Free Republic

With the election of Zohran Mamdani as Mayor of New York, much conversation has been made of his appeal to “affordability.” As I’ve written previously, this is a noble conversation, but one that has been dishonestly framed (by Democrats and media) to date. I will use Mamdani’s comment in his acceptance speech to re-frame the debate. We will prove that there is no problem too large for government to solve, and no concern too small for it to care about.Mamdani and the Democrat party have effectively defined a binary choice: Should government or “the market” control affordability? The Democrats are...

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Nov. 7 proposed a new plan to end the record-breaking federal government shutdown, ahead of another possible vote on a Republican-backed bill to reopen the government. Schumer said on the Senate floor that his proposal would continue expiring premium tax credits under the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, for a year, giving lawmakers time to work out a longer solution.They are slated to expire at the end of this year. Open enrollment for Obamacare, when prospective customers first got a look at potential new costs, began on Nov. 1. “That’s not a negotiation....

A top economist in the Trump administration offered a fresh warning Friday about the record-setting government shutdown’s damaging effects, as the Senate struggled to make a deal to end the closure and airports began to reduce flights. “Because it’s so long, then the things that you can sort of fix for a little while are starting to run into blocks, and so we’re seeing that in air-traffic control and permitting,” Kevin Hassett, director of President Donald Trump’s National Economic Council, told reporters. “Basically throughout the economy, there are disruptions because of the Democrat shutdown that are going to start to...

Airlines have canceled more than 1,000 flights to comply with a shutdown-related FAA directive to reduce traffic at 40 airports, including Atlanta, Chicago and Dallas. Airlines canceled hundreds of flights Friday — the highest number since the government shutdown began — as they scrambled to comply with a Trump administration order to reduce air traffic amid growing concerns about potential staffing shortages. The administration announced Wednesday that it would direct U.S. carriers to trim their schedules by 10 percent at 40 U.S. airports — including major hubs in Atlanta, New York, Chicago and Dallas. “This isn’t about politics — it’s...

Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer offered a new plan to Republicans that would allow the U.S. government to reopen after a shutdown that began on Oct. 1. Schumer’s proposal calls for Democrats to agree to pass a so-called clean resolution that would provide short-term funding for government operations. In exchange, Republicans would agree to a one-year extension of existing enhanced tax credits that are used to reduce the cost of health insurance purchased on Affordable Care Act marketplaces.

“Several KATU viewers contacted us overnight to say their SNAP benefits loaded onto their cards late Thursday night. One viewer even sent a photo of their $748 dollar balance. The Oregon Department of Human Services confirmed on their website that SNAP benefits have started to load onto cards”

On the menu today: It’s an off-year election, and Republicans lived up to it by having an off year. A really off year — read on. We’re going to take yesterday’s elections in ascending order of importance, but first, the big picture. We’ve all heard President Donald Trump offering his usual spiel — “I’m the greatest, I’m the most popular, everybody loves me,” etc. Well, as of this writing, the president’s job approval in the RealClearPolitics average is 43 percent. If you’re wondering about the range, CNN has it at 39 percent, Rasmussen Reports has it at 47 percent. On...

More controllers are now calling in sick and some are working second jobs to make ends meet, according to union officials.As air traffic controllers miss their first full paycheck, more are calling in sick and some are working second jobs to make ends meet, according to union officials. (Scripps News) Air traffic controllers are missing their first full paycheck on Tuesday due to the government shutdown.The National Air Traffic Controllers Association, which represents those workers, is sharing the stories of those workers in an effort to push lawmakers to reopen the government.The president of the union says the added stress...

The White House has cut or paused billions in funding to Democratic-run cities and states since the federal government came to a halt.President Trump has embarked on a legally dubious campaign to weaponize the federal budget during a contentious government shutdown, halting more than $27 billion in approved funding in a bid to punish Democratic-led cities and states. Rather than broker a legislative truce or seek to ameliorate the fallout of a costly fiscal stalemate, the president has leveraged the crisis to exact revenge on rivals, slash federal spending and pressure Democrats into accepting his political demands. Since the shutdown...