Free Republic

Richard Nixon's "enemies list" appalled the country for the simple reason that presidents hold a unique trust. Unlike senators or congressmen, presidents alone represent all Americans. Their powers—to jail, to fine, to bankrupt—are also so vast as to require restraint. Any president who targets a private citizen for his politics is de facto engaged in government intimidation and threats. This is why presidents since Nixon have carefully avoided the practice. Save Mr. Obama, who acknowledges no rules.

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In 1971, America was introduced to President Richard Nixon’s “Enemies List.” The President had instructed staff to keep a list of political opponents, and as then-White House Counsel John Dean described it, they would “use the available federal machinery to screw our political enemies.” On the list were notable figures such as Paul Newman (actor), Charles Dyson (businessman), Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), NPR newsman Daniel Schorr and Morton Halperin, a foreign policy expert and father to political journalist Mark Halperin, and others. This secret list was the subject of justifiable scorn in the midst of the Watergate scandal. In 2012,...

By Jason Hines Because of situations in my own life I have been repeatedly returning to the concept of loving your enemies. I have wrestled with this issue publicly (I have preached a sermon on this subject twice) and at times in this space, but I have yet to share here my spiritual thoughts on the issue. The best place to begin is with the words of Christ. In Matthew 5:43-48 (NASB) Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray...

On the heels of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), otherwise known as the "Indefinite Detention Act," comes another draconian bill designed to give the federal government the power to turn American citizens into enemies of the state for virtually any reason it deems necessary. Stephen D. Foster, Jr. has the story. "Congress is considering HR 3166 and S. 1698 also known as the Enemy Expatriation Act, sponsored by Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Charles Dent (R-PA). This bill would give the US government the power to strip Americans of their citizenship without being convicted of being 'hostile' against the United...

A vacationing U.S. President Barack Obama accused Congress on Saturday of holding back the U.S. economic recovery by blocking "common sense" measures he said would create jobs and help growth. In remarks recorded on Wednesday on his campaign-style bus tour in Illinois and aired during his holiday in Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, Obama said the stalled construction, trade and payroll tax bills could give a boost to the economy. "The only thing preventing us from passing these bills is the refusal by some in Congress to put country ahead of party. That's the problem right now. That's what's holding this country...

If you are left in an island with a piece of bread and two people all starving to death, your friend before you and your enemy behind you, who would you feed? Would you pick and choose your friend who has been so good to you or would you pick your enemy who has consistently attempted but failed in killing you? Well, anyone who would choose friend over enemy is both emotionally and spiritually immature as I'll attempt to demonstrate. I know many would chant, "Feed your friends - starve your enemies!" That is not just NONSENSE but diabolical at...

White House operative heading 'birther' smear campaign? Former Fannie Mae chief allegedly manages 100-strong attack team from Pennsylvania Ave NEW YORK – A top Democrat, apparently operating with the full approval and cooperation of the president, has been directing a team of up to 100 who are paid to publish disinformation on a wide variety of websites to discredit "birthers," according to anti-Obama researchers. The radical supporters of the president, known as Obama robots, or "OBOTs" for short, have confirmed their White House-appointed ring leader is Democratic Party operative James A. Johnson, the former chairman of Fannie Mae. Initially, the...

Brazil’s new former Marxist terrorist President and Obama friend, Dilma Rousseff, is wasting no time in cuddling up to America’s enemies. From the Communist Party of China website Beijing, April 13, 2011. The presidents of China and Brazil on Tuesday signed a joint communique after their talks in Beijing, pledging the two countries will continue to promote cooperation in culture, education, sports and tourism. The two countries reiterated their willingness to deepen exchanges in education and highlighted the importance of exchanges between students, teachers and scholars from both countries, according to the joint communique. The two sides also expressed their...

It took him 400 rounds, 17 grenades, and a machine gun tripod used as a weapon, but one British Gurkha soldier single-handedly beat back an attack by 30 Taliban fighters in Afghanistan last summer. And now he‘s getting one of his military’s highest honors: Sergeant Dipprasad Pun, a 31-year-old from Bima in western Nepa and part of the Gurkha regiment serving the British Military, is receiving the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross for bravery. It’s well deserved. According to his superiors, Pun’s fearsom fighting is responsible for saving the lives of at least three other soldiers. Yesterday, he explained his unbelievable battle...

