Free Republic

As Gov. Scott Walker prepares to announce his campaign for president next month, promising to bring what he calls "big bold leadership" to Washington, as he did in Wisconsin, he faces a cloud over that story line: Republicans back home are in revolt. Leaders or Mr. walker's party, which controls the Legislature, are balking at his demands for the state's budget. Critics say the governor's spending blueprint is aimed more at appealing to conservatives in early-voting states like Iowa than doing what is best for Wisconsin. Lawmakers are stymied over how to pay for road and bridge repairs without raising...

So, the Supreme Court ruled/legislated from bench, unconstitutionally, on June 26th. Here it is June 30th, and Donald Trump, the man known for speaking his mind, most of the time in a politically incorrect manner, has been silent on this ruling. 4 days! Ostensibly, he wants to be President of the United States. He has also stated he believes in traditional marriage, and weakly stated that gay marriage, "wasn't his thing". Since the oath of office for POTUS includes the following: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States,...

Data Proves that Slavery has Little to do with the Current Plight of African-Americans By Onan Coca / 24 June 2015 / The brilliant economist and political thinker (and Professor at George Mason University) Walter E. Williams has a new column up at CNS News discussing modern black America. Professor Williams is a conservative African-American who is often at odds with the liberal orthodoxy on the problems within the black community, and his latest commentary is no different. In his latest effort, Williams discusses the mythology that has arisen around the current problems in the black community – particularly fatherlessness,...

p>During a Fox News interview on Sunday, Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz described a recent encounter with a local reporter in Texas who persisted in asking whether he had “an animosity toward gay Americans.” “Media Buzz” host Howard Kurtz raised the subject: KURTZ: “You had an exchange with a reporter in Beaumont, Texas, who asked you flat out [if] you have an animosity toward gay Americans. You pushed back on that pretty hard.”CRUZ: “We were talking about bias in the media; it’s a good example. He asked me initially about gay marriage. I told him I don’t support gay marriage;...

RUSH: Chris Christie, the governor of New Jersey, announced that he's running for president today. I think that gets us up to 16 announced Republicans. He gave a, eh, fairly average 20-, 25-minute long stem-winder. We have just a couple of sound bites I want to play for you. He was in Livingston, New Jersey, at Livingston High School. He said he traveled around the country and he keeps hearing all these people telling him that Americans are angry. But he said he's traveled around the country and he hasn't found anybody angry. He hasn't found anybody mad. He's found...

A new video produced by Ben Howe and National Review asks how much Americans really know about Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. It features a quick montage of pundits and politicians across the spectrum questioning her private email server and multiple conflicts of interest while serving at the State Department.

Republican Texas Senator and presidential hopeful Ted Cruz spoke to TODAY's Savannah Guthrie on Monday about the latest Supreme Court rulings in an appearance Monday to discuss his new book, "A Time For Truth: Reigniting the Promise of America." When asked by Guthrie about his comments that the court rulings upholding the health care law and making same-sex marriage legal was "a dark day for America," Cruz said that a majority of the Supreme Court justices, whom he called "5 unelected lawyers...violated their judicial oaths." Cruz thinks it should be up to the states to vote for gay marriage laws....

Mayor Bill de Blasio, unleashing months of frustration on Tuesday, said Gov. Andrew Cuomo undermined his Albany agenda and wasn’t focused on New York City residents but instead cared about “deal making” and “revenge.” Mr. de Blasio said he expected more retribution from the governor, a fellow Democrat, for expressing his views Tuesday afternoon, but he said he was prepared to handle it. Mr. de Blasio also said the governor had been disappointing since the mayor endorsed him last year for re-election. ... Melissa DeRosa, a spokeswoman for the governor, said Mr. Cuomo wished the mayor well on his coming...

I kept hearing that he wouldn’t do it and that he’s all bluster, but it looks like Donald Trump has actually filed a lawsuit against Univision for breaking their contract to broadcast the Miss USA pageant after his comments about illegal aliens from Mexico.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- President Barack Obama brings his push to raise salaries for low-income workers to Wisconsin, the state where Gov. Scott Walker built his expected run for the White House around curtailing collective bargaining powers and enacting a right-to-work law.

Democratic presidential hopeful and self-proclaimed socialist Bernie Sanders Tuesday went after Republican Gov. Scott Walker for limiting union power in Wisconsin. “Needless to say I’m strongly opposed to his agenda,” Sanders told reporters during a phone conference, according Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “I think we need leadership in this country that is ready to stand up for working families. We need to strengthen the trade union movement in this country, not break it.” Though most of the major unions have yet to officially endorse a candidate, local unions have been increasingly moving to support Sanders. Walker, however, is loathed by organized...

