Free Republic

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) announced Friday that she would prioritize legislation permitting abortion across the country following the Dobbs v. Jackson Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade. “In the wake of this ruling, it is up to Congress to respond,” wrote Murkowski, vowing that she would continue “to work with a broader group to restore women’s freedom to control their own health decisions wherever they live.” She added: “Legislation to accomplish that must be a priority.” Murkowski recounted that she had introduced legislation earlier this year “to protect women’s reproductive rights as provided in Roe,” namely the...

PORTLAND, Ore. – On Friday, Dr. Monica Wehby refused an invitation from KGW and The Oregonian to appear in a televised debate against Sen. Jeff Merkley. One day later, she failed to show up for a scheduled interview with the Willamette Week. The newspaper reports that Wehby requested the interview be held Saturday to accommodate her schedule. Merkley and two minor party candidates, Christina Lugo of the Pacific Green Party and James Leunenberger of the Constitution Party, arrived on time.

Arkansas Rep. Tom Cotton, who announced this week that he will challenge Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor, attacked alcohol vendors, called for mandatory financial disclosures of campaign donations, favored banning cigarettes, and attacked libertarianism while he was a Harvard student. In a twice-weekly column for the Harvard Crimson, Cotton — who has been called a “Republican’s dream” by National Review and an “extraordinary figure” by the Weekly Standard — criticized politicians for not doing enough to oppose tobacco and wrote a laudatory 1996 piece praising Bill and Hillary Clinton. In 1997, Cotton wrote a scolding op-ed on alcohol and underage drinking...