Free Republic

Have liberals already conceded defeat in today's South Carolina special election? Though polls show the race a true toss-up, some Democrats are attacking not just Republicans, but smearing the entire state as well. During today's Stephanie Miller Show, guest Charlie Pierce of Esquire Magazine slammed the Palmetto State as "tribal", "a cult" and the ultimate dig, "religious"! From the program: [video] STEPHANIE MILLER (07 May 2013): The cogent point in your headline “South Carolina is still South Carolina. JIM WARD: Ha ha ha ha! STEPHANIE MILLER: Obviously the latest poll had Mark Sanford ahead, right? CHARLIE PIERCE: And you know...

The South Carolina state House passed a bill Wednesday that declares President Obama’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to be “null and void,” and criminalizes its implementation. The state’s Freedom of Health Care Protection Act intends to “prohibit certain individuals from enforcing or attempting to enforce such unconstitutional laws; and to establish criminal penalties and civil liability for violating this article.” The measure permits the state Attorney General, with reasonable cause, “to restrain by temporary restraining order, temporary injunction, or permanent injunction”

RALEIGH — The state House passed a bill Wednesday requiring voters to show a photo ID when they go to the polls in 2016, after an emotionally charged debate that underscored North Carolina’s political polarization. House Republicans pushed through the measure saying that the public demanded more stringent ballot security at polling places, that voter fraud was more prevalent than is understood, and that in a modern, mobile society fewer election officials personally knew voters. “Our system of government depends upon open and honest elections,” said Rep. David Lewis, a farm equipment dealer from Dunn and a Republican. “Having people...

Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of former President John F. Kennedy, is close to being announced as the next United States ambassador to Japan, according to people familiar with the appointment process. The vetting of Ms. Kennedy by the White House is almost complete, and an appointment could be announced in the coming weeks, along with the names of several other choices for high-profile diplomatic posts. Bloomberg News and The Washington Post first reported that Ms. Kennedy was under consideration. Ms. Kennedy was an early supporter of President Obama, offering forceful backing as he battled Hillary Rodham Clinton for the Democratic...

Every year during the Christmas season I replace my regular column with a story I wrote years ago. It’s totally fictitious, but there are bits and pieces of autobiographical material here and there that reflect on my earliest remembrances of Christmas time in North Carolina. We always have a get together with family and friends at our house on Christmas Eve night. We share some food and drink and then sit around the den in a circle and everybody gets a turn to say whatever is on their minds followed by me reading Luke's version of the Christmas story. Several...

The free ride is over for North Carolina. It was good while it lasted -- but why it lasted so long, I can't say. It's astounding, how this academic scandal could go on for so many years and help so many UNC athletes without being stopped. ....How many athletes were given free grades from the Department of African and Afro-American Studies? We don't know.

by John HillStand With ArizonaHow much more suffering and indignities must Americans continue to suffer at the hands of illegal invaders, before our government steps in and puts a stop to it?After a year of horrific DUI killings of Americans by illegal aliens, most of whom had been released at least once by the Feds after not being deemed - as Obama puts it - a "significant threat", comes a story of horror featuring a grieving South Carolina mom. Local station WYFF reported the story as follows: Loretta Robinson was forced to pay for the tow and storage of her...

North Carolina's Democratic dramaBy CHARLES MAHTESIAN | 5/12/12 11:46 PM EDT It's been a rough week for North Carolina Democrats. First there was Tuesday's passage of the constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. Then, as a result, there were calls from gay rights activists to move the Democratic National Convention out of Charlotte. On Friday, Gov. Bev Perdue said her state looked like Mississippi as a result of the gay marriage vote -- and she didn't mean it as a compliment. All the while, the state's former senator, John Edwards, was on trial in Greensboro. And just when it looked...

