Free Republic

Senator Sam Brownback, a Republican trying to inject new life into his beleaguered presidential campaign, plans to offer a resolution this week for Congress to apologize for slavery and segregation. Brownback, of Kansas, told The Boston Globe's editorial board yesterday he will join an unnamed Democrat in sponsoring the proposal. He said he expects a tough fight on the resolution, even though it will not include any call for reparations. "They were federal policies," he said. "They were wrong. The only way for us to move forward . . . is at the end of day acknowledging those, taking ownership...

GOP presidential hopeful Ron Paul has been excluded from an upcoming political forum in Iowa on the grounds that he is not a "credible” candidate. The event, sponsored by Iowans for Tax Relief and the Iowa Christian Alliance, is set for June 30 in Des Moines. GOP candidates who will speak at the forum include Mitt Romney, Sam Brownback, Duncan Hunter, Mike Huckabee, Tommy Thompson and Tom Tancredo. But Paul, a Texas congressman, was left out because the invitation went only to those candidates who are "credible,” said Ed Failor Jr., vice president of Iowans for Tax Relief. "To plan...

Not too long after he entered the Senate in late 1994, Fred Thompson was often heard to quip, "I often long for the realism and sincerity of Hollywood."As he moves ever closer to a presidential run, the Will Rogersesque line fits well into his folksy persona -- but the musing does carry with it one big caveat.Even if the Tennessee Republican ends up being the one true show-business candidate in a race with a bevy of superstar contenders, that doesn't mean that the entertainment industry will automatically line up behind him.There's the obvious reason: Republicans make up a small...