Free Republic

Call it being a team player. If you’re a Republican House candidate flush with cash and poised to win, you can score points with leadership if you donate to competitive races. That cred could lead to good committee assignments down the line. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) followed that model in 2006 and ended up with a prime spot in leadership. Now he’s advising candidates from South Carolina to Missouri to do the same, even suggesting which contenders are most in need of funds for new ads. In a great year for their party, some House Republican challengers are doing more...

In July, the very last time Barack Obama held a press conference, Obama took the time to offer his thoughts on the professionalism of the Cambridge Police Department in their arrest of his friend Henry “Skip” Gates. After saying that Sergeant James Crowley “acted stupidly” despite not having “all the facts,” several of Crowley’s colleagues expressed their support of him by announcing that they wouldn’t vote for Obama in 2012. Their union has found a way to make their displeasure known much earlier — by endorsing Scott Brown over Martha Coakley: All Members, Members of our Association have inquired and...

Rep. Henry Brown expected to announce retirement today Staff report Monday, January 4, 2010 Republican Congressman Henry Brown is expected to announce his retirement this morning. Brown will release a statement at 10:15 a.m., according to his longtime political consultant, Rod Shealy. Columbia-based blog, The Palmetto Scoop, first reported the news this morning.

Rep. Henry Brown, a five-term South Carolina Republican from a conservative-leaning district, has told associates he will his announce his retirement Monday, POLITICO has learned. He will be making his announcement at a press conference tomorrow afternoon back in his coastal Carolina district. Brown survived a closer-than-expected reelection in 2008 and was already facing a primary challenge from Carroll Campbell III, the son of the former GOP governor and congressman. But a source close to Brown said that the congressman, who previously served in the state House, was not being chased off. ”He’s simply ready to retire after 25 years...

It’s been just over 12 hours since The Palmetto Scoop broke the news that South Carolina Congressman Henry Brown would not seek re-election and already a few contenders are considering a run for the seat. The man who held the 1st district seat in the early 1980s, Tommy Hartnett, told Politico on Monday he was weighing a run at reclaiming his old office. ”It’s something I’m going to look at and make a decision on pretty quickly,” Hartnett said. Hartnett, 68, represented the Charleston district from 1981 to 1987. ”Life gives you an opportunity to learn along the way,” he...

Congressman Henry Brown's "Stand Up for Christmas" resolution is just another example of Republican politicians' long history of exploiting social and cultural issues to distract voters from their big government records.

Darren White and Erik Paulsen were prized Republican recruits, House candidates poised to be the new face of the GOP on Capitol Hill. But as the two head into the homestretch of their campaigns, GOP operatives say they’ll probably have to win — or lose — on their own. The money national Republicans earmarked for White in New Mexico and for Paulsen in Minnesota will likely go instead to protect GOP incumbents who once looked like locks for reelection. GOP Reps. John B. Shadegg of Arizona, Lee Terry of Nebraska, Henry Brown Jr. of South Carolina and Dan Lungren of...

Henry Brown Gets a Second GOP Opponent The circling of the wolves continues as Henry Brown gets a second GOP challenger. Desert Storm veteran and former Brown aid Katherine Jenerette of Horry County has filed to unseat her old boss. Charleston businessman Paul Norris filed for the seat last week along with Brown. This three way race could mean good things for Democrat Linda Ketner, as Brown is forced to invest money in the primary race. Side note: Jenerette’s website still has a picture of her and Henry together (as well as a link to Brown’s Congressional website). The site...

Charleston Mercury - Our Endorsements Published: Wednesday, June 4, 2008 7:07 PM EDT On June 10, voters go to primary polling places of their choice. We have strong feelings about some races and will advise accordingly.[snip] As noted, we do have some vigorous opinions about other incumbents, so welcome to our political quiz to answer these questions: What local elected official supported the following or is characterized as follows: 1) Congressman James Clyburn’s proposed ten-mile bridge[snip] 2) The most recent Farm Bill [snip] 3) ...voted only eight percent of the time for anti-pork legislation in 2007. As you know, the...

A long-running battle between the U.S. Forest Service and a Republican congressman who set a runaway fire that damaged federal land has been settled, with a $4,747 hole burned in the lawmaker's pocket. That's the amount Rep. Henry E. Brown Jr. (R-S.C.) paid the agency on April 20 to cover the cost of suppressing the March 5, 2004, blaze that jumped from his property to the adjacent Francis Marion National Forest, charring 20 acres. Brown previously had paid a $250 fine. The payment extinguished a four-year dispute marked by allegations of political pressure, a failed counterclaim by Brown and threats...

Commander: U.S. Underestimated in Iraq By CHRIS TOMLINSON .c The Associated Press BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Before the capital fell, armchair generals painted gloomy scenarios of perilous street fighting and plenty of American dead in Baghdad. America could fight from the air, they said, but lacked the stomach for a fight on the ground. Wrong, insists the man who commanded the assault on Baghdad. Col. David Perkins, commander of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 3rd Infantry Division, says the war showed that Americans can fight in any environment. ``We did desert, we did swampland, we did canals, we...

BAGHDAD, Iraq - At a parade ground where Saddam Hussein once reviewed his troops, American soldiers gathered Saturday to remember and shed tears for eight comrades and three journalists who died during the war. "We are standing at the heart of a regime that struck fear into the hearts of the people," said Col. David Perkins of Keene, N.H., commanding officer of the 3rd Infantry Division's 2nd Brigade. "There are things worth dying for," he said. "Freedom is one of those things." At the center of the ceremony were eight M-16 automatic rifles with bayonets, stuck into a wooden bench....

For Immediate ReleaseOffice of the Press SecretaryApril 19, 2003 President's Radio Address      Audio THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This weekend, families across America will come together to celebrate Easter, and continue the observance of Passover. This holy season reminds us of the value of freedom, and the power of a love stronger than death. This year, Easter and Passover have special meaning for the families of our men and women in uniform who feel so intensely the absence of their loved ones during these days. More than 250,000 American troops are serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom to protect our security and...

he night before her son left for Kuwait, Ruth Aitken argued with him on the telephone for nearly three hours. From her living room in State College, Pa., she told him that a war with Iraq made no sense, that it was really a scuffle over oil. Her son, an Army captain based at Fort Stewart, Ga., countered that America needed to be protected from terrorists. "Mother," he finally told her, "it's my job." The argument — a "major confrontation" in Ms. Aitken's memory — was by no means their first debate over the war, but it was their last....

Miyuki Cawley, the wife of U.S. Marine Staff Sgt James Cawley, holds the flag from her husband's casket in her lap during graveside services at the Roy City Cemetery Thursday, April 10, 2003 in Roy, Utah. Cawley died March 29, 2003 while serving in Iraq and also was a member of the Salt Lake City police force. Bishop Jaime Soto is shown Friday, April 11, 2003, at St. Joaquim Catholic Church in Costa Mesa, Calif., at the funeral of U.S. Marine Cpl. Jose A. Garibay, shown in foreground. Garibay was killed March 23, 2003, after encountering Iraqi troops near...

Names of the four US Marines who died in yesterday's helicopter crash: Maj. Jay Thomas Aubin, 36, of Waterville, Maine Capt. Ryan Anthony Beaupre, 30, of Bloomington, Ill. Cpl. Brian Matthew Kennedy, 25, of Houston, Texas Staff Sgt. Kendall Damon Watersbey, 29, of Baltimore, Md. The Pentagon has just released the names of two more US Marines who were killed in Iraq. I'll post as soon as I find that.