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Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took the stage in Copenhagen today to deliver his speech on combating climate change, but he also created buzz with a series of shots at 2008 GOP VP nominee Sarah Palin's global warming skepticism. "You have to ask: what was she trying to accomplish?" he told the Financial Times. "Is she really interested in this subject or is she interested in her career and in winning the [Republican] nomination [for president]? You have to take all these things with a grain of salt."

Did anyone just see that disgusting slo-motion love fest Obama commercial for his serve.gov site? BAAAAAAAAAARF

ormer San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown is lambasting what he calls "highly inappropriate" behavior by San Francisco Democrats Wednesday who greeted Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger with a hostile reception during a surprise drop-in at a San Francisco Democratic Party fund-raiser. But outspoken State Assemblyman Tom Ammiano of San Francisco, who shouted "You lie!" to Schwarzenneger during the event at the Fairmont Hotel -- and didn't deny reports he walked out with a quip of "kiss my gay ass" -- said the GOP governor's "cheap publicity stunt" earned a very appropriate show of political theater, San Francisco-style. Schwarzenegger, in a statement this...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has landed himself on yet another national magazine cover. Except this one isn't so flattering: "Girly-Man Ruins State," is how the National Review headlines the piece. The full story is not available online, but Chris Reed, editorial writer for the San Diego Union-Tribune, excerpts parts of the piece. Key line: "Conservatives were cheap dates and missed the subtle signals that Arnold lacked the fierce spirit of liberty that characterized (President Ronald) Reagan's approach to governance."

A fourth-generation Southern Californian, Joe Mathews is a journalist, an Irvine senior fellow at the New America Foundation, and a contributing writer at the Los Angeles Times. He previously served as Justice Department reporter for the Wall Street Journal and as a city desk reporter at the Baltimore Sun. He is the author of The Peoples Machine: Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Rise of Blockbuster Democracy. How bad did things get between Der Governator and his fellow Republicans? Schwarzeneggers biographer, Joe Mathews, reports that he recently considered dropping out of the party altogether. Its the latest blast in a long-running war....

Schwarzenegger: Republicans who backed tax hikes are 'great heroes' By Rob Hotakainen Feb. 23, 2009 WASHINGTON --- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday came to the aid of six Republican lawmakers who ran afoul of the state GOP Party for backing a budget with tax increases, calling them "great heroes" who put people before politics. "I think that they've done a terrific job and they should pay very little attention to what the party says," the governor told reporters in Washington. "Because remember what I said, what is good for the party is not good for the people and what is...

The Governator: What a sad artifact of a bygone era that moniker is. Arnold Schwarzenegger circa the 2003 “total recall” election was going to sweep all before him as California governor, bringing the same élan and toughness he had on the big screen to fighting special interests and restoring his beloved state to competitiveness. That was before Governor Arnold got a severe beat-down in a November 2005 special election from the unions and Democrats (a.k.a. “girly men”) he had taunted during his ascendancy. Schwarzenegger pushed four far-reaching reformist ballot initiatives that all went down under a blizzard of spending and...

Schwarzenegger defends tax rise, says GOP should work with Obama By Rob Hotakainen Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009. WASHINGTON - Likening California's budget troubles to an earthquake, Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Sunday defended his decision to raise taxes and said his party's leaders in Washington should be "team players" with President Barack Obama. And if that means violating the GOP's principles, he said, so be it. "They should make an effort to work together and to find what is best for the people, because by derailing everything, it's not going to help anybody, and it creates instability and insecurity," Schwarzenegger...

The man who says he left Austria because he couldn’t stand socialism has no problem with it here. The man who preached self-reliance doesn’t worry about responsible homeowners being forced to bail out others. The man who rode to the California governor’s mansion by bashing Gray Davis over the car tax and promising to repeal it . . . just pushed through a budget nearly doubling the tax. Schwarzenegger’s weakness and hypocrisy was evident today on This Week. George Stephanopoulos opened the interview by playing a clip of a photo-op Schwarzenegger staged when first running for governor, having a huge...

