Free Republic

What should be clear to all is that a just society should never penalize those who are unwilling to undergo medical procedures.The University of Notre Dame set out to vaccinate its student body against COVID-19 in April 2021. To accomplish its goal, Notre Dame’s administration promised to end some of the draconian restrictions on campus if it could achieve 90 percent student compliance.The administration changed course from strongly encouraging the experimental vaccines to mandating them within days, making Notre Dame one of the first universities to require the experimental COVID-19 vaccine for the following school year’s admission. To encourage students...

Vice-president says US is ‘profoundly disappointed’ with Chinese firm’s 5G involvement Pence told the US broadcaster CNBC: “The United States is very disappointed that the United Kingdom has decided to go forward with Huawei. “We are profoundly disappointed … When I went at the president’s direction in September I met with Prime Minister Johnson and I told him the moment the UK was out of Brexit we were willing to begin to negotiate a free trade arrangement with the UK.” Asked whether the decision could prove a “deal-breaker”, he replied: “We’ll see.” ....The UK has said it will allow Huawei...

Former Vice President Mike Pence on Thursday said he’s spoken “many times” with former President Donald Trump since they left office and that they don’t “see eye to eye” on the events of Jan. 6. But he said Republicans “must move forward united” and focus on opposing President Biden’s agenda. Pence called the Capitol riot a “dark day,” but said that it was being used as a smokescreen to facilitate Biden’s agenda. “As I said that day, Jan. 6 was a dark day in the history of the United States Capitol. But thanks to the swift action of the Capitol...

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Thursday on MSNBC’s “The Beat” that the latest $928 billion infrastructure offer from a group of Senate Republicans was “a good sign” in the negotiations on President Joe Biden’s $1.7 trillion plan. Buttigieg said, “We met the urgency of confronting COVID with the rescue plan. Now, we got to meet the urgency of preparing the American economy to succeed for the next many decades with the American Jobs Plan and generational investment in the infrastructure we count on from the tradition of stuff like roads and bridges to newer things like the internet, access for...

Many Senate Republicans oppose the partisan January 6 Commission which serves the Democrat’s agenda by deflecting from their unpopular policies. “I don’t think there will be 10 votes on our side for it,” Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) said of the legislation which passed the House with 35 Republican votes. “At this stage, I’d be surprised if you’re gonna get even a handful.” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) will also oppose the commission in a blow to Democrats who need ten Republicans to pass the measure. “It’s not at all clear what new facts or additional investigation yet another commission...

House Republican leadership removed Rep. Liz Cheney, (R-Wyo.), from her leadership position, a position her indignant liberal defenders likely did not even know existed until days ago. Cheney became Republican roadkill when she not only voted to impeach then-President Donald Trump but also became a vocal critic of his alleged "big lie" about the 2020 election. Cue the fake outrage by Democrats and the media. A CNN headline read in part: "Ousted Cheney Warns Direction of the Party is 'Dangerous.'" MSNBC wrote, "The GOP infighting reached a turning point after Republicans ousted Congresswoman Liz Cheney from her leadership position." PBS...

In a new Politico/Morning Consult poll, respondents who plan to vote in the GOP primary were asked “If the 2024 Republican primary were being held today, for whom would you vote?” Trump more than tripled his nearest competitor with 48 percent to former Vice President Mike Pence’s 13 percent, while Pence nearly doubled third-place finisher Donald Trump Jr.’s 7 percent. Senators Mitt Romney and Ted Cruz were tied with former Amb. Nikki Haley at 4 percent. South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, who delivered the GOP response to President Joe Biden’s address to a joint session of Congress last month, drummed...

Indiana will drop out of the federal program providing an extra $300 in weekly payments to unemployed workers and other programs that expanded unemployment benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic, the governor announced Monday. The changes taking effect June 19 could cut off or reduce unemployment benefits to more than 220,000 people. Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb signed an executive order last week that reinstates a requirement that those receiving unemployment benefits will again have to show they are actively searching for work as of June 1. The changes come as many businesses blame the extra $300 weekly payment and the ease...

Just last week I was invited to speak in front of a group of people. It was the first time I had that kind of opportunity since March of last year. It was in a meeting room of a larger restaurant. We had permission for 50 people. About 30 showed up as it was a cold and rainy morning in Northwest Indiana — a typical lovely spring day. I didn’t know what to expect except it was to be in front of a group of like-minded conservatives to discuss the various topics of the week. I love to speak in...

Leaked audiotape of Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif indicates he had no knowledge of covert Israeli military strikes before former secretary of state John Kerry provided him with the information, new details that contradict the State Department's recent defense of Kerry. These details are likely to further fuel calls from leading Republicans for Kerry's firing or resignation. The New York Times reported that Zarif said on the tape that Kerry told him Israel launched 200 airstrikes against Iranian interests in Syria. The Times did not provide further details on that issue. But an independent translation of the audiotape commissioned by...

