Free Republic

Petition to legalize 4TH TRIMESTER abortions.

As the Affordable Care Act goes into effect, Andy Pudzer, CEO of conjoined fast-food chains Carl's Jr and Hardee's, went on Fox News to tell Megyn Kelly that President Obama is flat-out "wrong" in thinking that health-care reform has no widespread effect on the job market, claiming that employers, himself included, are overwhelmingly choosing to hire part-time employees to avoid paying for benefits. It's baffling that companies continue to admit their preference for hiring more part-time employees, rather than paying for health care for those working 40 hours a week. Here, Pudzer helpfully spells out his house rules. He tells...

The Cadillac ELR extended range electric luxury coupe will go on sale in January for $75,995, including destination charges. Derived from the 2009 Converj concept car, the ELR will have a driving range of more 300 miles between the dual fuel powertrain of an electric motor and a gas generator. The electric-only range is 35 miles, General Motors says, but once the battery loses power the 1.4-liter gas generator takes over to power the electric motor. If this sounds like the Chevy Volt, the other plug-in hybrid (PHEV) or extended range electric (EREV) produced by GM, it’s because the ELR...

Let's start the count down. I hope I make it that long financially, emotionally and physically.

In late summer 2012, Army First Lieutenant Clint Lorance ordered one his "marksman to engage" Afghan men approaching their position on a motorcycle. The marksmen killed two of the three men; because they were unarmed, Lorance was charged, tried, and, in just over a year, sentenced to 20 years in Leavenworth. Yet as the Washington Times reports, the charges ignore the fact that "a common enemy tactic is for unarmed fighters on motorcycles... to track [U.S.] unit movements... with cell phones." On the other hand, after Army Major Nidal Hasan killed 13 soldiers and wounded more than 30 during his...

What do America’s college students want? They want to be oppressed. More precisely, a surprising number of students at America’s finest colleges and universities wish to appear as victims — to themselves, as well as to others — without the discomfort of actually experiencing victimization. Here is where global warming comes in. The secret appeal of campus climate activism lies in its ability to turn otherwise happy, healthy, and prosperous young people into an oppressed class, at least in their own imaginings. Climate activists say to the world, “I’ll save you.” Yet deep down they’re thinking, “Oppress me.” In his...

An iconic Michiana company is closing. Tuesday, FOX28 talked with owners of the Bonnie Doon plant and downtown Mishawaka location. They tell us there are many reasons for the shutdown such as the declining economy and the rise in production costs. But the number one factor? The anticipated cost of the Affordable Care Act.

Despite no evidence in financial markets of a default, House Speaker John Boehner (RINO-OH) will bring the Senate clean Continuing Resolution (CR) to The House floor for a vote. The endless spending and debt growth in Washington DC will continue now that the Senate has turned over the power of pursestrings to The President (once House Republicans agree). Obamacare was already a tremendous transfer of power and control to the Executive Branch, and now capitulating to President Obama gives the Executive Branch overwhelming power and control. In order to honor our career politicians in Congress and the Administration, the Washington...

Carney announces that now the CR and Debt Ceiling have gone Obama's way, the president is putting "immigration reform" back on the front burner. "It's the right thing for America."

RUSH: I want to go back to the lady on the phone who says this doesn’t feel right. What’s happening here to the country just doesn’t feel right. You know what’s happened here? You know what this feels like, folks? I’ll tell you exactly what it feels like to me. You tell me if this isn’t close. It feels like we’ve lost a war to a communist country. It’s almost like there’s been a coup. There’s been a peaceful coup. The media has led this coup, and the Democrats have taken over with popular support. We’re getting policies and implementations...

Love Wins in Wake of Zamboanga War Aftermath By Lucille Talusan CBN News Asia Correspondent Friday, October 11, 2013 After three weeks of fighting between Philippine troops and Muslim rebels, the fighting in the southern city of Zamboanga is over. And throngs are Muslims are looking to Christians for help. Now, leaders face the difficult tasks of rebuilding their community and helping traumatized residents move forward. Surprisingly, it's area churches that are reaching out to the mostly Muslim victims. Zamboanga resident, Cristina, is still shaken. She recounted how God miraculously saved her from being taken hostage at the height of...

