Free Republic

The U.S. is not doing Israel any favors by granting it special status as a strategic ally, according to New York based strategy expert Mark Langfan. He predicts a domino effect in which other U.S. allies in the region would collapse, if, G-d forbid, Israel does.. "Without Israel, Cyprus and Saudi Arabia are toast," Langfan told Arutz Sheva, "and they know it." "Without Israel, oil would be $1,000 a barrel. Without Israel, the US would have to fund an extra $200 billion yearly defense budget to defend southern NATO countries from a Muslim caliphate's northward tsunami." Following reports of an...

While American taxpayers bail out failing companies via the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), behind the scenes the Obama Treasury Department is awarding their top executives with millions of dollars in raises even though Congress passed a law forbidding it. It’s an inconceivable scheme that rewards bad behavior with big bucks from taxpayers who have no say in the matter. In fact, the U.S. Treasury was forced by Congress to create rules against it yet a new federal audit reveals the agency repeatedly violates them to enrich the very people responsible for the companies’ failures (and need for...

The final pieces are coming together in the General Motors' restructuring puzzle as the company has, not surprisingly, won its bid to repurchase government-owned Ally Financial's European and Latin American lending operations. GM was forced to spin off all but 10% of Ally Financial back when it was known as GMAC. Back in late 2008, the spigots of taxpayer money were open and GM had its cup out. In order for GM's lending arm (GMAC) to receive TARP funds, GM had to divest all but less than 10% of the company so that GMAC could be granted status as a...

Baroness Thatcher leaves her home in London on her 87th birthday with her son Sir Mark and his wife Sarah Photo: WARREN ALLOTT Baroness Thatcher marked yesterday's occasion by having lunch at Green's Restaurant and Oyster Bar in London's exclusive St James's district with her son Mark and his wife. Writing on Twitter, Mr Romney - the Republican challenger engaged in a close fight with Democrat Barack Obama for the White House in next month's election - said: ''The US is blessed with courageous friends. ''Happy birthday to the Iron Lady, Margaret Thatcher - a tower of strength in...

Washington: Just ahead of the arrival of Pakistan Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar for talks with the Obama administration, a Republican lawmaker has moved a Bill in the House of Representatives to terminate Pakistan’s status as a “major non-NATO ally” of America. “It’s time to break with Pakistan,” Congressman Ted Poe said while introducing the bill, commenting: “At the very least, we should stop providing them the eligibility to obtain our own sophisticated weaponry in an expedited process. Too many of our own men and women have died because of Islamabad’s treachery.” Poe’s move comes close on the heels of...

A South Florida representative to the Democratic National Committee is facing scrutiny after engaging in an anti-Israel meltdown throughout a series of leaked emails reported on by BizPacReview. The official in question is Evelyn Garcia, a Palm Beach County representative to the DNC and ally of its chair, Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Garcia additionally serves as a Democratic Executive Committee member and is running to become a member of the Florida State House. Garcia’s anti-Israel tirade was sparked by her allies at Code Pink, a left-wing anti-war group that regularly decries the power of the so-called “pro-Israel lobby,” which...

Ally, which is 74 percent owned by the U.S. government, makes loans to GM and Chrysler customers and finances dealer inventories. The government first bailed out the company, then known as GMAC Inc., in late 2008 as part of the Bush administration's aid to the auto industry. The Obama administration provided additional funding in May and December 2009. ResCap had been a drain on Ally's finances for years, struggling to make payments on its heavy debt ever since the bottom fell out of the U.S. housing market in 2007. In regulatory filings before the bankruptcy, Ally said that deterioration in...

<p>Ally Financial Inc.'s troubled mortgage subsidiary filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy early Monday, potentially paving the way for Ally to sever itself from substantial litigation that has been a drag on its other operations and prevented it from repaying the remainder of its government bailout.</p>

The U.S. Treasury Department has agreed to support a bankruptcy filing for the struggling home-loan unit of government-owned lender Ally Financial Inc., if the company chooses to take that route, an official said Monday. A bankruptcy filing for Ally's subsidiary, Residential Capital, has been widely expected in the coming weeks, when the unit faces more than $300 million of bond-related payments. It recently missed a $20 million bond-interest payment, which has a grace period until May 17. ResCap, once one of the largest subprime-mortgage lenders in the country, has been a drag on Ally, which halted plans for an initial...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve says four major banks failed to show they have enough capital to survive another serious downturn. The list includes Citigroup, the nation's third-largest bank. The Fed says 15 of 19 major banks passed the stress test. The Fed noted that all of the banks have built up their capital reserves since the 2008 financial crisis. SunTrust and Ally Financial also failed the test.

