Free Republic

President Trump on Friday said he wasn’t expecting Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Susan Collins (Maine) to vote against his controversial nominee for secretary of Defense, Army veteran and former Fox News host Pete Hegseth. “I was very surprised that Collins and Murkowski would do that,” Trump said. The president also nodded to the yes vote from Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to advance Hegseth’s nomination, saying he is “always a no vote. Was Mitch a no vote? How about Mitch?” McConnell voted to advance Hegseth’s confirmation. “Let’s see what happens,” the president said. The Senate voted largely along party...

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was “surprised” by the announcement of a plea deal between a U.S. military commission and three accused plotters of the 9/11 attacks, a Pentagon spokesperson said Monday, adding that Austin wants to see the case go to trial Austin, who revoked the plea deal Friday, “was certainly surprised as we all were,” said deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh. “This is not something that the secretary was consulted on,” Singh told reporters at a Monday briefing. “We were not aware that the prosecution or defense would enter the terms of the plea agreement.” The Office of...

During a press conference on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that he “would be totally surprised” if 67 members of the Senate voted to remove President Trump. McConnell stated, “I said I would be totally surprised if there were 67 senators to remove the president. That remains my view. However, we are obligated under the Constitution to turn to it when it comes over. And we will.”

For those like me who may have missed Glenn Beck growing a brain. 8>)

On Tuesday, I had the chance to attend a radio row on the White House grounds. I set up in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, and I prepared for a flood of surrogates and others to discuss President Donald Trump's tax plan. I hoped that some of the power players would stop by but assumed it would be a slew of mid-level staffers sharing the same stiff talking points about helping the middle class. What I got was Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, economic adviser Gary Cohn, Vice President Mike Pence and the president of the...

2016 GOP candidate Donald Trump joins Morning Joe to discuss Hillary Clinton's recent comments about his character, Thursday's shooting in Oregon, Kevin McCarthy and the migrant crisis in Europe. Duration: 12:30

A Malaysian passenger plane with 295 people on board has been shot down as it flew above eastern Ukraine, according to aviation sources. The plane, which is believed to have been flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was travelling at an altitude of 10km (6.2 miles) when it was shot down, Russia's Interfax reported. The Boeing 777 was brought down by a Buk ground-to-air missile, an adviser to the Ukrainian interior ministry quoted by the news agency said. he adviser said the 280 passengers and 15 crew members who were on the plane are all believed to have died. A...

America will not achieve President Obama’s goal of 1 million electric cars on the road by 2015. This is despite large subsidies from the federal government and many states for making batteries and vehicles as well as additional subsidies for purchasing these vehicles. Very few consumers are interested in expensive cars with limited range and the anxiety of not knowing if the battery charge will last for their entire journey. As a result, manufacturers are dropping prices in order to sell the vehicles they are forced to produce. First Nissan slashed prices of its plug-in vehicles early this year, then...

White House press secretary Jay Carney said Friday that the administration wouldn't be surprised if North Korea followed through on threats to launch a missle. "We've obviously seen the reports that North Korea may be making preparations to launch a missile. We're monitoring this situation cclosely, and we would not be surprised to see them take such an action," Carney said during a press briefing. "We have seen them launch missiles in the past and the United Nations Security Council has repeatedly condemned them as violations of the North’s obligations under numerous Security Council resolutions, and it would fit their...

President Obama’s spokesman said he was “surprised” that Republicans laughed at a proposal from Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner that would raise taxes by $1.6 trillion, increase spending, and give the president unilateral control over the debt ceiling. “I was surprised they [the Republicans] were surprised,” White House Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters today during the press gaggle when asked about the proposal Geithner made in a meeting with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. “There is no reason for anybody to be surprised.” Geithner foreshadowed this proposal with comments made to Bloomberg TV last week. “It would have...

What a coincidence! Obama just happened to find three friendly veterans in a booth at a Portland diner this week. It was a “surprise stop.” At least, that’s what local King5 told us.

Fatima, Portugal, May 14, 2010 / 09:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Fr. Federico Lombardi, the spokesman for the Vatican, said it was not a surprise that hundreds of thousands of people were in Fatima for Pope Benedict's Mass at Fatima yesterday. He recognized a "vitality" in the response and commented on the Holy Father's observation that the prophetic mission of Fatima is not complete.Estimates put the number of pilgrims in Fatima for Wednesday morning's Mass at around half a million between those who filled the enormous esplanade that sprawls before the Church of the Most Holy Trinity and the tens...

It was a homecoming to cherish for Chief Warrant Officer 3 John Allen. The Apache helicopter pilot spent a year in Afghanistan before returning home on Saturday night to the Pinal Air Park. While Allen was away, friends and family refurbished his 1964 Plymouth Belvedere. Dozens of friends and family were on hand at his arrival Saturday night to surprise him with the car. Allen stared in disbelief before cracking a smile and embracing his family. He said, "I was very excited to be home. This here is just over the top, unbelievable!" Allen's friends came up with the idea...

The purpose of FreeRepublic.com's multiple message boards is to limit the topics for each board to particular topics. Posting the same message on all the boards defeats the purpose of multiple-boards for special topics. It is very annoying to see the same message on every bulletin board. PLEASE! DO THE READERS A FAVOR. STOP CROSS-POSTING YOUR MESSAGES!

U.S. President George W. Bush's resolve to move the Israeli-Palestinian peace process forward surprised many Israelis, who believed that the current administration in Washington fears stepping into the Middle East quagmire and will make do with diplomatic lip service only. But Bush has undergone a change, as discovered by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon at their meeting in Aqaba last Wednesday. Bush had spoken of his desire for an Israeli-Palestinian accord in the past too, but not with much enthusiasm. This time, Sharon discerned a messianic passion he hadn't seen before. The practical expressions of U.S. involvement have been the multitude...

Can Saddam Hussein be surprised? The answer is yes, if the Americans have good, precise intelligence, and of course, a good operational plan - and even then, it depends on the type of surprise. Without good intelligence, the surprise will be dependent on accident and luck. There are simple or tactical surprises with temporary or partial effects, but they can also turn into a series of actions that will obstruct Saddam's moves and have a significant influence on the war. That sort of surprise, for example, could be a rapid occupation of western Iraq, to prevent an Iraqi action against...

A Few of FR's Finest...........Every Day FR is a Treasure Trove of talented, compassionate, patriotic, wonderful people who gather every day to discuss the latest news and issues; salute and support our military and our leaders;  tell a few jokes;  learn a new word;  write poetry;  pray for those in need;  and congratulate those who are deserving. Thank you, Jim Robinson, for giving us the vehicle in which we can express ourselves. Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   I can remember lurking when there were only a few regulars...