Free Republic

Howdy everyone!! The first week of our second quarter 2012 Freepathon is complete and we've raised the first TWELVE percent of our goal. One percent per day keeps the 404 away, but we need your help to get her up to full battle speed. No matter who wins the nomination or the election, we're going to need FR more than ever to hold their feet to the fire. We're hoping for the tea party rebellion of 2010 to continue in November 2012. It's unlikely that we're going to have a conservative in the Presidency, but if we can continue taking...

It goes something like this: Say, that’s a nice government-contracting business you have there. Shame if anything happened to your income stream, huh? Now, what would it be worth to you to make sure your bid doesn’t get dropped on the floor — and have you seen our new policy proposals on the environment and obesity? Want to win a contract to operate concessions on federal property? Be ready to explain how your business promotes Obama administration desires like “climate friendly strategies” and the first lady’s “Let’s Move!” anti-childhood obesity effort. Proposal documents obtained by The Daily Caller reveal that...

Fellow Minnesotans Tim Pawlenty and Rep. Michele Bachmann appear to have buried the hatchet after bitter sniping last year on the campaign trail. Bachmann donated $2,000 in March from her congressional leadership PAC to Pawlenty’s presidential campaign to help him retire the debt he accumulated during his failed presidential bid, according to a campaign report released Tuesday.

A Liberal organization that you may have never heard of before, netrootsnation.org, is preparing to have their seventh annual training session for radicals in Providence, Rhode Island, June 6th through 10th. 500 people have already put their money down to reserve a seat. Their goal is to amplify progressive voices on the internet by providing online and in person training to teach radicals, from environmental extremists to Occupy Wall Street, how to influence the public with their plans for us. Maybe they can also have a seminar on personal hygiene at OWS events. One of their goals apparently is to...

Disregarding the concerns of many in his party and many of the citizens who elected him, Idaho Governor Butch Otter is headed back to China to continue courting the world’s largest communist regime and second largest economy. The Republican Governor’s junket scheduled for April 14-21 comes on the heels of a resolution passed by the Idaho Republican Party casting doubt on the true purpose behind Otter’s cozying up to the Chinese government. Schmoozing with communists is nothing new for Governor Otter. In June 2010, he attended meetings in Beijing and Shanghai, extolling the economic virtues of his state and enticing...

FinancialSurvivalNetwork.com presents: Steve Skidmore of www.EndlessFraudDetection.com explains the rampant mortgage and foreclosure fraud that have taken place and how you can protect yourself from it. Many of you have asked me what you can do to stop from getting wrongly thrown out of your home. Well, the answer is, there's a lot you can do if your loan has been fraudulently documented and illegally transferred. The Federal Government has recently settled a lawsuit over illegal foreclosures with the major banks around the country. This settlement appears to open the way for banks to put their foreclosure operations back into full...

Which is to say: sneaky. If you need to catch up on this story, click here. And then check out the latest from Tom Maguire, who has been all over this: NBC is busy taking down the evidence of its repeated usage of its bogus edit of the George Zimmerman 911 call… Yesterday the discovery by Les Jones of two similar bad edits at NBC 6 Miami for stories from March 19 and March 20 were widely broadcast by the InstaPundit. As of this writing, those stories have been “fixed” by the web editors to eliminate the troublesome passages (and...

Wednesday, April 11, 2012 By AppleInsider Staff Published: 10:05 AM EST (07:05 AM PST) An antitrust suit accusing Apple and a number of book publishers of price fixing and collusion was filed by the U.S. Department of Justice on Wednesday. The complaint was filed in a New York district court against Apple, Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, and Penguin, according to Bloomberg. Indications first surfaced on Tuesday that the Department of Justice was readying an antitrust suit. The justice department is expected to settle with "several publishers" this week, as Reuters reported earlier that Simon & Schuster, Hachette, Penguin, Macmillan and HarperCollins...

CORCORAN, Calif. (AP) — Debra Tate hopes that Wednesday is the last time she has to walk into a prison holding Charles Manson and argue in front of a parole board panel that he should not be freed. For four decades the sister of murdered actress Sharon Tate has traveled to whatever rural California prison has held the notorious cult leader and his band of murderous followers for hearings she says are too numerous to count. "I've tried to take this thing that I do, that has become my lot in life, and make it have purpose," says the 59-year-old...

new Army laboratory will develop technology such as fuel cells and hybrid systems for combat vehicles as the Pentagon steps up its push for cleaner and more reliable energy, federal officials said today. The complex near Detroit was opening as the Obama administration prepared to announce a series of initiatives to create a greener U.S. military, which officials said is intended not to just to benefit the environment but also to improve fighting capabilities.