Reporting from Sacramento — After five years as governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger came full circle on Friday: The film star who promised to rescue California from its fiscal wreckage without raising taxes signed into law $12.5 billion in tax hikes. With that, the Republican governor broke one of the few bonds left between his shrunken party and California's mainstream voters, marring its hard-won image as a guardian against higher taxes. "Their last gasp has been taken from them," said Larry N. Gerston, a political scientist at San Jose State, citing the unpopularity among most California voters of the party's conservative stands...

Arnold: GOP out of touch California Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger suggested that his party is out of touch with average Americans on the issue of health care. “You've got to listen to the people. If the nation is screaming out loud, ‘We need health care reform. We want to have universal health care. We want to have everyone insured. We want to bring the costs down. We want everyone to have access.’ I mean, that's what they want; that's what you do,” Schwarzenegger said on ABC’s “This Week.” Arguing that California Republicans were out of touch with the majority of...

He blames the small locker room, the playing of the national anthems and his cold relationship with Padraig Harrington for Europe's loss. January 7, 2009 Sergio Garcia did not win any of his four matches at last year's Ryder Cup, but that's not the reason he gives for Europe losing to the United States. Instead, he blames the small locker room, the playing of the national anthems and his cold relationship with Padraig Harrington. "The U.S. team played their cards well," Garcia told the Mirror. "They knew where the pins were going to be and the tees and we didn't....

There's something seriously wrong with a man who wants to look like a tennis ball. First, he likes tennis. Second, he likes the color yellow.

November 26, 2008 Categories: Antics No "girly" dog for the Obamas Barbara Walters interviewed the Obamas, due to air tonight, and of course the topics of doggies came up. She, along with millions of Americans, actually sent Michelle Obama a picture of her beloved Havanese dog, Cha Cha Cha. (We're not kidding.) Here's the back and forth between Obama and Bawbwa: Obama: "Cha Cha?" Bawbwa: "It's short for Cha Cha Cha." O: "What is a Havanese?" B: "It's like a little terrier and they're non-allergenic and they're the sweetest dogs.." O: [Face suddenly changes.] "It's like a little yappy dog?"...

State Attorney General Jerry Brown today urged the California Supreme Court to review legal challenges to Proposition 8, but steered clear of taking a position on the gay marriage ban measure approved by voters. In a written responses to three lawsuits seeking to overturn the initiative, Brown's office said the state's highest court should allow the measure to remain in effect during the review period because of the confusion that a stay of the measure would cause. "Due to the potential uncertainty that may be caused in important legal relationships by a temporary stay, the public interest would be better...

When the state legislature twice handed Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger a bill to legalize marriage equality in California, Schwarzenegger vetoed it both times, saying that it was an issue for the courts to sort out. Now, following voter approval of Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment that revokes the right for gay and lesbian families to marry, Schwarzenegger is repeating that sentiment. The governor went on the news program This Week With George Stephanopoulos to say that he opposes the new amendment, but he believes that the state’s Supreme Court--which found state laws barring same-sex families from marriage to be unconstitutional last...

Posted 5 :56 PM ST. LOUIS -- For many people outside of the political world Rahm Emanuel is not a household name, but that is about to change as President-elect Barack Obama has tapped him to be his White House chief of staff. “Rahm is exactly the right person at the right time for that job” said John Lapp who served as executive director under Emanuel in his role as chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, (DCCC). “What people don’t understand about him is, yes he is a great political strategist and statistician, but he is also a thoughtful...

Schwarzenegger, Shriver Oppose Marriage Amendment Sunday, October 26, 2008 11:36 AM California's first lady says she is voting against a ballot initiative that would prohibit same-sex couples from getting married in California. Maria Shriver said in an interview with KNBC-TV in Los Angeles that she is voting no on Proposition 8. Shriver said, "I believe in people's right to choose a partner that they love, and that's a decision that I have come to, and I have felt that way for a long time." Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger also opposes Prop. 8.

