Free Republic

Former Libertarian National Committee Chair Angela McArdle shared details of a meeting she had with then-Republican candidate Donald Trump during the 2024 election cycle in a speech delivered at the NH Liberty Forum this past month. McArdle also discussed her experience with the campaign and her role in securing a pledge from Trump to pardon Ross Ulbricht. McArdle recounted the events in a mainstage keynote address at the annual gathering, which is hosted by the Free State Project. Local media estimated that around 300 attendees participated in the full forum. McArdle’s talk, titled “The Heart of the Deal,” covered her...

The Libertarian Party of San Francisco passed resolutions this month denouncing recent immigration policies enacted by the Trump administration, as well as the decision by former Libertarian National Committee Chair Angela McArdle to award President Donald Trump an honorary lifetime membership with the party. According to a statement from the party published on social media, both resolutions were adopted by those in attendance at the party’s February 8 meeting. The party did not specify how many members attended, only noting that the resolutions were unanimously approved. The statement also reiterated that only Libertarian Party of California members affiliated with the...

@RealRossU I got to see the ocean for the first time in over 11 years because @realDonaldTrump released me from prison. On this President's Day, I would like to acknowledge a truly great American President, one who cares about freedom and second chances. Here's to you President Trump.

"Thank you so much, President Trump, for giving me this amazing blessing."

Ross Ulbricht has been pardoned by President Donald Trump

President Trump on Tuesday granted a pardon to Ross Ulbricht, the creator of the Silk Road drug marketplace and a cult hero in the cryptocurrency and libertarian worlds. In doing so, Mr. Trump fulfilled a promise that he made repeatedly on the campaign trail as he courted political contributions from the crypto industry, which spent more than $100 million to influence the outcome of the election. A Bitcoin pioneer, Mr. Ulbricht, 40, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 2015, after he was convicted on charges that included distributing narcotics on the internet. “I just...

@TheHodeman I again reiterate that Trump will likely free Ross Ulbricht. The chair of the Libertarian Party assures us that she has a deal in place with him. According to her, she's busy working on getting ANOTHER political prisoner freed (I'm interested to see who!). The chair also said that he tried to free Ross during his first term and the papers were slow-walked back. If this is true, the pardon is basically a guarantee. The pardons were always scheduled to take place after the Inauguration Party tonight. I understand we're all eager to see him freed. I, too, am...

Libertarian National Committee Chair Angela McArdle stated in an email on Friday that she is already in communication with Republican Donald Trump’s team regarding the appointment of a libertarian to a cabinet position in his incoming administration. In the email to party supporters, McArdle extended her “heartfelt thanks and appreciation” to Libertarian nominees Chase Oliver and Mike ter Maat, their campaign team, and their supporters, describing 2024 as “the most challenging election year in the party’s history.” McArdle acknowledged that, while the Libertarian Party did not win the presidency, she believes it will still have an influence on the incoming...

Donald Trump addressed the Libertarians’ National Convention on Saturday night in an effort to win over activists who are skeptical of the GOP frontrunner, and turn them away from independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The Libertarian National Convention is being held at the Washington Hilton hotel through Sunday with the tagline: "Become Ungovernable." The former president addressed a rowdy crowd, seemingly split 50-50 between his supporters and Libertarian skeptics. Trump tried to win over the crowd, saying: "In the last year, I've been indicted by the government on 91 different things. So if I wasn't a libertarian before, I...

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump plans to announce at the Libertarian National Convention on Saturday that he intends to commute "Silk Road" website operator Ross Ulbricht's life in prison sentence, according to a source familiar with the matter. Ulbricht was sentenced to life in federal prison in 2015 for creating and operating a hidden website known as the "Silk Road" that people used to buy and sell drugs, among other illegal goods and services. Many libertarians have called for Ulbricht's release. At the convention on Saturday, the crowd was filled with "free Ross" signs and took up chants in...

@LPNational This is the eleventh Christmas Ross Ulbricht has spent in prison. This is absolutely unacceptable. We won't rest until he's able to celebrate his next Christmas with family.

@RealRossU Tomorrow I’ll begin my 10th year in prison. I don’t know what to say. I screwed up. I ruined my life and caused a lot of pain. When I look back and see my many mistakes, I feel immense regret.

Earlier this week, the bitcoin community was shocked when a digital wallet containing roughly $1 billion in bitcoin...was emptied by an unknown individual. The Department of Justice announced on Thursday that it had seized the wallet’s contents as part of a civil forfeiture case targeting the Silk Road. The government said it retrieved the roughly 70,000 bitcoins with the help of an unnamed hacker, whose identity is known to the government but who is simply referred to as “Individual X” in court documents. “Individual X” allegedly hacked the Silk Road’s payments system some time in 2012 or 2013. The government...

The coronavirus infection spreading across the United States prison system is throwing Ross Ulbricht’s confinement into sharp relief. Found guilty of seven charges including money laundering, conspiracy to traffic narcotics and computer hacking, the controversial founder of the Silk Road is currently serving a double life sentence plus 40 years, without the possibility of parole. As the pandemic worsens conditions for the nation’s large prison population, Ross spends 22 hours a day behind bars in Tucson, Ariz., where he’s currently being held. Outside visits are stopped so Ross’s mother, Lyn, and other loved ones, who work tirelessly for his release,...

My son, Ross Ulbricht, is a first-time offender serving a double life sentence without parole, plus 40 years, for a website he made when he was 26 years old and passionate about free markets and privacy. Ross―an Eagle Scout, scientist and peaceful entrepreneur―had all non-violent charges at trial. He was never prosecuted for causing harm or bodily injury and no victim was named at trial. This is a sentence that shocks the conscience. There is a strong consensus that Ross’s case is a miscarriage of justice. Over 250 organizations, eminent individuals and leaders have voiced their support. The website Silk...

Two former federal agents accused of stealing bitcoins have been charged with wire fraud, money laundering and related offenses, the U.S. Justice Department said in a statement. Carl Force, a former special agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration, and Shaun Bridges, a former Secret Service special agent, were both part of a Baltimore task force investigating Silk Road, the online marketplace often labeled the eBay of the drug trade. Force was given the task of establishing communications with Ross Ulbricht, aka "Dread Pirate Roberts," the San Francisco man who has been linked to Silk Road. Ulbricht was convicted last month...

It’s unquestionable that the United States prides itself on the freedoms which establish its foundations, but it is also undeniable that our very own judicial system is just as guilty of violating these freedoms. reason magazine On June 2nd, Reason magazine was issued a subpoena by a U.S. district court, demanding “any and all information” on six of the magazines’ readers. When the organization didn’t comply, the government authorized a gag order, prohibiting Reason from discussing or acknowledging the order and the subpoena. “Given the seriousness of the potential legal sanctions, I was exceedingly anxious that a Reason staff member...

Ross Ulbricht was jailed for life after he was accused of being Dread Pirate Roberts who ran online black market site But his horrified mother Lyn claims there has been a miscarriage of justice and is fighting for his freedom In a revealing interview she described her 'gentle' son as an idylistic graduate with little money But she says he was branded as a cyber-criminals by a legal system that rode roughshod over natural justice

Things are really starting to heat up regarding the Silk Road marketplace (as if things already weren’t hot enough). Following the start of Ross Ulbricht’s trial last week, a bitcoin trader has been sentenced to four years in prison due to his unveiled connections to the underground illegal market. Robert M. Faiella (who often operated under the code name “BTCKing”) has recently pled guilty to operating an illegal money transmission business.  Often times, the business saw to the exchange of fiat currency for bitcoins, which would then be used to purchase drugs and other items from Silk Road. Faiella, a...