Free Republic

FR seems to have taken on many of the cult like attributes the cabal of anti-Mormon critics here ceaselessly and falsely subscribe to Mormons. I’ll follow the tactics of these folks in describing why FR is a cult. To start I’ll come up with my own definition of ‘cult’ and then follow up with a series of points selectively chosen to suit my own agenda. I’ll follow this model so as at to not confuse the usual suspects since the pattern of circular logic will be so familiar to them. A ‘cult’ is defined as an organization that: - Bears...

Just as predicted earlier, the GDP downgrades begin. We revised down our Q2 GDP tracking estimate by two tenths to +1.8% (quarter-over-quarter, annualized) from +2.0% previously. The downward revision primarily reflects weaker-than-expected real export growth in April. This was partly offset by stronger than expected wholesale inventories, which increased by 0.6% (month-over-month) in April.

In its June book, J.C. Penney Co Inc. ran an ad featuring another same-sex couple, but this time it features two dads in honor of Father’s Day.

President Obama's budget suffered a second embarrassing defeat Wednesday, when senators voted 99-0 to reject it. Coupled with the House's rejection in March, 414-0, that means Mr. Obama's budget has failed to win a single vote in support this year. Republicans forced the vote by offering the president's plan on the Senate floor. Democrats disputed that it was actually the president's plan, arguing that the slim amendment didn't actually match Mr. Obama's budget document, which ran thousands of pages. But Republicans said they used all of the president's numbers in the proposal, so it faithfully represented his plan. Sen. Jeff...

North Korea launched a three-stage rocket from a missile base near the west coast city of Sinuiju today, claiming that it was carrying a weather satellite of purely civilian use. Its projected trajectory was almost due south on a course 150 miles east of Shanghai. The second stage of the rock was to splash down east of the Philippines, which prompted Manila to cancel northbound flights as a precaution. Initial network news reports said the rocket failed during flight.

Former U.S. Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert speaks at St. Xavier University in Chicago Wednesday, March 21, 2012. | Brett Roseman~Sun-Times Media There were jabs at Newt Gingrich, kudos for Mitt Romney, connections between driving a school bus and serving as speaker of the U.S. House and opinions on the wars in the Middle East. Denny Hastert, who went from teacher and wrestling coach at Yorkville High School to become the longest-serving Republican House Speaker ever, shared thoughts as wide-ranging as his background last week in a speech at St. Xavier University in Chicago. Hastert, who was raised...

Move over Etch-a-Sketch guy. Move over whoever thought of putting Michael Dukakis in a tank. ... There’s a new gold standard for political campaign ineptitude–this campaign bus from Canada:

Dan Rather Signs OffDan Rather is leaving CBS after 44 years with the Tiffany Network. Sean McManus, president of CBS News and Sports, made the announcement. "Of all the famous names associated with CBS News, the biggest and brightest on the marquee are Murrow, Cronkite and Rather," McManus said. "With the utmost respect, we mark the extraordinary and singular role Dan has played in writing the script of not only CBS News, but of broadcast journalism."

[...] And yet, here we are at the end of 2011, with Facebook pages, Twitter accounts and discussion boards still teeming with intemperate quick takes. President Obama has taken considerable heat this year, but isn't it too soon to accuse him of being an ineffectual leader? Isn't that one lesson from the Tucson incident? On a Christmas Day episode of "GPS" on CNN, Fareed Zakaria interviewed Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David McCullough, who reminded us that it's too early to cast Obama's legacy in stone. Here's an excerpt from their interview: I admire him very much, and I think that his...

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican political figure and tea-party favorite Christine O’Donnell says she’s backing Mitt Romney’s presidential bid.</p> <p>O’Donnell cites executive experience as part of her reason for endorsing Romney. She announced her decision Tuesday night during an interview on Fox News Channel.</p>

A committee working to recall the state Senate's Republican leader has raised a little more than $3,500 since mid-November. Democrats and their allies are trying to gather enough signatures to force Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and three other GOP senators in recall elections next year. The Democrats want to oust the senators from office because they supported Republican Gov. Scott Walker's contentious collective bargaining law.

President Obama's slow ride down Gallup's daily presidential job approval index has finally passed below Jimmy Carter, earning Obama the worst job approval rating of any president at this stage of his term in modern political history. Since March, Obama's job approval rating has hovered above Carter's, considered among the 20th century's worst presidents, but today Obama's punctured Carter's dismal job approval line. On their comparison chart, Gallup put Obama's job approval rating at 43 percent compared to Carter's 51 percent.

<p>“I do not believe that the people of the United States are going to take people who’ve been here for a quarter of a century … [and] separate them from their families and expel them,” Gingrich said during a discussion about illegal immigration and border security. “I do believe we should control the border. I do believe we should have very severe penalties.”</p>

Okay everyone...approaching 2:00pm Eastern...ready for the "Big EAS Test"?

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- "What the [bleep] is Politico doing?" said the man on the phone. "And how the [bleep] are they getting away with this [bleep]?" Reporters rival sailors for their proficiency in profanity, and one of the most experienced political journalists in Washington was cussing a blue streak Thursday evening as he railed against the shoddiness of Politico's reporting on the Herman Cain "scandal."

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain's inconsistent statements in the wake of revelations that he was accused of sexual misconduct in the 1990s are complicating his efforts to move on from the incendiary story - and may prompt voters who would otherwise have discounted the allegations to reconsider. During his initial media interviews on Monday, Cain said that he was unaware if the National Restaurant Association, which he headed during the 1990s, had paid a financial settlement to a female employee or employees who had accused him of sexual misconduct. Politico reported Sunday that at least two women complained about Cain's...

A painted road sign was misspelled to "scohol" instead of school.Spell check needed: A painted road sign near a Broward elementary school was misspelled "scohol" instead of school. Residents in the neighoborhood of 50th street and Pine Island Road, which is one block from Banyan Elementary School, were surprised by the mistake, the South Florida Sun Sentinel said. "It's stupid, stupid, stupid," Jerome Seleznow was quoted as saying by the newspaper. Nadine Drew, spokeswoman for the Broward County School District, said she was glad the misspelling was being fixed. "We are surpised that it happened," she said. "We're glad to...

BALTIMORE (WJZ) – Indecent exposure. Videos of Baltimore students having sex spreading worldwide. WJZ first broke news of both sex scandals, and there are two police investigations underway at this hour. The incidents are provoking strong opinions online. Mike Hellgren has new insight into the controversy. Video of students as young as 14, having sex on school grounds in Baltimore has spread online.

HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZr7KP2UODQ This guys is angry at congress but says nothing about the failure of Obama!

Many of you have seen the new bumper stickers from various conservative groups that goes something like this: OBAMA = One Big A$$ Mistake, America! That definition has now been added to UrbanDictionary.com, and with your help, it can be "thumbed-up" to the top-ranking position. Left-wingers succeeded in labeling Bush as a "failure." But we can turn the tables and get America to realize that Obama really is one big mistake! Click here to give this new definition the "thumbs-up." Thanks!