Free Republic

The Trump administration has signed an executive order to ​resume oil drilling operations off the Southern California coast, citing national energy security concerns. The order, which invokes a Cold War-era Defense Production Act, will prove controversial despite the potential to bring down gas prices, which are now the highest in America. Gov. Gavin Newsom also flagged the state would challenge the order in the courts. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright is now permitted to take actions under the Defense Production Act. California’s price for a regular gallon hit an average of $5.416 on Friday. That’s far above the national average...

The Pentagon has ordered a Marine expeditionary unit with about 2,200 Marines and three Navy amphibious warships from Japan toward the Middle East, a significant new U.S. force movement amid tensions tied to the war with Iran. U.S. officials told ABC News that the deployment centers on the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, a forward-deployed force based in Japan that normally operates in the Indo-Pacific. At the center of the movement is the Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group, led by USS Tripoli, an America-class amphibious assault ship. USNI News reported that the Tripoli had been operating in the Philippine Sea earlier this...

President Donald Trump said Iran must “surrender” to end the war and claimed he is hearing the country’s new supreme leader may already be dead. “I’m hearing he’s not alive, and if he is, he should do something very smart for his country, and that’s surrender,” Trump said of Mojtaba Khamenei in a phone interview with NBC News. Trump added he is unsure whether the Iranian leader is still living. “I don’t know if he’s even alive. So far, nobody’s been able to show him,” he said. The president also said Iran is seeking negotiations but that he is not...

Republican candidate for governor in Ohio, Vivek Ramaswamy, trails Democrat Amy Acton by 10 points, a new poll from EMC Research, Inc., shows on Thursday. Newsweek reached out to political analysts via email for comment. Why It Matters Ohio has not elected a Democratic governor since 2006. Ramaswamy, a wealthy entrepreneur and former presidential candidate, comes with name recognition while Acton, a physician and former state health director, shows solid numbers with key groups in recent surveys. Ramaswamy, a supporter of President Donald Trump, was tapped to co-lead the Department of Government Efficiency alongside Elon Musk in Trump's second term....

The US embassy in Baghdad has warned its citizens to leave Iraq "immediately". It also urges anyone who is thinking about staying put to "reconsider". "Iran and its aligned terrorist militias pose a major threat to public safety in Iraq. Attacks have occurred against US citizens, US interests, and critical infrastructure," it writes on X. As we reported earlier, the embassy building was hit in an attack on Saturday - watch our video of thick smoke rising from the site below. "Do not attempt to come to the Embassy in Baghdad or the Consulate General in Erbil due to the...

A senior adviser to President Donald Trump is urging Washington to seek a swift exit from the escalating conflict with Iran, warning that continued fighting could further destabilize the Middle East and continue to rattle the global market even worse than they already have.David Sacks, the White House adviser overseeing artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency policy, said the United States has already achieved significant military objectives and should now consider stepping back before the conflict widens further.Speaking on the widely followed “All-In Podcast,” Sacks argued that the moment may have arrived for Washington to pursue an off-ramp rather than escalate further....

US President Donald Trump has doubled down on his demand that countries that need oil should help combat Iran's efforts to shut the Strait of Hormuz. Just hours after saying he hopes the UK, China and other nations will send warships, Trump said in a post on Truth Social countries 'that receive Oil through the Hormuz Strait must take care of that passage'. On Thursday, Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei vowed to keep blocking the strait, which is a key trade artery for around 20 per cent of the world's oil. It comes after Trump said last night that...

https://x.com/jammles9/status/2032804438889398634 Jammles@jammles9·8h🚨 🎥 26 years ago Donald Trump said this to Cuban Americans.“One day Cuba will be free.”In the same speech he laughed and said:“Maybe I’ll end up the greatest developer in the country… or maybe the greatest president.”Now look at what’s happening.Cubans are rising up against the Communist government and taking to the streets.And today Trump is widely seen as one of the best presidents in modern history.How many times has Trump said something years before everyone else saw it?March 14, 2026

President Donald Trump and some of his closest advisers were caught off guard by the scope of Iran’s military response to U.S. strikes, while key Gulf allies have privately expressed anger at the White House’s decision to escalate the conflict, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The publication reported Friday that “the president and some aides were surprised at the breadth and scope of Iran’s retaliation,” which included missile and drone launches targeting regional countries from Azerbaijan to Oman, according to people familiar with the matter.” Gulf allies have reacted sharply behind closed doors. “Allies in the Gulf are...

Tucker Carlson, the American antisemitic influencer, says U.S. President Donald Trump and senior U.S. officials should be prosecuted over the decision to strike Iran. In last night's interview Carlson said, "There are other players here. I didn't realize it would be a joint operation with a country that believes in Amalek. Whoever made that decision should be in jail." .....

