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Tensions between states’ rights supporters and the federal government remain high after the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) retreated last week at the Bundy Ranch after a tense standoff with hundreds of supporters, many of whom were armed. The Bundy Ranch situation has escalated little over the course of 20 years, but finally, the BLM stepped too far when they claimed dominion over thousands of acres of land in Nevada and began seizing Cliven Bundy’s cattle. The response by patriots throughout the country was swift and awe-inspiring as citizens flocked to the middle of nowhere to support the rancher, including...

After Breitbart Texas reported on the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) intent to seize 90,000 acres belonging to Texas landholders along the Texas/Oklahoma line, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott questioned the BLM’s authority to take such action. “I am about ready,” General Abbott told Breitbart Texas, “to go to go to the Red River and raise a ‘Come and Take It’ flag to tell the feds to stay out of Texas.” Gen. Abbott sent a strongly-worded letter to BLM Director Neil Kornze, asking for answers to a series of questions related to the potential land grab. “I am deeply...

Legendary singer Willie Nelson will be featured at a high-dollar fundraiser for Democratic governor nominee Wendy Davis. The event will be held April 27 in the Houston backyard of plaintiff’s lawyer Steve and Amber Mostyn, featuring barbecue, Nelson and — for those who stay overnight at the Hotel ZaZa — a campaign briefing on Monday morning.

If Wendy Davis wanted to achieve the goal of becoming the first Democrat to win statewide office in 20 years, she needed to run an extremely well-funded and nearly flawless campaign. While the Wendy Davis campaign has received plenty of funding, its execution has been anything but flawless. Since Wendy Davis’ announcement to run in October 2013, the campaign has had a number of missteps along the way. A few of these include Wendy Davis getting caught misrepresenting the truth about her past, claiming to be “pro-life”, claiming she supports a ban on abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, and...

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott leads Democrat Wendy Davis by 11 points, according to a new poll Monday. Forty-seven percent of voters said they back Abbott, while 36 percent would vote for Davis, a University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll found. Seventeen percent of registered voters said they had no opinion. The new poll represents a widening gap between Abbott and Davis. In October, the survey found Abbott leading Davis by just 6 percent. Meanwhile, the poll also found that Rep. Steve Stockman poses a minor threat to Sen. John Cornyn in the Senate race. Sixty-two percent of likely Republican voters...

(CNN) – Sarah Palin rallied Wednesday behind Texas attorney general Greg Abbott, endorsing the Republican gubernatorial hopeful and defending Abbott for appearing on the campaign trail this week with controversial rocker Ted Nugent."If he is good enough for Ted Nugent, he is good enough for me!" the former Alaska governor wrote on Facebook. Nugent, a fierce gun rights activist who's known for making outlandish comments about President Obama, campaigned with Abbott at two events Monday. Democrats pointed to some of Nugent's past controversial remarks in an effort to discredit Abbott.The campaign for Abbott, however, acknowledged it was simply inviting Nugent...

A Republican hopeful for Texas governor drew harsh criticism for hitting the campaign trail Tuesday with Ted Nugent, the controversial rocker who recently described President Barack Obama as a "subhuman mongrel." Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott appeared at two campaign stops with the outspoken gun-loving musician-turned-commentator on the first day of early primary voting in the traditionally Republican state where he faces a surprisingly tough challenge by a rising-star Democrat.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has spent his gubernatorial campaign avoiding other people's scandals. Emphasizing policy and refusing to make Wendy Davis's false life story the center of the race, it was little surprise that Abbott chose not to meet with scandal-plagued RGA Chairman Chris Christie when he visited Texas yesterday. But Abbott wanted nothing to with the New Jersey governor and was quick to announce that he would not meet with Christie at any of the RGA's private events. Current Governor Rick Perry, who has no elections to worry about, made the same decision. Abbott's team stated that he...

Attorney General Greg Abbott is the undisputed money king in the race against Wendy Davis – collecting three times more cash last month than his Democratic foe. Abbott has amassed a sizeable war chest of nearly $30 million for the governor’s race, far ahead of Davis’ $10 million on hand with nearly a full year ahead of them before the November general election. Davis stunned the Abbott team in January by reporting she raised more money in the second half of 2013. But the Republican attorney general stormed back in January, collecting $3.1 million compared to Davis’ $913,000......