Gay group starts petition to force Dems to move convention out of NCBy Neil Munro - The Daily Caller | The Daily Caller – 7 hrs ago A gay advocacy group is trying to rally sympathizers to help shift the Democrats’ trouble-plagued convention from North Carolina to another state. The group, Gay Marriage USA, launched a petition on change.org immediately after the state’s voters overwhelmingly decided May 8 to define marriage as a heterosexual institution. The state’s amendment “discriminates against LGBT people, couples & their families [and] in protest, the Democratic National Convention Committee should MOVE its convention… to a...

(RAEFORD) – The pre-K teacher involved in the “chicken nuggets” incident in Hoke County changed her version of what happened after undergoing three separate interrogations. Margaret Maynor was brought to tears in the third session. She submitted her resignation soon after. In a highly unusual move, the Hoke County School System released documents from the teacher’s personnel file purportedly showing why the pre-K instructor resigned. Previous articles reported some students with homemade lunches were given trays of school food because their bag lunches didn’t meet federal nutrition standards. One girl didn’t touch her homemade lunch and just ate three school...

Will the last endangered Democratic official in North Carolina please turn out the lights? Rep. Brad Miller (D) announced his retirement this morning. Democratic Gov. Beverly Perdue, facing the likely prospect of an epic defeat this November, announced her decision not to run for a second term this afternoon. Later, politically vulnerable Rep. Mike McIntyre (D) opened the door to running for governor of the Tar Heel State. And a local news report tonight said Rep. Heath Shuler (D) is eyeing a bid for governor as well. A Shuler spokeswoman had no comment.

 Wickedly good Gingrich ad now out in SC as ABC loads the heavy artillery for tonight's  (televised) shelling of Camp Newt... Looks like (oven?) Mitt is really feeling the heat this week, as Rasmussen Reports shows Gingrich closing hard, already in a statistical dead-heat in South Carolina- schwing! Thus, here we have the latest defensive counter-blow from the Gingrich campaign while a flailing (and failing) Team Romney works to stave-off what's starting to look like a come-from-behind Newt victory (by flinging you-know-what at the wall): in short, desperate is as desperate does... DESPERATE (0:45) _____________________________________________ Why is Mitt Romney attacking Newt Gingrich?  Ask John...

'It's fair to ask the (Romney) questions right now...  We need to be sure the person we nominate is clear enough, public enough, accountable enough that they can withstand the Obama onslaught.   Otherwise, I'm afraid we'll nominate somebody in a soft process... only to watch them collapse in the fall.' And did anybody notice after Friday's InsiderAdvantage poll showed Newt gaining ground fast -now in a statistical dead heat- Reuters rushed out another on Saturday that put Mittens out-front by a demoralizing 21 points...? Just consider the methodology... online, with registered voters (vs. likely), and with as many Democrats as Republicans (!)- what...

South Carolina sheriff urges women to carry gunsAP – 6 mins ago SPARTANBURG, S.C. (AP) — A South Carolina sheriff is urging women to get concealed weapons permits and carry guns to protect themselves. Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright made the suggestion Monday while discussing the arrest of a suspect in an attempted rape last weekend. Wright suggests that women carry a .45-caliber weapon because he says they wouldn't have to be accurate, just close to the target.

Looking Toward 2012, Obama Finds North Carolina Less Receptive By MARK LANDLERPublished: October 17, 2011 BOONE, N.C. — Loading up on Halloween candy at a store in this friendly college town on Monday, President Obama could probably imagine winning North Carolina in 2012, as he did in 2008, when he became the first Democrat since Jimmy Carter to do so. But hours earlier and a hundred miles away, Mr. Obama got a less warm and fuzzy reception from a lunch crowd at Countryside Barbeque in Marion. Only a few diners rose to shake his hand, while others were vocal in...

After Florida's decision to leap-frog the RNC sanctioned primary calendar last week and set their new date on January 31st, South Carolina has decided over the weekend to hold their presidential primary election on January 21, 2012.

Is anybody watching the S. Carolina - Auburn game on-line? Any link? There are several services where you can download a program that allows you to watch tv on your pc. Has anybody tried them? Are they legit? Thanks.