Sources inform Breitbart.com today that Pam Dickler, director of the 1998 production of The Love Song of Saul Alinsky in Chicago that included a panel discussion featuring then-State Sen. Barack Obama, has a video tape of the play. And she won’t release it. “There is only one archive tape of the play and I have it,” Dickler informed our source. “It is not in Chicago.” Dickler told our source that she doesn’t believe she’s ever watched the tape, and she doesn’t know if it “can be viewed.” But she added: “No one is going to see the tape.”

LOS ANGELES, December 23, 2011--At the Republican Jewish Coalition 2012 Presidential Candidates Forum, Texas Governor Rick Perry offered a heartfelt speech about his love for Israel. The Republican Jewish Coalition is a sophisticated audience, and they want to hear about a wide range of issues beyond Israel. Yet Israel was virtually the entire focus of Governor Perry's remarks. In his case, it was not pandering. As a devout Evangelical Christian, Governor Perry is a true believer. He loves Israel, and will crack down hard on those who try to hurt the Jewish state. His entire remarks are below. [snip] Whether...

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said ahead of a meeting Friday with Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak that he would warn his Israeli counterpart about the global economic consequences of a military strike on Iran's nuclear program, adding that he still favors sanctions and diplomacy over a strike.

US vice president hosts Jewish leaders, political rivals for Rosh Hashana toast, says 'Israel is America's closest, dearest, most morally-based friend' WASHINGTON – At an annual event held at the US Vice President's residence in honor of the Jewish New Year, US Vice President Joe Biden said that "Israel is America's closest, dearest, and most morally-based friend". Biden added that there is no alternative to America's commitment to Israel. Among the guests present at the event were Biden's political rivals from the Republican Party, such as House Majority Leader Rep. Eric Cantor, as well as leaders of the American Jewish...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the United States as a champion of freedom and a great ally of Israel in his address to the annual Fourth of July celebration at the U.S. ambassador's residence in Tel Aviv Thursday night. Netanyahu recounted the history of the American Revolution 235 years ago, saying that many of the ideas that fueled the U.S. struggle for independence are applicable to nationalist aspirations today, particularly in the Middle East. The prime minister lauded the United States for its unwavering commitment to freedom, saying “never in history has there ever been a nation so concerned with...

(Reuters) - Ally Financial Inc, the United States' largest maker of car loans, hopes that people have forgotten the time when "subprime" became a synonym for "disaster." Ally, once known as GMAC Financial Services, is getting ready to go public this year, and is making the case that subprime loans for used car buyers are not about to produce the same results that they did in the housing market a few years ago -- a near-collapse of the financial system. Auto loans performed relatively well during the downturn, and demand for cars is up, so auto lending is one of...

Obama administration is divided over future of U.S.-Pakistan relationship By Karen DeYoung and Karin Brulliard, Sunday, May 15, 9:44 AM Two weeks after the death of Osama bin Laden, the Obama administration remains uncertain and divided over the future of its relationship with Pakistan, according to senior U.S. officials. The discovery of the al-Qaeda leader in a city near Pakistan’s capital has pushed many in the administration beyond any willingness to tolerate Pakistan’s ambiguous connections with extremist groups. After years of ineffective American warnings, many U.S. officials are concluding that a change in policy is long overdue. Those warnings are...

Regional Command NorthStory by U.S. Army Sgt. Sean Harriman4th Combat Aviation Brigade Public Affairs Office BALKH, Afghanistan (April 27, 2011) – An American soldier holds the rare distinction of wearing a German Silver Cross of Honor for his actions in coordinating medical evacuation of casualties after a February terrorist attack in northern Afghanistan. German Maj. Gen. Markus Kneip, commander of Regional Command - North, Afghanistan, presented U.S. Army Maj. Robert Federigan, medical operations officer, Headquarters Headquarters Company, 4th Combat Aviation Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, International Security Assistance Force, with the Silver Bundeswehr (German military) Cross of Honor for outstanding...

Most voters still view Israel as one of America's leading allies. A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely U.S. Voters finds that 56% think of Israel as an ally, while just three percent (3%) view the country as an enemy to the United States. Thirty-six percent (36%) think Israel is somewhere in between an enemy and an ally of the United States. (To see survey question wording, click here.) Those numbers remain little unchanged from August when 60% felt that way. That same month, however, Americans ranked Israel third on a list of 12 nations in the news, behind...

The total cost to rescue and then overhaul mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could reach $685 billion, according to estimates published Thursday by Standard & Poor's. Fannie and Freddie have already cost taxpayers nearly $134 billion, but S&P analysts said Thursday that the government could ultimately be forced to inject $280 billion into the firms because of a slowdown in the housing market. Any entities that might replace Fannie and Freddie would need new start-up funding that would go beyond the money already committed. A consensus of academics, industry officials and investors has coalesced around the idea of...