Free Republic

Hundreds gather downtown to rally against cuts to government programsBy: Scott Newell, newsnet5.com Last Updated: 1 hour and 25 minutes ago CLEVELAND - A couple hundred protesters, worried about looming cuts to social programs, loudly raised their voices in Cleveland today, shouting, "No cuts now, no cuts ever." They are worried about cuts to some programs that have become staples for Americans: Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. "This is a promise that our government has made to the American people, said protester Wynne Antonio. “They worked in good faith all their lives and paid in to these systems and they...

A 1-year-old boy who was shot in the head during the filming of a rap music video in Oakland was taken off life support Friday. Hiram Lawrence, who would have turned 2 on Dec. 28, was pronounced dead at 3:05 p.m., the Rev. Roosevelt Taylor said. Hiram was being held by his father, also named Hiram Lawrence, when gunfire erupted as about 20 people gathered outside a west Oakland liquor store Nov. 28, police said. Six other people were wounded, including Hiram's father, who was shot in the hand. Investigators have said the shooting occurred after one group of people...

Getting a green card, a notoriously difficult and bureaucratic task, just got easier for thousands of immigrants. For the first time in years, the federal government is accepting green card applications on behalf of legal workers from India, mainland China, the Philippines and other countries that have had torturously long waits. Starting July 1, the vast majority of legal immigrants who have Department of Labor certification will be eligible for green cards with their employer's sponsorship. The news, announced in the State Department's July visa bulletin, clears the way for a wave of applications from high-tech and skilled workers living...