Free Republic

Seventy-five percent of Republican voters believe it really doesn't matter who the Democrats nominate because none of them will beat Donald Trump in next year's election. On the other hand, ScottRasmussen.com polling found that 49% of Democratic voters say it really doesn't matter who the Democrats nominate because any of them will beat Trump. Among all voters, 41% believe that none of the Democrats running will beat the president, while 36% believe any of them will do so. Those who aren't sure what will happen are the only ones who've got it right. It's too early to know what will...

Beto O’Rourke recently argued that, while unborn life has value, abortion is still a “decision for the woman.” It’s also a decision that becomes increasingly difficult to defend when described in detail – something the media rarely do. On August 26, the Democratic presidential candidate expressed his support for abortion – even up until the day before birth. O’Rourke made his comments during a town hall Q&A held at the College of Charleston in South Carolina. The first question that evening came from a 29-year-old man who was curious about the former Texas representative’s abortion stance. “Someone asked you specifically...

Last week, I wrote about my recent problems with Instagram. After averaging 450 new followers a day since March, when I became active on Instagram, my number of new followers suddenly stopped growing. Dead stop. The count read 68.9K. It remained 68.9K for over two weeks. Then, the number dropped by 100. Meanwhile, over the same two-week period, on Twitter and Facebook, which owns Instagram, I continued gaining hundreds of new followers per day. In response to my last column, I received several letters from people complaining that they were unable to follow me on Instagram. One said: "My husband...

CNN stands for the “Cable News Network.” There was a time that name was accurate – they are on cable, they delivered the news, and they’re a network. But that second “N” no longer applies, and it’s about time they drop it the way they’ve dropped any semblance of journalism. You can watch CNN for an hour, any hour, and come away dumber and less-informed than you were beforehand. That’s some kind of accomplishment, I guess, exactly what kind remains a mystery. Without news to fall back on, they have to fill 24 hours a day with something. The something...

"Socialist! is no longer a McCarthyite slur. Rather, the fresh celebrity "Squad" of newly elected identity-politics congresswomen -- Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) -- often either claim to be socialists or embrace socialist ideas. A recent Harris poll showed that about half of so-called millennials would like to live in a socialist country. Five years ago, septuagenarian Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) was considered an irrelevant lone socialist in the U.S. Senate -- Vermont's trademark contribution to cranky quirkiness. But in 2016, Sanders' improbable Democratic primary run almost knocked off front-runner Hillary Clinton,...

You must have a heart of stone not to burst into uncontrollable, hysterical laughter at the agony of the failing New York Times and the rest of the media over how conservative activists are going to apply the same internet colonoscopy to lib journalistas as they apply to us. Monsters! Fascists! Meanies! Oh yeah, that’s the ticket. Drink in their pain. Drink it all in. Mmmmm, that’s some delicious pain. Yeah, conservatives are fighting back, and to the other side it’s an assault on the free press and further evidence that Trump is totally Hitler and probably Stalin too. But...

This Wednesday marks the 56th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s iconic “I Have a Dream” speech. It was as historic as it was inspiring for all Americans to look to a future where our society would be one. While there’s certainly more work to be done on that front, there’s much to celebrate today about the great new opportunities for black Americans to achieve the American dream. I know that my uncle would have been proud of everything that President Trump has done to make those opportunities possible for our community. For instance, for the past two and...

In a free enterprise system, some businesses prosper while some do not. Success and failure are simply a byproduct of the free market that should be expected. And when businesses fail due to market conditions, it should not be the responsibility of the federal government to bail them out or give them special treatment. So why then is conjecture building once again that key members of the Trump administration still want to revive plans to bail out failing power plants? Last year, the Department of Energy was trying to use its power to revitalize a handful of well-connected but economically...

When General Motors and Ford sell more cars, they are involved in more accidents. They undoubtedly advertise more in those places where they sell more cars. Does that mean that the car companies are responsible for additional accidents in those places? That they are purposefully plotting to create more accidents? Let’s hope not, but if Monday’s $570 million verdict by an Oklahoma judge against Johnson & Johnson for making opioids is any indication, those types of cases aren’t going to be far off. Oklahoma had refused to settle out of court believing that they could receive a very large verdict....

The late historian and political philosopher Harry V. Jaffa noted the significance that the preamble to our Constitution concludes with the words "secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity." This is how the drafters of our Constitution saw its purpose. Jaffa continues, saying, "a blessing is what is good in the eyes of God. It is a good whose possession ... belongs properly only to those who deserve it." In light of this, let's consider a just-released Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll that appeared under the headline "Americans Have Shifted Dramatically on What Values Matter Most." "Patriotism,...

