Free Republic

OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - The nation's second-largest Indian tribe formally booted from membership thousands of descendants of black slaves who were brought to Oklahoma more than 170 years ago by Native American owners.

Veteran political columnist David Broder set off a firestorm recently when he called Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid an "embarrassment'' for declaring the Iraq War "lost.'' From the assault subsequently directed at Broder — from other journalists, political operatives, left-wing bloggers and even the entire 50-member Senate Democratic Caucus — you'd have thought Broder had had an intimate encounter with an intern. Or, in the spirit of bipartisanship, had broken into Democratic National Committee headquarters. Broder committed no such dastardly deed, but merely did what he has done for the past 35 years. He called it as he saw it...

Bill Jones strode to the podium at the Republican National Convention last week and, in a speech that lasted two minutes, took a telling verbal detour. Whereas fellow Republican Senate candidates delivered tag-team endorsements of President Bush, Jones mentioned the head of the Republican ticket only once, almost as an afterthought, while praising a certain former movie actor three times. "The California dream is alive and well with Arnold Schwarzenegger as our new governor," Jones said during the convention's opening hours, his voice echoing through New York City's mostly empty Madison Square Garden. "With his dynamic leadership, and that of...

<p>As California's top leaders wade into the huge job of creating a more fair and straightforward school financing system, they won't be going it alone.</p> <p>In a number of states across the nation, lawmakers and school leaders are challenging the status quo and reforming the way they pay for their schools.</p>

Whether she runs for the White House in 2004 or 2008, it looks as if there's a Bush in Hillary Clinton's future. "If Jeb is in the mix [for the 2008 nomination] it's his," a top GOP official tells U.S. News & World Report this week. Equally certain, say insiders, is the fact that former first lady will make her move in 2008, which could set up another Bush vs. Clinton election. With the Iraq war's result adding to GOP confidence that President Bush will be re-elected, speculation is now turning to his successor, the magazine says. And Jeb's name...