The teen who shot up an Indianapolis FedEx facility and killed eight people was reportedly part of a bizarre Internet subculture obsessed with “My Little Pony.” Posts on Brandon Hole’s since-taken-down Facebook page appear to indicate he was a member of the “Bronies” community — a group of mostly adult men who are extreme fans of the kiddie toys and animated television show, the Wall Street Journal reported. SNIP “I hope that I can be with Ap­ple­jack in the af­ter­life, my life has no mean­ing with­out her,” Hole wrote on his Facebook page at 10:19 p.m. Thursday, less than an...

At least four of the eight employees who were killed during the FedEx mass shooting in Indianapolis late Thursday night were members of the Sikh community. The Sikh Coalition, which is the nation's largest Sikh civil rights and advocacy organization, confirmed the tragic news on Saturday. "Sadly, we acknowledge that this number is subject to change for the worse as more information becomes publicly available and those who were injured are treated at area hospitals," the group said in a statement.

President Joe Biden faced increased pressure on Friday to stem gun violence amid a rash of mass shootings across the United States, but he faces an uphill battle to significantly change the country's permissive firearms laws. The day after a shooter killed eight people and himself at a FedEx Corp (FDX.N) facility in Indianapolis, Biden insisted he could tackle the problem while also pushing a sweeping jobs package and working to rein in the coronavirus pandemic. "This has to end. It's a national embarrassment," Biden said at a White House press conference alongside Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

Brandon Scott Hole, 19, was identified as the alleged shooter of the FedEx warehouse in Indianapolis. The alleged gunman's family warned authorities about his potential for violence before the mass shooting, according to CNN. The shooter pulled the weapon out of his trunk and allegedly started shooting for up to two minutes during a FedEx night shift change, witnesses claimed. Employee Jeremiah Miller told WISH that he watched the mass shooting unfold inside the warehouse, saying: "I saw a man with a submachine gun of some sort, an automatic rifle, and he was firing in the open. "I immediately ducked...

The gunman in the FedEx shooting spree was previously known to federal and local authorities — and had been flagged up to law enforcement by a concerned family member before the deadly attack, according to a report Friday. The suspect, who committed suicide after killing eight at the Indiana facility Thursday night, has not been publicly identified by police. But CNN reporter Ana Cabrera said he’s no stranger to law enforcement. “Authorities were warned about FedEx suspect’s potential for violence in the past, sources say,” Cabrera tweeted. “The suspect in the Indianapolis mass shooting was known to federal and local...

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Eight people were shot and killed in a late-night shooting at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis, and the shooter has killed himself, police said. Multiple other people were injured Thursday night when gunfire erupted at the facility near the Indianapolis International Airport, police spokesperson Genae Cook said. At least four were hospitalized, including one person with critical injures. Another two people were treated and released at the scene, Cook said. The shooter wasn't immediately identified, and Cook said investigators were still in the process of conducting interviews and gathering information.

Indiana appeared to have a good chance of passing Constitutional Carry in 2021. The House passed the bill 64 – 31. A majority of Republicans in the Senate called for the bill’s passage. From therepublic.com: Republicans easily pushed the proposal through the Indiana House, but Senate leaders have decided against taking up the bill in the final weeks of this year’s legislative session even though it was co-sponsored by 21 GOP members of the 50-person Senate.The Indiana Senate has 39 Republicans and 11 Democrats. The opposition of key Republican leaders killed Constitutional Carry through the simple expedient of inaction.Republican State...

"A memo from Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) urges that House Republicans must embrace policies supported by working-class voters if they intend to succeed in flipping the House in the 2022 midterm elections. Banks, who chairs the Republican Study Committee (RSC), details in the memo, dated March 30, key issues affecting the working class, including immigration, trade, “anti-wokeness,” “Main Street vs Wall Street,” and big tech, and provides a set of action items for his Republican colleagues as they set their sights on next year’s races. “President Trump gave the Republican Party a political...

House Republican Conference chair Liz Cheney (R-WY) slammed Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Banks’ (R-IN) memo Monday as Neo-Marxist. Banks wrote a letter to House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) in March, charging that House Republicans must embrace issues important to working-class voters if they wish to take back the House majority during the 2022 midterm elections.

The bill requires officers to take de-escalation training, defines a "chokehold" and classifies it as an act of deadly force.Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb on Thursday signed a bill into law that requires officers to undergo mandatory de-escalation training, creates a procedure to decertify officers who commit misconduct, and prohibits the chokehold under certain circumstances, among other things. Indiana House Bill 1006 was introduced following the death of George Floyd, which sparked a series of protests in cities all across the country. Protesters demanded police reform, for the chokehold to be banned, and some called for the police to be defunded....