Free Republic

Dozens of climate protesters with Sunrise Movement LA rallied outside Phillips 66’s Los Angeles Lubricant Terminal on Thursday morning, with 16 demonstrators storming the facility’s office building. As Los Angeles reels from what is projected to be one of the most costly natural disasters in U.S. history, the youth climate activist group says big oil companies are culpable, by emitting greenhouse gases while internally acknowledging the practice’s link to climate change, which, in turn, has worsened wildfires in California.

California couple fined $165,000 for damaging rare Central Coast flower habitat..... San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow announced on Wednesday that his office had settled an environmental enforcement action against the couple, who agreed to pay $165,000 in civil penalties. . ... grows in small patches on private properties, according to the California Native Plant Society. .

Elizabeth Warren and other Democrats are now sending threatening letters to people and companies that donated to Trump’s inauguration. This is from the same party that has spent the last eight years calling Trump a fascist. You may also recall that they have no problem with contributions like this when they are made to to Democrats, just Trump.

MARIETTA, Ga. — Former professional football and baseball player Bo Jackson is giving up a $21 million judgment against his niece and nephew, whom he said harassed and tried to extort money from him. A judge in February ruled in Jackson’s favor in the suit he had filed in April 2023 against Thomas Lee Anderson and Erica M. Anderson, also known as Erica Anderson Ross. Jackson, a running back who won the Heisman Trophy at Auburn and also played in both the NFL and MLB, Jackson had alleged in his lawsuit that his relatives tried to extort $20 million from...

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass got into office promoting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and promising to tackle homelessness and pollution — but she never promised to drain the swamp. Now she stands accused of adding to it, through “legalized corruption” and a number of eye opening scandals which have come to light after renewed scrutiny in the last two weeks following the revelation Bass and her cronies defunded the Los Angeles Fire Department by $17 million, contributing to them being underprepared to tackle the wildfires currently destroying the city. These include: The deputy mayor raided by the FBI over...

As Los Angeles’s deadly wildfires continue to burn, a group of survivors is taking aim at the industry most responsible for fueling climate disasters: fossil fuels. Residents impacted by the blazes lamented during a Thursday conference call losing their homes and communities and called for litigation and policies that could force big oil to pay for the damages. In the coming days, lawmakers will introduce legislation with that aim in mind....... There is mounting evidence that big oil knew for decades that their products fuel the climate crisis, yet continued to peddle them to the public anyway and sow doubt...

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — As Californians grapple with the aftermath of devastating wildfires, a pressing question looms: Who will bear the financial burden of rebuilding the Los Angeles area? While some point to politicians, others are calling for fossil fuel producers to be held accountable. Christina Scaringe, California Climate Policy Director for the Center for Biological Diversity's Climate Law Institute based in Sacramento, said they are working on a climate superfund bill aimed at holding major fossil fuel companies responsible for their climate impacts.... ...Scaringe emphasized that the bill is about fairness and affordability for Californians. ....The proposed climate superfund...

Should the GOP attempt to take control of the chamber, the members of the House DFL plan to stay away from the state capitol and prevent the GOP from achieving a quorum. A pair of dueling Monday press conferences in the Minnesota House of Representatives foreshadowed what could be an extremely difficult session of the Minnesota Legislature. Earlier today, House Republicans held a press conference in which they announced their priorities for the upcoming legislative session which starts on Jan. 14. Cutting taxes, holding criminals accountable, bringing down energy costs, and forming a new committee to combat fraud were among...

The MTA held a cheery celebration to unveil a new “Congestion Relief Zone” sign in Manhattan, just hours before drivers will feel the pain as the controversial toll goes into effect in the Big Apple. The agency’s CEO Janno Lieber seemed to have no concern for the many lawsuits and pleas from commuters aiming to stop the new $9 toll, as he personally unveiled a toll sign Saturday at one of the entry points to the zone at Broadway and W. 61st St. Video shared by the MTA on social media shows a small crowd of toll supporters and elected...

A US Army soldier has been arrested in Texas after being indicted on two counts of unlawful transfer of confidential phone records information. While the indictment doesn't specify any hacking activity or victims' names, Cameron John Wagenius, 20, is suspected of being a cybercriminal known as Kiberphant0m, who claimed to have breached at least 15 telecommunications firms including AT&T and Verizon, according to KrebsOnSecurity. Wagenius is allegedly an associate of Connor Riley Moucka, one of the men accused of compromising multiple organizations' Snowflake-hosted environments, stealing sensitive customer data housed in the cloud storage service, and then extorting victims for millions...

