Free Republic

Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) has come under fire after making changes to his personal Twitter account in preparation for a reported presidential bid announcement this week. Previously known on Twitter as @GovRonDeSantisFL, the governor’s new handle now reads @GovRonDeSantis. The decision to drop the “FL” from his handle has been interpreted by some as an act of distancing himself from the state that propelled him into the national spotlight. Critics argue that by removing the “FL,” DeSantis is effectively signaling that he views Florida as a means to an end and has little intention of continuing his service as governor...

Russian strongman Vladimir Putin railed against American “exceptionalism” and “moral degradation” on Monday during the country’s annual “Victory Day” parade, celebrating the defeat of Nazi Germany that Moscow claims for itself. The Putin regime has for years denied any significant American contributions to ending World War II – going as far as to declare the legendary D-Day landing of American troops at Normandy “not a game-changer” – instead giving all the credit for the fall of Adolf Hitler to the communist Soviet Union under mass murderer Joseph Stalin. Russia marks its contributions to World War II on May 9 with...

President Volodymyr Zelensky has slammed NATO as “weak” for refusing to enforce a no-fly zone in Ukraine, saying it will bear responsibility for future Ukrainian deaths. Speaking at a public press conference, the Ukrainian president branded a recent NATO summit on the war in Ukraine “weak” and “confused” and evidence that “not everyone considers the struggle for freedom to be Europe’s number one goal.” “Knowing that new strikes and casualties are inevitable, NATO deliberately decided NOT to close the sky over Ukraine,” he railed. “We believe that NATO countries themselves have created a narrative that the closure of the sky...

Olympic hammer thrower Gwen Berry's history of offensive tweets has been uncovered after she snubbed the American national anthem during trials last weekend. Berry, 32, made a variety of tasteless jokes and observations in messages dating back up to ten years, but which are still visible on her account. The athlete - who has insisted that the National Anthem is racist - posted tweets mocking Chinese, Mexican and white people.

So did Trump blow it by implicitly telling Rep. Ilhan Omar to go back to her home country, fix it up, and get back to us? Did he overplay his hand? Is a remark like that, universally decried by Democrats, a step too far? Not by Trump's standards. The controversial string of tweets, which stirred the pot mightily in the press, was as politically incorrect as it comes. In fact, Trump hasn't put out a string like this since the 2016 campaign...... It's telling that even as Pelosi spars with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Trump took on Ocasio-Cortez's pal, Rep. Ilhan...

Last week on CNN, retired NFL tight end Martellus Bennett and “CNN Tonight” host Don Lemon were discussing members of the Boston Red Sox visiting the White House to celebrate their World Series victory with President Donald Trump in the context of Bennett having opted out of a White House visit when the New England Patriots won the Super Bowl with Bennett as a player. Bennett’s responses spoke to his belief that although many white players in pro sports do show solidarity with black players who decry alleged racism, they cannot understand what black players experience as black men in...

Deutsche Welle’s Spanish language channel, DW Español, traveled to Tijuana in order to interview some of the migrants living in the camps. A reporter asked one of the migrants how the living conditions were in the camp. The woman complained about the food she had been given in the camp, calling it food for “pigs” and saying she would “die of hunger” if she did not eat it. “The truth is, the food that they’re handing out here is terrible,” the woman complained while holding up the food platter. “Look at what they’re giving us. Refried beans, as if they...

The Capitals have already expressed some interest in visiting the White House as the NHL's newest Stanley Cup champions, but at least one of their players won't be making the trip. During the Stanley Cup Final, Caps forward Devante Smith-Pelly, who is one of the NHL's few black players, said that he would likely skip a trip to the White House thanks to his distaste for Donald Trump and the things the president has said in the past. Nearly a week after winning the Cup, Smith-Pelly stood his ground on the matter.

The president calls the father of one of the detained UCLA players a 'poor man’s version of Don King, but without the hair' President Donald Trump did not mince words when he extended his feud with LaVar Ball into Wednesday, calling the father of one of the three UCLA basketball players detained in China an “ungrateful fool” the day before Thanksgiving. Ball, the outspoken father of LiAngelo Ball, refused to thank Trump for interceding with Chinese President Xi Jinping on behalf of his son and the two other players arrested for shoplifting and detained in China earlier in November. Although...

American financial, humanitarian and military help began in the second half of the 20th century. Throughout America’s generosity in helping other countries, there has been an underlying, unspoken assumption that there would be gratitude on the part of the recipients. And we do, indeed, see gratitude being expressed -- only to vanish in a very short period of time afterwards, sometimes to the point of hostility replacing the gratitude (this phenomenon is not limited to the United States; we see this occurring time and again between countries).