Senate Democrats have filed legislation that would stop the U.S. from going to war with Cuba without congressional approval as President Trump has threatened a “takeover” of the country. Democratic Sens. Tim Kaine (Va.), Ruben Gallego (Ariz.) and Adam Schiff (Calif.) on Thursday filed the war powers resolution, which could receive a vote by the end of the month. The resolution comes as Trump has said the U.S. could carry out a “friendly” or “not friendly takeover” of Cuba, predicting the collapse of the 67-year communist rule under pressure from the U.S. “Only Congress has the power to declare war...

President Donald Trump reportedly told Group of Seven leaders this week that Iran is "about to surrender," as the U.S. and Israel continue a sweeping military campaign against the regime's military infrastructure.According to Axios, Trump made the remark during a virtual call Wednesday, boasting about the results of the ongoing U.S.-led military operation targeting Iran’s missile forces, navy, and defense industry."I got rid of a cancer that was threatening us all," Trump reportedly told the leaders, referring to "Operation Epic Fury" and the strikes that have hammered Iranian military targets over the past two weeks.

Donald Trump has deployed thousands of US Marines to the Strait of Hormuz amid mounting fears that America is set to put troops on the ground as the world's oil supply is strangled. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth approved a request by US Central Command for the deployment of a Marine expeditionary unit, typically including several warships and 5,000 troops, three officials told the Wall Street Journal.The Japan-based USS Tripoli, an amphibious assault ship, and its attached Marines are now headed for the Middle East, where they join other Marines already in the fight, the officials said. The war spiraled...

House Republicans have taken a firm stance in Washington by promising to block Senate-passed legislation until the Senate takes up the SAVE America Act. The legislation, formally called the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, requires proof of U.S. citizenship for voter registration in federal elections and mandates photo ID at polling places. Lawmakers pushing the measure say the bill protects election integrity by ensuring that only U.S. citizens may vote in federal elections. President Donald Trump has endorsed the effort and signaled he'll prioritize the legislation once it reaches his desk. Republican lawmakers leading the effort have framed the strategy...

https://x.com/SwipeWright/status/2032317362746048666 Colin Wright @SwipeWright·15h "Why did you identify this as one of the craziest grants?" "Because it references feminist and queer insights into prison abolition and LGBTQ studies.""Any other reasons?" "No." Legendarily based. @grokThis is the deposition of Nathan Cavanaugh, a young DOGE staffer at GSA. It's part of a lawsuit by the American Council of Learned Societies, American Historical Association, and Modern Language Association challenging the Trump admin's termination of NEH grants. Plaintiffs claim the process (quick keyword/AI scans for DEI/LGBTQ/feminist references like this prison abolition one) bypassed peer review and violated laws. The depo questions how DOGE flagged/cut...

The Pentagon and National Security Council significantly underestimated Iran’s willingness to close the Strait of Hormuz in response to US military strikes while planning the ongoing operation, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. President Donald Trump’s national security team failed to fully account for the potential consequences of what some officials have described as a worst-case scenario now facing the administration, the sources said. And now it may be weeks before the administration’s efforts to alleviate the intensifying economic fallout take hold, officials said Thursday, including high-risk naval escorts of oil tankers through the strait that the Pentagon...

The “Melania” documentary about first lady Melania Trump debuted at the top of Amazon Prime’s streaming charts after premiering earlier this week. The documentary, which follows 20 days in the first lady’s life before President Donald Trump’s second term in office, hit the streaming service Monday. Just one day after its premiere, “Melania” became the most-streamed film on the platform and the most-streamed content overall in the United States, according to Flix Patrol. The first lady celebrated the feat in a post on X Tuesday. As of Thursday, the film is the third most-streamed overall behind the Amazon Prime series...

TAMPA, Fla. – All six crew members aboard a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft that went down in western Iraq are now confirmed deceased. The aircraft was lost while flying over friendly airspace March 12 during Operation Epic Fury. The circumstances of the incident are under investigation. However, the loss of the aircraft was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire. The identities of the service members are being withheld until 24 hours after next of kin have been notified.

President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israel strikes attack targeting military and government sites, officials said. Iranian state television confirmed that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among those killed in Tehran on the first day of strikes. His son Mojtaba Khamenei was chosen on Sunday to succeed him. Iran is responding to the operation with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, regional U.S. bases and multiple Gulf nations. Israel is also intensifying its long-running strike campaign against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.

@TheNatPulse Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) (@BasedMikeLee) calls on Vice President @JDVance to take charge in the Senate during the SAVE America Act vote.