One pocket of internal Republican opposition focused on Boehner’s plan to slash government contribution to health insurance for Capitol Hill aides. Boehner and his top lieutenants had already proposed that lawmakers, Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and political appointees at executive-branch agencies should lose the subsidy. But when Boehner expanded that ban to thousands of Hill staffers, a solid bloc of GOP lawmakers told Boehner they would oppose the bill. Boehner still tried to press on. Another rebellious faction believes repealing the medical-device tax was nothing but a giveaway to corporate America, not a part of Obamacare that should be...

Ministries File Class Action Suit over HHS Mandate CBNNews.com Wednesday, October 16, 2013 The Southern Baptist Convention's GuideStone health plan and two other non-profit religious groups are suing the Obama administration over its contraception coverage mandate. That Obamacare mandate forces all employers to provide birth control coverage to employees, including drugs that may cause abortions. The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty is suing the Obama administration on behalf of GuideStone, the Oklahoma-based Reaching Souls International, and Truett-McConnell College in Georgia. Their class-action lawsuit actually includes more than 100 ministries that participate in GuideStone's health benefits plan. "The very purpose of...

Fatalities Spike in Philippines Earthquake CBNNews.com Wednesday, October 16, 2013 The death toll from the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that hit the Philippines is up to 144. So far, only three people have been pulled alive from the rubble and officials say another 291 people are injured. The central island of Bohol was hit the hardest, with historic churches dating from the Spanish colonial period suffering major damage. Many roads and bridges were also badly damaged, making rescue operations difficult. CBN Disaster Relief is preparing to travel to the region to provide relief for the victims.

Sens. Cruz, Lee say they won't block deal By Mike Lillis - 10/16/13 12:38 PM ET Sens. Ted Cruz and Mike Lee said Wednesday that they won't try to block the bipartisan deal to reopen the government and raise the debt ceiling. "The timing of the vote will make no difference to the outcome," Cruz (R-Texas) said. "I have no intention of delaying the vote." Cruz and Lee (R-Utah) had spearheaded the campaign to attach ObamaCare language to any new budget bills, and had pushed their colleagues to take a hard-line stance. But the pair emerged from a meeting of...

Referring to his plan to preemptively send the Senate a House-passed bill, Speaker John Boehner told his conference this morning that he’d “rather throw a grenade than catch a grenade.” But with his right-wing troops abandoning him again, it was the speaker who was left holding the bomb. After a day of furious negotiating with fellow Republicans over how to tweak a bill he had unveiled in the morning, it was left to stunned members of his leadership team to confirm to reporters that the vote had been canceled. “They’re trying to work it out,” said Representative Greg Walden, the...

The Department of Defense this month took what almost certainly will be the most telling symbolic act the Obama administration ever takes. "The doors to the Kings Bay Chapel were locked on Oct. 4, 2013, with the Holy Eucharist, Holy water, Catholic hymn books and vessels all locked inside," says a lawsuit filed Monday by the Thomas More Law Center. "Father Leonard and his parishioners ... were prohibited from entering." Catholics believe Jesus Christ is present in this world in many ways, but uniquely and most especially in the Eucharist. "In the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist, the body...

Deadly Typhoon Wreaks Havoc in Japan CBNNews.com Wednesday, October 16, 2013 In Japan, at least 17 people are dead and 50 more are missing in the aftermath of a powerful typhoon. Packing winds of more than 110 miles per hour, Typhoon Wipha caused deadly mudslides that destroyed dozens of homes on the Japanese island of Izu Oshima, south of Tokyo. The storm paralyzed Tokyo's public transportation. Flights were also cancelled, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded. "People on this island are somewhat used to heavy rainstorms, but this typhoon was beyond our imagination," Yutaka Sagara, a 59-year-old sushi chef on the...