Furious San Francisco 49ers fans are burning Colin Kaepernick jerseys after he refused to stand for the national anthem as part of a racial protest. One fan even played The Star-Spangled Banner as he set light to the Number 7 shirt, watching with his hand on his chest as it was reduced to ash. Another, who uploaded a video to Instagram under the handle Nate3914, called the $19million-per-year athlete an 'ignorant son of a b****.'

An utterly shocking video has emerged that was shot inside a German school, which shows "integrated" Muslim migrants making a stunning admission about the "disgusting" Germans that took them in, and it should serve as a warning of what's to come for America. The clip shows a woman speaking to a group of Muslim teens inside of a German high school. In it, she asks if they know what the word "integration" means, which starts a discussion about how they really feel about the German people, and it's not pretty. One of the girls says that "integration" means to "exclude...

In the last two weeks, the news has been inundated with stories concerning the Paris attacks, the manhunts in Belgium and France, the subsequent ISIS threats to US and NATO and Russian interests across the globe and the seemingly infinite bad news from the Middle East. The story of campus protests across this country, which had been in the forefront of media coverage, has taken a back stage to much more important things. Nevertheless, the story is still there and the question of why college students are protesting at all, is mystifying. It is important to examine this on Thanksgiving,...

The December jobs report was truly awful, with 74,000 non-farm jobs created and the labor-force participation rate at a 35-year low. Liberals -- the same bunch who insist that the climate is warming at an alarming rate -- were quick to point to cold weather as a factor discouraging job-creation. They also insisted that the jobs numbers are volatile and that they might be better next time. Of course, they might be worse. Regardless, nothing can hide the fact that Obama's job-creation record has been a disaster. Having "focused like a laser" on job growth several times in the past,...

'Bloomberg' column details former US defense secretary's feelings that Netanyahu was "impudent," unable to cope with growing Israeli isolation. Freshly retired US defense secretary Robert Gates was highly critical of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, calling him an ungrateful ally and blaming him for diplomatically isolating Israel and hurting American interests, a Bloomberg column revealed Tuesday. The criticism, reported in a piece by Jeffrey Goldberg, apparently peaked after Netanyahu met with US President Barack Obama last May, lecturing him in front of the cameras on the Israeli security situation with a level of "impudence" that shocked many in the White House,...

After Manzano finished his race and secured his medal, he did what athletes typically do at the Olympics. He held up his country's flag -- the Stars and Stripes. The 27-year-old was born in Mexico, but the United States is his country now. His father migrated here illegally from the city of Dolores Hidalgo. Manzano was brought here when he was 4. Like most immigrants, they came in search of greater opportunity. And they found it -- for themselves, and their children. You can't help but be proud of Manzano and the country that allowed him the opportunity to fulfill...

Syrian refugees started a riot in a Gaziantep refugee camp today, taking down the Turkish flag and replacing it with their own, DoÄŸan news agency reported. Syrian refugees at the site began protesting about the 1,500 Turkmen refugees that had been added to the camp, precipitating a verbal argument with security officials. The row soon escalated into a riot as hundreds of Syrians took Turkish police officers hostage and seized their guns. The Turkish flag at the entrance was taken down and refugees replaced it with their own. Syrian refugees also heavily damaged the central building nearby while destroying computers...

South Korea has joined the only other two countries in the world that have dropped the name of the forthcoming film Captain America and replaced it with the subtitle, The First Avenger. The other two countries are Russia and Ukraine. According to the New York Times, “Although that country [South Korea] is one of Hollywood’s top-performing territories, resentment about the continued presence of the United States military runs deep.” For years now I have intended to write a column about the most glaring case of international ingratitude of which I am aware. The Captain America story has finally pushed me...

BERLIN (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki told a German magazine he supported prospective U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's proposal that U.S. troops should leave Iraq within 16 months. In an interview with Der Spiegel released on Saturday, Maliki said he wanted U.S. troops to withdraw from Iraq as soon as possible. "U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama talks about 16 months. That, we think, would be the right timeframe for a withdrawal, with the possibility of slight changes."

The Bird Feeder I bought a bird feeder. I hung it on my back porch and filled it lovingly with seed. It was indeed a beautiful bird feeder. Within a week we had hundreds of birds taking advantage of the continuous flow of free and easily accessible food. But then the birds started building nests in the boards of the patio, above the table, and next to the barbecue. Then came the bird shit. It was everywhere; on the patio tile, the chairs, the table ... everywhere! Then some of the birds turned mean. They would dive bomb me and...