Free Republic

WASHINGTON, Aug. 14, 2006 – America will remain on the offensive against al Qaeda and nations that support terror groups, President Bush said here today. Bush met with Vice President Dick Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Marine Gen. Peter Pace and other members of his national security team at the Pentagon and the State Department. The group discussed progress in the global war on terror and national security transformation during the series of meetings. During a news conference at the State Department following the meetings, Bush said...

WASHINGTON - The largest union in the AFL-CIO — representing state and local government workers — is beginning a multimillion-dollar effort to mobilize its members to vote, work for improved health care and organize more workers. The effort will be paid for by increases in the dues paid by workers and the fees paid by local unions. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, with 1.4 million members, voted this week in Chicago to increase the "per capita tax" it charges affiliate unions, union President Gerald McEntee said Thursday. McEntee said the union will raise $60 million from...

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK With its soaring granite walls and spouting waterfalls, Yosemite's Hetch Hetchy Valley was described by conservationist John Muir as "a grand landscape garden, one of Nature's rarest and most precious mountain temples." Much of the glacially carved valley now lies under 300 feet of water. It was dammed and flooded more than 80 years ago to supply drinking water and hydropower to the San Francisco Bay area. For years, environmentalists have advocated draining the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and returning the valley to its original splendor, while opponents say that would cost a bundle at a time when...

Pressure on Blair to push for ceasefire in Lebanon By George Jones, Political Editor, Malcolm Moore in Rome, and Patrick Bishop (Filed: 27/07/2006) America used yesterday's peace summit in Rome to block hopes of an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon, as a YouGov poll suggested that public disquiet was growing at Tony Blair's approach to the crisis. Hizbollah fighters continued to put up determined resistance to Israeli forces in southern Lebanon, killing eight soldiers, the biggest loss since the conflict began 16 days ago. Maj Gen Udi Adam, the chief of Israel's Northern Command, said: "The fighting will continue for several...

BEIRUT, Lebanon - Israeli troops punched into south Lebanon on Wednesday as warplanes flattened buildings including one thought to hold Hezbollah's top leaders, intensifying an offensive despite mounting international pressure and a Lebanese appeal to spare the country further death and devastation. Hezbollah denied that any of its "leaders or members" died in the strike in the Bourj al-Barajneh district of south Beirut. The explosives did not blast a leadership bunker, but a mosque under construction, the group said in a statement faxed to The Associated Press. The strike was the most dramatic action on a day that saw Israelis...

Islamists in fresh Mogadishu push The Islamists made rapid advances in June Heavy fighting has broken out in the Somali capital, Mogadishu. The Islamic Courts militia, which controls most of the city, is attempting to take a southern area held by warlord Abdi Qeybdid. At least seven people were killed and 16 wounded as fighters exchanged mortar, rocket and machine-gun fire. The militia ousted most warlords from the capital in June, in an effort to restore order. It has been accused of al-Qaeda links - which it denies. BBC regional analyst Martin Plaut says the battle under way in Mogadishu...

GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli forces pushed into the Gaza Strip on Wednesday after threatening a major offensive to try to bring home a soldier captured by Palestinian militants, the army said. Tanks and armored vehicles entered the territory near the southern town of Rafah less than a year after Israel pulled thousands of soldiers and settlers from the territory following 38 years of occupation. An army spokeswoman confirmed the troops had moved into Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing. Meanwhile, aircraft struck at three bridges on key roads in what the army said was an attempt to stop militants moving...

MINORITY REPORT Jesse Jackson 'exposed' in reportTrial uncovers new details of leader's 'shakedown' tactics Posted: June 24, 2006 1:00 a.m. Eastern © 2006 WorldNetDaily.com Jesse Jackson Government watchdog Judicial Watch has released a report it says reveals new details about the intimidation and shakedown tactics of Jesse Jackson's Rainbow Push Coalition. The report, "Jesse Jackson Exposed," claims Jackson is "an extortionist who uses his influence as a civil rights leader to essentially blackmail wealthy corporations with absurd discrimination threats." Judicial Watch says that while some of Jackson's tactics have been published, this report offers new information gathered during the discovery...

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson said he is no stranger to the nation's immigration issue. The nation's only Hispanic governor, whose state is 50 percent Latino, wants help from leading black and Latino leaders to form an alliance that would protect the interests of undocumented immigrants living in the United States. Richardson said documented immigrants in his state have been an asset, but more should be done by the government to prevent illegal immigrants from crossing the Mexican border and piggy-backing off immigrants who have tried to live and work in the country legally. "Some have brought violence, drugs and...

RAMADI, Iraq - Hundreds of American and Iraqi troops backed by a U.S. gunship pushed into an insurgent-infested section of eastern Ramadi, expanding their campaign to bolster their presence in one of Iraq's most violent cities. No U.S. casualties were reported, but six insurgents were thought to have been killed by fire from the AC-130 Spectre gunship in the initial hours of the operation, U.S. commanders on the ground said. Sporadic gunfire between U.S. troops and insurgent snipers echoed throughout the neighborhood. The troops were trying to establish a new outpost in Ramadi's eastern Mulaab neighborhood that would allow U.S....

