Free Republic

Representative Mike Waltz (R-FL) questions Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle in a House Oversight hearing Monday on the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump at a July 13 campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.Representative Waltz points out “the dog that didn’t bark.” WATCH: ♦ Where are the official 10:00am press briefing updates every day on the investigation?♦ Where are the official press conferences from the Secret Service, FBI and law enforcement answering questions and providing information from the prior days investigative results?♦ Where are the organized and official updates to let the American people know what has been found out...

The Florida State Legislature has proposed a Right to Hunt and Fish amendment to the Florida State Constitution. The Amendment will appear on the November 5, 2024 election ballot as Amendment 2. The amendment will require a supermajority of 60% of the vote to approve the measure. The amendment reads as follows: SECTION 28. Fishing, hunting, and the taking of fish and wildlife.—Fishing, hunting, and the taking of fish and wildlife, including by the use of traditional methods, shall be preserved forever as a public right and preferred means of responsibly managing and controlling fish and wildlife. This section does...

In spite of intense pressure from deep green “environmentalist” and “animal rights” groups, Florida Governor DeSantis signed HB 87 on June 21, 2024. If Governor DeSantis had not signed the bill, it would have become law on June 22. HB 87 restores the right of people to protect themselves, their pets, and their homes from destructive, rogue black bears.Animal rights groups wanted to continue a failed policy that demanded people ask permission from a bureaucratic agency before they were “allowed” to shoot a destructive bear.From clickorlando.com:DeSantis signed HB 87, Taking of Bears, which allows people to claim self defense in...

The Florida Panthers made history Monday night in front of more than 19,000 fans at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida, beating the Edmonton Oilers 2-1 to win their first Stanley Cup. As expected, Game 7 was a hard-fought contest with both teams going toe to toe throughout the game. Panthers' Sam Reinhart and Carter Verhaeghe scored goals, Sergei Bobrovsky made 23 saves. This time, they were on the right side of history — after avoiding what would have been a historic collapse. The Panthers won the first three games of the series, then lost the next three and needed...

On June 7, 2021, Florida Governor DeSantis received HB0087 along with 24 other bills. Because the bill was sent after the Florida legislature had adjourned for the session, Governor DeSantis has 15 days to sign the bill, allow the bill to become law, or veto the bill.The Florida legislature overwhelmingly voted for HB0087 on March 8, 2024. The bill is titled Taking of Bears. It restores the ability of people in Florida to protect themselves, their pets, and their dwellings from black bears without having to ask permission from the Florida state bureaucracy first. The legal ability to defend pets...

On May 3, 2024, Deputy Eddie Duran shot and killed Senior Airman Roger Fortson when Fortson answered the deputy’s demand for entry on a domestic violence call. The initial review of the body cam video was discussed on AmmoLand. The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) has completed its administrative internal affairs investigation into the shooting. The findings of the investigation were released on May 30, 2024. On May 31, the Sheriff’s office announced Deputy Eddie Duran had violated the Sheriff’s Office policy and had been terminated (fired) from his position. From the Okaloosa Sheriff’s Facebook page:SHALIMAR, Fla. (May 31, 2024)...

On January 12, 2024, Judge Kathryn Kimball ruled the federal ban on possession of firearms in post offices is unconstitutional because it violates the Second Amendment. The United States indicted Emmanuel Ayala, a postal worker, for possessing a firearm in a Federal facility in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 930(a). Ayala argues that statute is unconstitutional as applied to him because the historical record does not support a law banning firearms in post offices. See N.Y. State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen, 597 U.S. 1 (2022). Relying on dicta from earlier cases, the United States responds that the Second...

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At about 4:28 p.m., on May 3rd, 2024, in Okaloosa County, Florida, an Okaloosa Deputy Sheriff responded to a domestic violence call from an apartment complex. A few minutes later, the Deputy shot and killed Senior Airman Roger Fortson after Fortson opened his apartment door in response to the Deputy’s demands.The incident has gone viral. Fortson’s family has hired controversial lawyer Ben Crump. Crump has made statements the shooting was at the wrong apartment, and Fortson was shot as he walked away from the door, and deputies burst into the apartment. From news4sanantonio.com:Crump wrote that Fortson grabbed his “legally-owned” gun...

On March 8, 2024, the Florida legislature overwhelmingly voted for the HB0087: Taking of Bears. The Bill restores the ability of people in Florida to protect themselves, their pets, and dwellings from Florida black bears, which were administratively taken from them in 2012. The population of Florida black bears has skyrocketed, along with complaints and damage done by bears, particularly in Northern Florida.Florida legislative procedures require the governor to sign bills (after the legislature adjourns) within 15 days, or they become law without his signature. The timing starts when the governor receives the bill from the legislature.SECTION 8. Executive approval...

TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Rep. Bill Posey (R-Fla.) abruptly announced on Friday that he will not seek reelection, after initially planning to run for another term. Posey’s announcement — if made earlier — could have easily attracted a spirited Republican primary, with politicians from the state’s Space Coast region already eyeing the seat once Posey retired. Florida’s 8th congressional district is a solid Republican seat. Instead the 76-year-old incumbent’s announcement came shortly after qualifying officially ended and after his hand-picked replacement — former state Senate President Mike Haridopolos — had already quietly jumped into the race. In a statement posted online,...

Left-wing activists’ extreme narcissism always leads them to the same conclusion: You have no rights that they must respect. The latest example occurred Monday in Miami, Florida, where police arrested seven pro-Palestinian protesters for obstructing traffic, according to WSVN. That police response in Miami contrasted with the situation in some of America’s most liberal cities on Monday. In northern California, for instance, pro-Palestinian protesters shut down both San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge and I-880 in nearby Oakland. That particular demonstration of pathological narcissism occurred as part of a coordinated, nationwide, pro-Palestinian protest timed to coincide with the April 15 deadline...

Red Lobster is reportedly considering filing for bankruptcy to relieve financial pressures that have weighed on the company. According to a report by Bloomberg citing people familiar with the discussions, Red Lobster is weighing a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing to renegotiate burdensome leases and address other long-term contracts as well as rising labor costs. The outlet reported that the seafood restaurant chain is being advised by law firm King & Spalding on the subject, and that while discussions about restructuring are ongoing and that no final decisions have been made about a bankruptcy filing. By filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy,...

Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed five new laws Wednesday to intensify penalties and strengthen enforcement against those who prey upon minors and participate in sex trafficking. According to the governor’s office, HB 1545 bars adults from “pattern(s) of communication” with minors involving “explicit and detailed verbal descriptions of sexual activity,” strengthens penalties for child porn possession, promoting underage sexual performances, and similar crimes, and making both categories of offenses third-degree felonies. HB 1131 creates an Online Sting Operations Grant Program within the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) that provides for annual funding of sting operations and the necessary...

A man died and another was questioned after an argument between a woman's ex-boyfriend and her friend ended in gunfire Wednesday in a Hialeah neighborhood. Hialeah Police officials said officers responded to a call of a shooting in the 4000 block of West 13th Lane around 6:40 a.m. and found a man dead at the scene. Police spokesperson Eddie Rodriguez said the man who died, identified as 26-year-old Christian Rueda, arrived at his ex's place and saw another man leaving the house. "This is an ex-boyfriend (Rueda) that she’s had problems with in the past, restraining orders, stalking," Rodriguez said....

<p>The Florida State Guard ought to be outfitted in brown shirts.</p><p>Ditch the military-style camos and other trappings of a well-supervised, highly trained, federally-authorized professional army that helps keep order in the aftermath of hurricanes and other natural disasters.</p><p>The Florida State Guard is more like a cosplay group of Y’all Qaeda commandos taking full advantage of the Florida taxpayer-provided hand-to-hand combat lessons.</p>

MELROSE, Fla. (WCJB) - A man from Gainesville was shot multiple times in the chest, through a Bible, in a Stand Your Ground shooting after sheriff’s deputies say he harmed his baby and attacked bystanders. Putnam County Sheriff’s Office officials say Jason Kaercher, 26, of Gainesville, began behaving erratically earlier this week. On Thursday, relatives took his 3-month-old baby to a home in Melrose off State Road 21 near the elementary school. Kaercher met with the family and a Department of Children and Families (DCF) case manager. Kaercher took his wife and baby outside to get some air and moments...

Two graduate students and a professor on Monday challenged the constitutionality of a 2023 state law that restricts employment of people from China and six other nations at Florida public universities and colleges. Attorneys for Florida International University doctoral students Zhipeng Yin and Zhen Guo and University of Florida professor Zhengfei Guan — all of whom are from China — filed a lawsuit in federal court in Miami. The challenge alleges, in part, that the law is unconstitutional because it is trumped by federal immigration laws. The lawsuit said that under the measure (SB 846), people “who are not United...

Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday announced the deployment of more than 250 personnel to the southern coast of Florida ahead of an expected surge in illegal arrivals from Haiti. The Haitian government has largely collapsed and the nation is facing rampant gang warfare. Earlier this month, gangs stormed prisons and freed roughly 3,700 inmates, leading to a chaotic uptick in gang violence and the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry. The U.S. has urged its citizens to leave.

On February 21, 2024, the Florida Senate amended and passed HB 87. The bill allows people threatened by bears to use deadly force to protect themselves when they reasonably believe a bear is a danger to themselves, others, or their pets or is causing significant damage to their dwelling. The bill has already passed the House. The changes made in the Senate are not large. It seems likely the bill will end up on Governor DeSantis’ desk and be signed into law. Floridians had the authority to protect themselves and their property from bears until the Florida Fish & Wildlife...