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is trying to run the conservative activist group Project Veritas out of the state, its founder James O'Keefe believes. "We got a subpoena over the last week from the Board of Labor and they're asking for every single financial transaction over the last three years," O'Keefe told "The Steve Malzberg Show" on Newsmax TV. "I'll be happy to cooperate but there's some funny business going on, especially when there's so much corruption in the state of New York and they're going after my organization and compelling me to give them every transaction. "I'll comply but...

Tom Pauken, former chairman of the Texas Workforce Commission and former head of the state Republican Party, withdrew from the Texas gubernatorial race. Pauken had struggled to raise money against a well-financed Greg Abbott. The following statement is excerpted from a letter the Pauken campaign sent today to donors and supporters: Thanksgiving is a time to count our blessings, and I have much to be thankful for with such a great family and so many wonderful friends. The past month has made that even clearer and more dear to me. I want to thank you personally for your gracious and...

THE Australian War Memorial has abandoned a proposal to remove the words "known unto God" from the Tomb of the Australian Unknown Soldier after the personal intervention of Tony Abbott. The memorial's governing council decided at its meeting in August to replace two inscriptions on the tomb at the Canberra memorial with words from a speech by Paul Keating. The memorial's director, former Liberal Party leader Brendan Nelson, announced the changes in an unscripted National Press Club speech six weeks ago on a day when attention was focused on the swearing in of the new government. It was several days...

 Tony Abbott announces Australia is open for business again.  Finally Australia steps back from a porkbarrelling party that stood for nothing more than being in power. They broke promises to anyone and everyone with Olympian success. And it was not just the usual politician broken promise of failing to solve a problem they promised to solve: they brought in The Carbon Tax after dishonestly guaranteeing they would not. Would they have won the 2010 election if they hadn’t made that promise? (It would only have taken 400 voters in Corangamite to rewrite history.) They’ve taken broken promises to an all new level, where nothing they...

HE's the one time student priest who quit in frustration with the church, an outspoken opponent of gay marriage whose lesbian sister wants him to change his views, an ambitious political hardhead who quietly spends a week a year helping in remote indigenous communities. Australia's 28th prime minister may be a man of contradictions, but one certainty is that Tony Abbott has worked towards his new position for much of his adult life. Mr Abbott was born in London in 1957 to Dick and Fay Abbott, moving to Sydney in 1960 through an assisted migration scheme. Raised in an observant...

**SNIP** The Liberal leader is a climate change denier. Dr Salinger says having someone who denies the science in charge is terrible news for small Pacific nations facing being inundated by rising sea levels. "Australia is the world's highest emitter of greenhouse gases, per person, in the world. "That's really bad news." Dr Salinger says unfortunately this will now mean New Zealand's government will drag the chain even more on curbing greenhouse gas emissions.

Today is a great day not only in Australian history, but also in world history. It marks the day when people of character and sensibility pushed back against an overwrought and pointless green agenda, and pushed back in a big way. They’ve had enough, and they’ve scraped the Krudd off their shoes and are moving forward. Tony Abbot has won the Australian election in a landslide, and vows to abolish the carbon tax as a first order of business. Abbott has declared Australia is “once more open for business” in claiming victory in Saturday’s election. It is a huge blow...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsoYPGRNxoo

THE federal Liberal-National coalition is likely to govern with a majority of at least 30 seats after a swing of just over three per cent against Labor. The ALP has become the first two-term federal government to be thrown out of office since Gough Whitlam's regime in 1975. Tony Abbott's coalition is on track to pick up 90 seats, with Labor holding 57, in the 150-seat parliament, but it won't have a majority in the Senate.

We have had Live Threads here at Freerepublic for the count for the last three Australian Federal elections - in 2004 which ended in conservative victory, then again in 2007 which ended in defeat for the conservatives and a Labor government, and then again in 2010 which gave us a hung Parliament, where Labor continued governing with the support of the Greens and independents. This is the live thread for 2013 - polls close and the count begins in about 10 minutes. Polls and exit polls indicate a victory for the conservative coalition under Tony Abbott is highly likely. A...

Texas Attorney General and candidate for Governor Greg Abbott tells Newsmax TV in an exclusive interview that Congress must find a way to pass an immigration reform package because the current system is causing huge problems for states like Texas. - See more at: http://ramparts360.com/texas-ag-abbott-congress-must-act-on-immigration-reform/#sthash.QXg8kpVA.dpuf