Free Republic

4:50 p.m. - Few Republican lawmakers were as stung by Rep. Mike Castle's surprising loss to his conservative GOP opponent as Maine Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe. In a hallway just off the Senate floor Thursday afternoon, she sounded off about her place as a moderate in the GOP, and voter anger she says she understands. Visibly sad, Snowe called Castle "an outstanding public servant who was committed to the common good of his state and country." The longer Snowe talked about the state of the GOP and the Tea Party movement, the more riled up she got. "Understand, there are...

WILMINGTON, Del. -- Just two days after her upset of Rep. Mike Castle (R-Del.) in the state's Republican Senate primary, Tea Party-backed Christine O'Donnell shared a stage with New Castle County Executive Chris Coons (D) in their first meeting of the general election contest. Thanks to the format of the yearly candidate forum sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Delaware, the stage was shared by eight candidates, but the main attraction was the impending battle between O'Donnell and Coons. The result was a standing-room-only crowd in a packed auditorium. The forum was an early test for O'Donnell, who despite having...

A US Senate committee has approved a wide-ranging cybersecurity bill that some critics have suggested would give the US president the authority to shut down parts of the Internet during a cyberattack.

NOTE The following text is a quote: Innospec Agent Pleads Guilty to Bribing Iraqi Officials and Paying Kickbacks Under the Oil for Food Program WASHINGTON—Canadian/Lebanese dual national Ousama M. Naaman pleaded guilty today to participating in an eight-year conspiracy to defraud the United Nations Oil for Food Program (OFFP) and to bribe Iraqi government officials in connection with the sale of a chemical additive used in the refining of leaded fuel, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division. Naaman, 61, of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, was originally indicted on Aug. 7, 2008, in U.S. District...

Last week, President Obama's job approval rating sank to 46 percent in a Gallup poll, matching the lowest weekly job approval rating of his presidency. Few Americans were surprised. Obama's bumbling response to the BP oil spill drove the latest decline in his popularity almost equally among Democrats, Republicans and independents. But another Gallup poll taken about the same time contained even worse news for the president. After a year and a half of "hope and change," 49 percent of Americans consider the Democratic Party "too liberal" -- compared with 39 percent in 2008, when Obama was elected. This is...

"STOCKHOLM -- Princess Madeleine of Sweden has broken off her engagement with attorney Jonas Bergstrom, the Royal Court announced Saturday. "The reasons for the break up were not disclosed, but Norwegian magazine Se og Hoer published an interview this week with a woman named Tora Uppstroem Berg who claimed she had spent a night with the princess' fiance at a popular Swedish skiing resort last year."

Senate Republicans have backed away from a plan to offer hundreds of amendments to slow the passage of healthcare reform fixes under budget reconciliation. This means the Senate will finish work on House-demanded changes to healthcare reform law sooner than expected. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) had hoped to finish the process by Friday or Saturday but now Thursday afternoon appears a possible end-point.

Special report: Next month’s UN report will drag British-based miner Xstrata into the controversy over surcharges paid to Saddam.... Glencore is also known as the company founded by Marc Rich, the commodities trader who fled to Switzerland from the US after being charged for embargo-busting in Iran following the Khomeini revolution. Four years ago, Rich was pardoned by President Bill Clinton on Clinton’s last day in the White House.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Wednesday formally cut off $11 million in aid to Honduras in response to the June 28 military coup that ousted the elected president of the poor Central American nation. The decision was taken by the board of the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), which aids countries with a track record of sound governance and economic policy and is headed by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The State Department announced last week that it was terminating more than $30 million in non-humanitarian aid to Honduras, including the $11 million from the MCC, to pressure...

FORT LEE, Va., July 16, 2009 – Army Sgt. 1st Class Brad Turner, also known as “The Grill Sergeant,” often treats others using his culinary expertise. But recently, Turner got a treat of his own. Army Sgt. 1st Class Brad Turner, known as “The Grill Sergeant,” takes a look at what Chef Bobby Flay cooked up for an episode of "Throwdown with Bobby Flay," filmed at Fort Lee, Va., July 2, 2009. The episode will air on the Food Network later this year. U.S. Army photo by Kimberly Fritz   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Turner recently returned here,...

It's 8:00 CST. At 8:30 the sheep of the world are turning their lights off to "Save The Planet." Personally, I'm walking around the house turning on every light and appliance I own. Hell, I may burn some steel belted radials just to add to the glare. Flip on those lights, folks!

During the daily White House press briefing today one reporter seemed to be having a hard time staying awake.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday stormed off the stage at the World Economic Forum in Davos, red-faced after verbally sparring with President Shimon Peres over the recent fighting in Gaza. Erdogan was angry after being cut off by a panel moderator after listening to an impassioned monologue by Peres defending Israel's recent 22-day offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Authorities to Hold News Conference on Fate of Boy Whose Grandfather Has Been Tied to Mexican Drug RingNevada officials have deactivated an Amber Alert for kidnapped 6-year-old Cole Puffinburger. They gave no reason for the cancellation. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department announced a news conference to be held at 5 p.m. ET (2 p.m. PT). Puffinburger was kidnapped Wednesday morning from his Las Vegas home. His grandfather, Clemens Tinnemeyer, 51, was arrested by the FBI on Friday as a "person of interest" in the case. He was taken into custody in Riverside, Calif., and is being held at the...

Dear (Technoman): Thank you for contacting me about gas prices and offshore drilling, issues that have polarized public opinion in recent months. The high cost of gas has become a major burden for families across the country, but we're seeing two very different ideas for how to address this problem. Republicans, led by a few hearty voices in the House of Representatives, are suggesting that the only solution to this problem is to plant as many oil rigs off our coastline as possible, no matter the consequences. Democrats are countering that while we must harness our national resources, we gain...

Call Congress back to have an up-or-down vote on a comprehensive energy bill which includes expanded drilling for oil. There is a petition here: http://www.callbackcongress.com/

Here's what's making our state shut down at midnight. This is what the dim dam Dems want :

Prosecutors promised on Monday to prove that Texas oilman Oscar Wyatt paid millions of dollars in kickbacks to Saddam Hussein's government, earning him a privileged position in Iraq. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Miller told jurors at opening arguments of Wyatt's trial that prosecutors would present photos, audio tapes, bank records, U.N. records and Iraqi government records proving Wyatt paid kickbacks to win Iraqi oil contracts . "Oscar Wyatt's years of assistance to the Hussein regime earned him a privileged status in Iraq," Miller said. Wyatt, an 83-year-old self-made oil tycoon, faces five counts in Manhattan federal court including engaging in...

The man responsible for protecting Egypt's antiquities has said he will "fight" for the return of an ancient bust of Nefertiti, an ancient Egyptian queen, now housed in a Berlin museum. Zahi Hawass also requested the temporary return of other ancient Egyptian artifacts, including the Rosetta Stone which is housed in London's British museum. "Some people say, 'If we give this bust to Egypt for three months they will not return it'." Hawass said, regarding the bust of Nefertiti, in an interview on Wednesday.Zahi Hawass is seeking "unique artifacts" from at least 10 museums around the world [AP]Germany says the...

"The Arab states are not seeking to wipe Israel off the map," Lebanese Prime Minister Faud Saniora claimed in a New York Times editorial on Friday morning. "Rather," he continued, "we are seeking the legitimate goals of an armistice, secure borders and the ability of all of the region's people to live in peace and security." Saniora went on to say that the Winograd Committee's interim report on the Second Lebanon War failed to draw the most essential lesson that "military action does not give the people of Israel security," adding that compromise and diplomacy were the answer to instability....