It’s time to repeal the National Firearms Act of 1934. The Second Amendment requires it and the American people demand it be done now! The elite in society don’t want you to know that since 1934, there appear to have been at least two homicides committed with legally owned automatic weapons. One was a murder committed by a law enforcement officer (as opposed to a civilian). On September 15th, 1988, a 13-year veteran of the Dayton, Ohio police department, Patrolman Roger Waller, then 32, used his fully automatic MAC-11 .380 caliber submachine gun to kill a police informant, 52-year-old Lawrence...

CAIRO (Reuters) - A U.S. decision to curtail military and economic aid to Egypt to promote democracy may ultimately backfire, pushing Cairo to seek assistance elsewhere and giving Washington less leverage to stabilize a country in the heart of the Middle East. Washington faces a dilemma in dealing with its major regional ally: Egypt controls the Suez Canal and has a peace treaty with neighboring Israel but its army overthrew the first freely elected president, Islamist Mohamed Mursi, in July. The United States said on Wednesday it would withhold deliveries of tanks, fighter aircraft, helicopters and missiles to Cairo as...

National Park Service director Jarvis said he discussed closing the open-air monuments and memorials with the White House, as well as the secretary of the Interior Department.

To find out how many people participate in the program in your area and how that number has changed since 2000, enter your ZIP code, city, or county and state....

When highway patrol troopers attended a fatal car crash on Sunday night they discovered a rare and touching sight amid the horrifying crash scene. In the wreckage was an elderly couple and the lady was still holding hands with her husband. Floyd Nordhagen, 92, was already dead and his wife, Margaret, 88, would soon die at the crash scene. Livestock breeders in the rural community of Chattaroy in Washington state, the Nordhagens were known among their friends and neighbors for their devotion to each other, reports KREM news. Floyd was a “man who would help anyone in need, and a husband...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=DTZT8i5e2Rs

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., offered an endorsement on Wednesday to a tea party activist running for the GOP Senate nomination in North Carolina — a top pickup opportunity for Republicans. Physician Greg Brannon, one of several Republicans vying to take on Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan, touted the endorsement from the conservative senator and potential presidential contender as a momentum boost for the campaign. The campaign’s announcement referred to Brannon as “an anti-establishment candidate … who will oppose the Big Government, big spending status quo in both parties.” In a statement, Paul called Brannon “a true constitutional conservative who will join...

WASHINGTON — Oil supply disruptions and other emergencies involving crude have long driven U.S. energy policy, but it’s time to break that cycle, former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta insisted Wednesday. “We’ve got go get ahead of that,” Panetta said, during a day-long summit on energy security pegged to the 40th anniversary of the 1973 oil embargo. “We can’t simply wait for the next crisis to happen.” Panetta, who also directed the Central Intelligence Agency under President Barack Obama and was a White House chief of staff under former President Bill Clinton, said the key is making sure Americans have a...

Yesterday we briefly interrupted our battle with the Tea Party Anarchists to  present the Medal of Honor to retired Army Captain William Swenson. The long overdue medal was awarded to former Captain Swenson for repeatedly risking his life in Afghanistan's Battle of Ganjgal to rescue his fallen comrades. It only appears that Lady M is floating in space For the occasion, Lady M selected one of her recycled frocks, this one a little Rachael Roy number from way back in 2009; as you can see it still fits as well as it did 4 years ago! Even though we’ve, uh,...

In a 2003 speech, then Speaker Denny Hastert (R-Ill.) discussed his House management guidelines that became known as “The Hastert Rule.” The rule calls for a leader not to send legislation to the House floor for a vote unless it has the support of the majority of the majority. On Wednesday, with just hours left to raise the debt ceiling or risk default, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio)–who has been holding fast to the Hastert Rule–has to decide whether to break it.

This week, massive crowds of veterans descended onto Washington, D.C., to protest the Obama administration's vindictive shutdown of open-air memorial sites -- sites that require no guards but were fenced off simply to make Americans miserable as a bargaining chip in the government shutdown negotiations. Veterans, including many wheelchair-bound veterans from World War II, overturned the barricades placed at memorials by the administration and proceeded to carry them to the White House. The media covered the men and women who attended the so-called Million Vet March by suggesting that they were racists and terrorists and hoping that politicians allied with...

