Free Republic

@benshapiro has renamed the “Horseshoe Right.” They’re now simply the “New Left.” They believe: 🔘The constitution is antiquated and should be updated or replaced 🔘 America is a nefarious force in the world & our service members are war criminals 🔘 America’s enemies (Russia, China, Iran, etc.) are the good guys 🔘 Capitalism is corrupt & govt power is the solution 🔘 Americans can be divided by race into victims and victimizers Ben says they “have NOTHING in common with traditional conservatism, and they have nearly EVERYTHING in common with their new friends on the left.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I18-4lPkYzM

OK. I have been doing my best to read the Trump tea leaves, figure out the Art of the Deal, and parse all the information out there so that I can figure out Donald Trump's strategy in the Iran War. I thought I had a good handle on it, and until the past few days, Trump's behavior accorded pretty well with my overall theory. Trump's strategy appeared to have been to pressure Iran into full and complete capitulation on the issues of nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles (which exist to make attacking Iran nearly impossible), and to get the Strait of...

She is the loudest, most aggressive pro-Israel voice in Donald Trump's orbit. So when Laura Loomer leaned in close to the President two months ago and warned him that the American public was giving up on the Jewish State, his two-word reply landed like a thunderclap, carrying an ominous message for Benjamin Netanyahu. 'You're probably going to be the last pro-Israel President we ever have,' Loomer recounted telling Trump, in an interview with the New York Times. Trump, she says, replied: 'You're right.' The White House pointedly did not deny the exchange. Spokeswoman Anna Kelly instead offered a boilerplate response...

The national retail average for a regular gallon of gas was $4.457 on Monday. That's a 1-cent increase from Sunday, according to the American Automobile Association, and 35 cents more than last Monday. At this time last year, a gallon of gas was $1.29 cheaper. The surging prices seemed to stabilize or even decrease for about two weeks, following a temporary ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran that has been indefinitely extended. However, the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route where roughly a fifth of the world's oil passes, has effectively remained closed or extremely limited to passage...

The UK’s new ambassador to the US has described Keir Starmer as having been “on the ropes” over the Peter Mandelson scandal and said it is Israel rather than Britain that has a “special relationship” with the White House. Christian Turner, who took office in February to replace Mandelson as the UK’s most senior diplomat in Washington, made the remarks privately to a group of students visiting the US in the same month he was appointed. His remarks are embarrassing for Downing Street because they emerged in the same week that the king is carrying out his state visit under...

Continued failed diplomacy is only a deferral of catastrophe. Cognitive dissonance is in the air once again. Failed former Obama and Biden national security and foreign policy apparatchiks, Democrats in Congress, assorted globalists in Europe, pro-CCP influence peddlers, the European descendants of Neville Chamberlain, and the legion of legacy media talking heads have been doing their damnedest to undermine the long-delayed rescue operation of the Iranian people, who have been held hostage by a theocracy-driven autocracy since 1979. And that is exactly what Operation Epic Fury is: the rescue of the downtrodden and long-oppressed Iranian people from a tyrannical regime....

Two Israeli soldiers have been pulled from combat duty and given 30-day jail sentences after one photographed the other swinging what appeared to be a sledgehammer at the head of a statue of Jesus in southern Lebanon, the Israeli military said on Tuesday. Other troops who stood by but did nothing to intervene, the military said, have also been summoned and could face disciplinary action. The military replaced the damaged statue with a gleaming new sculpture of the crucifixion of Christ and released a photo of it. The extraordinarily swift administration of military justice by Israel was a tacit acknowledgment...

President Trump posted 4/19/26, on True Social: “Whether people like Israel or not, they have proven to be a GREAT Ally of the United States of America. They are Courageous, Bold, Loyal, and Smart and, unlike others that have shown their true colors in a moment of conflict and stress, Israel fights hard, and knows how to WIN! President DJT” April 19, 2026 Donald J. Trump

President Donald Trump announced a U.S. blockade on the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday. Trump made the announcement in a post on his Truth Social account, blaming the failure to reach a deal with Iran during talks in Pakistan this weekend. "So, there you have it, the meeting went well, most points were agreed to, but the only point that really mattered, NUCLEAR, was not. Effective immediately, the United States Navy, the Finest in the World, will begin the process of BLOCKADING any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz," Trump wrote. "At some point,...

Turkey’s president has threatened to invade Israel over its continued bombardment of Lebanon.Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accused Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, of being “blinded by blood and hate” and said there was “no reason” not to attack.The speech came after Turkish prosecutors filed indictments against 35 top Israeli officials, including Mr Netanyahu, seeking a total of more than 4,500 years in prison.