Sacramento -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who promised not to sign any bills until lawmakers reach a budget deal, reversed his position today and signed a bill for a statewide bullet train system that he strongly supports. The governor also wants to make exceptions for three other proposals that he has been promoting: budget reform; changing the state lottery to allow California to borrow against future ticket sales; and a bond proposal for water infrastructure. The high-speed rail legislation will replace a $10 billion bond measure on the November ballot with a revised version of the proposal that makes the bullet...

No excuse for violence against women Wilfred Langmaid DAYS BETWEEN Published Friday February 22nd, 2008 Appeared on page C10 You deserve so much more than this. So don't tell me why he's never been good to you. Don't tell me why he's never been there for you. And I'll tell you that why is simply not good enough. - Good Enough by Sarah McLachlan In the early 1990s, very shortly after my ordination as a priest, I attended a seminar with a group of Anglican clergy. That day, I was told more than one in 8 women was a victim...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a quick-trigger, guns-a-blazing action hero in Hollywood, is being blasted by firearms groups as a Second Amendment wimp in the Capitol. Schwarzenegger's signing of bills to require microstamping of semiautomatic pistols and to ban lead bullets in condor country has prompted gun groups to paint him as one of the state's most anti-gun Republican governors. "Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger might as well change his last name to Kennedy because he is acting just like radical, anti-gun U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy, his uncle-in-law," read a recent statement by Gun Owners of California, a nonprofit advocacy group. "We don't believe...

Listen to this audio file at LiveLeak. This guy is emblematic of the US Department of State. I've lurked at FreeRepublic for years, but when I heard this, I blew a gasket and registered. I looked at the Dept of State website for his email address, but could not find it. However, his phone is: 202-647-1318.

Chafee quietly quits the GOP 01:00 AM EDT on Sunday, September 16, 2007 By Bruce Landis Journal Staff Writer PROVIDENCE — Lincoln D. Chafee, who lost his Senate seat in the wave of anti-Republican sentiment in last November’s election, said yesterday that he has left the party. Chafee said he disaffiliated with the party he had helped lead, and his father had led before him, because the national Republican Party has gone too far away from his stance on too many critical issues, from war to economics to the environment. “It’s not my party any more,” he said. Chafee’s departure...

Kucinich's diet Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) offered an explanation for why he chooses a vegan diet today during the LiveStrong presidential candidates forum on cancer. He explained he has dropped 25 pounds since taking on a no-meat diet. He said his food choices give him tons of energy to use on the campaign trail, and, apparently, in his personal life. "I'm 60, my wife's 29. You draw your own conclusions," he said, adding as the MSNBC camera panned to wife Elizabeth: "Diet helps." Moderator Lance Armstrong complained, "This has really deteriorated," but then joined in the fun: "I would just...

Behold GodTube.com, the place where sex, humor and warm spiritual inclusiveness go to die The Internets, they're just so chock-full of gul-dang liberals, aren't they? This is, after all, the big conservative lament. It's like you can't hit your Gizmodo or your Fleshbot or your Savage Love without running smack into some well-read, free-thinking pseudo-hipster gleefully expounding on the joys of anal sex or a recent hilarious Jon Stewart/"Daily Show" riff or offering up a link to some dark, brilliant Polish anti-war animation. Horrible! Or maybe it's a hot sex blogger slapping Fox News for being such an obvious bastion...

By San Francisco O'Sullivan report (mp3) - Download 449k audio clip Listen to O'Sullivan report (mp3) audio clip United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met with California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Friday, and the two called for stepped-up global action on climate change. Mike O'Sullivan reports from San Francisco, the U.N. official praised the West Coast governor for his state's aggressive role in tackling the issue. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has made climate change a priority at the United Nations. He had flattering words for Governor Schwarzenegger, who has set ambitious goals to reduce his state's greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global...

Welcome to “The Levin Lounge”… Step in and have a FRink.Will we hear… Taking the country by storm, one radio station at a time – and kicking the BUTTS of the competition! Welcome all, to the most FUN LIVE THREAD on FreeRepublic! Call the show: 1-877-381-3811

Just had to get that off my chest!

