Free Republic

In what may be the most valuable gift ever extended to the United States from a foreign government, the Trump administration is preparing to accept a super luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet from the royal family of Qatar -- a gift that is to be available for use by President Donald Trump as the new Air Force One until shortly before he leaves office, at which time ownership of the plane will be transferred to the Trump presidential library foundation, sources familiar with the proposed arrangement told ABC News. The gift is expected to be announced next week, when Trump...

A Republican lawmaker shocked Florida’s political world when he accused representatives of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration of committing federal crimes by diverting $10 million from a Medicaid settlement to political activities last year. No one has been charged, and DeSantis administration officials have denied wrongdoing. But four former federal prosecutors told the Herald/Times that Rep. Alex Andrade could be on strong legal ground. At least eight different federal charges, from theft of government funds to money laundering, could be investigated related to the dollars that passed through the Hope Florida Foundation, they said. Those statutes could carry sentences of decades...

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday defended a state agency’s involvement with a $10 million donation to a charity founded by his wife as a “cherry on top” deal using funds from a settlement between the agency and the state’s largest Medicaid contractor. State law mandates that money from the settlement be put in a trust fund or a general fund under legislative oversight. DeSantis called the settlement “100% appropriate”

Elon Musk is right that some of our wealthy “public servants” need to have their puzzling finances scrutinized. An old saw says that whatever is sauce for the goose is also sauce for the gander. Of course, in D.C., that has never been true. If you are in the seat of power, you are untouchable. This explains the revulsion that middle earth (flyover country) has for Mordor on the Hudson. “Why can they get away with things we would go to jail for?” One of those things is getting rich in a job that shouldn’t generate that kind of wealth....

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After President Trump’s first month in office, border encounters are down. Way down. Ninety-six percent down. From around 300,000 in December 2023 under President Joe Biden, to just 8,300 in February 2025. The number averaged just under 300 a day last month, constituting “the lowest month in recorded history,” according to the chief of the Border Patrol. Some of this is the sheer deterrent effect of having a loud and proud border hawk in the White House — the so-called “Trump effect” starkly reduced border crossings at the outset of the president’s first term, as well. But, this time, the...

When trillions of dollars routinely go missing under the government’s stewardship, the money doesn’t just disappear into a nebula or black hole. The unaccounted-for money goes into people’s bank accounts. That’s why anodyne terms like “waste, fraud, and abuse” are wholly inadequate descriptors. It would be one thing if the U.S. government made the trains run on time. Or if highly questionable government agencies and programs were just superfluous but inexpensive oddities like a human appendix. Yet, look at the performance metrics and finances of the DMV, Amtrak, the Social Security Administration, FEMA, the Department of Education, Medicaid, USAID, on...

A left-wing group that serves as the lead contractor for a massive federal immigration contract claims the immigration system is "intentionally designed" to exploit "Black and brown people," opposes the use of police officers for "immigration purposes," and says "no immigrant should be detained." Acacia Center for Justice, based in Washington, D.C., is one of the largest federal immigration contractors, overseeing a $769 million program

Tuesday on ABC’s “The View,” Whoopi Goldberg told her co-hosts that Republicans like Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) saying there could be strings attached to aid for the California wildfires was “beyond shameful.” Goldberg said, “As wildfires continue to devastate Los Angeles, burning homes and costing billions in damages, some are calling for award shows like The Oscars to be postponed or canceled while others want them turned into telethons to raise funds for the victims. Right now, The Oscars aren’t until March. What I’m concerned about is this: Republicans like Mike Johnson threatening to put conditions on the aid to...

The White House has confirmed that lame-duck President Joe Biden is trying to funnel “as much funding as possible” to “climate change” groups as he can before his term ends next month. The Biden administration is seeking to rapidly disperse taxpayer-funded climate cash before President Donald Trump is sworn in to power. Biden is hoping to cement his green energy agenda before Trump assumes the Oval Office in January. In a memo released by the White House, Jeff Zients, Biden’s chief of staff, boasted that the president is pumping as much climate cash “as possible before the end of the...

hey’re bending over backwards to waste cash on turnstile jumping. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is planning to spend up to $1 million in federal grant money on a study they hope will help them understand the mindset of the average fare evader, The Post has learned. The pricy research – which comes as the authority is crying poverty and pushing for a detested congestion pricing plan — is being blasted by critics as a huge waste that will only tell them what anyone with common sense already knows about scofflaws.

