Free Republic

The Trump administration has intensified its efforts to enhance vetting of foreign nationals entering the U.S., resulting in a record number of visa revocations. The Department of State announced that in 2025, it revoked over 100,000 foreign visas, including 8,000 student visas and 2,500 specialized worker visas. That figure is more than double the number of visas that were revoked in 2024 — 40,000 — under former President Joe Biden's leadership. Foreign nationals whose visas were canceled included those who had encounters with U.S. law enforcement for criminal activity, the State Department reported. "We will continue to deport these thugs...

President Donald Trump is set to be briefed by top aides this week as he plots out the level of his response to the Iranian regime's brutal crackdown against citizen-led protests. Trump's top military and diplomatic staffers, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine, are anticipated to be present at the meeting, per the Wall Street Journal. The meeting comes as Trump is understood to be considering further US involvement in the region, but no final decisions are expected to emerge until after Tuesday's scheduled meeting. Putting U.S. troops'...

Secretary of State Marco Rubio did not rule out that the Cuban communist government could become the Trump administration's next target, a day after Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro's arrest. During an interview with "Meet the Press," Rubio sent a warning to the Cuban government, asserting "they're in a lot of trouble." "Is the Cuban government the Trump administration's next target," journalist Kristen Welker said. "Well, the Cuban government is a huge problem. Yeah," Rubio replied. "Is that a yes?" Welker asked. "I think they're in a lot of trouble, yes," Rubio added.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a South Florida Democrat with a sizable Venezuelan population in her district, bucked her party Saturday to praise President Donald Trump’s capture of socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro. Wasserman Schultz said the U.S. military operation removing Maduro from power is “welcome news” for the millions of Venezuelans living in exile, though she argued Congress should have been informed. Conversely, a chorus of congressional Democrats immediately slammed the successful military operation as illegal and contrary to American interests. “The capture of the brutal, illegitimate ruler of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, who oppressed Venezuela’s people is welcome news for my...

Did President Trump seek authority from Congress to attack Venezuela? The short answer is no. There is no indication that Donald Trump sought or received advance authorization from Congress before ordering the strikes. Last month, Trump publicly stated that he did not believe congressional approval was required to launch attacks against targets in Venezuela, including strikes on land. He said he might brief Congress but would not seek formal legal authorization. In December, Republicans, joined by a small number of Democrats, voted down two separate War Powers resolutions in the House of Representatives that would have required congressional approval for...

Republican Senator Mike Lee of Utah, who had earlier questioned whether the U.S. attack was constitutional, said in a X post on Saturday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio told him the U.S. operation "was deployed to protect and defend those executing the arrest warrant."..."This action likely falls within the president's inherent authority under Article II of the Constitution to protect U.S. personnel from an actual or imminent attack," Lee added.

In an early sign of congressional concern about the U.S. operation, Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah questioned President Trump's authority to use the military in Venezuela without authorization from Congress. "I look forward to learning what, if anything, might constitutionally justify this action in the absence of a declaration of war or authorization for the use of military force," he said in a social-media post.

Trump will spend the whole year with Republican majorities in both houses of Congress, assuming resignations don’t take their toll in the lower chamber. But those majorities will be on the ballot in November’s midterm elections.If Republicans lose control of either house of Congress, it will be extremely difficult for Trump to do anything legislatively for the remainder of his presidency.Republicans have a historically small majority in the House, currently just 220 to 213, with two vacancies. The Senate’s GOP majority is somewhat more robust at 53-47. All 435 House seats and about a third of the Senate are up...

The State Department is taking decisive action against five individuals who have led organized efforts to coerce American platforms to censor, demonetize, and suppress American viewpoints they oppose. These radical activists and weaponized NGOs have advanced censorship crackdowns by foreign states—in each case targeting American speakers and American companies. As such, I have determined that their entry, presence, or activities in the United States have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States. Based on these determinations, the Department has taken steps to impose visa restrictions on agents of the global censorship-industrial complex who, as a result, will...

Among those joining AAF are John Malcolm, the head of the foundation’s legal and judicial studies center, Kevin Dayaratna, the head of the foundation’s data analysis center and Richard Stern, the director of the foundation’s economic policy studies institute. AAF says it is bringing on about a dozen other staff members. Malcolm is taking seven members of his center’s team.

Genuine concern about antisemitism on the right is being hijacked by neocons to attack J.D. Vance in hopes of re-taking control of the GOP.Let’s get something straight about the civil war breaking out on the right: it’s not primarily about Tucker Carlson “platforming” or “normalizing” Nick Fuentes, or about Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts’ decision to defend Carlson, or even about the rise of antisemitism on the right. The primary target here isn’t Carlson or Roberts, but Vice President J.D. Vance. And the people targeting him are Never Trump foreign policy interventionists who hope to destroy the MAGA movement and...