Duke lacrosse players owe woman apology Tuesday, April 17, 2007 3:32 AM I respond to the Associated Press article in Thursday's Dispatch, "All charges dropped against players," regarding the Duke lacrosse rape case. As a 24-year-old white, male college student, I am appalled that a case so pregnant with issues of race, gender, income disparity and prejudice has been swept under the rug. Even if these young men did not rape this young woman, they still acted in a racist, misogynist manner that should not be condoned in any society. It is disheartening to think that these young men are...

The latest point of emphasis in the global warming movement is that cattle farming endangers the planet by producing too much methane. So now, steaks and hamburgers are classified as instruments of destruction, along with large vehicles, lawn mowers, and charcoal grills. It can't be much longer before cowboy movies, cigars and hockey are held to be enemies of the earth as well. This has got to be the most blatant assault on guyhood since ABC moved Coach to the same night as Roseanne, and turned Hayden Fox into Phil Donahue. It's a wonder that liberals don't cut to the...

March 05, 2007 An Open Letter To The ACU And CPAC Sponsors Note: This letter will appear simultaneously on a number of conservative blogs this morning. It has been scheduled in advance for that purpose. My personal remarks will appear below. _____________________________________________ Conservatism treats humans as they are, as moral creatures possessing rational minds and capable of discerning right from wrong. There comes a time when we must speak out in the defense of the conservative movement, and make a stand for political civility. This is one of those times. Ann Coulter used to serve the movement well. She was...

Six years after Donald Rumsfeld agreed to a second tour of duty as secretary of defense, to rebuild the military, Chief of Staff Peter Schoomaker told Congress his Army "will break" if not relieved of the present burdens. Colin Powell says the Army is "almost broken." This week, Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said there is a significant risk that the United States today may be unable to respond quickly and fully to another crisis should it arise. Howls erupted across the spectrum for more billions for more men for the Army and Marine Corps....

Dentist to Affluent Sues Lidle Estate By SAMUEL MAULL NEW YORK (AP) - A dentist to the rich and famous has filed a $7 million lawsuit against the estate of late New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle, claiming his home was destroyed when the ballplayer's small airplane crashed into his apartment building. Dr. Lawrence Rosenthal says in court papers that after Lidle's Cirrus SR-20 aircraft crashed into the Manhattan building where he lived with his wife and teenage son, they had to vacate their 43rd-floor apartment. Rosenthal, whose patients include Donald Trump, Bruce Springsteen and Catherine Zeta-Jones, said his apartment...

Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger has aligned himself with Democrats in calling on the Bush administration to set a clear timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq. Speaking on CBS’s "Face the Nation,” on Sunday, the California governor said Americans won’t support a war that involves an open-ended commitment and threatens to become a Vietnam-like quagmire. "We should let the Iraqis know that we are here until this time, and then we’re going to draw back,” Schwarzenegger said. "We’re going to draw our troops out of Iraq. I think a timeline is absolutely important because I think that the people in America...

CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez returned to the national spotlight on Valentine's Day to tell U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that he misses her verbal attacks. "It had been days since she had given me any attention. How are you, Condoleezza?" Chavez asked in a speech Wednesday to pensioners in the capital of Caracas. It was Chavez's first response to Rice's testimony last week to a U.S. congressional committee that the Venezuelan leader was "destroying his own country" economically and politically — an apparent reference to a centralization of power in Venezuela and moves to nationalize key...

"This is a true story.....Check out this photo from our mess hall at the US Embassy yesterday morning. Sen. Kerry found himself all alone while he was over here. He cancelled his press conference because no one came, he worked out alone in the gym w/o any soldiers even going up to say hi or ask for an autograph (I was one of those who was in the gym at the same time), and he found himself eating breakfast with only a couple of folks who are obviously not troops. What is amazing is Bill O'Reilly came to visit with...