Why does most of Africa stay poor while other parts of the world prosper? People blame things like climate, the history of colonialism, racism, etc. But I say Senegalese businesswoman Magatte Wade gives the right explanation: too many rules. “Once you hire someone, good luck getting rid of them for any reason,” Wade complains. Her government must approve every firing. “Then the tax code is so complicated… worth at least two or three truckloads of paper.” Wade started a lip balm company. Some of her ingredients are not made in Senegal, so she imports them. To “protect” Senegalese manufacturers, the...

Should students be denied equal access to education funding just because they attend religious schools? As school children across the nation head back to class, that’s the question America’s courts are facing—including the Supreme Court of the United States. The decisions they reach will have broad implications for the religious liberty of students and families throughout the country. American parents take their children’s education seriously. Voters regularly point to education as a very important issue in many state and local elections, and total taxpayer spending on education is over $1 trillion annually. While the vast majority of children attend public...

Higher education in America today should come with the disclaimer, caveat emptor. The cost of tuition has more than doubled in the last two decades, with the value of a four-year college degree heading in the opposite direction. The “fix” championed by Democratic Party leaders – a bailout for those already graduated, and “free” tuition for those entering the pipeline – will only make matters worse. A part of this long-developing problem is simply supply and demand; the overabundance of bachelor’s degrees in the market means they are worth less in the eyes of employers. There also is more talent...

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- At the conclusion of the annual Group of Seven summit in Biarritz, France, U.S. President Donald Trump emerged on the world stage for a joint press conference with the summit host, French President Emmanuel Macron. It was arguably the best performance of Trump's presidency. It certainly bore little resemblance to Trump's stream-of-consciousness rants on Twitter in which he criticizes TV shows and the "fake and disgusting news," bad-mouths countries and former staffers, promotes conspiracy theories and complains about his approval ratings. Trump should hold more of these types of press conferences and spend less time on...

The desire to ensure technological reliability and, ultimately, combat superiority, guided the Trump administration's mid-July decision to terminate U.S. plans to sell the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to Turkey. Give Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan his due. On the global diplomatic stage, Erdogan can display power-player skills diplomats can admire, no matter what they tell reporters. For example, like President Donald Trump, Erdogan uses the perception of tumult and impulsiveness to gain political and diplomatic advantage. Surprise agitates; the unexpected momentarily boggles. Erdogan says something -- anything -- provocative and sensational, waits four beats (or tweets) as adversaries react and...

In the midst of the daily tarring and feathering of President Trump by our "objective" press, we are treated to some precious moments where these badly disguised political operatives write something unintentionally hilarious. Take, for example, The New York Times story on Aug. 25 headlined "Trump's Allies Scour Internet to Punish Press." Reporters Ken Vogel and Jeremy Peters ominously warned, "A loose network of conservative operatives allied with the White House is pursuing what they say will be an aggressive operation to discredit news organizations deemed hostile to President Trump by publicizing damaging information about journalists." Notice how journalists employ...

There’s a civil war brewing on health care. While many of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary candidates support some version of Medicare for All, others aren’t ready to give up on ObamaCare—and Kamala Harris is trying to have her cake and eat it too. “KamalaCare” would apparently move the country to Medicare for All over the span of 10 years. But it would require the help of private insurers—a surprise, considering Harris supported the elimination of private health insurance during the last Democratic presidential debate. The plan was met with immediate criticism from so-called “moderate” and radical Democrats alike—either saying...

Dear fellow patriots: It's time to stop making nice with those who are waging war on ICE. Are you sick of your neighborhoods being hijacked by law enforcement-bashing thugs who prioritize every last illegal immigrant over law-abiding families, workers and employers? Are you sick of do-nothing politicians promising to take action while well-funded and well-organized protesters riot in our streets and obstruct criminal arrests? Are you sick of nobody (except for a few demonized Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer activists) standing up on the front lines against the American flag hijackers and knee-takers and hatred-inciters threatening ICE employees and Border...

The New York Times has begun a major initiative, the "1619 Project," to observe the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery. It aims to reframe American history so that slavery and the contributions of black Americans explain who we are as a nation. Nikole Hannah-Jones, staff writer for The New York Times Magazine wrote the lead article, "America Wasn't a Democracy, Until Black Americans Made It One." She writes, "Without the idealistic, strenuous and patriotic efforts of black Americans, our democracy today would most likely look very different -- it might not be a democracy at all." There...

President Trump's latest foray into the world of international economics -- his ongoing trade war with China -- has been widely derided by his critics. It's been derided on the grounds that there is no long-term strategy; on the grounds that the trade war will not be, as Trump has bragged, "good and easy to win"; on the grounds that Trump continues to send mixed signals, simultaneously claiming that China is bearing the brunt of his tariffs while desperately urging Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to lower interest rates. Now, Trump's trade policy may not be well-considered. His understanding of...