Free Republic

President Trump was sitting in the Oval Office earlier this year with Secretary of State Marco Rubio when an idea came to him. Maybe he should dispatch Mr. Rubio permanently to Caracas, the Venezuelan capital, where U.S. commandos had carried out the proudest foreign policy achievement of Mr. Trump’s second term: the capture of Nicolás Maduro, the country’s president. Mr. Rubio could be the next leader of Venezuela, Mr. Trump suggested. And while the president’s aides say he was joking — and that he frequently teases Mr. Rubio about an overseas assignment — the fact is that Mr. Rubio does...

The U.S. is demanding that Iran make a public statement saying the Strait of Hormuz is open and that ships crossing the vital corridor won’t be attacked anymore, senior U.S. officials said Friday, adding that internal Tehran power struggles have made it difficult to reach and keep a deal. The U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe to reporters the state of play with Iran, said the resumption of strikes this week came after what they described as a rogue faction of Iranian hard-liners trying to sabotage the ceasefire between Tehran and Washington. It comes as U.S....

As RedState’s Ward Clark reported Friday, Donald Trump has instructed the U.S. military to basically wipe out the Islamic Republic of Iran should they succeed in assassinating him. His statements come on the heels of a Thursday Wall Street Journal report alleging that Israel had informed the U.S. that Iran was mulling a new plot to kill him in retaliation for his 2020 decision to remove bloodthirsty IRGC Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani from the earth. Well, that and Operation Epic Fury, which sent former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to the freezer. On Friday night, the president got even...

A banner reading “Destroy Israel” was unfurled during the opening ceremony of Spain’s annual St. Fermin Festival in Pamplona, drawing condemnation from Jewish organizations. Video circulating on social media showed the banner stretched above the crowd before the traditional chupinazo rocket launch yesterday that marks the start of the weeklong St. Fermin Festival, known for its encierro (running of the bulls through the town square to the bullring). The banner featured the words “Destroy Israel” alongside an image of an Israeli flag crossed out. The initials “EHKS” appeared at the bottom of the banner, referring to a far-left socialist organization...

Iran pledged to avenge the assassination of former supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a written statement attributed to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Saturday. “We pledge to avenge your pure blood and the blood of all the martyrs of these two wars by holding their criminal and disgraced killers accountable,” the statement read, adding that such vengeance was “the demand of [the Iranian] nation.” The statement went on to threaten the “criminals,” saying they “will take their dream of dying peacefully in their beds with them to their graves.” “They must understand that this matter does not depend upon...

An illegal migrant who was pardoned by Minnesota's Democratic governor for the rape of a ten-year-old girl in an apparent bid to allow him to remain in the country has been deported. Laotian pedophile Tou Lue Vang was photographed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) being escorted onto a plane by two agents Friday afternoon. DHS ripped Walz for trying to keep Vang in the country before explaining their efforts to deport him. 'ICE has DEPORTED Tou Vang, the illegal alien CHILD RAPIST @GovTimWalz pardoned in an attempt to allow him to remain in our country,' they said in...

Donald Trump revealed that he has 1,000 missiles 'locked and loaded' and aimed at Iran in the event he is assassinated by the Islamic republic. The president shared details of his plans for a massive military retaliation warning Iran would be 'completely decimated' if it ever carried out its long-running threats against him. He issued the extraordinary warning on Friday night in a fiery Truth Social post following renewed calls for his death during the funeral of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In one of his most explicit threats yet against Tehran, Trump revealed he has already instructed military...

For four years, Russia has bet on outlasting Ukraine in a war of attrition. Now, as Kyiv’s drones inflict growing damage on both Russia’s army and oil industry, Moscow is finding out that time isn’t necessarily on its side. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion force is making ever-smaller gains at the front line, its losses exceed recruitment, and it is struggling to adapt to a Ukrainian drone campaign pounding its supply routes to its forward positions. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s stretched army hasn’t buckled as Russia hoped and is even pushing back the invaders in places with small counterattacks. Its increasingly capable...

SAWYER, Mich. (AP) — A completed bridge linking Detroit and Canada is expected to open by the end of the month after U.S. and Canadian officials reached an agreement to resolve the dispute that delayed its debut, according to two people directly involved in the negotiations.The sources were not authorized to publicly disclose the deal before a formal announcement.A ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled for early June was postponed after the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority said the two countries needed more time to resolve “outstanding issues.” The delay followed President Donald Trump’s earlier threats to block the bridge’s opening.Commercial traffic is now expected...

China's 'big four' banks took the top spots in The Banker's latest global ranking, with JPMorgan Chase following in fifth place China's "big four" state-run banks are the largest in the world in terms of asset scale, a new report has found, underscoring Beijing's rising ambitions to build the country into a global financial powerhouse. The ranking released by The Banker magazine on Wednesday was topped by the four Chinese banks - Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank of China and Bank of China - with JPMorgan Chase following in fifth place. Chinese banks collectively...

