Free Republic

Did President Trump seek authority from Congress to attack Venezuela? The short answer is no. There is no indication that Donald Trump sought or received advance authorization from Congress before ordering the strikes. Last month, Trump publicly stated that he did not believe congressional approval was required to launch attacks against targets in Venezuela, including strikes on land. He said he might brief Congress but would not seek formal legal authorization. In December, Republicans, joined by a small number of Democrats, voted down two separate War Powers resolutions in the House of Representatives that would have required congressional approval for...

In an early sign of congressional concern about the U.S. operation, Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah questioned President Trump's authority to use the military in Venezuela without authorization from Congress. "I look forward to learning what, if anything, might constitutionally justify this action in the absence of a declaration of war or authorization for the use of military force," he said in a social-media post.

'Tis the season for Senator Rand Paul to air his Festivus grievances about government waste! It's out, and it's spectacular! We're proud that--for the 7th year straight--the report features wasteful animal tests exposed by WCW, including: 🐶 $5.2M to inject beagles with cocaine and meth (NIH) 🐕 $13.8M for Dr. Fauci’s ongoing maximum pain tick bite experiments on beagles (NIH) 🦆☣️ $1M for a dangerous USDA-CCP bird flu gain-of-function collaboration (USDA) 🦭🐬 $77M for the Navy’s outdated Marine Mammal Program (DOD) 🐁🤰$2.8M to implant bone, liver, and thymus tissue from aborted human fetuses into lab animals to create “BLT mice”...

Majorities of Israelis oppose granting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a presidential pardon in his criminal trial…according to a new survey conducted for Zman Yisrael, The Times of Israel’s Hebrew-language sister site, this week. In response to the question, “Do you support or oppose Netanyahu’s request for a presidential pardon without admitting guilt or expressing remorse?” 53.2 percent of respondents said they oppose it, while 42.4% said they support it, and 4.4% said they don’t know. On the issue of ultra-Orthodox draft exemptions, the respondents were asked if they support or oppose the law proposed by MK Boaz Bismuth: 53.8% said...

Most Americans are not antisemitic, but concerns over Israel reflect “a real backlash to consensus view in American foreign policy,” United States Vice President JD Vance assessed in a Monday interview… The vice president said Fuentes serves as a “useful foil” for some pro-Israel conservatives, allowing them to avoid a substantive discussion about US policy toward Israel. Vance said that while he believes “Israel is an important ally... we’re also going to have very substantive disagreements with Israel – and that’s OK.”

Summary A few Republicans join Democrats in criticizing Epstein release as inadequate Justice Department missed deadline for full Epstein file disclosure Critics say redactions fuel conspiracy theories, erode Trump support The U.S. Justice Department released a partial, heavily redacted set of Epstein-related files on December 19-20, 2025, missing a congressional deadline for full disclosure under a bipartisan law signed by President Trump in November. The release included approximately 300,000 pages of documents, photos, and materials, with extensive redactions—including entirely blacked-out sections—and featured prominent references to former President Bill Clinton but few to Trump. Criticism came from both parties: Democrats accused...

President Donald Trump's announcement of the Patriot Games, a sporting event to celebrate 250 years of America, has sparked debate. Critics have likened the idea to The Hunger Games series, noting that in both, one boy and one girl are chosen to represent their region.

Ben, I’ve known you a long time, brother. You can’t handle the truth. Let’s face it, Ben Shapiro is the farthest thing from MAGA. Let’s be blunt. He is a hardcore never-Trumper. He’s a hardcore never-Trumper. In the spring of ’16, he tried to upend Breitbart. He walked off the job, made a big deal about some incident in Mar-a-Lago with Corey Lewandowski. He tried to turn it to Ted Cruz from Donald Trump because he hated Donald Trump. In the general election, he barely supported Donald Trump. The first sign of– when President Trump gets sent back to Mar-a-Lago,...

While we wait for the impending release of the federal government files on Jeffrey Epstein the files of the Epstein Estate released earlier raise questions about Epstein that go beyond sex abuse and sex trafficking. Jeffrey Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre wrote in her posthumous memoir published after her suicide that Jeffrey Epstein trafficked her to other men including one identified in versions published in countries with lenient libel laws: "a well-known former Prime Minister" Giuffre wrote of that former Prime Minister's brutal treatment of her. One former Prime Minister does figure prominently in relation to Epstein namely... In 2016 Jeffrey...

