Free Republic

Imagine terrorists using new technology to trick planes into crashing into buildings. It may sound like a Die Hard movie, but the premise, which involves “GPS spoofing,” troubles our nation’s intelligence and law enforcement agencies. Spoofing became a big deal when University of Texas professor Todd Humphreys accepted a challenge a few years ago from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to use this method to commandeer one of the agency’s drones via a GPS device. Much to their astonishment, he was successful. “It’s easiest to understand GPS spoofing by comparing it with GPS jamming,” Humphreys told the Observer. “Jamming...

When Ted Cruz refused to endorse Donald Trump in his Republican National Convention speech, he channeled his ideological opponent, Ted Kennedy, whose bitter primary fight with Jimmy Carter made him dodge the opportunity to raise hands with his opponent. It cost Carter the 1980 election, and might do similar damage to Trump.

It's becoming clear to political observers that libertarians are emerging as a key swing vote, if not an official party. Republicans may have won a number of close races by appealing to these libertarians, so their views on policy cannot be ignored. Figuring out those libertarian views on immigration are therefore very important in the wake of President Barack Obama's primetime speech announcing his executive order on immigration.

Media coverage of the South Carolina special election focused upon the candidates, Elizabeth Colbert-Busch and the winner, Mark Sanford. Yet the real winner could turn out to be somebody who isn’t from South Carolina: Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul.... ...Anyone who follows presidential politics knows that South Carolina is a key primary state. Ron Paul came up short both times, only getting one percent in the crowded primary captured eventually by Arizona Sen. John McCain with 33 percent in 2008. Four years later, Paul did much better, getting 13 percent of the votes. But Paul finished fourth of four candidates in...

COMMENTARY | Former Texas Rep. and Presidential candidate Ron Paul is getting blasted for criticizing the imposition of martial law for the city of Boston in an attempt to track down the remaining Boston Marathon bomber. But what you may not realize is that Boston is hardly an isolated case. And I'm not just talking about American history, but also recent days. And unless we set some ground rules, someone will, in a town like yours. Of course you heard about Boston and how the city was shut down to flush out the second bomber of the Boston Marathon. You...

COMMENTARY | Mitt Romney's international excursion included gaffes over Anglo-Saxon heritage and Olympic insults in England, insulting the Palestinian culture in Israel, and getting a hostile reception from the freedom-loving trade union Solidarity aware of Romney's anti-labor stands. Lost in this forgettable foreign policy trip included one of Romney's best moments, when he touted the virtues of economic liberty in Poland. The only question is Romney's commitment to such freedom, which has been in decline throughout the Bush and Obama Administrations...

COMMENTARY | Could Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson, a former New Mexico governor, play a spoiler role in the 2012 election, especially out west? Most polls aren't even giving him the benefit of the doubt, failing to include him as an option. But those polls that do include Johnson find him doing surprisingly well. He could tip the balance in several western swing states like Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico. And with every state mattering, that could be the difference in a close race in 2012. A poll by the group "We Ask America" released on June 26 in Colorado...

ANALYSIS | A day before the Illinois primary, Mitt Romney delivered a blistering attack on President Barack Obama for "assaulting" economic freedom in a University of Chicago speech. Was he right? Using the style of Steven D. Levitt, a University of Chicago economist and co-author of the book Freakonomics, I evaluate that claim by Romney. What is economic freedom? Levitt and his co-author, Stephen J. Dubner, go beyond the politics, bias, and hubris to ask the questions and test the results. For example, what is economic freedom? The Cato Institute has come up with the Economic Freedom of the World...

ANALYSIS | A day before the Illinois primary, Mitt Romney delivered a blistering attack on President Barack Obama for "assaulting" economic freedom in a University of Chicago speech. Was he right? Using the style of Steven D. Levitt, a University of Chicago economist and co-author of the book Freakonomics, I evaluate that claim by Romney. What is economic freedom? Levitt and his co-author, Stephen J. Dubner, go beyond the politics, bias, and hubris to ask the questions and test the results. For example, what is economic freedom? The Cato Institute has come up with the Economic Freedom of the World...

There is a chorus of calls for Ron Paul to get out of the race because "he's not a true Republican." The Koch Brothers are trying to take over the libertarian think tank Cato Institute, and morph it into more of a conservative attack machine. You'll hear people call the Libertarians "GOP lite." Folks will accuse libertarians of siphoning votes unnecessarily from Republicans, helping to elect Democrats. Is this just a case of semantics, or disgruntled Republicans joining up with a new party just to win a nomination that they couldn't capture within the GOP? Or is there a deep...

The talk among college professors, students and those in the conservative southern community I live in, is that Barack Obama is going to win big, whether one wants it to happen or not. The other day, someone said it could be as big a victory as FDR's overwhelming reelection in 1936. I pointed out that Democrats would do well to remember the lessons of the 1980 election. Others in the conversation dismissed such talk. After all, Obama's got a big lead in the polls. According to realclearpolitics.com polls, Obama is opening up big leads in Associated Press polls and even...

COMMENTARY | The Spanish conservatives won a decisive election Sunday, ousting the ruling Spanish Socialists. Could something similar happen in America in the 2012 election? There are some striking similarities between the Spanish case and the American situation. The party in charge was blamed for the economic turmoil wracking the country. And the conservative Popular Party has been promoting change. There are even more similarities between Popular Party leader Mariano Rajoy and the likely Republican nominee, Mitt Romney. And those similarities are more than just the initials "M.R." Rajoy has run before for office, like Romney. Rajoy is like Romney...

COMMENTARY | Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich's rebound in the polls is real enough. The question is whether conservative Republicans are simply trying him out as the newest anti-Mitt Romney candidate, or whether he is about to be the newest Republican for the 2012 nomination. Recent polls show the ex-Georgia congressman has made a tremendous recovery in the polls, passing former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and ex-CEO Herman Cain with 23 percent of the vote, according to a Nov. 16 Fox News poll. Other surveys, such as the show a tighter race, but nobody disputes Gingrich's strong recovery from earlier...

Ever since he won the Florida U.S. Senate seat, folks have been talking up Marco Rubio's vice-presidential credentials. But Condoleezza Rice, who has been in the news a lot lately, is a better bet to be the No. 2 candidate for a Mitt Romney or Rick Perry candidacy. Here's why.

Why is it when Mitt Romney debates another Republican, the attacks seem so personal? It's not about money or polls or even his religion. GOP candidates hate how Mitt Romney switche.s positions

My reserach from 2006 data shows that Republicans are not racist, in an analysis of several statewide candidate pairs of elections.

Not everyone may agree, but then again, not everyone thought Reagan would win the 1980 nomination. Let me know what you think?