Free Republic

WASHINGTON—Federal Election Commission (FEC) Chairman Ellen Weintraub’s renewed feud with President Donald Trump over voter fraud allegations from the 2016 election has the ranking House Committee on Administration Republican asking some pointed questions about excessive partisanship within the regulatory panel. “Recently, I believe this tone of partisanship has been amplified by some at the Commission,” Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) said in a letter to the FEC’s leadership made public Tuesday. “Partisan attacks only serve to undermine your work and the work of the entire Commission staff,” Davis said. He was writing on behalf of the three Republicans on the Administration...

Washington -- In New Mexico, police and prosecutors backed an effort to outlaw devices that convert pistols into machine guns. In Alabama, the governor made it a priority. Lawmakers in both states - one led by Democrats, the other by Republicans - responded this year with new laws making so-called Glock switches illegal. At least half of US states now have similar laws prohibiting the possession of such devices, a list that has grown over the past decade as law enforcement officers have found more of the tiny yet powerful devices attached to guns. States are mimicking federal law, which...

Opinion As AI continues to evolve, it is crucial to maintain clear boundaries between machine intelligence and human cognition In an era increasingly defined by artificial intelligence (AI), a curious psychological phenomenon has emerged -- humans are anthropomorphising AI tools. From virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa to large language models like ChatGPT, people often ascribe human-like emotions, intentions and even personalities to these systems. While this tendency may seem benign or even endearing, it has profound implications for society, ethics, and the way we perceive technology. By giving AI tools human-like names, voices and personalities, developers create a sense...

Columbia University activists are planning a protest of Veterans Day — which organizers want to “reclaim” from the “Israel-US wr machine” in the name of Palestinians killed in Gaza. The unsanctioned student group Columbia University Apartheid Divest is circulating flyers for the event — set for Monday on the Ivy League school’s main Morningside Heights campus. “Veterans Day is an American holiday to honor the patriotism, love of country, and sacrifice of veterans. We reject this holiday and refuse to celebrate it,” a flyer for the agitator group’s event said.

Opinion The scientific community celebrated April 14 as World Quantum Day to raise awareness of quantum science’s impact across diverse fields The world of science is on the cusp of a transformative era driven by the burgeoning field of quantum technology. Quantum science is founded on several key principles that underpin the behaviour of particles and systems at the quantum scale. The term “quantum scale” refers to the realm of physics that deals with phenomena occurring at very small scales, typically at the level of atoms, subatomic particles and fundamental particles. It encompasses the principles of quantum mechanics, which govern...

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is again brushing aside suggestions he could replace President Biden as the Democratic Party’s nominee for president this year, and he is blaming conservative media for giving legitimacy to the idea. “It’s not even an interesting conversation. By the way, I think it’s a damning conversation, frankly, the other side wants us to have,” Newsom said Sunday on “Meet The Press.” “And trust me, I know the mishegoss coming from the other side. I’m deeply mindful of the anger machine and all the entertainment industry out there on Fox and elsewhere. They love ginning this...

Artificial intelligence models can now create smaller AI systems without the help of a human, according to research published Friday by a group of scientists who said the project was the first of its kind. Essentially, larger AI models - like the kind that power ChatGPT - can create smaller, more specific AI applications that can be used in everyday life, a collaboration between Aizip Inc. and scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and several University of California campuses demonstrated. Those specialized models could help improve hearing aids, monitor oil pipelines and track endangered species. "Right now, we're using...

WASHINGTON — President Biden has been using a CPAP machine to treat sleep apnea, a potentially serious condition in which breathing can stop during sleep, the White House confirmed Wednesday. Administration officials acknowledged Biden’s condition and use of the device to Bloomberg News after journalists began asking for comment on strap lines visible on the president’s face while he gaggled with reporters on the White House lawn in the morning. Biden, 80, is the oldest-ever US president and is seeking a second term in next year’s election, despite concerns about his physical and mental fitness for office.

Geraldo Rivera tweeted video of a truck-mounted machine gun in Mogadishu Wednesday as part of his continuing effort to prove AR-15s are machine guns and should be banned. Rivera’s video also shows a machine gun that is being carried by soldier. Neither of the guns are AR-15s, but he tweeted about them to show his support for an “assault weapons” ban. Breitbart News noted that Geraldo told hosts on FOX News’ The Five that “AR” stands for “automatic rifle.”

NORTH BERGEN, New Jersey – The clerk of Mercer County, New Jersey, confirmed on Tuesday morning that a voting machine malfunction had shut down machines throughout the county and professionals from the machines’ manufacturing company, Dominion, were working to resolve the issue. At press time, machines are still down in the county, which contains the state’s capital, Trenton, and the Democrat academic hub of Princeton. Mercer County Clerk Paula Sollami Covello insisted in a statement on Tuesday morning that “no voter should walk away” and poll workers would help citizens file provisional ballots manually.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announced on Thursday that the state government is working with police to investigate a possible illegal selling of a voter assist terminal. “We are actively working with law enforcement to investigate allegations of an illegal attempt to sell a voter assist terminal acquired in Michigan,” Benson wrote in a statement. Benson explained that a voter assist terminal is normally used to assist voters, often those with disabilities, who require help in marking their ballots. “While our elections remain secure and safe, we take seriously all violations of election law and will be working with...