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said Sunday that partisan gerrymandering will “lead to more civil tension and possibly more violence in our country,” urging restraint in the ongoing redistricting wars playing out in more than a dozen states. “I think there is the potential that when people have no representation, that they feel disenfranchised, that it can lead, it might lead to violence in our country,” Paul said in an interview with Kristen Welker on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Paul’s warning comes as state lawmakers across the country consider redrawing congressional lines at the insistence of President Donald Trump, with Democratic-led...

One of the big fights coming this January is how to reform the failing Obamacare program, aka, the Unaffordable Care Act. Without massive COVID-era subsidies, users will pay a lot more in 2026. The program itself has so many problems, beginning with the fact that many well-off people qualify, and so much money goes to directly fund insurance companies, no questions asked. It is more than past time to just let this whole mess disappear. But many working people who don’t qualify for Medicaid need some options. Sen. Rand Paul has perhaps the simplest and most effective answer, one that...

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who voted with President Trump 98% of the time before her relationship with him fractured, accused the president in a recent interview with 60 Minutes of forsaking his base. The Georgia representative has recently split with the president on a number of issues, including affordability and foreign affairs. She said she believes he's failed to keep domestic policy as his top priority. In her resignation video, Greene said the president has forsaken the MAGA base, specifically pointing to his support of the crypto and pharmaceutical industries. "Those are the areas that are still getting everything they...

Bill Cosby’s sprawling New York townhouse was sold less than a month after being listed for $29 million, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky identified as the buyer through an offshore company – Film Heritage Inc. While the final sale price remains undisclosed, the deal marks the end of a turbulent financial chapter for the disgraced entertainer and his wife, Camille, according to the New York Post. The purchase coincides with a $100 million corruption scandal engulfing Zelensky’s administration, with several of his closest allies accused of involvement in a massive kickback scheme. Earlier this year, the Cosbys were accused in...

@RepThomasMassie Republicans campaigned on reducing spending, but after the election almost all Congressmen voted to spend hundreds of billions more in 2025 and 2026 than in 2024.

Sens. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.) issued a statement Saturday vowing to conduct “vigorous oversight” on Caribbean strikes after a report surfaced that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the U.S. military to “kill everybody” aboard an alleged drug vessel. “The Committee is aware of recent news reports — and the Department of Defense’s initial response — regarding alleged follow-on strikes on suspected narcotics vessels in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility,” the senators wrote in a joint statement. “The Committee has directed inquires to the Department, and we will be conducting vigorous oversight to determine the facts related to...

The nation’s largest TV station owners want Carr’s Federal Communications Commission to loosen the rules that limit how many stations a single company can operate, a goal that many conservatives have been pressing for years. But they have a formidable opponent in Trump confidant Chris Ruddy, the majority owner of Newsmax Media, who wants to keep the rules in place and now appears to be making headway with the president. “NO EXPANSION OF THE FAKE NEWS NETWORKS,” Trump wrote Sunday on Truth Social, echoing Ruddy’s argument that removing the ownership cap would hurt conservatives. “If anything, make them SMALLER!” Since...

As the US Navy remains primed for action in the Southern Caribbean, Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro prepares for what could be an American attempt to remove him. And as President Trump alternates between calling Maduro on the phone and authorizing air strikes, a bevy of misinformation is being peddled by public figures with an agenda. There are so many claims and counter-claims on the air waves right now that it’s difficult to separate fact from fiction. A sizable chunk of this disinformation is of course being sold by Maduro himself, a man who has learned from his predecessor and mentor,...

Summary For a serving president, Trump is unusually engaged in midterm strategy Trump tries to pivot to affordability, urging Republicans to highlight tax cuts Democratic control of the House could re-open risk of impeachment proceedings WASHINGTON, Nov 24 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump isn't on the ballot in next November's midterm elections, but he’s plunging into them with his own presidency at stake. He's calling candidates, making early endorsements, shaping strategy and pushing economic messaging to try to keep Congress in Republican hands, according to nine Republicans involved in election strategy. As early as this summer, 18 months before Election...

President Donald Trump is delaying a planned announcement of a proposal to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies, according to two White House officials, after congressional Republicans pushed back against the president’s sudden embrace of the expiring subsidies. Trump was expected to unveil a plan aimed at halting ACA premium spikes on Monday, as first reported by MS NOW. But the reveal has been postponed — though not canceled — said the White House officials, who were granted anonymity to discuss the internal strategy. Both White House officials noted that Trump’s announcement — which was never officially on the schedule —...

This is a excerpt “More explosive early resignations are coming. It’s a tinder box. Morale has never been lower,” the anonymous representative continued. “Mike Johnson will be stripped of his gavel and they will lose the majority before this term is out.”