Free Republic

We might want to rethink DEI and a left-wing political stance as the sole qualifications for high-level law enforcement positions. Via Fox News: A North Carolina House Oversight Committee hearing spurred on by the recent killing of a young Ukrainian woman, Iryna Zarutska, in Charlotte, took an unexpected turn when [Republican State Representative Allen] Chesser asked Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden, “What branch of government do you operate under?” McFadden, who is the top law enforcement officer in the county where Zarutska was killed, simply answered, “Mecklenburg County,” prompting Chesser to repeat, “What branch of government do you operate under,...

A video is going viral of a congressional candidate in North Carolina admitting she is truly a "progressive" even though she is running as a Republican. "Are you trying to trick people?" Katie Barr, who is running in North Carolina's 14th Congressional District, was asked on a podcast called "The Hometown Holler." "If you go on the campaign website, above the fold as they call it, is like, 'I'm not a real Republican.' Like, I am telling people the truth. I knock on a door and say, ‘I am running in the Republican primary, but I am not a Republican,...

The Democrat Sheriff of Charlotte NC, Gary McFadden, was just completely unable to answer: a) What the 3 branches of government are. b) Which branch he serves under. This is genuinely painful to watch... completely shocking. Representative Chesser: What branch of government do you operate under? Sheriff McFadden: Mecklenburg County. Chesser: What branch of government do you operate under as sheriff? McFadden: Constitution of the United States. The elected Democrat sheriff of the county containing one of the largest cities in the southeast - the city where Iryna Zarutska was murdered - doesn't know what a branch of government even...

Susan Collins (ME) Lisa Murkowski (AK) Rand Paul (KY) Mitch McConnell (KY) Thom Tillis (NC) Todd Young (IN) Chuck Grassley (IA) Jerry Moran (KS)

A North Carolina veterinary technician has been charged and fired from her job after she rescued a dog that was abandoned in the cold winter weather — but failed to hand the pooch over to animal control. Dason Garner has been left “completely broken” as she faces charges for keeping a stray animal, failure to surrender and interfering with law enforcement over her deed, according to WRAL. Garner says she was punished for her act of compassion in rescuing the pooch from the brutal conditions after a harsh snowstorm barreled across Wilson, NC, over the weekend.

When asked whether Martin still served in the role, a Justice Department spokesman told NBC News that he continued on in a separate role, as pardon attorney. Trump loyalist Ed Martin is out as leader of the Justice Department’s “weaponization” effort that is investigating prosecutors who launched past probes into President Donald Trump and his allies, two people familiar with the discussions tell NBC News. When asked whether Martin still served in the role, a Justice Department spokesman told NBC News that Martin continued to serve in a separate role, as pardon attorney.“President Trump appointed Ed Martin as Pardon Attorney...

Nahro Sudoi Innab "came here to take advantage of the American dream, but he has repeatedly tried to hire thugs to murder his perceived enemies," the U.S. Justice Department said. A federal jury convicted Nahro Sudoi Innab, 70, of Rocky Mount, N.C., on three counts of making interstate calls to plan new murders while the Palestinian immigrant was in jail awaiting a prison term after pleading guilty to having tried to murder other people. He faces up to 30 years in prison for the new convictions. “This Palestinian immigrant came here to take advantage of the American dream, but he...

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) compared Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller to fictional villains on Friday, calling them both a “sycophant” as tensions rise over the administration’s immigration enforcement efforts. “A sycophant is more than just a ‘yes-man,’” Tillis wrote in a lengthy post on social platform X. “It refers to someone who acts excessively servile toward someone important in order to gain an advantage.” He added, “They aren’t just being nice, they are using excessive flattery, often insincerely, to get what they want, whether that’s a promotion, social status or favor.”...

Sen. Thom Tillis said Friday that he will oppose President Donald Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair until the criminal probe of the current Chair Jerome Powell is “fully” resolved. “Protecting the independence of the Federal Reserve from political interference or legal intimidation is non-negotiable,” the North Carolina Republican said in a statement on X. Tillis, who is set to retire, vowed earlier this month to oppose any new nominee for the Fed until the Department of Justice’s controversial investigation of Powell is completed. Tillis is a member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee,...

Thom Tillis has always said that he hates the camera. Then he announced his retirement last year. Now, the moderate Republican from North Carolina cannot stop making headlines. In a fiery floor speech earlier this year, Tillis said he was leaving the Senate to remove himself from any “boundaries I should have in expressing my concern and creating complications for my campaign” and Senate Republicans maintaining the majority. His retirement, which he announced last June, allows him to “speak truth” to President Donald Trump about White House policies and advice from Trump’s staff, he said earlier this month. But, the...

