Free Republic

HANFORD,Calif. It’s been a year now, but in this Central Valley farm town, like the nation, the divide has only grown. Todd Cotta was working in his gun shop when a customer came in with the news about David Valadao, the Republican congressman for whom Cotta had campaigned across Kings County and beyond just months before. Bewildered, Cotta turned to his phone and tapped in a text message to a man he considered a friend. “Hey David. Somebody’s spreading a nasty (rumor) that you voted to impeach Trump,” Cotta wrote. “I certainly hope that’s not true.” Within seconds, Valadao responded....

SAN JOSE -- A day after a melee erupted outside a Donald Trump rally, the San Jose police chief and mayor on Friday defended themselves from a national backlash over their handling of the dramatic and at times violent protest. On radio talk shows and across social media, some called for Mayor Sam Liccardo's resignation because of his comments suggesting that Trump was to blame for igniting violence, while police were criticized for failing to protect Trump supporters from angry protesters throwing punches, water bottles and traffic cones. Some videos showed those attacks and suggested they were unprovoked, but others...

Runners ran up to the man, shouting, "Thank you for your service"When Mercury News reporter Julia Prodis Sulek woke up Sunday morning, she wasn't sure why she heard all the clapping and cheering outside her San Jose home. Then she peeked outside. She saw dozens of runners zipping by, up on the sidewalk, as part of the 408k Race to the Row, which benefits the Pat Tillman Foundation. All the commotion outside was for 95-year-old World War II veteran Joe Bell, who came outside in full military dress and stood on the sidewalk to root on the runners. But it...