NAGS HEAD, N.C. —Irene became the first hurricane since 2008 to make landfall in the continental United States on Saturday morning when it came ashore just east of Cape Lookout in North Carolina. It was the first stop for a storm that, though weakened to a Category 1, is expected to lumber slowly and soggily up the East Coast, bringing flooding rains to a dozen states. Debris floated along the roads after Hurricane Irene hit Topsail Island in North Carolina on Friday. More Photos » Shingles and pieces of siding began to peel off beach houses in Nags Head, about...

In hurricane Irene bull's eye, coastal North Carolina bracesBy Patrik Jonsson | Christian Science Monitor – 15 hrs ago **SNIP** North Carolina declared a state of emergency Thursday, opening access to federal assets to help government agencies respond to the disaster. To help with a potentially disastrous aftermath, the government has stationed mountains of supplies, including water and generators, at Fort Bragg, one of the country's largest military installations. In North Carolina, an emergency declaration also means concealed weapons carry permits are invalid for the duration – another grim reminder of the potential of a storm to cause civil unrest.

Residents and the legislative leadership in South Carolina without a doubt don’t want anything to do with Big Labor’s oppressive tactics. Workers in South Carolina’s new Boeing plant recently booted out union bosses and legislators created a business climate to land the production of the big 787 Dreamliner for years to come.However, according to the Daily Caller, local representatives from the International Association of Machinists (IAM) won’t leave the Palmetto State. Anthony Riedel of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation told The Daily Caller in an interview that workers have been told that if they unionize, IAM leadership...

N.C. Senate overrides all 6 vetoesAction against Perdue may be just a message. There's no guarantee the House will do the same. By Craig Jarvis and Lynn Bonner Staff Writers Posted: Thursday, Jul. 14, 2011 RALEIGH In quick order and with little debate, the state Senate overrode all six vetoes of its bills on Wednesday, sending Gov. Bev Perdue a clear - if not necessarily effective - message. Although the Republican-controlled Senate flexed its muscles, successful overrides aren't guaranteed in the House and so might amount to no more than an opportunity to make a political statement. After the votes,...

<p>FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (AP)— A Fayetteville woman has been charged with murder in the 2009 death of her 5-year-old daughter.</p> <p>The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office says 27-year-old Antoinette Davis was taken to the county jail Wednesday, where she's being held without bond.</p>

Boeing Labor Fight Takes Over Harkin HearingBy Melanie Trottman May 12, 2011, 4:47 PM ET An effort by Senate Democrats Thursday to highlight the problems of the middle class turned into a partisan debate over the merits of Boeing Co.’s effort to build a non-union airplane factory – a project now under attack by the National Labor Relations Board. Chicago-based Boeing’s general counsel, invited by Republicans to be a witness at a Senate panel led by Sen. Tom Harkin (D., Iowa) , portrayed Boeing as a company that could be frustrated in its effort to create good-paying manufacturing jobs by...

Spartans, UNC to play on an aircraft carrierBy Reporter, Deseret News Published: Wednesday, April 13, 2011 12:11 a.m. MDT SAN DIEGO — The San Diego Sports Commission has confirmed that Michigan State and North Carolina will play in the Carrier Classic on Veterans Day, the first NCAA basketball game to be played aboard an aircraft carrier. The commission, working with Morale Entertainment Foundation, says it has received written commitments from the two schools and that approval from the U.S. Navy is expected soon. Organizers haven't announced which aircraft carrier will host the Nov. 11 game.

Pardon of former governor to be heard next weekBy GARY D. ROBERTSON, Associated Press Updated: 4:29 p.m. Friday RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina lawmakers will try again to consider pardoning an ousted post-Civil War governor while meeting next week in the same historic building where the House impeached and the Senate convicted him after he sent troops to fight the Ku Klux Klan, a pardon sponsor said Friday. **SNIP** Holden, a Republican, was impeached in 1870 after he ordered a militia to quell activity by the KKK in Alamance and Caswell counties. He was convicted by the Democratic-controlled Senate in...

