Free Republic

Wayne Newton would be the perfect entertainer for the inauguration. He is the king of Las Vegas. Still going strong.

You take them where you can get them, right? So goes the presidential campaign of Minnesota Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann. Following Tuesday night’s CNN Western Republican debate, Bachmann made a surprise appearance on Fox News Channel’s “On the Record” with long-time Vegas entertainer Wayne Newton. That’s where Newton revealed he would be supporting the Minnesota congresswoman’s candidacy. “I watched the entire debate, and I don’t have to tell you how proud I was of this lady because not only did she hold her own, but she kind of stood alone and I’m not talking about being female,” Newton said. “I’m...

All too familiar with the gambles of war, Jimmy Kinsey, Kyle Riley and a few dozen fellow soldiers landed in the desert. But for these guys this Memorial Day, the most at stake is a few bucks. The soldiers-turned-high rollers took a private jet to Las Vegas over the weekend for an all-expenses-paid getaway with all the perks normally saved for casinos' richest regulars. They were greeted at the airport by Wayne Newton, chilled backstage with the guys from Blue Man Group and hobnobbed with Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire casino mogul who runs Las Vegas Sands Corp. and paid for...

In a December 23 USA Today front page story, “USO cheers troops, but Iraq gigs tough to book; Safety concerns, disagreement with war keeping many celebrities from volunteering,” reporters Martin Kasindorf and Steven Komarow related how actor/comedian Robin Williams, “who like [Al] Franken has been an outspoken critic of Bush's management of the war -- and [Wayne] Newton, a Republican who backs Bush, say some stars have turned down the USO because they thought such performances would amount to endorsing the war.” But in a Friday evening Nightline story, Terry Moran, through his use of soundbites from two left-wingers, portrayed...

LOS ANGELES, June 19 — Celebrities ranging from Kid Rock to Wayne Newton are performing for U.S. troops in the Gulf this week as part of the first large-scale entertainment tour of the region since the outset of the Iraq war, sponsors said on Thursday. Three groups of performers and athletes taking part in the tour paid visits on Thursday to American military personnel in Baghdad, the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and the Ali al-Salem air base in Kuwait, said Donna St. John, a spokeswoman for USO World Headquarters in Washington. On Wednesday, the celebrities performed at the Tallil air...

Celebrities entertain U.S. troops in Gulf LOS ANGELES, June 19 (Reuters) - Celebrities ranging from Kid Rock to Wayne Newton are performing for U.S. troops in the Gulf this week as part of the first large-scale entertainment tour of the region since the outset of the Iraq war, sponsors said on Thursday. Three groups of performers and athletes taking part in the tour paid visits on Thursday to American military personnel in Baghdad, the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and the Ali al-Salem air base in Kuwait, said Donna St. John, a spokeswoman for USO World Headquarters in Washington. On Wednesday,...

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Celebrities ranging from Kid Rock to Wayne Newton are performing for U.S. troops in the Gulf this week as part of the first large-scale entertainment tour of the region since the outset of the Iraq war, sponsors said on Thursday. Three groups of performers and athletes taking part in the tour paid visits on Thursday to American military personnel in Baghdad, the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and the Ali al-Salem air base in Kuwait, said Donna St. John, a spokeswoman for USO World Headquarters in Washington. On Wednesday, the celebrities performed at the Tallil air near...