Free Republic

Since he dropped the news around the year-end holidays and his inauguration, you may have missed how Zohran Mamdani saved many of his most radical appointments for last. On Friday, the new mayor named Ali Najmi to chair his Advisory Committee on the Judiciary, which picks judges for family and civil courts and interim appointees for criminal courts; Najmi is big on making the bench more “diverse.” Mamdani outright ordered the committee to find more diversity picks and to get public defenders and other anti-prosecution types more involved in judicial selections: Expect the city’s courts to become even more eager...

A suspected arson attack has caused a widespread power cut in Berlin since Saturday. Authorities said on Sunday that it was a result of a politically motivated attack by “left-wing extremists". Around 45,000 households were left without electricity in southwest Berlin after high-voltage power lines were damaged by a fire, which authorities have described as a politically motivated attack by far-left extremists. Though power has been restored in some areas, thousands could be left without power until Thursday after what authorities say was a politically motivated attack by “left-wing extremists”. The blaze erupted on a cable bridge over the Teltow...

As of January 1, 2026, city workers in Portland, Oregon, can now clock out for up to 40 hours a year — without losing pay or benefits — to deal with immigration-related legal matters for themselves or for family members. Eligible employees may use this leave for activities such as:Obtaining legal support or meeting with immigration or criminal defense attorneys • Attending interviews or tests related to naturalization or citizenship • Appearing at state or federal criminal court proceedings • Deportation hearings • Matters involving “unlawful detention” related to immigration status. For the first 40 hours each year, this leave...

Berlin police arrested over 420 people on New Year’s Eve amid widespread violence and attacks on emergency responders. The arrests came after the city deployed 3,200 officers for the New Year’s Eve operation, and police logged 2,340 additional incidents beyond the major “Silvester” deployment, according to a statement from the State Administration for the Interior and Sport. Berlin’s fire brigade responded to 1,830 calls throughout the night. (RELATED: Famous Church Burns As Netherlands Police Face Unprecedented Violence On New Year’s Eve). The chaos in Germany’s capital mirrored scenes across Europe, where attacks on first responders and property damage strained public...

The mayor of San Francisco discreetly approved a bill to create a fund that may eventually grant each of the city's eligible black residents $5 million in reparations. Mayor Daniel Lurie quietly signed the incredibly divisive Reparations Bill just two days before Christmas. The ordinance establishes a Reparations Fund, as recommended by the city's African American Reparations Advisory Committee (AARAC) in its 2023 report.

The parole board of Massachusetts is set to release 39 "emerging adult" convicts imprisoned for murder who were given life without parole but have now become eligible after a court ruling. The ruling states that those between 18 and 20 at the time of their offense are "emerging adults" and are not permitted to be given life without parole. Since the ruling was made last year by the state's Supreme Judicial Court, the board has greenlit the release of 39 first-degree murderers as well as those guilty of accessory to murder as they deny parole to 12 other inmates, according...

California’s richest residents could be slapped with a one-time 5% tax on their net worth if a new law makes it onto the ballot next year. The measure – called the “2026 Billionaire Tax Act” – seeks to counter $30 billion in potential federal funding cuts to California’s Medicaid program. Cash from the new tax could also pay for the Golden State’s struggling public education system, according to supporters of the act, which include the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). If passed and signed off by Gov. Gavin Newsom, California’s tech bosses like Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Nvidia CEO...

Chevron, Valero and Phillips 66 leaving/closing down.

California's gas prices have reached crisis levels—and drivers across the Golden State are demanding answers. This video exposes the complex web of factors keeping California's fuel costs the highest in the nation. Discover how the state's strict refinery requirements, low-carbon fuel standards, and environmental regulations create a perfect storm for sky-high prices at the pump. Learn why California's unique fuel blend can only be produced by a handful of refineries, how the Cap-and-Trade program adds hidden costs to every gallon, and why even minor supply disruptions send prices skyrocketing. We'll explore the refinery shutdowns threatening California's fuel supply, the oligopoly...

Every year huge crowds gather in Paris at the Champs-Élysées to ring in the new year with fireworks and concerts. Much like the New Year’s Eve parties in Times Square in New York City, the joyous festivities are a key link in the chain of worldwide celebrations of the year to come. No more. New Year’s has been canceled in Paris. The New Year’s Eve concert was pre-recorded with actors pretending to be the audience. The fireworks will appear on TV. And there will be no one to count the countdown because the Champs-Élysées has become France’s latest ‘no-go’zone’. Ten...