Unemployment Drops In 93 North Carolina CountiesThe state says unemployment increased in just one county in the state, and that county is here in Eastern Carolina. Posted: 1:46 PM Apr 6, 2011 County unemployment rates dropped in all but seven of North Carolina's counties in February. In six of those counties the rate remained the same, while only in Perquimans County did the unemployment rate actually rise, by .3% from January. Here in Eastern Carolina unemployment in the Greenville metro area dropped by a full percent to 9.7%, in Jacksonville down by .3% to 8.7%, in Goldsboro the rate also...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWa76N5B1_0

GOP lawmakers 1 vote away from health care bill OKUpdated at 07:13 AM today RALEIGH -- A Republican-penned bill seeking North Carolina to challenge the 2010 health care overhaul law is one vote away from Democratic Gov. Beverly Perdue, who seems ready to ignore the measure if it hits her desk. **SNIP** Perdue said last week she wasn’t likely to veto the bill, meaning the measure would become law 10 days after she receives it. Perdue’s office calls the bill a distraction and says a federal lawsuit challenging the law is already under way. The bill aims to block a...

On Monday, a bill banning talking on the phone while driving will be introduced in the North Carolina Senate. The bill would ban using hands free devices while driving as well. Highway Patrol Trooper Beckley Vaughn said it boils down to being distracted while driving. Vaughn said at only 55 mph, a driver goes about 88 feet per second. He said the average reaction time is only .75 of a second.

Columbia, S.C. (AP) - A South Carolina proposal would prevent the state's courts from enforcing foreign law, including Islamic Sharia law, though Muslim advocates say it could essentially ban religion from mundane matters such as weddings and even burials. The bill makes no reference to a specific religion or country, though its sponsors acknowledge they worry about the ultraconservative tenets of Sharia law, or Islamic religious law. At least 13 states have introduced similar measures this year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Sen. Mike Fair, a Greenville Republican who is the bill's main sponsor, said there was...

Daughter of Sikh immigrant parents from Punjab, Indian-American Namrata "Nikki" Randhawa Haley proudly recollected her Indian heritage while being sworn in as the first woman and non-white Governor of South Carolina.

Redistricting battle heats up before session beginsBy: Loretta Boniti Updated 12/16/2010 02:22 PM RALEIGH -- The process of drawing political district lines throughout North Carolina is already causing friction well over a month before lawmakers convene for their legislative session. For years, questions have been raised if the current process is fair, but now there is about to be a new majority. Every 10 years, states across the country redraw their maps to outline where political districts will lie. North Carolina is preparing for redistricting during next year's legislative session. In a rare appearance before state lawmakers this week, Gov....

A Nov. 10 shooting that led to suspected retribution and a vigil in a Greer community is ruled self-defense. Greer police said Justin Dillard entered a home in the Sunnyside community at Victor Court Apartments at about 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 10. They say he started talking with Rusty Jones, a man later identified as a person of interest in the case. Jones, three other adults and five children were in the home. Dillard, Greer Police say, pulled a chrome handgun, pointed it at Jones and told him he was going to shoot Jones in the head. A bystander stepped...

Shut down a UNC campus?By Eric Ferreri - Staff writer Modified Thu, Nov 04, 2010 02:50 PM File this under "Worst Case Scenario." UNC President Erskine Bowles is broaching something many would surely view unthinkable: If budget cuts continue at higher levels than now anticipated, might an entire public university campus be shut down? "If you have 20 percent budget cuts, you'll have to think about closing down campuses," Bowles told members of the UNC system's Board of Governors today. "Period." That was the second time this morning Bowles broached that notion - an extreme one, no doubt, but one...