A shareholder group is gaining momentum in its efforts to pressure companies to disclose charitable giving -- with donations linked to the Rev. Jesse Jackson... The National Legal and Policy Center has stepped up efforts to require corporations to disclose more details about their donations... The Rainbow/PUSH Citizen Education Fund, which in 2001 provided payments to Jackson's former mistress. The Church Falls, Va.-based non-profit group hit two shareholders meetings this week -- Boeing on Monday and PepsiCo Inc. on Wednesday. "Many shareholders would certainly object to their money going to a controversial and divisive figure like Jesse Jackson," said Peter...

WASHINGTON, April 14, 2006 – With a stroke of Veterans Affairs Secretary R. James Nicholson's pen here today, all 15 U.S. Cabinet secretaries have now signed a joint statement in support of the Defense Department's Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve organization. Veterans Affairs Secretary R. James Nicholson (right) became the last of the 15 U.S. Cabinet secretaries to sign a joint Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve statement of support. Thomas F. Hall (left), assistant secretary of defense for reserve affairs, delivered remarks during the April 14 ceremony. Photo by Samantha L. Quigley  (Click photo for screen-resolution...

Diplomatic push is planned to curb Iran's nuclear ambition By Anton La Guardia, Diplomatic Editor (Filed: 28/03/2006) The world's key powers will seek this week to reach agreement on a strategy that will build up pressure on Iran. This could lead to sanctions being imposed by the summer unless Teheran halts the most dangerous parts of its nuclear programme. Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, along with foreign ministers from the United States, France, Germany, Russia, and China will meet in Berlin on Thursday at a gathering designed to finalise a United Nations call on Iran to comply with international demands,...

Britain, US and France push for timetable to make Iran reveal atom secrets By Anton La Guardia in Vienna (Filed: 11/03/2006) Britain, America and France were pushing last night for Iran to be given a quick timetable to come clean about its nuclear programme or face "targeted" United Nations sanctions. Western countries have long sought to reassure sceptics that they only want a "gradual" process of building up pressure on Teheran to co-operate fully with nuclear inspectors. But at a meeting last night with Russia and China, the three western members of the UN Security Council were pushing for Iran...

WASHINGTON, March 9, 2006 – Retired Marine Gunnery Sgt. R. Lee Ermey, famous for his role as a drill instructor in the movie "Full Metal Jacket," has joined forces with a Midwest Junior ROTC unit to help support troops and their families. Retired U.S. Marine Gunnery Sgt. R. Lee Ermey signs autographs for students from Wentworth Military Academy at the "Unmet Needs" benefit concert in Kansas City, Mo., Feb. 25, 2005. The concert, featuring Gary Sinise and the Lt. Dan Band, kicked off Unmet Needs, a VFW program offering financial aid to military families in need. Photo by Phil...

Week of March 4, 2006; Vol. 169, No. 9 , p. 132 Ancient Andean Maize Makers: Finds push back farming, trade in highland Peru Bruce Bower Nearly 4,000 years ago, large societies emerged in the Andes Mountains of southern Peru that would culminate 1,500 years later in the rise of the Inca civilization. Now, scientists have the first evidence that these Inca predecessors cultivated maize and imported plant foods from lowland tropical forests located 180 miles to the east. HIGH TIMES. Researchers excavate Waynuna, a site in Peru's Andes Mountains that has yielded evidence of early agriculture and food...

Coretta Scott King will be sorely missed. For the 51 years since the Montgomery Bus Boycott, she has shown amazing endurance, strength and resilience. She walked with her husband during the bus boycott. Their home was bombed. She endured the threats and the slanders. When Dr. Martin Luther King was shot in Memphis, I called her to inform her that he had been shot. She organized his funeral. And she came to Memphis to lead the march he was to lead. She shared his sense of commitment. President Bush has announced that he will attend her funeral to honor her....

Dems' bill would enforce video-game age controls By KRISTINA HERRNDOBLER Copyright 2005 Hearst News Service Dec. 16, 2005, 9:05PM U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) speaks at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington to introduce federal legislation to protect children from inappropriate video games, December 16, 2005. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas WASHINGTON - A trio of Democratic senators unveiled a proposal Friday to impose fines on retail outlets selling or renting violent and sexually explicit video games to children younger than 17. In introducing the legislation, Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., and Evan Bayh, D-Ind., said it would...

U.S., Europe Won't Push for Move on Iran Tuesday November 22, 2005 12:46 AM By GEORGE JAHN Associated Press Writer VIENNA, Austria (AP) - Washington and its European allies will forgo pushing for Iran's referral to the U.N. Security Council later this week, giving Russia more time in persuading Tehran to give up technology that could make nuclear arms, diplomats and officials told The Associated Press on Monday. For the Americans and the European Union, the plan holds the promise of success even if Iran continues to reject the proposal that would move its uranium enrichment program to Russia. The...

TORONTO, October 31, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - On November 10, 2005, Toronto's St. Michael's Cathedral will be holding a fundraiser for an event sponsored by St. Michael's Catholic Hospital to provide "'Life with Dignity' to people affected by HIV/AIDS in the developing world." However, Catholics and pro-family groups are concerned that the St. Michael's Hospital fundraising project, called "Angels in Africa", contravenes the teaching of the Catholic Church and the best health options for people threatened with AIDS by promoting condom usage.