Free Republic

WASHINGTON — House Republicans have asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to charge former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo for making “criminally false statements” to Congress, citing “overwhelming evidence” that an audit he presided over had low-balled nursing home deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic. The House Oversight Committee re-upped the criminal referral after then-Attorney General Merrick Garland declined last year to prosecute Cuomo for allegedly triggering, helping to draft and reviewing a July 6, 2020, report that undercounted the total number of deaths in senior care facilities by 46%. “Andrew Cuomo is a man with a history of corruption and deceit,...

The arsonist who broke into the Pennsylvania governor’s residence while Gov. Josh Shapiro and his extended family slept upstairs on the first night of Passover encountered little resistance as he scaled a security fence, smashed windows with a hammer, ignited two Molotov cocktails and crawled inside before slipping off into the night minutes later. That suggests multiple security failures, according to a former FBI agent who wondered why burglar alarms, motion detectors and other devices did not thwart the intruder sooner.

HARRISBURG, Pa. — The man charged with breaking into the Pennsylvania governor's residence and setting fires inside called 911, identified himself by name and made a reference to Palestine, according to information in a search warrant obtained by WGAL. The search warrant quotes Cody Balmer, 38, as saying Gov. Josh Shapiro needs to know that he "will not take part in his plans for what he wants to do to the Palestinian people."

Sunday’s arson attack on Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is the latest in an epidemic of political violence that’s been plaguing the nation for half a decade — an epidemic driven by the left. Happily, Shapiro and his family were unharmed, while alleged would-be assassin Cody Balmer is in custody. Balmer is plainly deranged, but he declares himself a “socialist” in social media accounts expressing a range of far-left beliefs.

New details have emerged about the suspect behind the recent arson attack on the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion, revealing a chilling intent to personally target Governor Josh Shapiro, a Jewish leader who was observing Passover with his family at the time. Authorities say the suspect, identified as 38-year-old Cody Balmer of Harrisburg, told investigators he would have beaten Shapiro with a sledgehammer had he encountered him during the break-in. According to a police affidavit, Balmer admitted to harboring hatred toward Governor Shapiro, though no motive for that hatred was specified. Balmer allegedly scaled a nearly 7-foot iron security fence around the...

Pennsylvania State Police have arrested a Harrisburg man for the arson attack on Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family that sent them fleeing from the governor’s residence on the first night of Passover. Cody Balmer, 38, of Harrisburg, is expected to face charges of attempted murder, terrorism, aggravated arson, and aggravated assault against an enumerated person, authorities said. Shapiro, who is Jewish, became visible emotional as he spoke about the 2 a.m. attack on his home as he and his family slept inside. “If he was trying to terrorize our family, our friends, the Jewish community, who joined us for...

Cody Balmer, the suspect arrested for arson after setting Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's house on fire on Sunday was reportedly angry with Shapiro after the state of Pennsylvania auctioned off Balmer's property. A court document of the auction from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania surfaced. Balmer will be charged with attempted murder, terrorism, aggravated arson, and aggravated assault, the Dauphin County District Attorney announced Sunday. Balmer, 38, was identified as the suspect of the fire by Colonel Christopher Paris, the Commissioner of Pennsylvania State Police at a press conference on Sunday afternoon. Commenting on the incident, George Bivens, the Deputy Commissioner of Pennsylvania...

Governor Josh Shapiro (D-PA) said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” three times that the difference between Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and President Joe Biden was irrelevant. Host Kristen Welker said, “Governor, given how unpopular polls show President Biden is, has Vice President Harris done enough to distance herself from President Biden?. Shapiro said, “You know, Kristen, I think what is clear, this is a race not between Kamala Harris and Joe Biden, but between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, and on that there are clear concepts. Kamala Harris wants to cut taxes for small businesses, and...

Vice President Kamala Harris passed over Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) as her running mate Tuesday for Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) — confirming fears Shapiro would prove too pro-Israel, and too Jewish, for the ticket. In the week leading up to the pick, as Shapiro emerged as the frontrunner, there were reports of internal rebellions within the Democratic Party, largely due to his strong pro-Israel views, which included skepticism of peace talks. Hearing there was a progressive revolt last night over Shapiro as VP, several WH staffers that went all in on Palestine (wearing the keffiyeh, attending protests) openly...

[Link to article at URL]: BREAKING: Shapiro now claims he didn’t know of sexual misconduct allegations against his aide until months later, even though he held a meeting about it right after it happened ...

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s (D) position on the Israel-Hamas war is coming under particularly high levels of scrutiny amid the Democratic divide over the war as Vice President Harris considers adding him to her ticket. Shapiro has emerged as the leading vice presidential contender given his executive experience in the critical swing state, which carries 19 electoral college votes. Additionally, Shapiro’s allies point to his record of appealing to voters outside of the Democratic fold.