Activists seek to oust GOP legislative leadersBy John O’Connor Updated: Tuesday, Oct. 26, 2010 07:02 AM COLUMBIA - Conservative activists are stepping up their efforts to oust legislative leadership, launching a petition drive to replace the House speaker and change Senate rules for seniority-based chairmen. The effort raises questions about where Republican gubernatorial candidate Nikki Haley's allegiances lie -- with the insurgents with whom she is politically aligned or with legislative leadership with whom she has pledged to work? The focus of the conservative activists is House Speaker Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston, Senate Finance Chairman Hugh Leatherman, R-Florence, and the State...

Voters who use ATM-style machines to cast ballots in Tuesday's election will be asked to read a notice instructing them to carefully review their selections and make sure they register correctly, a federal judge ordered Saturday. U.S. District Judge Malcolm Howard ordered the State Board of Elections and its executive director, Gary Bartlett, to have all poll workers tell each voter using the touch screens to read the alert, then ask to be notified of problems. All precincts using the ATM-style devises must keep logs of complaints and how they're resolved. Howard's order settles a Republican lawsuit against the State...

B.J. Lawson, Rush Baby, Runs in Democrat Gerrymandered NC-4October 27, 2010 BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: To Denton, Texas. This is Bill, and it's great to have you on the EIB Network, sir. Hello. CALLER: Hello, Rush. Mega dittos, longtime listener, second-time caller. I have knowledge of the District 4 race because my son is the challenger. RUSH: B.J. Lawson is your son? CALLER: Yes, B.J. Lawson. RUSH: B.J. Lawson is running against this idiot, David Price, North Carolina 4. Charlie Cook just moved that race into toss-up or at least it's in play from solid Democrat. This district has been gerrymandered...

Earlier this year, I was eating at a rib joint in Fort Myers Florida. There was a country and western song playing over the restaurant's Muzak system. I can't give you any specific lyrics but I believe the song was called "Carolina" or "Oh Carolina". If nothing else, the song had the word "Carolina" in it. The song was more upbeat and fast - near as I can remember. I've checked around on the Internet (search engines and Youtube) but can't find what I'm looking for. I'd appreciate any suggestions or recommendations as to what this song may have been....

While he has only one term under his belt, Sen. Jim DeMint has come to be considered by many to be a kingmaker and a force for the Republican Party nationally and in his home state of South Carolina. A Greenville native, DeMint, 58, was first elected to the state House of Representatives in 1998 to represent South Carolina's 4th Congressional District. He won re-election in 2000 and 2002. In 2005, DeMint was elected to the U.S. Senate and since then has become one of its most conservative members. His stance on decreasing spending by the federal government has helped...

UNC Changes Health Insurance Over AbortionPosted: 7:36 AM Aug 13, 2010 The University of North Carolina will let students remove coverage for elective abortions from their university-sponsored health insurance after a national group complained about the coverage. UNC system President Erskine Bowles on Thursday directed a student insurance company to contact students who have bought a policy this fall and give them the chance to opt out of that coverage. Students for Life of America started a petition drive this week demanding the UNC Board of Governors remove the abortion provision. Group President Kristan Hawkins said students shouldn't be required...

NAACP Head Banned From NC's Largest School SystemPOSTED: 8:32 am EDT July 15, 2010 RALEIGH -- Four civil rights activists arrested for protesting what they call a decision to resegregate North Carolina's largest school district have been barred from school property. The News & Observer reported Thursday that Wake County school officials have warned the four protesters they will face legal action if they step on school property without permission. The warning targets state NAACP president Rev. William Barber, Duke University historian Tim Tyson, and two others arrested June 15 on accusations they disrupted a school board meeting. Barber planned...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The operator of a South Carolina toll highway sought bankruptcy protection on Thursday in a rare filing by a municipal entity under Chapter 9 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.Connector 2000 Association Inc filed for protection with the U.S. bankruptcy court in Spartanburg, South Carolina, with more than $200 million of bonds outstanding, court records showed.The nonprofit had been set up in 1996 by the South Carolina Department of Transportation to operate the 16 mile "Southern Connector" toll road in Greenville County, and build an extension to South Carolina Highway 153, records showed.Revenue, however, fell short of...