Very early, very sketch, and mostly an assumption at this point, but since we now live in a world where liberals and the MSM believe a shooter in Tuscon can somehow be motivated by a cross-hairs map he’s never seen — I’d say the New Tone Rules demand this question be asked: John Rosenthal at Pajamas Media: As reported here on Pajamas Media, Arid Uka, who shot and killed two American servicemen at Frankfurt Airport on Wednesday, has told German police that he was motivated in part by a video that he saw showing American soldiers “plundering a house and...

The Middle East is on fire again, and crazy Muslims with funny names aren't helping things -- Mahmoud, ElBaradei, al-Banna, Barack... The major new development is that NOW liberals want to get rid of a dictator in the Middle East! Where were they when we were taking out the guy with the rape rooms? Remember? The one who had gassed his own people, invaded his neighbors and was desperately seeking weapons of mass destruction? The guy who emerged from a spider hole looking like Charlie Sheen after a three-day bender?

Like FDR making a deal with Stalin, or Nixon reaching out to China, Americans are going to have to get used to the unthinkable — a treaty with Iran. So argues GEORGE FRIEDMAN, founder and CEO of the independent intelligence firm Statfor — sometimes called the private CIA — in his new book “The Next Decade” (Doubleday). In his previous book, “The Next 100 Years,” Friedman made the case for an American century, saying that no country truly threatens the United States’ economic or military dominance for decades. But in the next 10 years, how we handle that empire —...

Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik rejected the argument that his office might bear more responsibility for the assassination attempt on Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D-Az) than Sarah Palin or Rush Limbaugh. “There are those who say that considering the numerous death threats Jared Loughner has made against various persons over the last year my office should have taken action against him before his Tucson shooting spree,” Dupnik said. “But these threats were against unimportant people and therefore of admittedly narrow scope. The broader threat was, and continues to be, that of right-wing extremism. Palin and Limbaugh are the foremost proponents of...

Nazis promised grand mufti of J'lem Haj Amin al-Husseini leadership of Palestine after slaughter of its Jews, according to US report. NEW YORK – A newly released report by the US National Archives details the close collaborative relationship between Nazi leaders and the grand mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al-Husseini, indicating that Nazi authorities planned to use Husseini as their leader after their conquest of Palestine. Husseini was paid handsomely by the Nazis for his efforts, recruited Muslims for the SS and was promised that he would be made Palestine’s leader after its Jewish population of 350,000 had been murdered.

In what may have been his very first feeble attempt at bipartisanship since being elected over two years ago, President Obama promptly destroyed any smidgin of good will he may have accumulated by mewling to the press about the perfidy of Republicans as he announced his deal to extend unemployment benefits (again!) in exchange for dropping a greatly-desired-by-Democrats tax increase. In response to a reporter’s question about rewarding the “obstructionism” of the Republicans, the President had this to say: “It’s tempting not to negoitate with hostage takers, unless the hostage gets harmed. Then people will question the wisdom of that...

Check out the latest from the Air Show China. This year, China is showcasing numerous models of unmanned aerial vehicles (drones); most of which are for sale. Look closely at the WJ600 model: "The Chinese drone of greatest potential concern to the U.S. is the one with several missiles and a jet engine—called the WJ600—which was displayed by China Aerospace Science & Industry Corp., or Casic, one of China's top weapons makers. Casic officials declined to comment, but a video and a two-dimensional display by the company showed Chinese forces using the WJ600 to help attack what appeared to be...

The developers behind the proposed Ground Zero mosque have applied for about $5 million in federal grant money set aside for redeveloping downtown Manhattan after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, according to a new report. The application was submitted as a "community and cultural enhancement" grant, which is a program run by the Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corp. Developer Sharif El-Gamal discussed the grant proposal in recent closed-door meetings, according to The Daily Beast. The revelation that the developers have asked for this grant could reignite outrage about the mosque's proposed location.

If you had your butt kicked in an athletic contest -- or an election -- you would think it would warrant a long look in the mirror. You might start thinking about what you could have done differently during the past contest, and perhaps you would reflect about your strengths and weaknesses, and those of your opponent. Back when I wrestled in high school, I had a teammate who was both outstanding on the mat and an exemplary student. I remember that on one rare occasion, he was soundly beaten. I will never forget his bruised-ego comment to me right...