Israeli Prime Minister suggested he's breaking away from the U.S. and forming a new alliance with India as Tel-Aviv and Washington butt heads over the former's strikes in Lebanon. The eyebrow-raising comments come as the apparent rift between the U.S. and Israel widens during the 4-month war with Iran. "You have to build new alliances and develop new relationships. That's what I'm doing right now with India," Netanyahu told Sharon Gal, a prominent right-wing journalist in Israel. Last month, Israeli officials denounced the fragile peace deal struck between the U.S and Iran, which seemed to disturb Vice President JD Vance,...

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has found an unusual way to keep this week’s NATO summit in Ankara in the headlines—by presenting fellow alliance leaders with personalized revolvers, leaving several governments to figure out how to legally transport, store, or dispose of the unusual diplomatic gifts. The presentation, intended to showcase Turkey’s growing defense manufacturing sector, quickly evolved into a logistical puzzle as visiting delegations confronted strict firearms regulations in their home countries. Each guest reportedly received a Turkish-made .357 Magnum revolver, engraved with the recipient’s name and displayed in a wooden presentation case alongside a cleaning kit, certificate, and...

President Trump noted the weapons being used against the small boats are “the same exact missile” as those being used against narco boats attempting to smuggle drugs north to the United States from South America. While the President didn’t specific which missile that is, the chances are good it is either the old Cold War stalwart the AGM-114 Hellfire or the modern budget killer the APKWS. Created to kill Russian tanks in Central Europe in case the Cold War turned hot in the 1980s, the Hellfire remains an effective anti-armour air-to-ground weapon but both in terms of capability and cost...

The new Air Force One, which President Trump flew on earlier this week to Turkey, lacks the same defensive countermeasures that were security features of the old model, including its advanced antimissile capabilities, according to multiple officials who have been briefed on how the jet was retrofitted.Experts say the absence of those capabilities on the Boeing 747-8 aircraft, which was donated by Qatar, creates potential risk in using the jet abroad, a dynamic underscored by the abrupt decision on Wednesday for Mr. Trump to leave Turkey on the old Air Force One at the urging of the Secret Service.The episode...

Israel recently shared intelligence with the US about a new Iranian plot to assassinate President Trump, according to a report. The latest assassination plan, reported by the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, comes after years of Iranian regime threats to kill Trump as revenge for the 2020 killing of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Gen. Qasem Soleimani by US forces. When asked for comment, the White House referred The Post to Trump’s Wednesday remarks at the NATO summit in Ankara. ”They want to take out the US leader — me,” Trump said. “I’m on whatever list. I saw this morning I’m...

In the aftermath of two powerful earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24, the human cost continues to mount. According to figures released by National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez, at least 3,811 people have now died, with 16,740 injured, and 17,907 left homeless. VIDEOS AT LINK.................. The twin quakes, measuring magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, caused widespread destruction, particularly in coastal areas like La Guaira and the capital region of Caracas. Buildings collapsed, infrastructure failed, and entire communities were left in ruins — exposing the fragile state of much of the country's housing and public works after years of economic mismanagement...

Technical talks between the United States and Iran are ongoing despite recent strikes and apparent rising tensions. A United States official confirmed to Townhall that “the United States is still committed to finding a resolution, and technical talks continue,” adding that “Iran can never possess a nuclear weapon.”The official added that the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two countries last month “is performance-based, and Iran’s actions constitute failed performance at an unacceptable level.”NEW: @townhallcom can independently confirm other reporting that Iran talks are ongoing despite recent strikes.From a U.S. official:“President Trump made his feelings very clear yesterday in no...

The Trump administration, led by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, is ridding America's roadways of noncitizen truck drivers. But the death toll continues to rise amid legal and blue state pushback. Flags are flying at half staff in the state of Pennsylvania in honor of Michael Pahira Jr., a state trooper killed after a tractor-trailer struck him on the morning of July 1. Pahira, a 20-year veteran of the force, was conducting a safety check of another commercial truck on the shoulder of 1-80 when Michael Bon, an illegal immigrant from Haiti, crashed into Pahira’s vehicle then hit the truck he...

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Thursday rejected President Donald Trump's suggestion that Israel could withdraw from southern Lebanon. He said Israel does not need anyone's approval to maintain its military presence there. "We didn't ask for anyone's approval to enter Lebanon, and we don't need approval to stay in Lebanon," Katz said in a statement, according to The Washington Examiner. "It is our right and duty to defend the residents of the Galilee and Israeli citizens from the threats of the jihadist terror group Hezbollah, which aims to destroy the State of Israel." Katz said Israel would continue to...

The White House on Thursday claimed President Trump’s switch from the new Qatari-donated Air Force One to the original presidential plane on his flight home from Turkey Wednesday was a strategic “distraction” to keep the commander-in-chief safe. Denying that any physical security factors led to the swap out, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said the new jet “is a state-of-the-art aircraft that has been fitted with high-level security protocols that ensure the safety of the President and his staff.” “As the President has said recently, there are many enemies of America who have their sights on him, and we...