Alvin Greene, a relative unknown, surprised everyone in South Carolina on Tuesday night by winning the chance to face Sen. Jim DeMint, a Republican, this fall with a victory over state lawmaker Vick Rawl in the Democratic primary. The Democrats elected this guy in a primary election and now, not wanting to admit that the Democrat voters really are that gullible, they are asking him to step down, as if a mistake were made. Now that’s laughable! South Carolina Democratic Party Chair Carol Fowler on Wednesday asked Greene to withdraw from the race for U.S. Senate because he supposedly showed...

South Carolina U.S. Congressional Candidate Katherine Jenerette on Fox Business' America's Nightly Scoreboard with David Asman. Friday May 28 and again Monday May 31, 2010. Tune in Monday on Memorial Day at 7:00pm Eastern time to watch Katherine Jenerette on FOX Business’ America’s Nightly Scoreboard with David Asman. As part of an episode-long salute to veterans, David Asman kicked off the May 28 edition of Fox Business’ America’s Nightly Scoreboard by hosting four veterans who are running for Congress – South Carolina’s Katherine Jenerette, Florida’s Allen West, Michigan’s Brian Rooney, and Adam Kinzinger from Illinois .Asman describerd them as a “refreshing voice...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- U.S. authorities have charged a man with attempting to board a flight from Puerto Rico with weapons including a stun gun, a switchblade knife and four box cutters. ~ snip ~ Pol was scheduled to take a JetBlue flight to Boston when he was arrested on Monday. In addition to the knives agents found pepper spray and a flight simulator program in his luggage.

Every year, when spring rolls around, you can count on numerous articles in the mainstream media, and elsewhere, reviling the Confederacy, and so-called Neo-Confederates, the Confederate Battle flag, Proclamations of Confederate History Month, etc, etc, … ad infinitum. It never fails that Southerners are branded as slavers over and over, and readers are told how vile, and nasty, and ignorant, and just plain E V I L we Southerners are. Most of the ruminations by these writers and commentators are just plain garbage not backed up by REAL history but underwritten by revisionist history. In plain English -- it is...

"Casual visitors learn nothing about the true character of the mountaineers, nor can anyone be trusted to portray them if he holds a brief either for or against this people." Horace Kephart, Our Southern Mountaineers (1913). The images in this article are taken from various public domain sources. The descriptions are from the writings of Kephart, who lived in a cabin on the North Carolina side of the Great Smoky Mountains from 1904 until 1907 and who had a good eye for the folkways and a fine ear for the dialect of the Backcountry folk of this place and time.

The mountains of western North Carolina are rugged and their settlements were relatively isolated from the rest of the state for many decades. With the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the mountaineers' settlements and their cabins and other buildings were largely destroyed. The vintage monochrome photographs in this article depict the Oconaluftee Mountain Farm Museum buildings and other vintage log cabins of the North Carolina Smokies.

In an article entitled: “Unions Now Starting Their Own Political Party,” Warner Todd Huston, at the Canada Free Press, says the following: “Apparently the Democrats in North Carolina aren’t sufficiently leftist enough for the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). It appears that the SEIU, one of the largest and most powerful public employees unions in the nation, don’t have their hand deep enough in the taxpayer’s pockets so it is starting its own political party in the Tar Heel State, by passing the Democrats altogether.” You may read the entire article HERE. SEIU’s Political party is called “North Carolina First.”...

After the U.S. House's historic vote Sunday night passing the health care reform bill, South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster issued the following statement: "The health care legislation Congress passed tonight is an assault against the Constitution of the United States. It contains various provisions and federal mandates that are clearly unconstitutional and must not be allowed to stand. A legal challenge by the States appears to be the only hope of protecting the American people from this unprecedented attack on our system of government. The key question involved is whether personal freedom, state sovereignty and constitutional law will survive...