brennan from Hong Kong to discuss China's retaliation against the NBA and the impeachment inquiry into the president.

Although the remarkable dumpster fire that is the Jussie Smollett self-beclowning saga has captured all the headlines this week, the legally murky kerfuffle that is the so-called "ISIS bride" — Hoda Muthana — is probably the more nationally pressing story. Muthana was born in the U.S. to a father who was a Yemeni diplomat. All sides of the constitutional debate regarding the original public meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment's Citizenship Clause concede that if the Clause's intermediary phrase, "subject to the jurisdiction thereof," means anything at all, it refers to the fact that the children of foreign diplomats are not...

The new JT15D-5 turbofan-powered "401 Jet" of Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites in Mojave, Calif is a small, stealthy, single-engine jet variation on the very novel, 30 year-old "Ares" light attack jet. Never having entered production, Ares was actually an acronym, standing for Agile Responsive Effective Support: Experts note that the X401 would have piloted and drone versions, leading to speculation that the pair could work together synergistically in a "loyal wingman" arrangement, possibly with some form of laser or directed energy weapon occupying the weapons bay, partially visible in the landing flare photo below. A 6-minute YouTube vid explains...

The 12th anniversary of September 11 is on Wednesday and Tumbledown Trails Golf Course in Verona, Wisc. decided to celebrate with a discount for golfers. Except, wait, that's like the worst idea in the history of marketing ideas. Especially with the way they went about it. Nine holes for $9.11 -- holy cow, what was the backup plan?? To its credit, Tumbledown responded to criticism on Facebook on Monday: "We would first like to apologize to everyone that we have upset or feels we have disrespected in anyway. By no means did we mean to do this. Here is what...

ObamaCare is at the center of a rapidly escalating fight that threatens to shut the government down this fall. Republicans have tried this maneuver in Obama’s first term, only to back off later to the chagrin of Tea Party leaders. This time, GOP lawmakers are emboldened by problems plaguing the administration’s ObamaCare implementation.

For far too long, American conservatives have become accustomed to "blaming" the destruction of American jobs (rightfully) on unions and lawyers. It's all true, but while it's true - America is falling apart. Blaming those who caused the problem won't prevent the destruction of our great nation.

We are looking for someone who is a real conservative, has a high profile and can handle the liberal heat. The job we have in mind is President of the United States. Its a risky proposition to lose such a man who has a very important job right now, but might I suggest that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas resign his job. Here is the man Republicans need to change the dynamics of this sad presidential contest we face. Look and listen, the principled candidates are going nowhere like Tancredo and Hunter. The higher profile ones all have liberal skeletons...

Charleston Daily Mail Secessionists from South and New England to meet The Associated Press Wednesday October 03, 2007 CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. -- In an unlikely marriage of desire to secede from the United States, two advocacy groups from opposite political traditions -- New England and the South -- are sitting down to talk. Tired of foreign wars and what they consider right-wing courts, the Middlebury Institute wants liberal states like Vermont to be able to secede peacefully. That sounds just fine to the League of the South, a conservative group that refuses to give up on Southern independence. "We believe that...

WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential candidate Bill Richardson said today that the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq has contributed to the sectarian violence rather than bringing stability to the war-torn nation. "There's no question there's tribal and ethnic hatreds," Richardson told The Associated Press. "But when those tribal and ethnic hatreds are fueled by American policy of hostility, then you make the situation worse." In an interview with AP editors and reporters, the New Mexico governor argued that all combat and non-combat troops should be removed from Iraq because their presence is only contributing to violence. "It's not a guarantee...

I was trying to put some pure acetone which I just bought for 5 dollars for 32oz into my car

Thursday, Dec. 14, 2006 11:15 a.m. EST McCain Beats Hillary in New Poll Sen. John McCain would easily defeat Sen. Hillary Clinton in a head-to-head race for the White House in 2008, a new poll reveals. In the Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg survey, half of those polled said they would vote for Arizona Republican McCain, while only 36 percent said they would choose New York Democrat Clinton. The rest said they weren’t sure, or would vote for someone else. The poll also found that Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney would give Clinton a tough fight – 42 percent of respondents picked Clinton...

