Free Republic

There are ten new ideas that are changing America, maybe permanently. 1) Money is a construct. It can be created from thin air. Annual deficits and aggregate national debt no longer matter much. Prior presidents ran up huge annual deficits, but at least there were some concessions that the money was real and had to be paid back. Not now. As we near $30 trillion in national debt and 110 percent of annual GDP, our elites either believe that permanent zero-interest rates make the cascading obligation irrelevant, or that the larger the debt, the more likely we will be forced...

Embarrassed by a prostitution scandal, the Secret Service will assign chaperones on some trips to enforce new rules of conduct that make clear that excessive drinking, entertaining foreigners in their hotel rooms and cavorting in disreputable establishments are no longer tolerated. The stricter measures, issued by the Secret Service on Friday for agents and employees, apply even when traveling personnel are off duty. The policies, outlined in a memorandum obtained by The Associated Press, are the agency's latest attempt to respond to the scandal that surfaced as President Barack Obama was headed to a Latin American summit in Cartagena, Colombia,...

REFUGEES fleeing war, violence and discrimination could be made to take English lessons before they reach Australia under a Government plan made public today. People who nominate refugees for visas could also have to prove minimum standards of financial competency and have a good track record of employment. They could also need a minimum period of residence in Australia, and have limits placed on the number of refugees they propose for resettlement. The Federal Government today released a discussion paper on Australia's humanitarian migration program. In the paper, it proposes expanding its Australian Cultural Orientation (AUSCO) program, which was piloted...

WASHINGTON — The Federal Election Commission is considering whether to require political bloggers to disclose whether they are receiving funds from a political campaign, the latest step in a larger debate over whether political activity on the Internet should be regulated by the government. Friday is the deadline set for the FEC to receive public comments on a number of proposed regulations dealing with Internet activities. The commission will hold hearings on June 28-29 in Washington, D.C., before deciding on final action. One of those new rules, the disclosure requirement, has many bloggers bristling, accusing the government of unfairly targeting...