Free Republic

In the aftermath of Saturday’s attempted assassination of President Trump, details are continuing to emerge about the security decisions that made the shooting possible. Lori Levi has attended every Trump rally selling merchandise except for 10, and noticed major security lapses in the set up and layout of the Trump rally by event organizers. “I had a terrible feeling. I knew something was wrong. I kept waiting for them to fix the basic security problems, since there was a direct ‘line-of-sight’ to President Trump.” The FBI and federal authorities have assumed total control over local law enforcement to respond to...

A local law enforcement officer spotted a suspicious man carrying a range-finder "in or just-outside" the venue before former President Donald Trump took the stage at his rally in Butler County, Pennsylvania on Saturday night, according to a law enforcement source. The officer reported the sighting to state police, the source said. He took a photo, and there was a discussion about whether what he was carrying was a pair of binoculars to try and see the rally better.

July 16 (UPI) -- The FBI said it gained access to the phone of Thomas Matthew Crooks as it searches for a motive for his attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump. The agency said its technical specialists gained access to Crooks' phone and continued to analyze his electronic devices for clues. The FBI said it will continue to conduct interviews and will follow up on digital media tips. The FBI and DHS said in a joint bulletin late Monday that Crooks had received "several packages, including some marked as possibly containing hazardous material," in the past several months based...

Former top Biden staffer and current CNN contributor Kate Bedingfield just said Democrats need to "turn their fire on Donald Trump" — days after a deranged lunatic shot him in a failed assassination attempt. video 23 secs 12:05 AM · Jul 16, 2024

I heard a Radio Report out from a PA Affiliate. Incredibly, they said the following came directly from sources inside the Investigation. There were 3 Secret Service Snipers positioned inside the Bldg that Crooks scaled and used as a platform. Secret Service Snipers inside the building first saw Crooks looking up at the roof and acting suspiciously. Crooks then left. Crooks returned and was looking at his phone. One Sniper (inside the Building) was observing Crooks looking at his phone and then he saw Crooks using a rangefinder. The Sniper took a picture of him at this point, and forwarded...

During a portion of an interview with ABC News that was aired on Monday’s broadcast of “World News Tonight,” Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle stated that the assassination attempt on 2024 Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump “should have never happened” and “The buck stops with me,” but she does plan to stay in her position. Cheatle said, “This is an event that should have never happened.” ABC News Chief Justice Correspondent Pierre Thomas then asked, “Who is most responsible for this happening?”

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said she will not be stepping down from her role in the wake of the attempted assassination of former President Trump.

On CNN this morning, host Kasie Hunt described the attempted assassination of Donald Trump in blunt, truthful terms as:"A massive failure by the Secret Service."Moments later, when panelist Elliott Williams, in the context of a discussion of unverified information on social media, made mention of people floating the notion of an "inside job," Hunt shut him down, saying:"We don't want to get into that."Get the rest of the story and view the video here.

Dan Bongino, a former Secret Service agent, says Saturday night’s shooting at President Donald Trump’s rally, is a “catastrophic failure” of the Secret Service. “This is an obviously catastrophic failure and NO excuses should be made, or even attempted,” Bongino posted on X. “The failures are profound and questions must be answered about ground surveillance, air surveillance, post-stander support, and counter-sniper advance work and response. We have ONE job, and we came within inches of a deadly failure today. An uneventful failure is NOT a success.” Bongino also said he was in touch with other former Secret Service colleagues.

Springfield, Ohio is struggling with the influx of 15,000-20,000 Haitian migrants over the last few years into their community of about 58,000. "This border crisis, the policy of this administration, is failing cities like ours and taxing us beyond our limit," said Springfield Mayor Rob Rue on "Fox & Friends First." Rue described the wave of Haitian migrants into the area as a "quick increase" to the population just over the last five years. "This has overwhelmed safety services and caused great concern for our community," he said. City Manager Bryan Heck added that the city does not have the...

Title: The Democratic Party's Leadership Dilemma: A Call for Change or Continued Decline? This morning, while chatting with a few of my neighbors, the conversation veered toward the challenges facing the Democratic Party and President Joe Biden. The consensus was clear: the recent poor debate performances, leadership mix-ups, and even mentions of Vice President Trump have left many questioning the party’s future. If the Democrats persist with Biden, it’s likely that millions of their supporters will sit out the upcoming elections. While not all may switch their allegiance to Trump, voter turnout will undoubtedly suffer—a looming concern for Democratic leadership....

