Free Republic

Protesters spelled out “this is not normal” and hold a “no kings!” sign for passing traffic at several overpasses along I-83 on Wednesday. Democracy advocates, along with Democratic groups, gathered at several highway overpasses on I-83 from Harrisburg to Maryland to protest the Trump administration and the use of the military and ICE enforcement raids in Los Angeles and other cities.

Philadelphia police clashed with people protesting the Trump administration’s accelerating deportation efforts Tuesday night in Center City. A clip circulating on social media shows an officer pushing demonstrators before tackling to ground a masked protester dressed in black. The Inquirer posted a video that appears to show a PPD officer kneeling on an individual’s head and neck to subdue them. Both pieces of footage were taken on East Market Street. Law enforcement said two demonstrators and two bicycle officers were treated for minor injuries. Fifteen adults were arrested, with the most serious allegations against a man set to be charged...

"Senator Betterman strikes again," radio host Tony Kinnett quipped. Hey, there are worse nicknames, and this one applies well.John Fetterman had remained silent during the unfolding chaos in Los Angeles, which still represented something of an improvement over his fellow Democrats. We'll get to those examples shortly, but Fetterman had finally seen enough by last night. He warned his party about their precarious position in endorsing violence in place of speech, and flying Mexican flags while assaulting American law enforcement:I unapologetically stand for free speech, peaceful demonstrations, and immigration—but this is not that.This is anarchy and true chaos.My party loses...

Democrat Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman took to social media Monday to criticize his fellow Democrats for not denouncing the violent riots that broke out in Los Angeles after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid. In a post on X, Fetterman said he was disappointed in his party’s failure to take a firm stand against the destruction, calling the situation “anarchy and true chaos.” He said that the Democratic Party risks losing its moral high ground when it fails to unequivocally condemn such actions. “I unapologetically stand for free speech, peaceful demonstrations, and immigration—but this is not that. This is...

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) broke with the Democratic Party and condemned the anti-ICE riots that broke out in Los Angeles, pointing out that it is “anarchy and true chaos.” In a post on X, Fetterman explained that he “unapologetically” stands for “free speech, peaceful demonstrations, and immigration.” Sen. Fetterman Breaks with Democrats, Condemns L.A. Riots: ‘Anarchy and True Chaos’ 277 A protester throws a scooter at a police vehical near the metropolitan detention center ofAP Photo/Jae C. Hong Elizabeth Weibel9 Jun 2025310 2:34 Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) broke with the Democratic Party and condemned the anti-ICE riots that broke out...

Planned investment will establish multiple innovation campuses, create 1,250 jobs, and support new workforce development training programs and local community projects. Key takeaways Amazon plans to invest at least $20 billion in Pennsylvania to expand its AI infrastructure, creating 1,250 new high-skilled jobs and supporting thousands more in the AWS data center supply chain. Since 2010, Amazon has invested $26 billion in Pennsylvania, contributing more than $26 billion to the Commonwealth’s GDP and supporting 27,000 full and part-time jobs, as well as 37,100 indirect jobs across various facilities. Amazon will bring training and education programs, including data center technician programs,...

President Jiang Zemin gets an update on China´s Terfenol-D project. The U.S. Navy spent millions of dollars to develop Terfenol-D in the early 1980s, and intelligence experts estimate that the People's Republic of China (PRC) has devoted extensive resources to try to steal it. Insight has learned that these PRC efforts have paid off. The spy target is an exotic material made up of two types of rare-earth metals called lanthanides, terbium and dysprosium, plus iron (FE). The NOL stands for Naval Ordnance Laboratory. Hence the name Terfenol-D. Those who have worked with this exotic material call it almost magical....

Official White House photos by Emily HigginsWEST MIFFLIN, Pennsylvania -- Flanked by a sea of steelworkers dressed in their orange safety jackets and hard hats, President Donald Trump was given a hero's welcome at the Mon Valley Irvin Works to mark the signing of the U.S. Steel-Nippon Steel deal, the largest investment in state history. "With the help from patriots like you, we are going to produce our own metal, make our own energy, secure our own future, build our country, control our own destiny, and we are once again going to put Pennsylvania steel into the backbone of America,"...

Bucks County Sheriff Fred Harran is facing legal action for his partnership with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Harran applied to take part in a federal program known as 287(g), which would give officers the authority to detain illegal immigrants while performing routine police duties. But, the American Civil Liberties Union and Community Justice Project says what he's doing is illegal in Pennsylvania. Steve Loney, the lead attorney representing the ACLU, said, "The sheriff is breaking the law by unilaterally and illegally over the objection of his county commissioners entered into an agreement with federal immigration enforcement to essentially appoint...

After a huge fire broke out at SEPTA’s largest bus depot in Nicetown on Thursday, officials have determined a cause for the fire. What we know: A spokesperson for SEPTA stated that the Philadelphia Fire Department said a battery in one of the electric buses set off the massive fire Thursday at their largest bus depot, in Philly’s Nicetown neighborhood.