There’s an election hack built before the 2020 election that can instantaneously swap the bubbles on your ballot. The “filled in” bubble of your candidate is moved to the hackers preferred candidate, and swapped out with that empty bubble. The change is made before the “ballot Image” is stored to the election server, and before it’s tabulated. By using the voter’s own marking style & penmanship, these changes are undetectable to the human eye. Here’s the scenario. Using a blue pen you fill in the “Trump” bubble on a ballot. Election officials insert this ballot into a tabulator. Those pixels...

The US has sought to increase its engagement with Taiwan as the island nation resists the pressure campaign by China to accept its sovereignty over the island. Washington said Friday last week that it has approved a potential sale of military aid to Taiwan. Reuters reports that the State Department has approved the sale of $108 million of military assistance to Taiwan, according to the Pentagon. This comes as Taipei has requested the latest military assistance, which includes spare and repair parts for tanks and combat vehicles, and US government and contractor technical and logistical support. “The proposed sale will...

Most of you know her as Nancy Pelosi. When I first met my one-time neighbor, she was daughter to one Mayor of Baltimore, Tommy D’Alesandro, Jr., and sister to Tommy, III, who’d later become Mayor. Some of the stories about her, as she prepares to become Speaker of the House, have mentioned her past, but not honestly. At most, the glowing stories refer to the Baltimore City politics she grew up in as “rough and tumble.” Politics there and then were much more than rough and tumble. They were crooked as a dog’s hind leg. I know. I grew up...

Manchin slammed the Biden administration’s lofty electric vehicle (EV) plans as “ludicrous,” saying the U.S. should first address root issues. Manchin expressed concerns that the administration was focusing too much on electric vehicle incentives rather than shoring up the domestic battery and critical mineral supply chains, during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg on Thursday. He noted that China, which controls the vast majority of global critical mineral mining and refining needed for renewable energy tech, could use its leverage over the U.S. for geopolitical reasons. “There’s a waiting list for EVs right now with the fuel...

My take: Well, of course, for any number of modern troops, armed with whatever modern weapons you want to arm them with, there is a theoretical huge number of primitive sword swingers who could overwhelm them in a battle. So what? Fun though.

Former Wisconsin Supreme Court Judge Michael Gableman has been investigating the 2020 presidential election results in Wisconsin since he was appointed last year. Gableman was given the task of looking into the 2020 election in Wisconsin. In October he announced he was focusing on five locations where irregularities were noted related to interference from foreign players like Facebook. Special Counsel Michael Gableman has subpoenaed Wisconsin election officials as part of his investigation into the 2020 Election irregularities. In October Gableman served subpoenas to the administrator of the Wisconsin Election Commission, the executive director of the Milwaukee Election Commission, and four...

MOUNT CLEMENS, Mich. (AP) - Michigan's third-largest county, where voters backed former President Donald Trump in 2020, is hiring a specialist to examine its election hardware and software. The work in Macomb County is not a second look at the results of the presidential election. Rather, the Republican county clerk, who was elected last year, said he wants to lead the state in “election integrity.” A contractor, Pro V&V, will be paid roughly $16,000 to take apart the county election server, Anthony Forlini said Tuesday. Pro V&V will take pictures, record serial numbers and perform other tasks to get a...

For decades, Illinois House speaker Michael Madigan dominated the state’s political system, corrupting it to his own ends. What should we make of his ouster? The Chicago machine turned out some of the most notorious names in American public corruption, including Anton Cermak, Richard J. Daley, and Ed Kelly. The machine also turned out Mike Madigan, who ruled over Illinois politics for 50 years, 36 of which he spent calling the shots as House speaker. Most people thought Madigan would only leave office in handcuffs or a casket. Most people were wrong. For the first time since 1970, “the Velvet...

A common sense approach to a liberal worldExploring various topics and events related to politics, economics and marketsRecent PostsTime Magazine Details the ‘Shadow Campaign’ Against TrumpThe Larger Impact of the GameStop Investor WarsHow Will Pence Treat the Electoral Envelopes in His Hand?Exact Fallout of Presidential Election Predicted in 2019 War-Game PaperWhere Bill Barr Failed the PresidentYears-Long Court Battle in Georgia Reveals Dominion’s Security Flaws, Weak TestingFirm That Conducted ‘Audit’ of Georgia Voting Machines Has Long History With DominionThe Small World of Voting Machine CertificationGeorgia Recount Plagued by Anomalies, According to Sworn AffidavitsDominion Part of Council That Disputed Election Integrity Concerns...