John Kirby, White House national security communications adviser, described Friday’s G7 session as focused on the leaders’ “shared support to Ukraine,” including the use of a World Bank fund to deliver billions in economic aid to the war-torn country. He also told reporters Thursday that Biden had “made clear, we’re going to continue to provide additional packages right up until the end of this administration.” But in a sweeping interview published Thursday, Trump signaled a much different foreign policy when he takes office. The soon-to-be-47th president has always been skeptical of — and sometimes combative with — international entities. And...

San Francisco is closing its only safe parking site for homeless people living out of vehicles after three tumultuous years filled with legal disputes, code violations and extensive complaints from those living in and around the site.

Biden energy loan czar Jigar Shah was a major investor in a struggling green energy company that is in advanced talks to receive a $1.5 billion loan from his office. The Department of Energy’s loan office, where Shah serves as director, is working to fast-track the funding to Plug Power, a hydrogen fuel company on the brink of bankruptcy. But the ties between Plug Power and Shah could add to concerns from lawmakers about conflicts of interest in the federal loan program. Securities and Exchange Commission records detail a long-standing financial relationship between Plug Power and Generate Capital, an investment...

A Buckeye Reporter investigation has confirmed that Mayor Rob Rue of Springfield, Ohio, is renting out apartments in buildings that he owns to Haitian immigrants—a move that some local residents are calling a conflict of interest. -- snip -- A few blocks away from Little and Rue Funeral Home, also owned by Rue, a 37-year-old man who introduced himself as “Works” lives in an apartment on an estate worth an estimated $1.3 million. Works told Buckeye Reporter that he and other Haitian immigrants reside in properties owned by Rue. -- snip -- According to public records, Rue owns several rental...

As mentioned in my recent post from July 20, there are many data points gradually accumulating as to the lack of progress toward the so-called “green” economy. It has long been clear to people who think about it that the energy transition to “net zero” is a fantasy that will not occur. But the question remains of exactly how the mania will come to an end. Will the net zero fantasies of the climate cultists proceed at full speed until they crash into a wall of physical reality (e.g., blackouts)? Or instead will these fantasies gradually retreat as governments respond...

One of the Biden/Harris administration's signature programs is marketed as 'Build Back Better," but there is a slight problem: it has built basically nothing despite spending billions of dollars.It's the policy equivalent of burning a stack of $100 bills a mile high. Except, to a certain extent, it isn't. What they are doing is transferring those billions to leftist activist groups whose main job is making our lives miserable. There are many examples to choose from, and the Washington Free Beacon has yet another featured today. REPORT: Kamala Harris Touted a $5B Electric School Bus Program. Three Years Later, It's...

The same writers who proclaimed Joe Biden “sharp as a tack” are now busy denying that Joe appointed Kamala Harris his “border czar.” While giving that failure the attention it deserves, recall the new span of the Bay Bridge from San Francisco to Oakland. The original double-deck span had served well since the 1930s and was quickly repaired after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. The structure could have been retrofitted for an estimated $250 million but Bay Area Democrats wanted a new bridge they said would cost $1 billion. California boasts some of the best bridge builders in the world...

The Biden administration made a pair of announcements Thursday that aim to bolster solar energy in Puerto Rico — which frequently deals with power outages. The Energy Department announced a conditional agreement to loan $861 million to finance the construction of two solar farms and batteries to keep the power stored even when it’s not sunny. The department will also provide up to an additional $325 million for solar and battery storage as part of a new program aimed at helping the island’s power become more resilient to extreme weather. The nearly $900 million loan will go to Clean Flexible...

The federal government is spending $1.7 billion to modernize automobile manufacturing facilities, helping the industry compete with foreign subsidies and create and protect jobs.As part of the Automotive Community Benefits Plan, the current administration will extend grants to 11 selected manufacturing plants in eight states, including in Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, that have temporarily closed or were at risk of closing.Federal funding, which will come from the Inflation Reduction Act, will be dedicated to retrofitting factories, installing equipment, and bolstering annual production.Grant capital will also allow these at-risk facilities to convert to manufacturing electric vehicles and related components and a...