Key points: >Consumer confidence plunged to a record low in April as fears mounted over rising energy prices and the broader impact of the Iran war, according to a University of Michigan survey. >The drop in sentiment coincided with a sharp spike in inflation expectations, with respondents seeing prices up 4.8% in a year from now, a full percentage point rise from the March reading. Consumer confidence plunged to a record low in April as fears mounted over rising energy prices and the broader impact of the Iran war, according to a University of Michigan survey Friday. The university’s headline...

President Trump told The Post on Friday that US warships are being reloaded with “the best ammunition” to resume strikes on Iran if peace talks in Pakistan fail. Trump spoke shortly after Vice President JD Vance boarded Air Force Two en route to Islamabad, where he will be joined by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner to negotiate a final peace after a two-week cease-fire was reached on Tuesday. “We’re going to find out in about 24 hours. We’re going to know soon,” Trump said in a phone interview when asked if he thought the talks would...

Iran has once again closed the Strait of Hormuz, blocking oil tankers from transiting the waterway, in retaliation for Israeli strikes on Hezbollah, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-tied outlet Fars News reported on Wednesday. Oil tankers attempting to transit the strait received threatening messages from the Iranian Navy, according to several shipping sources. "Any vessel trying to travel into the sea ... will be targeted and destroyed..." the message, which was received by several vessels, said. This is a developing story.

When history books are written about Operation Epic Fury, analysts will spend chapters debating whether it was wise, justified, or legally sound. But one consequence may stand above all others in terms of shaping the next century of American foreign policy: the Iran conflict may have finally given the United States the political and moral clarity to walk away from NATO.That may not have been the intention. But sometimes the most important outcomes are the unintended ones. (snip) The Iran conflict has been enormously clarifying. When the United States launched military operations against Iran — alongside Israel, without consulting European...

Israel and the United States have finalized a comprehensive list of strategic targets to be struck in Iran should the Islamic Republic fail to meet the requirements of US President Donald Trump’s looming ultimatum, two sources confirmed to The Jerusalem Post. Agreement on the target list follows a series of intensive high-level discussions aimed at synchronizing the American and Israeli responses to Tehran’s continued defiance. In addition to the finalized list of objectives, operational coordination between the US military and the IDF has been completed. The final touches on the joint operational plan were made during a meeting last Thursday...

Ted Cruz endorses article accusing Traditional Catholics of being ‘parasites’Traditional Catholics are in the firing line in an article Ted Cruz described as 'the best and most comprehensive explanation of what we're fighting.'On Sunday, March 15, Senator Ted Cruz retweeted a long anti-Catholic X essay by the Republican Zionist account “Insurrection Barbie,” stating:READ every word of this.It’s the best & most comprehensive explanation of what we’re fighting.In the essay, which runs over 8,000 words, the author claimed that the Republican Party was being taken over by a small bloc of Catholics and undermining its support for “Christian Zionism.”A chief influence...

Iran’s leadership is facing an escalating internal power struggle as the country’s economy edges toward collapse, with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) increasingly consolidating control, according to an analysis by Iran International. The report describes what it calls the most significant political upheaval in Iran since the 1979 revolution, driven by a convergence of war, economic crisis, and a growing leadership vacuum. Together, these pressures are pushing the system away from its traditional balance between civilian government and unelected power centers toward what the analysis characterizes as a more overtly military-dominated structure. At the center of the tensions is...

Former White House adviser and key figure in the MAGA movement, Steve Bannon, has called on the United States Department of Homeland Security to deport Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's son, Yair, and send him to fight in Iran. “Netanyahu's kid down in Miami, turf him out tomorrow,” Bannon said. Similarly, on February 28th, a site was launched with the URL ‘DraftBarronTrump.com,’ a satirical site with fabricated quotes from the Trump family hailing Barron Trump’s bravery and how he should enlist to fight against Iran. A draft would require approval from both the president and Congress, and the US has not...

Israel approves death penalty law for Palestinians onlyDeath by hanging within 90 days is now the default punishment of Palestinians for offenses related to ‘terrorism,’ even as escalating Jewish settler terrorism continues with impunity.On Monday, Israel’s Knesset approved legislation requiring the death penalty for Palestinians found guilty of fatalities due to “terrorist” attacks. The measure was championed by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, head of the Jewish Power party, who marked the occasion by celebrating with champagne.The new “Death Penalty for Terrorists Law” specifically targets Palestinians calling for capital punishment in cases where a “terrorist” is convicted of deliberately killing...

Dear friends and family, We’re now entering the fifth week of the war, and you’re probably asking how are we feeling. Is the early‑war euphoria still there? How is the sense of national resilience doing? It’s hard to describe, but the dominant feeling is fatigue. There’s a well‑known phrase among the Jewish people—Am Yisrael Chai, “The Nation of Israel Lives.” Lately, a meme has been circulating in social media: “The Nation of Israel Lives… but it is DYING for some sleep.” That pretty much captures the mood. Iran has been firing about 10–15 missiles a day for weeks. Typically, it’s...