Free Republic

In a Thursday interview on MSNBC’s “Stephanie Ruhle Reports,” Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg discussed President Joe Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure plan. Host Stephanie Ruhle asked Buttigieg if he is “prepared” for Republicans to run against the tax hike being necessary to pay for the massive plan.

Amid our celebrations of Easter and Passover this year, Hoosiers should pause to appreciate the exceptional nature of our rich heritage of religious liberty. Beyond the confines of a church, synagogue or mosque, Hoosiers enjoy the liberty to exercise their faith in every aspect of their lives — at work, at school, and in their communities — provided they do not threaten the rights of their neighbors. That’s what the First Amendment guarantees. But make no mistake: This liberty is under intense attack, and unless we act decisively to defend it, we could lose one of our most precious birthrights...

Mike Pence’s political career is over. That at least is the opinion of the Republican-controlled Indiana Senate, which unanimously adopted a resolution Tuesday congratulating the former vice president and Indiana governor on his “retirement.” Senate Resolution 33 declares the Senate honors Pence “upon his retirement" and "thanks him for his many years of service to the state of Indiana and the United States of America.”

Just last week Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg floated a funding idea for President Biden’s upcoming multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure bill that would hit poor and middle-class Americans that hardest. Buttigieg suggested a mileage tax, which is based on what he called the “user pays principle—the idea that part of how we pay for roads is you pay based on how much you drive.” Drivers would thus be hit with this tax in addition to facing steadily climbing gas prices since President Biden took office. Now, however, he’s walking back that suggestion. In an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper on Monday, the former...

WASHINGTON (AP) — When former President Donald Trump was asked to list those he considers the future leaders of the Republican Party, he quickly rattled off names including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Sens. Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz. Conspicuously absent from the list: Mike Pence. The former vice president is steadily reentering public life as he eyes a potential run for the White House in 2024. He’s joining conservative organizations, writing op-eds, delivering speeches and launching an advocacy group that will focus on promoting the Trump administration’s accomplishments.

Republican senators on a two-day whirlwind tour of several border facilities were heckled by Mexican “coyotes” across the Rio Grande and told not to take photos of holding areas crammed with children. One of the 18 senators on the fact-finding tour to South Texas, Indiana Sen. Mike Braun, told Secrets that a Biden aide involved in the tour asked that he delete his photos. Like others on the trip, he didn’t. Inside a migrant processing and holding center in Donna, Texas, Braun said, “There was one of Biden's representatives. I felt sorry for the lady because she actually talked to...

Gov. Eric Holcomb announced Indiana’s mask mandate will end April 6, a decision that comes after mounting pressure from within his own Republican party. Holcomb will join the leaders of six other states who have lifted mask mandates, a move that goes against the advice of the Centers for Disease Control, which still recommends masks to help stop the spread of COVID-19. Alabama and Utah are set to lift their mask mandates in April as well. Masks still will be recommended, the governor said in his news address on Tuesday. Face coverings will remain mandatory in all state buildings and...

Conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation has declined donations from Google and Facebook because of the companies’ censoring of persons and groups with conservative points of view. Outgoing foundation president Kay C. James sent letters to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Google CEO Sundar Pichai explaining that the Heritage Foundation could “not in good conscience accept money” from companies that suppress conservative speech and content. Heritage turned down a $225,000 donation from Google and returned a $150,000 donation from Facebook in October 2020. James made it clear to the Big Tech companies that her organization is assisting Congress to revise...

GREENFIELD — Orange and white traffic barrels, detour signs and construction equipment stretch as far as the eye can see through the heart of Greenfield, indicating a major construction project is underway. Road improvement work along State Road 9 on the south side of Greenfield officially started this week, and despite numerous warnings to drivers about the road closure, the work is creating chaos as many drivers are disregarding the construction signs and driving through the closure area. Greenfield Police Department officers stopped nearly 50 drivers who disregarded construction warnings and went around “road closed” signs and barricades on Tuesday,...

A youtube video surfaced today[video no longer availablelive leak video below fold] supposedly showing a vid made in 1992 of James Carville, George Stephanopolous, and Mickey Kantor conferring over polling results for Indiana.

The Democratic congressman who reps both sides of the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge is calling on the federal government to investigate concerns about the span’s structural integrity. US Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-NY), who represents Westchester and Rockland counties, recently wrote a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, asking him to probe claims reported by the Albany Times-Union earlier this month that bridge contractors “covered up” faulty bolts in the $3.9 billion structure. Jones called on Buttigieg “to open an investigation into these claims and … to work with the New York state Department of Transportation to ensure proper inspections are...