Critics slammed CNN after anchor John King said there were “risks” in putting forward Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro as the Democratic vice presidential nominee because “he’s Jewish.” “He’s certainly under consideration,” King said on CNN Sunday night, referencing discussions with allies of Vice President Kamala Harris. “He’s a first-term governor, he’s Jewish, there could be some risks in putting him on the ticket, but certainly some of our voters here in Pennsylvania said, ‘Hey, we like Gov. Shapiro, give him a look,'” he added. The popular X account StopAntisemitism underscored the hateful comment by pointing out how different the response...

Fauci, top COVID officials have criminal referral requests filed against them in 7 statesThe filings urge state prosecutors to open criminal investigations into Dr. Anthony Fauci and other prominent officials for alleged crimes committed during the COVID-19 pandemic.(Focal Points) — On April 8, 2025, the Vires Law Group, in collaboration with the Former Feds Group Freedom Foundation, submitted formal criminal referral requests to the Attorneys General of Arizona and Pennsylvania. These filings urge state prosecutors to open criminal investigations into Dr. Anthony Fauci and other prominent public health and government officials for alleged crimes committed during the COVID-19 pandemic.READ: Evidence...

Shawn Monper, 32, of Butler, Pennsylvania, faces federal charges of making threats to assault and murder President Trump, Musk, and others.Less than a week after a horrifying survey found more than half of self-identified leftists believe killing President Donald Trump would be justifiable, a Pennsylvania man has been charged with threatening to murder the president and other U.S. officials. Shawn Monper, 32, of Butler — the same Pennsylvania community where Trump came within a fraction of an inch of being assassinated last July — faces federal charges of making threats to assault and murder Trump, DOGE advisor and Tesla founder...

Shawn Monper, 32, a resident of Butler, Pennsylvania, has been charged by federal criminal complaint with making threats to assault and murder President Donald J. Trump, other United States officials, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today. “I want to applaud the outstanding and courageous investigative work of the FBI and the Butler Township Police Department, who thankfully identified and apprehended this individual before he could carry out his threats against President Trump’s life and the lives of other innocent Americans,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Rest assured that whenever and...

Roofing-products manufacturer IKO North America has been on a factory-building spree in the U.S., with one plant completed and four more under construction. After President Trump launched a barrage of tariffs on U.S. trading partners, the math abruptly changed. Chief Executive David Koschitzky said IKO’s just-finished factory in Texas now faces higher prices on the steel it uses to fabricate metal shingles, while the plants that are still being built need machinery that isn’t made in the U.S. The company will continue with the projects, he said, but tariffs will make them much more expensive. “If we’re to be successful,...

The president will direct agencies to boost coal leasing, mining and exports. But these steps are unlikely to usher in a coal renaissance.President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order Tuesday aimed at boosting the struggling U.S. coal industry, according to White House officials.Flanked by coal miners wearing hard hats at the White House, Trump will direct federal agencies to loosen various restrictions on coal mining, leasing and exports. He will instruct the Interior Department to resume coal leasing on millions of acres of public lands, and he will order the Energy Department and other agencies to study whether...

According to The Harvard Crimson, Harvard will offer high-school-level math courses to its students. The remedial assistance has rekindled criticism over Harvard’s move away from standardized tests in making admissions decisions. For years, Harvard has been accused of lowering admissions standards to achieve “equity” goals in its classes. The school opposed efforts to uncover its admissions data. When that data was ultimately revealed, sharp differences emerged based on race. The differences led to the historic decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, 600 U.S. 181 (2023) barring the use of race in college admissions. As court decisions made it...

Gov. Shapiro promises to defend antisemitic mosque against Trump administration. Gov. Josh Shapiro attended an ‘iftar’ dinner at a mosque where an imam had previously declared that “Jews are the vilest people”, and announced a huge grant for the hate mosque. The $5 million grant, described as the largest ever given to a Muslim institution, came only 5 years after the Al-Aqsa Islamic Society in Philly was forced to apologize for posting hateful Islamic sermons by an imam delivered at its mosque declaring that the Arabs were superior to all races, that Jews were the “enemies of Allah” and the...

MANHEIM TOWNSHIP, Pa. (WHTM) — A local contractor has pled guilty after being charged with stealing jewelry from a homeowner. The Manheim Township Police Department says that on March 13, a contractor was hired to work on a property on Fleetwood Drive. After the contractor left, the homeowner noticed a pair of custom diamond earrings in the bathroom where work was being done were missing. The earrings were previously purchased for more than $9,500 and had a Gemological Institute of America (GIA) number to help identify the diamonds. The homeowner contacted area jewelers to alert them of the earrings in...