Free Republic

When state Rep. Oliver Robinson used the mantle of his office to fight an environmental cleanup effort in north Birmingham, he did so because he was paid. He spoke out in public meetings. He copied and pasted letters written for him by alleged co-conspirators onto his official letterhead. He encouraged people who lived in those polluted neighborhoods to not get their soil tested for toxic substances. Again, he did all this because he was getting paid. He said so in his plea deal with federal prosecutors. But when those same folks -- the ones accused of paying Robinson -- needed...

Six-year-old Derrica Grace has never been to school, but she can discuss Cryptocurrency, explain the history of the Blank Panther movement - and show you how to shoot an Uzi machine gun. It's all thanks to her father, Derrick Grace II – who has developed his own homeschooling curriculum after making the decision to pull his son out of first grade in 2016. The father-of-four, from Tampa, Florida, says that he's not a fan of the school system - and believes they 'dilute the mental progression' of children. However, he has attracted controversy online after posting a series of...

pix host Musically, 1978 was definitely the year of disco-rock. Acts like The Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart, Heart, Blondie and Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley scored hits by mashing-up guitars with mirror-ball beats. The disco influence even seeped into country music a bit, as on Barbra Madrell’s excellent, boot-scooting single “Sleeping Single in a Double Bed.” Hell, in ’78 you probably could've gotten disco on top of your cheeseburger, nachos or pizza too if you asked for it. That’s not to say every song had to pass the leisure-suit test to be a hit that year. New wave, funk, singer/songwriter, reggae,...

Ambrosia Starling, drag queen who prompted Judge Roy Moore's removal from Alabama Supreme Court. This story is a part of Ask Alabama, where you ask the questions, you vote to decide which questions we answer, and then we investigate. This week we're answering a question submitted by a reader who asked: Alabama has the lowest the percentage of citizens of any state who support same sex marriage. Why are so many Alabamans opposed? Same-sex marriage, and homosexual behavior, has seemingly always been frowned upon by much of the great state of Alabama. This is, after all, the center of the...

Alabama's newest Senator Doug Jones took the ceremonial oath of office yesterday from Vice President Mike Pence. Looking on were Jones' wife, Louise, his son Christopher and his son, Carson, who is capturing attention for the withering look he cast at the VP during the swearing-in. Carson Jones, a-22-year-old zookeeper who lives in Colorado, confirmed to The Advocate last month he was gay. The side-eye was directed squarely at Pence, who has a long history of opposing same-sex marriage and equal protections for members of the LGBT community.

The Department of Justice has caved to pressure from the White House and is reportedly reopening the investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server. According to the Daily Beast, there is a new effort in the department to get new details on how Clinton and her aides — including former top aide Huma Abedin — handled classified material. The effort will look at how much classified information was on her private email server, and how that information got there. President Trump has continually questioned if and when the Justice Department would reopen its...

A mysterious super PAC that spent millions of dollars backing Democrat Doug Jones in Alabama's Senate race was heavily funded by the Democratic Senate Majority PAC. Chris Hayden, spokesman for the Senate Majority PAC, said Tuesday that the group was the primary backer of the PAC called Highway 31, which spent $6 million on hard-hitting advertising, mailings and other efforts to help defeat Republican Roy Moore. Because of reporting and payment schedules, Highway 31 didn't disclose its donors during the campaign despite its heavy spending. "Yes, SMP was the contributor to Highway 31. There were a few small donations when...

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) (NEA), the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (Public Law 114-328) (the “Act”), section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)) (INA), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, find that the prevalence and severity of human rights abuse and...

By John "My brother is gay and h*ll yes I forgot my bankruptcy" Archibald Illustrations by Ramsey Archibald [John Archibald's son who got his job over a much more qualified applicant.] Earlier we gave you Alabama’s Top 10 Democrats. But this is Alabama. So, no matter what happened in that election – it was Roy Moore that lost, and not the party – the Dems have to be the undercard. This, folks, is the main event. So … let’s get ready to grumble. For here, in consultation with professionals, deep consideration and another coin flip, are the Top 10...

They really don't want you to see this video.Judge Roy Moore enters his last campaign rally to the sounds of "Sweet Home Alabama," right at the point Van Zandt is singing, "I hope Neil Young will remember, a Southern Man don't need him around, anyhow," and is immediately welcomed heartily by two black men, one wearing a Vietnam Vets hat. The other man says, "Good to see you brother," and embraces Moore.