A physical therapist died at her home just two days after she received a COVID-19 vaccine in January. 28-year-old Haley Link Brinkmeyer, of Evansville, Indiana, died January 21 after she received an mRNA vaccine believed to be either from Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna. “My 28 year old daughter took the vaccine on a Tuesday and she was dead by Thursday,” Brinkmeyer’s mother Shauna O’Neill Link allegedly said in the COVID Blog that was shared to Facebook. “Autopsy shows no other red flags. Corner (sic) has assured us he will get to the bottom of this vaccine crap.” “Anything with Bill Gates...

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The Notre Dame Student Bar Association’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee sent a newsletter celebrating Women’s History month by ignoring arguably the most esteemed attorney the school has ever produced, Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett (who happens to be a woman). The publication pictures every other female Supreme Court Justice in the history of the country. There is no mention of Barrett, who not only graduated summa cum lade from the Notre Dame Law School, she also taught at the school for nearly two decades and was named the “distinguished professor of the year” on 3...

To: Jim Robinson; All How about this idea for a challenge to wrap it up? One freeper from each state pitches in $50. 50 x $50 = $2,500. I’ll represent AZ and throw in $50. One down and 49 to go. Jim, can you ping the entire board with my challenge post? Come on freepers, I was a long-time freeloader and saw the light. It’s good to have some skin in the game when you’re mouthing off here at FR. Thank YOU! And YOU! And YOU! And YOU! And YOU! And YOU! 8 posted on 3/6/2021, 11:31:48 AM by freepersup...

Trump adviser Jason Miller says the former president is not weighing replacing Vice President Mike Pence if he seeks the White House in 2024. In an interview with Mediaite’s The Interview podcast, Miller addressed a Bloomberg News report alleging that Trump is thinking about dumping Pence if he seeks a re-match against President Joe Biden. “I wonder who was pushing this story? Could it maybe be the supporters of Governor Noem?” Miller asked, before clarifying that he was not attempting to “take anything away” from the South Dakota governor, who has seen her political star rise for taking an anti-lockdown...

Former President Barack Obama reportedly said the former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg couldn’t win the presidency because “he’s gay” and “short,” according to a new book on the 2020 presidential election. Obama expressed confidence in former presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren during an October 2019 meeting with elite black donors in New York City, The Hill’s Amie Parnes and NBC’s Jonathan Allen described in the new book “Lucky: How Joe Biden Barely Won the Presidency.” During the same meeting, the former president also joked about Buttigieg, citing his age, sexuality, and height, as reasons why he could not win the...

Former President Barack Obama reportedly told a crowd of donors that Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg could not win the presidency because “he’s gay” and “short,” according to a book on the 2020 presidential election. Obama made his remarks about the former South Bend, Indiana, mayor during an October 2019 dinner event in New York in front of a crowd of black corporate donors, according to a book by NBC’s Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes of the Hill.

CARMEL, Ind — “'Men working' signs are a problem,” Blair Babione told the Carmel City Council Monday night. Blair, 11, and her 9-year old sister, Brienne, came to the meeting after an invitation from council president Sue Finkam. The girls had recently sent letters to Finkam about “men working” signs they had noticed recently in their neighborhood. ‘Why is this sign here? Why does it say, ‘men working’ when we’ve seen plenty of women doing construction?’” they asked. Leslie, the girls’ mom, said her daughters wanted to know. When she couldn’t give them an answer, they decided to research it....

The Biden administration is blocking the exits for construction workers who unanimously voted to cut ties with their union. The National Labor Relations Board refused to allow a group of Indiana workers to hold a vote that would decertify their representation with the local carpenters' union despite the group's unanimous support for cutting ties. The group of workers submitted the request to the regional NLRB, which blocked the attempt to decertify. The board's lawyers allege that the workers are engaging in "bad faith" bargaining, according to the case filing. Indiana is a right-to-work state, meaning the state allows employees to...

he Coca-Cola bottling plant at 830 N. Sixth St. in Lafayette is laying off some of its employees and consolidating its operations to a new automated distribution center in Whitestown, Indiana, according to a recent letter the company sent to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development. The plant is owned by Coca-Cola Consolidated, which is the largest Coke bottler in the United States, according to its website. The company says in the letter the layoffs will happen over a two-week period beginning April 18. About 50 people who work at the Lafayette plant will be affected. A spokesperson for Coca-Cola...