HOUSTON, Texas — U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, issued the following statement welcoming New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie into the race for the 2016 Republican nomination for President of the United States:“I’m glad to welcome Governor Chris Christie into our diverse field of candidates. He is bold, he is brash, and I’m always glad to see Republicans get elected in blue states. His presence in the race for the Republican nomination will make our eventual nominee all the stronger to defeat Hillary Clinton in November of 2016.”

Democratic voters are skeptics this summer. They doubt presidential contenders can deliver favored reforms from Washington, no matter how enticing the policy agendas sound. Those doubts depress enthusiasm about next year’s White House contest and could impact turnout for the eventual Democratic nominee. Those were among early warnings in a survey released Monday of likely 2016 voters, sponsored by Democracy Corps and Women’s Voices, Women Vote Action Fund. Americans want change and reforms, but “people don’t think any of this is going to happen,” Stan Greenberg, chairman and CEO of polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, said during a reporter...

Washington (CNN) Sen. Elizabeth Warren isn't running for president -- but that's not stopping her from taking a swing at a leading likely Republican presidential candidate. The progressive senator from Massachusetts on Monday night knocked Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker for calling for a Constitutional amendment that would allow states to ban gay marriage. "Well, Scott Walker, if you believe the next president's job is to encourage bigotry and to treat some families better than others, then I believe it is our job to make sure you aren't president," Warren said while speaking at a fundraiser for Connecticut's Democratic party.

Many conservatives — and, indeed, many people — have been confused about what, exactly, Marco Rubio’s position is on immigration now that he’s said he regrets his support for the failed Gang of Eight bill. In an interview with New Hampshire’s local ABC station on Friday, Rubio made clear that he remains a supporter of a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants. “I do,” Rubio said, when asked if he supports a path to citizenship for those currently in the United States illegally. First, though, Rubio said lawmakers have to “prove to the American people that illegal immigration is under...

British PM to Broadcaster: Don’t Call Islamic State ‘Islamic State’ By Patrick Goodenough | June 30, 2015 | 4:08 AM EDT (CNSNews.com) – British Prime Minister David Cameron took issue Monday with Britain’s public broadcaster’s use of the term “Islamic State” in reference to the terrorist group, Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). During a BBC Radio 4 interview days after an ISIS-claimed terror attack on a Tunisian beach hotel cost the lives of at least 38 people, most of them British tourists, Cameron was asked whether he regarded “Islamic State” as an existential threat. “I wish the BBC...

For Kiev, winning the public relations war against Vladimir Putin would seem to be a no-brainer. For a year now, the Kremlin has conducted a thinly-disguised war of aggression in eastern Ukraine resulting in the deaths of thousands. Yet Kiev seems intent on squandering any international public support it might have had amidst a bizarre crackdown on free speech and censorship of controversial historical debates. Through its crackdown, Ukraine has actually played into Putin's propaganda war and facilitated Russia's PR efforts. At issue is Ukraine's contentious World War II past, some of which isn't particularly flattering. With the support of...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court has ruled the National Security Agency may temporarily resume its bulk collection of Americans' domestic phone call records, the New York Times reported on Tuesday. The program lapsed on June 1, when Section 215 of the Patriot Act expired. Congress revived that provision the following day with a bill called the Freedom Act, which said the provision could only be used for bulk collection for six months.

NBC has severed all ties with Donald Trump after his insulting remarks about Mexican immigrants. "At NBC, respect and dignity for all people are cornerstones of our values. Due to the recent derogatory statements by Donald Trump regarding immigrants, NBCUniversal is ending its business relationship with Mr. Trump," the network said in a statement. "To that end, the annual Miss USA and Miss Universe Pageants, which are part of a joint venture between NBC and Trump, will no longer air on NBC. In addition, as Mr. Trump has already indicated, he will not be participating in The Celebrity Apprentice on...

During an appearance on Fox News’ MediaBuzz on Sunday, Senator Ted Cruz blasted the liberal media for going easy on Hillary Clinton despite the numerous scandals surrounding her.  Speaking to host Howard Kurtz, Cruz accused the media of being “docile” towards Hillary and if “any Republican did what she’s doing right now” the press would be obsessing over it on a daily basis. Kurtz did his best to defend the press and noted how they “investigated her on the e-mail server, on Clinton Foundation, on speaking fees, I would say she's not gotten an easy ride. You might say that...