If the near-collapse of the ObamaCare computer system were temporary, that would be bad enough. But the real problem isn’t the computer system — it’s the law itself. -snip The problem is as it always was: America’s health-care system is vastly complicated and enormously expensive. But it worked fairly well for most people, with some 80 percent saying they were satisfied. That was before ObamaCare, which twists, squeezes and taxes the whole system as part of an incomprehensible plan to “fix” it. The law won’t work because it can’t. It fails for the same reason that all massive utopian plans...

The crisis in the Catholic Church in Germany declared itself 45 years ago with the “Königsteiner Erklärung,” a declaration of the bishops regarding Humanae Vitae in 1968. Therein they toned down the Church’s teaching, leaving it up to the conscience of individuals to decide whether to use contraception or not. The Austrian bishops did the same in the “Mariatroster Erklärung.” In 2008 therefore, Cardinal Schönborn, the head of the Austrian bishops’ conference, spoke about this as the “sin of the European episcopate.” These declarations have set the tone for the decades to come, and the faithful have in consequence become...

The preliminary investigation indicates the husband and wife were separated. The woman went to her former home to exchange some sort of property. A dispute erupted and the husband shot the wife. She made it into the front yard before collapsing. A neighbor, armed with a handgun, rescued the woman from the yard and moved her to safety.

NPS Director Discussed Plan To Close Monuments With White House (October 16, 2013)

The nannycrats in Brussels and the IMF keep pressuring Spain to hike the VAT and Spain does every time. The results are easily predictable. Via translate from El Econimista, please consider VAT Rise is "Catastrophic" Anged, the "Association of Large Distribution Companies" suffered a 7.2% drop in sales through August, the biggest drop in sales since the crisis began. Anged companies include El Corte Ingles, Carrefour, Auchan, Tesco, Ikea, Media Markt, Leroy Merlin and Toys R'Us. Employer, Alfonso Merry del Val, said the increase in VAT has been "catastrophic". Data from the National Statistics Institute (INE) show that sales in...

WASHINGTON — Senate leaders reached agreement Wednesday to avert a threatened Treasury default and reopen the government after a partial, 16-day shutdown, according to a Republican senator who also said the House might vote first on the plan to speed its approval.

Just a reminder, folks!

Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has agreed to allow a vote in the House on the emerging Senate debt-ceiling deal, according to a Senate source.

 Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) were racing Wednesday to put the finishing touches on the deal ahead of Thursday's deadline for raising the $16.7 trillion debt limit.

Throughout the past few weeks, we witnessed the train wreck of the stupid party colliding with the evil party. The stupid party made sure to tell the evil party that they just need to reject their offer and there will be a new watered-down iteration in a flash. Finally, it got so bad that they couldn’t even draw a line in the sand on delaying just the individual mandate, even at a time when most individuals can’t comply with it if they tried. The irony is that the President will undoubtedly delay it (illegally) himself after the battle is over,...

Many can remember as youngsters doing something wrong, for which they knew punishment was deserved. In order to avoid the punishment, they would try to create a diversion of some type in order to distract the attention of parents or teachers who, hopefully, would not notice or would forget about the original infraction. The PC world of the secular progressives still uses this tactic quite effectively when they try to refocus attention on an individual or organization that opposes their agenda. This was certainly the case last week, when at the Values Voter Summit in Washington D.C., I stated that...

Ted Cruz and his followers represent Jacksonian America: angry... More than a decade ago, before the post-9/11 national fervor set in, Walter Russell Mead published an insightful essay on the persistent "Jacksonian tradition" in American society. Jacksonians, he argued, embrace a distinctive code, whose key tenets include self-reliance, individualism, loyalty and courage. Jacksonians care as passionately about the Second Amendment as Jeffersonians do about the First... --snip-- Many frustrated liberals, and not a few pundits, think that people who share these beliefs must be downscale and poorly educated. The New York Times survey found the opposite. Only 26% of tea-party...

I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for Bill Clinton. In part, that’s because economic freedom increased and the burden of government spending was reduced during his time in office. Partisans can argue whether Clinton actually deserves the credit for these good results, but I’m just happy we got better policy. Heck, Clinton was a lot more akin to Reagan that Obama, as this Michael Ramirez cartoon suggests. Moreover, Clinton also has been the source of some very good political humor, some of which you can enjoy here, here, here, here, and here. Most recently, he even made...