Most Americans are not antisemitic, but concerns over Israel reflect “a real backlash to consensus view in American foreign policy,” United States Vice President JD Vance assessed in a Monday interview… The vice president said Fuentes serves as a “useful foil” for some pro-Israel conservatives, allowing them to avoid a substantive discussion about US policy toward Israel. Vance said that while he believes “Israel is an important ally... we’re also going to have very substantive disagreements with Israel – and that’s OK.”

In this episode, Barbara Boyd provides an in-depth analysis of Vice President JD Vance's speech at the Amfest Conference of Turning Point USA. She highlights the intense psychological warfare operations aimed at dismantling the coalition that elected Donald Trump, the exploitation of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, and the implications of Hollywood's involvement in intelligence operations against Trump. Boyd also delves into the shocking assassination of Charlie Kirk and the strategic responses to ongoing psy-war tactics leading up to the midterms. Run time 14m 16s 00:00 The Monday Brief - The Secret Plot to Destroy Charlie Kirk's Legacy: FAILED - December...

The US Vice President added that Europe's immigration policies have caused a significant backlash from the native populationLONDON, December 22. /TASS/. The erroneous economic and migration policies of European countries have led to cultural stagnation and discontent among the continent's population, US Vice President JD Vance said. "I think their economic policies have produced very broad-based continental stagnation. Their immigration policies have caused a significant backlash from the native population. I think that Europe doesn’t have a very good sense of itself right now, and you see that reflected in various measures of economic and cultural stagnation," he said in...

Vice President JD Vance had two choice words for racist troll Nick Fuentes and others like MSNBC host Jen Psaki, who have made revolting comments about the second lady: “Eat s–t.” “Let me be clear. Anyone who attacks my wife, whether their name is Jen Psaki or Nick Fuentes, can eat s–t,” Vance told UnHerd in an interview published Sunday. “That’s my official policy as vice president of the United States.” Fuentes, a 27-year-old, far-right white supremacist and Holocaust denier, called Vance a “race traitor” for being married to Usha Vance, the daughter of two Indian immigrants, and has used...

Vice President JD Vance had two choice words for racist troll Nick Fuentes and others like MSNBC host Jen Psaki, who have made revolting comments about the second lady: “Eat -–-.” “Let me be clear. Anyone who attacks my wife, whether their name is Jen Psaki or Nick Fuentes, can eat s–t,” Vance told UnHerd in an interview published Sunday. “That’s my official policy as vice president of the United States.”

It took me several minutes to stop laughing long enough to share this. Tough talk, Sandy. As reported by Fox News, the question was prompted by a recent poll that showed AOC edging out Vance in a hypothetical head-to-head matchup. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is incorporating Gen Z messaging and viral jabs at Vice President J.D. Vance into her playbook as she builds momentum for a 2028 presidential run, a Republican political strategist has claimed. The strategist's comments came after the New York Democrat used meme-style language and mocked Vance on Dec. 17 over a poll and declared she would 'stomp him'...

A federal watchdog shared a message Wednesday asking White men to come forward to report potential instances of discrimination against them in the workplace. Vice President JD Vance re-posted the video message from U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Chair Andrea Lucas on X. In her video statement, Lucas noted that White men who face workplace discrimination may be able to recover money under the law. "Are you a white male who has experienced discrimination at work based on your race or sex? You may have a claim to recover money under federal civil rights laws. Contact the @USEEOC as soon...

Reading political tea leaves three years before an election is a bit like predicting the weather for your 2028 summer vacation—entertaining, perhaps, but utterly useless for packing your bags. Yet here we are, with breathless headlines announcing that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has “taken the lead” over Vice President JD Vance in a hypothetical matchup. The progressive left is practically popping champagne.For those who haven’t followed their trajectories, the contrast between these two couldn’t be sharper. AOC burst onto the scene in 2018, unseating a longtime Democratic incumbent and quickly becoming the face of democratic socialism in America. The Green New Deal,...

Vice President JD Vance was questioned about White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles calling Vance a conspiracy theorist.Vance embraces the conspiracy label, defines how accurate it is, then delivers a strong set of remarks in defense of Susie Wiles. WATCH: The overall remarks themselves are not terribly toxic to the White House, but the question of why a chief of staff would sit down for eleven interviews over 11 months with Vanity Fair remains rather curious.What exactly did Susie Wiles expect was going to happen with all those recorded interviews?