More than 200 enraged pub owners are banning Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and his MPs from their businesses in protest at increased business rates which they say threaten their survival. Hundreds of businesses have signed up to the Taxed Out campaign where boozers will bar Labour MPs from entering their premises. This comes after Rachel Reeves announced that nearly 5,000 small pubs will soon pay huge business rates for the first time as the rateable values of premises are set to increase. Temporary rates relief will also be replaced with a less favourable system, meaning that a standard British...

Karmel Mall is in the Somalian colony Minneapolis In this video the owner of the Karmel mall is talking to Somalis telling them that ICE can't enter their home or business without a "real" warrant. And that Minnesota is going to pass a law banning racial profiling.

Valero is taking a $1 billion dollar loss just to get out of California by April 2026. The company will not comply with Gavin Newsom mandates and instead is willing to lose a billion dollars to leave. “When a company takes a billion dollar loss just to leave, you know something is seriously broken.” “Valero just wrote off $1.1 billion. That is the cost they are taking to walk away from California rather than keep operating their Benicia refinery past April 2026. — This facility processes 145,000 barrels of oil per day, representing 8.6% of California's entire gasoline production. 400...

Joe Biden shuffled over to the microphone and delivered an uninspiring speech. At one point, Joe Biden shouted at the attendees and told them to “fight back” against the Trump Administration. “Get up! Get up and fight back! Get up! Continue to fight! What’s the fight all about?! It’s about protecting the Constitution!” Biden shouBiden also botched “America” during his unhinged speech. “We just have to get up. As long as we keep the faith…and remember who in the hell we are! We’re the United States of Ameragotit!” Biden shouted.ted.

Former President Joe Biden said “we’re the United States of Amerigotit” in his latest gaffe during a speech on Friday at the International LGBTQ+ Leaders Conference in Washington, D.C. Biden was urging elected officials, leaders and advocates to “continue the fight” for equality when he slurred his words. “We just have to get up. As long as we keep the faith … and remember who the hell we are. We’re the United States of Amerigotit, that’s who we are! We’re the U.S.!” Biden said. […] “All of us are dismayed by the present state of the union,” he added. “This...

President Donald Trump's administration has warned that Europe faces "civilisational erasure" and questioned whether certain nations can remain reliable allies, in a new strategy document that puts a particular focus on the continent. The 33-page National Security Strategy sees the US leader outline his vision for the world and how he will wield US military and economic power to work towards it. Trump described the document as a "roadmap" to ensure America remains "the greatest and most successful nation in human history". European politicians have begun to react, with Germany's Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul saying his country did not need...

“Jails and incarceration and law enforcement is a sickness that has not led to safe communities,” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson declared during a fiery press conference Tuesday, adding that he intends to “eradicate” that sickness. Johnson made the remarks after a reporter asked him about his administration’s public safety plan. “I get so sick and tired of people believing that the only thing that Black and Brown and poor people get to get in this city are badges,” he continued. “No. It’s a sickness and we’re gonna eradicate it.” Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd), who recently announced a campaign to unseat...

It has not been a pretty summer for consumers at California’s supermarkets. That’s what my trusty spreadsheet found when averaging slices of Consumer Price Indexes for three Golden State metro areas: the Los Angeles/Orange County combo, San Francisco and San Diego. This summer’s pricing – June through August’s reports – shows that prices in the “food at home” category across those three metros grew at an average 3.3% annual rate this summer. So, grocery inflation more than doubled from 1.5% in 2024. Yes, food at home inflation is nowhere near the pandemic era’s inflation surge that saw grocery prices balloon...

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – A new report puts a price tag on just how much money is being spent on the homeless in the Portland metro area, and it isn’t small. A report by ECOnorthwest found more than $724 million was spent in 2024, with that money going to safety, supportive housing and housing placement — along with administrative costs. The funding comes from local, regional, state, and federal resources to serve the tri-county area of Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties. According to the report, 43% came from a regional homeless services tax and 14% came from federal dollars. Additionally,...

As a teenager in the late 1970s, Steve Richardson was sweeping and stocking shelves at a toy store on the edge of L.A.’s Skid Row when he noticed the first signs of a monumental change in the city. Day after day, workers, hired from the surrounding streets to unload trucks full of toys, would take the empty boxes and transform them into makeshift shelters where they would spend the night. “They were called cardboard condos,” said Richardson, a Skid Row leader now known as General Dogon. “They went on block after block.” At the same time, Los Angeles Times columnist...