For most Americans, driving is the most dangerous activity they undertake on a regular basis. We ought to try to make the roads as safe as is humanly possible. Unfortunately, government ownership of the roads and the vehicle-registration/driver-licensing process undermine safety. In “Highways: Public Problems and Private Solutions” (The Freeman, March 1985), I wrote about privatizing the roads. Now I will examine the possibility of privatizing registration and licensing. One approach governments have adopted to deal with the hazards of driving is mandatory insurance. In 44 states plus the District of Columbia, liability insurance is a requirement for vehicle registration....

Software squeezes PC onto an iPod RingCube's MojoPac works on any portable storage device The Associated Press Updated: 6:15 a.m. PT Sept 26, 2006 Mobile computing just got more portable. Making even the latest pocketbook-sized ultra-mobile personal computers look more like lumbering giants, RingCube Technologies Inc. unveiled software that can virtually squeeze a PC onto an iPod, USB keychain drive, cell phone or any gizmo with digital storage space. RingCube's MojoPac software mirrors a computer's personal settings, programs and data on a storage device. Then, when it's connected to any computer running Microsoft Corp.'s Windows XP operating system, the virtual...

Mayor Daley suggested Thursday that high school be extended for a fifth year to defray college education costs now squeezing working poor and middle-class families.

Economic chaos is now very likely for Arizona and Massachusetts. Why? Tourism is a substantial economic boon for these two states. The American natives are no longer merely restless; they’re intentions are now confluent. The millions of Americans opposed to the Senate's bill -- granting amnesty for lawbreakers -- will not be touring Arizona or Massachusetts until the misleading actors, Senators John McCain (R.-Ariz.) and Teddy Kennedy (D.-Mass.), are removed from office. Tourism counts as the second largest income producer for their states. "We the people" will now vote them out of office with our wallets. On May 12, 2006,...

....Income tax reform. The real thing, not what the president's "advisory panel" came up with. The genuine article would trash the income tax altogether. And replace it with a national sales tax. The nuisance we've got is currently missing $1 trillion a year in unreported income. The FairTax would pick up all of that at retail as we spend. First-day price hikes would be a shock, but that would settle out, and the national aggravation factor would go way down. ....

New York City is studying a plan to charge $7 to motorists who drive into midtown during peak hours. The New York Times reports that the Partnership for New York City -- is engaged in a nine-month study of so-called "congestion pricing.'' Such a pricing model would theoretically lead more people to carpool or use mass transit, as well as help air quality and allow for speedier bus routes. Mayor Michael Bloomberg's spokesman told the paper it is not on his second-term agenda. According to outlines of the plan, the 840,000 cars that enter Manhattan south of 60th Street on...

The PA doesn't need to smuggle weapons underground to build a well-equipped army. Now, the PA can acquire additional rifles, bullets, and armored personnel carriers with IDF approval. The head of military intelligence, Maj.Gen. Aharon Ze’evi Farkash, told the government at a cabinet meeting on Sunday that Israel’s military establishment will recommend enabling the Palestinian Authority to become equipped with armored personnel carriers (APC’s). American pressure is purportedly behind the IDF’s recommendation. The recommendation represents the first time Israel has allowed PA troops to use APC’s since the PA began fighting Israel with the onset of the Oslo War in...

Facing criticism that he appeared disengaged from the disaster wrought by Hurricane Katrina, President Bush has been looking for opportunities to show his concern. But the White House will take the effort a step further Tuesday, venturing into untested waters by putting the nation's first lady on reality television. Laura Bush will travel to storm-damaged Biloxi, Miss., to film a spot on the feel-good, wish-granting hit "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." Mrs. Bush sought to be on the program because she shares the "same principles" that the producers hold, her press secretary said. It's not clear exactly what Mrs. Bush will...

Conservationists tend to be conservative. But not always. Here is one strikingly non-conservative conservation idea PEOPLE and wildlife don't get on too well together. Large mammals, in particular, have a hard time at the hands of humanity. Their habitat gets taken for farms, their bodies for dinner and their heads for trophies. As human populations grow, the pressure increases, and it seems to decline only when people are rich enough to focus on the aesthetic as well as the economic possibilities of wild beasts. Often, such aesthetic appreciation thrives best in the safety of the city rather than in the...