(HOUSTON) -- Sen. Ted Cruz’ hometown newspaper, the Houston Chronicle, wishes it could take back its endorsement. The Chronicle’s editorial board, which endorsed Cruz, R-Texas, in his 2012 race, now says it misses his predecessor, former Republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison. “When we endorsed Ted Cruz in last November’s general election, we did so with many reservations and at least one specific recommendation -- that he follow Hutchison’s example in his conduct as a senator,” the Chronicle said. “Obviously, he has not done so." “Cruz has been part of the problem in specific situations where Hutchison would have been part...

There were five justifiable homicides in Saginaw from 2000 to 2010, though the Federal Bureau of Investigation only knows that one of those cases was justifiable. The killing is one of 117 civilian justifiable homicides that took place from 2000 to 2010 in Michigan, according to FBI statistics, though an MLive investigation has shown those numbers are incomplete. Saginaw Police Department Detective Sgt. Joseph Dutoi said the agency reports to the state whenever there is a homicide, and the department is supposed to file another report when the homicides are determined to be justified. 

Last week the man in charge of America’s Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) defense system was fired by Barack Obama. Of course you have heard almost nothing about this from Obama’s kept media. They have no curiosity about why General Michael Carey, a man with a sterling record of service to our nation; and as a 35 year Air Force officer would be fired with no reasons offered by this anti-military Administration. In the middle of his golf tour and a few threatening statements to Ted Cruz, Barack Obama found time to flop General Carey from his position as commander of...

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) on Wednesday morning said members of Congress are like the parents of everyone in the country and said these "parents" need to act quickly to protect their toddlers from the possible fallout of a debt default. "We, as custodians of this great nation, members of the United States Congress, are like parents," she said on the House floor. "And therefore I ask any parent that is listening: How long do they wait before they see a toddler fall, or do they leap toward that toddler so that they know the strength of that parent is...

Every time we have a congressional impasse over budgetary issues, we hear from liberals predicting Shutdown-mageddon. Why don't they ever join us in expressing concern over the inevitable financial collapse that will result from their policies? We always seem to hyperventilate over these mini-crises involving the temporary shutdown of small parts of the precious federal government, while we totally ignore the real financial catastrophe we're headed toward unless we begin to move in the direction Sen. Ted Cruz and other congressional Republicans are insisting on in these budgetary battles — defunding Obamacare, reining in spending, and reforming unsustainable entitlements. Indeed,...

Four decades ago this month, members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) launched an oil embargo against the United States in retaliation for our steadfast support of Israel in her hour of need. As the Jewish State fought off the Soviet-backed Egyptian and Syrian armies in what would become known as the Yom Kippur War, the OPEC cartel’s actions sent the price of oil soaring and our economy into a recession. Sadly, 40 years later, we have not learned the appropriate lesson from that experience: We must disconnect our oil-dependent transportation sector from OPEC and the...

There is currently a letter floating around the internet from United States Department of Agriculture addressed to all (SNAP) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program state agency directors. The letter states in pretty plain terms the USDA is directing States to hold or delay transmission of State Electronic benefit transfer (EBT) until further notice.

On Tuesday, Barack Obama presented the Medal of Honor -- the nation's highest military honor -- to Army Captain William D. Swenson. But for the third time, Obama referred to "my military" during the ceremony, according to a transcript at the official website of the U.S. Army. "So, Will Swenson was there for his brothers. He was there for their families. As a nation, we thank God that patriots like him are there for us all. So, Will, God bless you and all the men you've fought alongside, and for everything you've done for us. God bless all of our...

Mark explains what President Obama is really doing - seizing the power of the purse from Congress and taking away their ability to control funding in the government. In essence, this has been a coup by the Executive to limit the power of all other branches so that there are no checks and balances. Obama will set spending levels and veto any bills that fall short of his demands as he threatens to single handedly push the nation into a default. Congressman Louie Gohmert calls in and gives an update on the inner fighting within the House, as nobody really...