Free Republic

Almost no elected Republicans support giving gays the right to marry. The party’s influential social-conservative wing sees “traditional marriage” as a defining issue. And while most major Democrats are rushing to embrace same-sex marriage, none of the most prominent potential Republican presidential candidates have taken that step.But a powerful group of Republican donors, who see the GOP’s staunch opposition to gay rights as a major problem, is trying to push the party toward a more welcoming middle ground — where candidates who oppose marriage rights can do so without seeming hateful.The behind-the-scenes effort is being led largely by GOP mega-donor...

For the second day in a row, The Washington Post showed it was bored by the IRS scandal by putting the hearings story inside the paper. Instead, the top of Wednesday's post seized on the favorite liberal scandal du jour: "Military chiefs lament sex assaults but reject Senate bill." Their Post Express tabloid screamed this front-page headline: "CAN THE MILITARY CURE ITS 'CANCER'?" This is also the second day in a row that the Post has saved room on the front page to attack the ethics of Virginia's Republican governor, Robert McDonnell. The IRS hearings were on A-2, and below...

Media: A major newspaper suppresses damning video of Barack Obama partying with pro-terrorism radicals. Meanwhile, Obama punishes news outlets that do their jobs. Fairness Doctrine anyone? Los Angeles Times owner Sam Zell must have thought of the Chicago Cubs when he OK'd the layoff of 75 editorial employees this week. Zell owns the lovable loser Cubs, who haven't won the World Series in a century, and the liberal media are turning into the Cubs of modern communications. But news-hungry consumers don't find it lovable when the media elite keep important stories to themselves. John McCain has demanded that the L.A....

The emergence of Sarah Palin as a political force in the presidential race has left many top Democrats fretting that, just two weeks after their convention ended on an emotional high, Barack Obama's campaign has suddenly lost its stride. Obama has responded aggressively this week to Palin's presence on the Republican ticket, using TV ads and campaign rallies to attack her contention that she is a political reformer who will take on the Washington establishment -- a role Obama has long claimed as his alone. But some Democrats are now worried about the perils of Obama's strategy, saying that his...

At his press conference this morning, President Bush, who often makes inside jokes when familiar reporters pose questions, asked Los Angeles Times reporter Peter Wallsten, who was wearing sunglasses outside, “Are you going to ask that question with shades on?” Bush noted that there was "no sun" but added, “I’m interested in the shade look, seriously.” Turns out Wallsten is legally blind and wears the sunglasses due to a rare genetic disorder called Stargardt’s Disease. But Wallsten later told the ThinkProgress web site that Bush’s comments did not offend him at all. “I never advertise it to him. I’ve never...

This is the response from Peter Wallsten from a couple of emails to I sent today concerning Freepers and the Forum......

September 12, 2004 Hurricane Dan: Get serious Los Angeles Times reporter Peter Wallsten meticulously reconstructs the events of this past Thursday following the CBS 60 Minutes broadcast that have led to the exposure of the "new" documents featured in the Air National Guard story as forgeries: "No disputing it: Blogs are major players." Wallsten's article does not raise any question that we might have erred in doubting the authenticity of the documents or offer any support for their authenticity. Rather, it gives voice to desperate Democratic operatives who claim the fraudulence of the documents is a Republican conspiracy: "It was...

Where the FL Story of Jeb's New DCF Chief Should Have Appeared: "The Weekly World News" Written by summer - a former Dem, now an independent and a FL certified teacher Florida media went into a heated overdrive this week. "Far right" headlines across the state screamed about Gov. Jeb Bush's new appointment to lead the DCF (the state's Department of Children and Families, better known as the agency responsible for child foster care and adoption). In the The Miami Herald, we find the Tallahassee Bureau Chief and political editor, Peter Wallsten, listed among other newspaper staff members, all claiming...