Duke Divinity School at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina is offering a course that explores the intersection of “queerness” and Christianity. The course seeks to “broaden the discussion of queerness and theology for a productive intervention.” The class is titled “from Baptismal Font to Queer Theology” and awards one unit of credit. ”This course examines and excavates ‘queer’ in relationship to theology and theory,” a course description reads. “Is queer driven by identity politics, an umbrella term for sexual identity, gender identity, antinormativity politics, social locations, or is queer descriptive of something entirely different? Does queer have an agenda?”...

Iryna Zarutska was butchered to death on a train in Charlotte by a career felon with 14 prior arrests. Her death was the direct result of leadership failures and bad policy. Jimmy Kimmel never mentioned her name, much less cried on camera about it. These people are sociopaths. They don’t care about human life. Their emotions aren’t real. They aren’t even capable of experiencing real human emotion at this point. It’s all a game to them. It’s all performance. Kimmel isn’t just a bad comedian, he’s a bad person. Rotten to his core.

It's not every day that an American labor union gets investigated for possible ties to two of the world's most lethal terrorist organizations. But Chicago's Service Employees International Union Local 73 isn't an everyday union. Last September 24, FBI agents raided residences in Illinois, Minnesota and Michigan of more than a dozen radical activists in an effort to connect them to the Hamas (Gaza and the West Bank) and FARC (Colombia) guerrilla movements. Two of the occupants were SEIU Local 73 chief steward and executive board member Joe Iosbaker and former local board member-steward Tom Burke. Neither they nor anyone else has...

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(This story has been updated to reflect that Immigrations and Customs Enforcement has issued a detainer and administrative warrant for Aguilar.) SALISBURY — The identities of the two people killed when they were struck by an alleged drunk driver on Friday night have been released. Twenty-year-old Fletcher Mark Daniel Harris, from Catawba, and 19-year-old Skylar Nichole Provenza, from Statesville, were both killed in a crash on Amity Hill Road at approximately 11:15 p.m. on Friday night. The crash occurred as the two were traveling northeast in a Honda Accord and were struck head-on by a Chevy Silverado that had crossed...

Former Democratic Governor Roy Cooper holds a commanding double-digit lead in the latest poll of North Carolina's closely watched Senate race, which is seen as one of Democrats' best pickup opportunities in the 2026 midterm elections. The new survey data released Monday by Tipp Insights for the League of American Workers shows Cooper with 48 percent compared to 24 percent who support former Republican National Committee (RNC) chair Michael Whatley. An additional 27 percent are undecided.

FBI Charlotte Special Agent in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr., and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) Chief Estella D. Patterson announce the capture of Ten Most Wanted Fugitive Alejandro “Alex” Rosales Castillo. Castillo was seen on surveillance video crossing the border from Nogales, Arizona, into Mexico, on August 16, 2016. For nearly ten years, special agents and CMPD task force officers in Charlotte have worked countless hours to develop leads to locate Castillo, ultimately uncovering where he has been hiding the past several years. Castillo was captured in Pachuca, Hidalgo, Mexico, on January 16, 2026. The FBI’s Law Enforcement Attache Office...

Customs and Border Protection agents began an immigration enforcement operation Saturday in Charlotte. Leaders of North Carolina's largest city have said the federal operation is causing fear and uncertainty. Charlotte real estate agent Tabatha Andonian has been tracking federal agent sightings and sharing information with the city's Latino community. “Right now, I’m just driving around to see if I spot any vehicles that are ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), seeing if they have out-of-state plates,” she said.

President Donald Trump will face an important obstacle — from within his own party — as he seeks to replace Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said Sunday he will block any Trump appointees to the central bank, including for the new chair, in light of revelations over the weekend that the Justice Department is investigating Powell for potential perjury charges. “If there were any remaining doubt whether advisers within the Trump Administration are actively pushing to end the independence of the Federal Reserve, there should now be none. It is now the independence and credibility of...

CBS 17’s Greg Funderburg opened his report with the voice of grief, not politics. Paige Briggs told the station her family has been “sad,” and that there are “constant memories” of their dog all through the house. Funderburg’s story centered on one fact that hit the family like a second loss: the Wake County deputy involved in the shooting is returning to work after the sheriff’s office finished its internal review....... Funderburg reported that Paige Briggs was out of town for work when the incident happened. Her husband and their children had left home like normal, and hours later, the...