Free Republic

Statement from the Libertarian Party of Guadalupe County. The Libertarian Party of Guadalupe County firmly believes that all affiliates—whether at the state or county level—should uphold the core principles and bylaws of the national Libertarian Party. In light of the Libertarian Party of New Hampshire’s continued support for authoritarian rhetoric and tactics, as well as their open endorsement of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, we no longer recognize them as an official affiliate of the Libertarian Party. Furthermore, the refusal of the Libertarian National Committee majority to condemn this rogue affiliate leaves us with no choice but to take a principled...

Former Republican New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu detailed Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar’s track record of antisemitism during a “CNN NewsNight” panel Monday night. Pro-Hamas demonstrations erupted at multiple universities and colleges since the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas that killed over 1,200 people in Israel, seeing protesters occupy buildings, chant a slogan that has connotations of wiping out Israel and block Jewish students from parts of campus. Sununu said that Omar, whose daughter was reportedly suspended for her part in the pro-Hamas protests, and Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York were “joining in.” ... “You guys are...

*** Here’s an early look at the five Senate seats most likely to flip next year.Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff (Ga.) is considered the most vulnerable Democrat on the Senate map …. But ... Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) decided against a Senate bid, depriving the GOP of its top choice across the entire 2026 map. *** ... Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.) is in, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is out, and operatives believe Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) may follow Carter into the primary. ***NorthCarolina If Democrats are going to make any headway toward winning back the majority, toppling Sen. Thom...

The New Jersey Libertarian Party’s Executive Board recently approved a resolution denouncing the rhetoric and online messaging shared by the state party affiliates from Colorado and New Hampshire. The denunciation does not include a call for censure or disaffiliation. The state party originally approved the resolution by a 7–2 vote last Monday, later announcing it this past Saturday. According to the party, Libertarian National Committee Region Representative Pat Ford was present during the board’s vote. The resolution states that it represents “Concerned Libertarian Party Members from across several State Affiliates,” and comes in response to an “alarming growth in the...

A Trans-identified male, Reya Jasmine, formerly David Mark Jasmine, has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder after allegedly stabbing his wife, Margaret Jasmin, to death earlier this month. The pair’s marriage appears to have been traditional between a man and a woman, and their child, who was at the home when police arrested David Jasmine, was reportedly baptized in a Catholic church. When David started to transition, it appears his wife, Margaret, was not thrilled, and he took to social media like Reddit to express frustrations. In one post, he reportedly said of his wife, “Her husband is dead...

New Hampshire’s Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte signed a pair of bills into law Thursday that place bans on sanctuary city polices in the Granite State. “There will be no sanctuary cities in New Hampshire,” Ayotte said during the bill signing, according to New Hampshire Bulletin. “Period. End of story.” The two bills that are now law — House Bill 511 and Senate Bill 62 — ban municipalities and counties in the state from putting in place policies that prevent local officials and police from cooperating with federal immigration officials such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Among other requirements, House...

Former Libertarian National Committee Chair Angela McArdle shared details of a meeting she had with then-Republican candidate Donald Trump during the 2024 election cycle in a speech delivered at the NH Liberty Forum this past month. McArdle also discussed her experience with the campaign and her role in securing a pledge from Trump to pardon Ross Ulbricht. McArdle recounted the events in a mainstage keynote address at the annual gathering, which is hosted by the Free State Project. Local media estimated that around 300 attendees participated in the full forum. McArdle’s talk, titled “The Heart of the Deal,” covered her...

A New Hampshire town's attempt to force a bakery to remove or alter its painting that shows sunbeams shining down on a mountain range of doughnuts, a muffin, a cinnamon roll and other pastries is unconstitutional, a judge ruled in a First Amendment dispute. The town of Conway infringed on the free speech rights of bakery owner Sean Young, U.S. District Judge Joseph Laplante ruled Monday, following a one-day trial in February. He ordered the town to stop any efforts at enforcing its sign code regarding the mural painted by high school students atop Leavitt's Country Bakery, mentioning a "complete...

DOVER, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire sheriff who resigned after he was accused of stealing $19,000 in county funds was sentenced Monday to 3 1/2 to seven years in prison on perjury charges. Prosecutors had asked for a seven-to-14-year sentence for Mark Brave. ... Brave, 39, was elected as Strafford County sheriff in 2020. At the time, he was both the youngest sheriff and the first Black man to serve as a sheriff in the state. He was arrested in 2023 and charged with eight felonies following an investigation into accusations that he misused county credit cards. Brave called...

The chair of the Libertarian Party of New Hampshire told members of the Libertarian National Committee in a recent message that any who vote to censure the state party at the committee’s upcoming meeting will face the “full and unapologetic wrath” of the affiliate. The message from New Hampshire Chair Ben Weir, first reported on and confirmed as authentic by Third Party Watch on Thursday, comes in response to a resolution introduced this week by LNC Treasurer Bill Redpath. In his motion, Redpath calls on the national committee to censure the New Hampshire affiliate over its use of social media...

Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) said Tuesday on CNN’s “News Central” that President Donald Trump’s judicial nominees could face holds until Attorney General Pam Bondi provides “answers” to Congress on the $400 million jet from Qatar. Shaheen said, “With respect to Qatar and the plane, I think there are serious constitutional questions about this, but there are also questions about national security. Sadly, the president doesn’t seem to be too concerned about national security. He’s been willing to allow his secretary of defense to engage in classified discussions over unclassified channels. He has, again, looking at accepting this plane without thinking...

Retired Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter, the ascetic bachelor and New Hampshire Republican who became a darling of liberals during his nearly 20 years on the bench, has died. He was 85. Souter died Thursday at his home in New Hampshire, the Supreme Court said in a statement Friday. He retired from the court in June 2009, giving President Barack Obama his first Supreme Court vacancy to fill. Obama chose Sonia Sotomayor, the court’s first Latina justice. Souter was appointed by Republican President George H.W. Bush in 1990. He was a reliably liberal vote on abortion, church-state relations, freedom...

Two Massachusetts men have been indicted on felony charges in connection with vandalism of a Tesla Cybertruck in the parking lot of a hotel in northern New Hampshire. Investigators said a 52-year-old man spoke with the truck owner at the Bretton Woods Ski Area parking lot on March 22 and then drove a 55-year-old man to the location of the Tesla Cybertruck at the parking lot of the Omni Mount Washington Resort & Spa. The 55-year-old man is accused of scratching the vehicle panels, causing more than $1,500 in damage. According to court documents, the 52-year-old faces a felony charge...

(2024) On Nov. 4, Dartmouth Dining began enrolling students in a palm biometric recognition scanner system at the Class of 1953 Commons. Starting this winter term, students will be able to use palm biometric technology to enter the Class of 1953 Commons instead of swiping in with a physical ID card. The biometric technology is created by IDEMIA, a technology company that specializes in biometrics and cryptography. According to Dartmouth Dining director Jon Plodzik, any student who wants to utilize the new system in the winter term can complete the enrollment process by visiting the signup area in ’53 Commons....

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the senior Democratic senator from New Hampshire, has announced she will not run for reelection in 2026, creating an open-seat race in a battleground state former Vice President Kamala Harris narrowly carried in November. Shaheen announced what she described as a “difficult” decision in an interview with The New York Times. “It was a difficult decision, made more difficult by the current environment in the country — by President Trump and what he’s doing right now,” Shaheen, who is 78, told the Times. Shaheen highlighted what she saw as Trump’s focus on dishing out retribution to his...

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) announced on Wednesday that she will not seek reelection in 2026 in a blow to Democrats, who will now have to defend her New Hampshire seat against the GOP. “Serving the people of New Hampshire, first as state senator, then as governor, and now in the United States Senate is an incredible honor,” Shaheen, 78, said in a video announcement on her retirement.

Elon Musk just revealed that the government handed the Navy $12 billion to build new submarines—and not a single submarine was built. When investigators asked where the money went, Navy officials shrugged and said they had no idea. “There’s a case where I think Senator Collins was telling me about how she gave the Navy $12 billion for more submarines, got no extra submarines, and then held a hearing to say where the $12 billion go. “And they were like, we don’t know. That was it. I mean, basically, stuff is so crazy. Only the federal government could get away...

The New Hampshire House of Representatives voted to require law enforcement to cooperate with immigration authorities last week in a landslide bipartisan 351 to 6 majority. The February 6 vote also carried without debate. When she was elected last year, Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte pledged to put an end to sanctuary policies and charged the legislature with moving quickly on the issue. Ayotte also said she would not “MASS up” New Hampshire after seeing how badly her neighboring state was mired in illegal migrants and illegal drug trafficking. The state Senate quickly obliged the governor by tackling the issue during...

Per multiple law enforcement sources, within the last hour, Border Patrol agents near Fronton, TX were fired upon from MX by suspected cartel gunmen as a group of illegal aliens were being brought across the river. I’m told BP returned fire, nobody hit on either side, and that the illegal aliens did not make it across. ... Texas DPS @LtChrisOlivarez tells me DPS is now patrolling the area and has a drone in the air and can see Mexi ... Guaranteeing the States Protection Against Invasion: This action reinforces the federal government’s commitment to safeguarding states from external threats, ensuring...

There's an old military saying about a certain material, which was often found on parade grounds back in the days of horse-mounted troops, and how it tends to roll downhill. That's a metaphor, of course, for how pressure on senior officers tends to flow downwards to junior officers, to NCOs, and eventually to the E-4 Mafia and the private soldiers. But in the military as well as in government, sometimes good ideas roll downhill, too. As an example, we have a very good idea, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) being set up by the incoming Trump administration. Now, Iowa...