Alabama Senate Republican nominee Roy Moore gave two interviews in 2011 in which he said the amendments to the U.S. Constitution after the 10th Amendment has caused problems, quoted Hitler and left open the possibility of new evidence behind the cause of the 2001 terror attacks, according to a report Sunday by CNN. CNN said it obtained audio files of the interviews Moore gave with what the network described as "a conspiracy-driven radio show" known as the Aroostook Watchmen show, which was hosted by two Maine residents. CNN posted three of the audio clips on its website. In 2011, when...

A prominent Alabama Republican says he hasn't decided which candidate he will vote for in the general election and he has no plans to endorse either the Republican or the Democrat. "I'm not taking a side in the Democratic-Republican controversy right now," he said. Only the Republican candidate in that controversy -- it wasn't Roy Moore he was talking about. Rather, it was Roy Moore who was doing the talking. The Republican then, in case you were wondering, was George W. Bush, running against John Kerry in 2004. That year, Alabama voters picked Bush over Kerry almost 2-to-1. But when...

Congressman John Conyers Jr is a serial sexual predator, and I gave the story to BuzzFeed rather than break it myself. “Pull over, I’m about to throw up.” My wife was driving our SUV as I occupied our daughter Cyra while cruising in the back. I had just given away the biggest story of the year, and the biggest story of my career, to BuzzFeed. I couldn’t relax and couldn’t sleep, because a story of this magnitude is a career making even at the highest levels of journalism. Well…Why did I do it?

The U.S. Senate race between Democrat Doug Jones and Republican Roy Moore has hit a fever pitch with allegations swirling Alabama into the national discussion. We would like to know what our readers think and how you will respond. Please take a moment to answer the poll questions below. [At link.]

The spectacular blizzard of confetti that fluttered down during "(I Wanna) Rock and Roll All Nite" had barely settled Saturday (Sept. 30) at the Gretna Heritage Festival when the Kiss concert took an unexpected turn toward the patriotic. "It's always cool to love your country," frontman Paul Stanley told the mostly appreciative audience. Joined by Gretna politicians, the singer-guitarist congratulated Army Major Steve Roberts for his 30-plus years of military service. "Some people believe that freedom is free," he said. But Kiss, Stanley said, appreciates military sacrifice.In an odd visual juxtaposition of symbols, Stanley, dressed in a glittering black, midriff-exposing...

upload photo on site “They run the stadium like a county fair.” Harsh words from my wife on the game day food experience at Jaguars games. It’s hard to argue that she’s wrong. [The writer is being very generous. The food at state or county fairs tends to be palatable. You can't say the same for the food at Everbank Field during Jacksonville Jags games.] Last season my dad and I went to every relevant bowl game in Florida and experienced the stadiums and food all over the state. Everbank field is a beautiful and comfortable place to watch a...

Two attorneys at Balch & Bingham and one Drummond Company vice president were indicted Thursday on charges related to the bribery of former Alabama state Rep. Oliver Robinson. Joel Iverson Gilbert and Steven George McKinney, both attorneys and partners at Balch & Bingham, and David Lynn Roberson, a vice president at Drummond Company, were each indicted on one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, one count of bribery, three counts of honest services wire fraud, and one count of money laundering conspiracy. The U.S. Attorney's Office has a press conference to talk about the indictment at noon today.

Roy Moore said Luther Strange lacked character and challenged Strange to say whether his office was investigating former Gov. Robert Bentley when Bentley appointed Strange to the Senate. Strange ignored Moore's question, repeatedly talking about his endorsement by President Trump, which the president will emphasize with a campaign appearance for Strange on Friday night in Huntsville. The two candidates went at it tonight in a 70-minute, no-frills debate. It comes five days before Tuesday's runoff for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate. The televised event in Montgomery will be the only debate of a hard-hitting six-week campaign.

The head of Sen. Luther Strange's campaign fundraising committee is listed on federal tax documents as an officer in the nonprofit agency federal prosecutors say was used to bribe an Alabama lawmaker who pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges this month. That executive, Thompson Tractor CEO Mike Thompson, is among the state's influential business leaders, with a long history of supporting candidates and political causes.

A Catholic priest has been dismissed from his parish in Nebraska after asking middle schoolers if they've ever masturbated or watched pornography during weekly confession. SnipDeacon Tim McNeil, chancellor and spokesman for the Archdiocese of Omaha, said the 26-year-old is an inexperienced priest who went overboard in his questioning and was probably just 'trying to be too helpful.'