New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed a $75 billion climate change bill that will fine fossil fuel companies for the damage caused to the environment. “With nearly every record rainfall, heatwave, and coastal storm, New Yorkers are increasingly burdened with billions of dollars in health, safety, and environmental consequences due to polluters that have historically harmed our environment,” Governor Hochul said. “Establishing the Climate Superfund is the latest example of my administration taking action to hold polluters responsible for the damage done to our environment and requiring major investments in infrastructure and other projects critical to protecting our communities and...

NEW YORK, Dec 26 (Reuters) - New York state will fine fossil fuel companies a total of $75 billion over the next 25 years to pay for damage caused to the climate under a bill Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law on Thursday. The law is intended to shift some of the recovery and adaptation costs of climate change from individual taxpayers to oil, gas and coal companies that the law says are liable. The money raised will be spent on mitigating the impacts of climate change, including adapting roads, transit, water and sewage systems, buildings and other infrastructure. "New...

A landmark law signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday, Dec. 26, created a “Climate Superfund” requiring large fossil fuel companies to pay for critical projects aimed at protecting residents from severe weather impacts like flooding and extreme heat. The move is meant to shift the cost of climate resilience projects from New Yorkers to those most responsible for the pollution, Hochul’s office said. “With nearly every record rainfall, heatwave, and coastal storm, New Yorkers are increasingly burdened with billions of dollars in health, safety, and environmental consequences due to polluters that have historically harmed our environment,” Hochul said. “Establishing...

Biden admin pressuring African country to expand abortion by withholding aid: reportThe Biden administration is allegedly attempting to use foreign aid to pressure the African nation of Sierra Leone to decriminalize abortion in its final weeks or else forgo $480 million in foreign aid meant for affordable electricity.WASHINGTON, D.C. (LifeSiteNews) – The Biden administration is attempting to use foreign aid to pressure the African nation of Sierra Leone to decriminalize abortion in its final weeks, according to a new report by the Daily Signal.According to a “former senior U.S. government official who has worked in the West African region,” the...

Senator Thom Tillis appears to have been granted a larger slice of the lobbyist money from Thune and McConnell because he certainly is taking up a position next to Joni Ernst in strategic opposition to President Donald Trump. The level of passive aggressive threat-speak within Tillis’ very carefully selected wording is quite concerning. “President Trump enjoyed a great deal of Republican support in his first term,” Tillis notes. “But if people want to play the outside [pressure] game, they run a lot of risk,” he continues. “Four votes is all it’s going to take to kill a nomination here, so...

On Wednesday, a Washington woman was arrested for scamming businesses out of thousands of dollars through an ongoing fraudulent racial discrimination scheme in which she allegedly would walk into a business, tell staff she was discriminated against, and then claim that management said she was owed money as a result. Jasmine Latrice Willie, 32, known as the "Chicken Scam Lady," has been booked into Pierce County Jail on charges including multiple counts of theft and organized retail theft. She is being held on a $200,000 bail, according to jail records. Lakewood Police arrested Willie on outstanding warrants, which included four...

Staten Island leaders demanded Whoopi Goldberg apologize for falsely claiming a Big Apple bakery refused to serve her sweet treats because of her lefty politics — as the family-run business was inundated with orders. “The View” co-host sparked widespread outrage this week when she alleged that the beloved 145-year-old Holtermann’s Bakery on Staten Island declined to make her a batch of Charlotte Russe desserts due to her political beliefs. “Recently someone took to the national airwaves and defamed, frankly, this family business,” borough president, Vito Fossella, fumed at a news conference held outside the bakery on Friday. “We’re here to...

One of the lessons learned in the first Trump administration is that you can't put a regular swamp creature into a position of power and expect him or her to go up against the entrenched machine to the degree necessary. Washington pros still place too much trust in the establishment — or more to the point, the people within the apparatus. And they still play by the old rules. So Trump has come up with an ingenious way to squish-proof top officials in his incoming administration: He's placing people in charge of agencies and departments who were personally targeted by...

Oregon is set to receive $40 million in a settlement agreement with Kroger, the parent company of Fred Meyer and QFC, to resolve lawsuits over its alleged role in helping fuel the opioid epidemic. The payment finalizes a deal Kroger reached last September to settle most of the claims made by states, local governments and Native American tribes that accused the grocery chain’s pharmacies of contributing to the opioid epidemic. While Kroger did not admit to any wrongdoing or liability as part of the deal, the grocer agreed to pay up to $1.37 billion over 11 years. As part of...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has reportedly told NATO to let his country join the group or it will get nuclear weapons in a shock ultimatum that was allegedly backed by Donald Trump. The leader, 46, declared his bombshell proposal at the EU summit in Brussels - stating either NATO quickly accepts Ukraine into its alliance, or it will once again become a nuclear power, reports Bild. Zelensky had reportedly planned to present what is being dubbed his 'victory plan' to the heads of state and government of the European Union, but instead made the dramatic announcement to stunned reporters on...