Nearly half of 80,000 small businesses surveyed say they won’t survive the current economic climate, ongoing inflation or another four years of Biden administration policies, according to the survey conducted by RedBalloon and Public Square. Their May Freedom Economy Index found that small businesses “remain in survival mode,” with 40% delaying paying bills to manage cash flow and 70 percent putting staffing plans on hold, neither hiring nor reducing staff, “the highest reading … over the past year,” the report states. Among those surveyed, 64% said the U.S. is headed toward stagflation, when inflation continues to climb and the economic...

As the nation’s largest southern border crossings finally receive mainstream media coverage years into an unprecedented illegal immigration crisis, untold numbers of “fighting age males” dressed in military uniforms are entering the United States through remote areas with no Border Patrol presence. It is a palpable security lapse unlikely to be reported by most news outlets and local, federal, and state law enforcement sources have provided Judicial Watch with detailed accounts, reports, diagrams, and photos of the situation which is terrorizing residents in a once harmonious Arizona town just a few miles from Mexico. They blame the Biden administration’s catastrophic...

President Biden’s Cabinet members have been emphatic that the commander-in-chief is sharp and probative behind closed doors. However, the 81-year-old chief executive’s interactions with key members of his administration are actually pre-scripted and carefully choreographed — with aides going over questions and discussion points with Cabinet secretaries ahead of time. “The entire display is kind of an act,” one source told CNN of the closed-door get-togethers. “They would come and say, ‘Hey, the president is going to call on you about 25 minutes in and ask this question. What are the bullet points you’ll respond with?’”

“Most of our caucus is still with him … meaning he’ll stay in,” a House Democrat told the outlet. “Which sucks for our country.” Another lawmaker told Axios that anti-Biden Democrats were “folding all over the place” and “becoming resigned to Biden holding all the cards here, and us having no real say in the matter.” “As someone who wanted the reckoning and is really disappointed that it’s over, trust me: It’s over,” the lawmaker said.

Why did anyone think Joe Biden was ready for a 90-minute presidential debate? One reason is that a small handful of journalists, with left-leaning sympathies but very credible records, have interviewed him and those close to him in the White House and returned with reports that while he’s definitely older, he’s still pretty sharp and in charge. Two of the most prominent are Biden biographers Evan Osnos and Franklin Foer. I spoke to them Sunday as they reconciled their own portrayals with the faltering 81-year-old they saw on national television. In his deeply-reported recent New Yorker article, Osnos detailed Biden...

More questions about President Biden’s cognitive state are emerging as a new poll showed a jaw-dropping 72% of registered voters do not believe he is mentally fit for the job.While many Democrats were left flabbergasted and sent into a tailspin by Biden’s debate debacle last week, the 81-year-old president’s cognitive slips have been nothing new to his inner circle. White House aides have been meticulously working behind the scenes throughout his presidency to minimize his exposure to situations where his cognitive slip-ups could flare up in public and to adapt the day-to-day of the presidency to the needs of an...

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden is expected to discuss the future of his re-election campaign with family on Sunday, following a nationally televised debate Thursday that left many fellow Democrats worried about his ability to beat former President Donald Trump in November, according to five people familiar with the matter.

NEW YORK — “So, let’s talk about last night’s debate, because I know it’s on your minds,” Jill Biden said. The living room of the Greenwich Village brownstone fell silent. The first lady, poised in a polka dot dress and a pair of pink stilettos, stood behind a lectern, her lips spread into a half-smile. The nearly 60 attendees at that afternoon’s fundraiser, gripping the melted remnants of their Aperol Spritzes, stared back at her. [cut] To his wife of 47 years, it was no reason to panic. “I said, ‘Look, Joe, we are not going to let 90 minutes...

Former president Barack Obama has called President Joe Biden to a “crisis meeting” following his “train wreck” debate performance, which is currently sending Democrats and left-wing media into a state of panic. According to hedge fund owner and major Democrat donor Doug Kass, Biden’s meeting with Obama also involves Biden’s former Chief of Staff, Ron Klain. Kass claims the only person holding up the “switch” is First Lady Jill Biden, who is demanding that her husband be kept on the ticket.