Nate Silver points out that Santorum is effectively blocked from seeking statewide federal office in Pennsylvania which means his future is up in the air: Mr. Santorum could also look to statewide office in Pennsylvania, but that might require a reasonably long wait. The incumbent governor there, Tom Corbett, is a Republican and is eligible for another term in 2014, so Mr. Santorum would either need to mount a primary challenge or hope that Mr. Corbett retires. Of Pennsylvania's two incumbent senators, one is a Democrat, Bob Casey, who resoundingly defeated Mr. Santorum in 2006 and who remains fairly popular....

Now that GOP has finally ended the inter-party squabble about who’s going to be the Republican nominee in November, it’s time to put in better focus why Obama is headed for an historic loss in the upcoming presidential election. To do that, we are going to trot out our standby “Why Obama is a Bad President.”As readers might remember, last summer Jonathan Alter asked the world why everyone thought Obama was such a terrible president, challenging us all to come up with reasons. We answered the challenge, but since it was such a stupid question to ask in the first place,...

"It was inevitable. Mitt Romney’s campaign has used a money advantage to shut out the competition. As I said when he won Ohio, Romney will be the nominee".

Fall of China official roils Chongqing, with some public dissent Residents who benefited from local chief Bo Xilai's initiatives openly defend him. But the crackdown, with sensational allegations against his wife, continues. By Jonathan Kaiman, Los Angeles Times April 11, 2012 CHONGQING, China — Change has come quickly to this sprawling city of 30 million people since the charismatic local party chief, Bo Xilai, was fired last month by the national Communist Party leadership in China's most high-profile political shake-up in 20 years. Signs in public squares now ban gatherings to sing "red songs," a prominent element of Bo's effort...

BEIJING — Order was being restored Wednesday after thousands of people clashed with police in a district of Chongqing that is struggling economically, a local official said. One witness from Wansheng, Liu Wei, said businesses and schools were closed Wednesday in the area. Liu said Wansheng residents were unhappy because some benefits, such as pensions and some teacher salaries, were reduced after the merger. On Wednesday, the Chongqing government posted a statement on its website saying the city would safeguard pensions and medical benefits for Wansheng residents. It also said Wansheng would enjoy the same favorable policies as it did...

The Obama Rule He says taxation is about fairness, not growth or revenue. Forget Warren Buffett, or whatever other political prop the White House wants to use for its tax agenda. This week the Administration officially endorsed what in essence is the Obama Rule: Taxes must be high simply to spread the wealth, never mind the impact on the economy or government revenue. It's all about "fairness," baby. This was long apparent to those fated to closely watch the 2008 campaign, but some voters might have missed the point amid the gauzy rhetoric about hope and change. Now we know...

"And we have plenty of gubs!"

Just a thought, what if we were able to coordinate a massive protest vote against Romney. We could find a group to run an ad of our own saying we're tired of Romney's relentless negatives, tired of his lack of a real platform, and tired of having him shoved down our throats. Can it be done? Sure, through Facebook and Twitter we can get the word out in days. Should it be done? Absolutely, it's our only chance to fight back and let them know we’re not their puppets. I know the usual beaten down "it can't be done" meme...

In the wake of Pope Benedict's visit, Cuban Catholics express frustration and anger as the Castro regime continues political repression and religious persecution.A day before Pope Benedict XVI’s historic visit to Cuba on March 26, I was in Arroyo Naranjo, one of Havana’s poorest areas, meeting with Lilvio Fernandez Luis, a Catholic and the leader of JACU, or Joventud Activa Cuba Unida. Lilvio spent the day showing me the life he has worked hard to create—a life built on a strong family and the courage to fight against the repression that the Cuban government has inflicted on its people for...

Obama admirer to teach ‘Understanding Obama’ class at Harvard Law School 11:53 PM 04/10/2012 Not every Harvard Law School alumnus has a class devoted to him — but then, President Barack Obama is not just any alumnus. According to the Harvard Law School course catalog, professor Charles Ogletree will be teaching a reading group called “Understanding Obama” for one classroom credit during the 2013 spring term. “This reading group will focus on the way in which race, religion, and politics have impacted the development of President Obama as a leader,” the Harvard Law School Course Catalog explains. “We will explore...