Free Republic

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stated Tuesday that he flew on Jeffrey Epstein's plane twice, contradicting a previous claim by his spokesperson last month. Kennedy was asked if he had ever flown with the late Epstein, who had been widely suspected to have been involved in sex trafficking and child exploitation prior to his death, to which the presidential candidate said he had flown with Epstein in 1993 and again in 2012. The statement contradicts what Kennedy's spokesperson said in November when he said he had “flown one time on Jeffrey Epstein’s private plane" with his then-wife Mary,...

It appears some mountain lions appear quite comfortable at a home in Rapid City, South Dakota. According to Annie Mueller, who lives at the home, the mountain lions visited at approximately 6 a.m., 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Tuesday, and returned at 7 a.m. on Wednesday. Security camera video from Tuesday morning even shows one of the cougars checking out Mueller’s front door before climbing up on a bench. Historically, mountain lions have lived throughout South Dakota, with many located in the Black Hills, according to the state’s Game, Fish and Parks department. Their population declined in the 1900s...

The South Dakota Democratic Party will be closing the doors at both of its offices due to financial troubles, leaving the state with no Democratic Party offices. The state party will be closing offices in Sioux Falls and Rapid City at the end of September, the Argus Leader reported. No layoffs for party staff have been announced, and employees will begin working remotely due to the party’s budget problems, according to state party Chairwoman Paula Hawks. Hawks told the Argus Leader the party is setting fundraising goals and meeting with party donors and Founders Club members. "We are feeling very...

The bronze likeness of Obama is the latest addition to Rapid City’s City of Presidents project. The idea is to honor American presidents with life-size bronzes scattered throughout the downtown. Each statue is privately funded and placement follows a preset pattern to make sure there is no favoritism or political bias in the process. Since the project began in 2000, every president besides Obama have been immortalized on the streets of Rapid City from notables like Thomas Jefferson to obscure chief executives like Rutherford B. Hayes. Tanya Manus at the Rapid City Journal reports that the 44th president's sculpture was...

The Pentagon has responded to a globally-released ‘Kill List’, asking law enforcement to give extra protection for military personnel whose personal information was released,News Channel 10 reports. CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reports the Pentagon spent the weekend notifying the soldiers who appeared on the list, and urged city police departments and military police to increase patrol in the neighborhoods where the targeted live. The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) published the list days ago, a report that contained names, photos, and home addresses of U.S. Armed Forces personnel, causing alarm in cities potentially at high-risk....

A conference to discuss and analyze Islam that began Friday continues today in Rapid City. Today's schedule for the Answering Islam Conference begins at 9 a.m. in the Rushmore Room at the Ramkota Hotel and Convention Center. Topics include "How to Reach Muslims for Christ," "How has Islam infiltrated American Politics" and "How to Refute Islam." Speakers include Shahram Hadian, who is described on a promotional poster as a former Muslim who became a Christian pastor, and Tom Wallace, founder of the "Fortress of Faith" radio show. There is no charge for admission. The event has a number of local...

No, apparently this is not a spoof, the scion of the man who was responsible for the Cuban blockade is full of awe for the Cuban dictatorship. Sure, it’s a dictatorship, but other than that, it’s just ducky, apparently. Writing in the South American news agency MercoPress, Robert F. Kennedy avers, after admitting the dictatorship and lack of a free press: Despite its poverty, Cuba has managed some impressive accomplishments. Cuba’s government boasts the highest literacy rates for its population of any nation in the hemisphere. Cuba claims its citizens enjoy universal access to health care and more doctors per...

In early December, President Barack Obama announced the restoration of diplomatic relations with Cuba after more than five decades of a misguided policy which my uncle, John F. Kennedy, and my father, Robert F. Kennedy, had been responsible for enforcing after the U.S. embargo against the country was first implemented in October 1960 by the Eisenhower administration. The move has raised hopes in many quarters – not only in the United States but around the world – that the embargo itself is now destined to disappear. This does not detract from the fact that Cuba is still a dictatorship. The...

Tea Party Express Coming to Rapid City By Bob Ellis on October 12th, 2009 Entertainer Lloyd Marcus at the Bloomington, IN Tea Party Express (Photo credit: Dr. Theo) You heard about the Tea Party Express a month or two ago as these limited-government patriots toured across the United States, ending up in Washington D.C. for a huge historic protest in our nation’s capital.The first cross-country tour was such a success,  they are doing it again.  Starting October 25, the Tea Party Express will party in San Diego, California and end on November 11 in Jacksonville, Florida.On November 2, the Tea...

The recession has prompted another newspaper to fold. Thursday's edition of The Rapid City Weekly News was the last to hit the newsstands.

WESTWOOD ONE LAUNCHES THE MONICA CROWLEY SHOW --New Program to Air Saturdays, Noon - 3 p.m. ET-- Beginning Saturday, April 1, 2006 New York, NY Monday, Mar 20, 2006 - Westwood One (NYSE: WON) is proud to announce the national launch of The Monica Crowley Show, the three-hour talk program hosted by author and news personality Monica Crowley. The show begins Saturday, April 1, 2006, and will air from noon to 3 p.m. ET. The Monica Crowley Show will debut on major market stations across the country including: WABC-AM New York, WTKK-FM Boston and WTNT-AM Washington DC. The show will...

The eyes of South Dakota —maybe even the nation — could be on Pennington County tomorrow morning, waiting for election results. Pennington County is the second most populous in the state, behind Minnehaha County, but Pennington County's two vote-counting scanners are only half as fast as Minnehaha's five machines. Heavy turnout combined with more than 13,000 absentee ballots in Pennington County mean that returns here likely will come in later than most counties. "There isn't any way we'll get done before 3 in the morning," Pennington County Auditor Julie Pearson said. If the race between Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle...

Dallas man gored by buffalo07/08/2003Associated Press RAPID CITY, S.D. - A Dallas man was hospitalized after being gored by a buffalo that charged him as he stood near the open driver's door of a minivan in Custer State Park. Jeff Bunch, 30, of Dallas, suffered a deep puncture wound to his left buttock on Sunday evening and is recovering from surgery to remove a 1-inch long splinter of buffalo horn. Bunch, 30, and two brothers, David, 27, and Brian, 21, and their mother, Deanna, all of Dallas, were touring the Black Hills park about 6:30 p.m. Their rented minivan...

Daschle-NARAL Letter Brings Response in South Dakota Last week, the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL) sent out by e-mail a national fundraising appeal written on NARAL's behalf by Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D, South Dakota). The text of the Daschle-NARAL letter appears at the bottom of this e-mail. In response, the Roman Catholic bishop of the Diocese of Rapid City, South Dakota (the western portion of the state), ordered the following letter to be read at all Catholic masses over this past weekend. In the Senate race in South Dakota, incumbent Democratic Senator Tim Johnson, who...

It seems like just yesterday, your NRA was at the forefront of its most critical election battle ever. The 2000 elections resulted in the victory we fought so hard together to achieve. But, there is no rest for the weary, and we must begin NOW to prepare the groundwork to ensure our success in the 2002 elections. The anti-gunners are already re-doubling their efforts to ensure the defeat of pro-Second Amendment candidates in critical elections across the country on Election Day 2002 -- November 5. With elections for all 435 U.S. Representatives, 34 U.S. Senators, 36 Governors, and thousands of...