Investigators are working to uncover what caused a fleet of decommissioned SEPTA buses to catch fire at a Philadelphia bus depot on Thursday morning. SEPTA GM Scott Sauer said over a dozen of the torched buses were Protera-manufactured electric buses that he said have not been used in several years. A total of 40 buses were damaged in the fire, sparking air quality concerns that the city's health department says are still unhealthy for nearby residents. No one was injured in the fire at SEPTA's largest bus depot that runs 24-hours a day.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) criticized his own party for failing to “handle the border appropriately” and said that thousands of illegal aliens allowed in under the Biden administration was “unacceptable.” During a discussion with Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA) at the Senate Project, which was co-hosted by the Edward M. Kennedy Institute and the Orrin G. Hatch Foundation, Fetterman cast support behind President Donald Trump’s One, Big, Beautiful Bill and the “roughly $150 billion” that would be go towards securing the United States southern border, focusing on illegal immigration, the Hill reported. “If I had to find something in that, the...

The U.S. Department of Energy has ordered another power plant, this time an oil and gas plant in Pennsylvania, to keep its turbines running through the hottest summer months as a precaution against electricity shortfalls in the 13-state mid-Atlantic grid. The department’s order to the grid operator, PJM Interconnection, regarding the Eddystone power plant just south of Philadelphia on the Delaware River, is the department’s second use of federal power under President Donald Trump to require a power plant to keep operating on the mainland United States. Constellation Energy had planned to shut down Eddystone’s units 3 and 4 on...

Sen. John Fetterman acknowledged Monday that “parts” of the Democratic Party’s base have turned their backs on Israel, an issue he described as one of “moral clarity” for him. Fetterman (D-Pa.) argued during a bipartisan “The Senate Project” event with Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) that those who lament the “tragedy in Gaza” should blame Hamas and its benefactor, Iran. “The Jewish community must feel constantly under assault,” said Fetterman, 55, during the event, which was streamed on Fox Nation and moderated by “Fox News Sunday” host Shannon Bream. “I visited Penn, and I said hello with 300 [Jewish] students, and...

The suit alleges a coordinated effort to block medical care for those exposed to toxic chemicals. Also named are Vanguard, Mercy Health, and Quest Diagnostics, with the CDC accused of instructing healthcare providers not to test for dioxins or other hazardous substances. Plaintiffs claim this led to widespread misdiagnoses, delayed treatment, and that a letter was circulated telling providers to dismiss patient health concerns. ...

At a campaign rally in Pittsburgh, former President Donald Trump was presented with a custom Pittsburgh Steelers jersey by quarterback Mason Rudolph, safety Miles Killebrew, and franchise legend Rocky Bleier. --SNIP-- The high-profile exchange added a layer of celebrity and spectacle to Trump’s Pennsylvania stop, reflecting how athletes and political figures continue to cross paths in battleground states. The jersey handoff also served as a symbolic nod to the cultural and electoral significance of football in the region

Washington’s Reagan National Airport (DCA) has announced its celebration of 50 Years of Pride amid recent safety concerns following a deadly crash and other incidents. In the wake of a fatal January crash that killed 67 people and multiple collisions and other incidents, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) and DCA both made an announcement to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Pride in Washington, D.C. “Join the momentous celebrations as the nation’s capital is painted with pride, featuring a variety of events to inspire, empower and connect the international LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning) community and their allies,” the...

Pennsylvania voters went to the polls last week to help carry on a centuries-old practice that no other state does: elections to choose their election workers. “It was a great idea in the 1800s that they never got rid of,” said Thad Hall, Mercer County’s election director, who just oversaw a primary to select the Democratic and Republican candidates for more than 150 poll worker positions. Counties are still finalizing the results from the May 20 election. The counting includes the slow process of tabulating write-in votes, as many races don’t have candidates listed on the ballot. In Mercer County,...

…Students outsourcing their assignments to AI and cheating their way through college has become so rampant, so quickly, that it has created a market for a product that helps professors ChatGPT-proof school. As it turns out, that product already exists. In fact, you’ve probably used it. You might even dread it. It’s called a blue book. … All of which explains how a paper company in Pennsylvania has unexpectedly found itself on the front lines of the classroom AI wars. Most blue books for sale in campus bookstores and on Amazon for 23 cents apiece are made by Roaring Spring...

3 in 4 parents of college-age students also oppose men in women’s spaces A majority of parents with college-age students want universities to stop prioritizing race in hiring and scholarship decisions ... The results showed a majority of parents “are at odds with our country’s higher education institutions on several contentious issues that are consistently in today’s political dialogue,” according to a news release. Defending Education works to rid education of ideological agendas. In the poll, which involved parents of 15- to 21-year-old students, 54 percent said universities should not prioritize a student’s race when awarding scholarships, and 57 percent...