Free Republic

A federal judge has ruled that President Donald Trump acted illegally when he seized control of California’s National Guard during ICE-related riots in Los Angeles. U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer issued the decision Thursday, siding with Governor Gavin Newsom and ordering Trump to return control of the Guard to the state "forthwith." "His actions were illegal—both exceeding the scope of his statutory authority and violating the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution," Breyer wrote. "He must therefore return control of the California National Guard to the Governor of the State of California forthwith." "Federalism is not optional," the...

President Trump has ordered the California National Guard to secure Los Angeles from the anti-ICE rioters, despite the vocal objections of Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and LA Mayor Karen Bass. It’s the first time in 60 years that the commander-in-chief deployed a state’s National Guard without the governor’s blessing, and members of the Trump administration are saying the move is justified because the protests represent a “violent insurrection” against the country. “This is a violent insurrection,” White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller posted Saturday night. Vice President JD Vance also used the word in describing the riots: “Insurrectionists carrying...

*** Driving the news: In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel first obtained by Axios, Reps. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) and Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) asked that they "immediately clarify whether this allegation is true." The lawmakers asked for a timeline of the DOJ's declassification and publication of the Epstein files, an explanation for why they haven't turned over any new documents since February. And they requested a description of Trump's role in reviewing the files, a list of personnel involved in their release and an answer for why files previously released to Congress contained "significant...

Elon Musk on Thursday said that his company SpaceX will begin decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft “immediately” because of threats by President Donald Trump to cancel government contracts with Musk’s businesses. Musk’s announcement, on his social media site X, came amid an escalating war of words with Trump that began after the Tesla CEO criticized the major tax bill being pushed by the Republican president. “In light of the President’s statement about cancellation of my government contracts, @SpaceX will begin decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft immediately,” Musk wrote. Dragon is the only U.S. option for delivering crew to and from the International...

Elon Musk went nuclear on President Trump Thursday, accusing him of withholding information from the public about Jeffrey Epstein because it would implicate him. “Time to drop the really big bomb,” Musk posted on X after a multi-hour tirade against the president. “@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files.” That is the real reason they have not been made public,” he claimed. “Have a nice day, DJT!” The disgraced financier’s association with Trump has been known for years as the two were videotaped and photographed together at parties in the 1990s.

Elon Musk has split with Donald Trump on tariffs in the latest sign the billionaire is distancing himself from the White House. The president's special adviser told a political rally he hopes to see a 'zero tariff situation' between the US and Europe to create a free trade zone. On Wednesday, Trump introduced a controversial 20 percent tariff for Europe along with even higher tariffs for other global trading partners as what he dubbed 'Liberation Day'. But while the president has been pushing US isolationism, Musk espoused a more collaborative approach. 'I hope that the United States and Europe can...

Second gentleman Doug Emhoff has denied a shocking report that he slapped his then-girlfriend more than a decade ago after thinking she was flirting with another man. “This report is untrue,” an Emhoff spokesperson told Semafor, adding that “any suggestion that he would or ever hit a woman is false.” The Daily Mail reported Wednesday, citing three friends of the unidentified woman, that Emhoff smacked his then-lover so hard in the face that she was “spun around” after an event at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival in France. One of the woman’s friends told the outlet that she called him...

Vice President Kamala Harris’ husband is being accused of slapping his ex-girlfriend for flirting with another man at a ritzy gala in 2012, a new report claims. Second gentleman Doug Emhoff, 59, supposedly struck his then-girlfriend — a successful New York attorney — in the face so hard, she spun around while in a valet line after an event at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2012, three unnamed friends of the woman reportedly told the Daily Mail. The woman — who was identified only as Jane — allegedly called one of the friends sobbing in her cab immediately after...

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters declined to endorse a presidential candidate on Wednesday after releasing internal polling that showed a majority of its members supported former President Donald Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris. *** “Unfortunately, neither major candidate was able to make serious commitments to our union to ensure the interests of working people are always put before Big Business,” Teamsters President Sean O’Brien said in a statement. “We sought commitments from both Trump and Harris not to interfere in critical union campaigns or core Teamsters industries – and to honor our members’ right to strike – but were...

New polling showed Vice President Kamala Harris with a widening margin over former President Donald Trump in a Reuters/Ipsos poll published Thursday. It found Harris leads Trump 45% to 41%. Among registered voters, the 4 percentage-point lead was more significant than the 1-point lead Harris had over Trump in the outfit’s last poll in July. The poll had a 2% margin of error. Over in polling guru Nate Sliver’s latest models, Harris didn’t fare as well. “Although we wouldn’t advise worrying too much about the difference between a 52/48 race one way versus a 48/52 race the other way —...

Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz blamed his “passion” for his exaggerated claims of carrying “weapons of war … in war” when asked to address the controversy Thursday in CNN’s interview with the Democratic ticket. The Minnesota governor and 24-year National Guard veteran made the comment suggesting he had combat experience in an anti-gun violence video in 2018, which recently resurfaced. I speak candidly. I wear my emotions on my sleeves, and I speak especially passionately about about our children being shot in schools and around, around guns,” he told CNN’s Dana Bash. “So I think people know me. They...

President Biden has signed off on a highly classified plan that shifts America’s nuclear strategy to focus on China as a nuclear threat — and prepare for the possibility that the communist nation could team up with North Korea and Russia against the US, according to a new report. Biden made the shift in March because the Pentagon believes China’s nuclear arsenal will rival the US and Russia, the New York Times reported Tuesday, citing sources. The new strategy is called the “Nuclear Employment Guidance” and also readies the US for a possible coordinated threat between China, Russia and North...

Former President Donald Trump declared there has “never been a more dangerous time since the Holocaust” to be Jewish in the US on Saturday night. The Republican presidential candidate made the remarks at a campaign rally event in Wilkes-Barre Pennsylvania, where he claimed Vice President Kamala Harris decided against choosing Penn. Gov. Josh Shapiro as her running mate because he is Jewish. “They turned him down because he’s Jewish,” Trump told a packed house at the Mohegan Sun Arena. “They turned him down for other reasons, but the primary reason is because he’s Jewish,” the ex-president continued, adding that “any...

Former White House adviser Kellyanne Conway joined the chorus of GOP strategists who want former President Donald Trump to change his tone on the campaign trail. Conway told Fox Business anchor Larry Kudlow during an interview on Monday that her former boss needs to adapt his rhetoric to produce a “winning formula” against Vice President Kamala Harris. “The winning formula for President Trump is very plain to see,” Conway proclaimed. “It’s fewer insults, more insights, and that policy contrast.” The GOP strategist worked closely with Trump for three years before retiring from her role as counselor to the president in...