Democrat Phil Angelides blamed his struggling campaign for governor on a "record amount of negative ads" put out by Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in an interview Monday with The Chronicle editorial board. Angelides, who trails in most polls by double digits, said Schwarzenegger and his supporters have spent more than $60 million since June to misinform California voters about his record and policies. "You have the largest amount of special interest money pouring into Arnold Schwarzenegger's accounts -- all to tear me down," said Angelides, a two-term state treasurer. "We are the underdog in this race." With just three weeks...

EXCLUSIVE: THE TERMIMOTOR Arnie dumps gas-guzzling Hummers as California sues carmarkers over pollution By Ryan Parry, Us Correspondent ARNOLD Schwarzenegger has dumped his £500,000 fleet of Hummers as California sues the world's largest carmakers over pollution. The Californian governor sold eight of the four-ton, 110mph army-style trucks - which do only 10 miles to the gallon - to prove his commitment to helping the fight against global warning. Schwarzenegger used to call the monster vehicles "incredibly precise and forceful machines". But the Terminator star has had a change of heart since swapping the silver screen for a career in politics....

(While filming "Bosnian Holiday",a film about the hunt for Karadzic), actor Richard Gere becomes ill from the smell of cevapi Sarajevo - Actor Richard Gere, who is a Buddhist and a vegeterian, became ill from the smell of cevapi [trans. note: small grilled sausages, a traditional dish] in the Sarajevo quarter of Bascarsija. The hospitable restaurant operators were forced to close their shops during filmining in Bascarsija because of Gere, even though they made an effort and brought him the very best cevapi to be had, writes the Sarajevo press. The famous Hollywood star is in Sarajevo filming "Holiday in...

Samuel Colt invented the revolver in 1836 in Hartford, Conn., and now he's remembered by the saying: "Abe Lincoln may have freed all men, but Colt made them equal." Today, we have a new equalizer, the Internet. You might say: "God made all writers, but the Web made them equal." No matter if you are an obscure writer at a small newspaper in suburban Chicago. In the cyberworld, if you have a good column, sometimes you can attract almost as much attention as a writer at one of the big papers. Consequently, I get a pretty good amount of reader...

I f you live in plano area be aware of the Fina at parker and alma.

Aw shoot, they're cute The NRA's flyer at gigantic weapons fest screams: 'Acres of guns! Bring the family!' Among the thousands of guns at NRA firearm sale, Emily Carlson, 4, jumps from her stroller to point out her favorite. MILWAUKEE - The flyer for the 135th annual gathering of the National Rifle Association said to "bring your whole family" to see "acres of the latest guns." And a man behind the registration desk at the exhibition hall on Friday guaranteed this was no exaggeration. "You won't believe it!" he said.  He was right, for to enter the cavernous Midwest...

An open letter to William P. Leahy, SJ, president of Boston College. I am writing to resign my post as an adjunct professor of English at Boston College. I am doing so -- after five years at BC, and with tremendous regret -- as a direct result of your decision to invite Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to be the commencement speaker at this year's graduation. Many members of the faculty and student body already have voiced their objection to the invitation, arguing that Rice's actions as secretary of state are inconsistent with the broader humanistic values of the university...

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER hasn't just abandoned his campaign promise to fight the special interests that dominate Sacramento politics. He has thrown it from his favorite Hummer and driven over it. His craven surrender to the tyrannical prison guards union is so complete that his aides have been subverting the authority of the state corrections chief by consulting union officials on her choices for warden positions and other jobs. And that, according to one insider, is the explanation for the resignation Wednesday of Jeanne S. Woodford, acting secretary of the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Woodford quit just two months...

Stern weighed in yesterday with the confession that he had a nose job nine years ago — right after the filming of his movie, "Private Parts" — and liposuction not long after to suck out the waddle of fat under his chin. He explained that, while he'd always hated his nose, doctor after doctor told him not to touch it. Finally, he said, one sketched out a simple fix that would pare away his speed bump, so he decided to have the surgery.

REPORT: SCHWARZENEGGER STITCHED UP AFTER VEHICLE MISHAP

Yaa, you repukes are not doing so well, huh? Imagine, you repukes control the presidency, both houses of Congress, and appointed 7 of the 9 Supreme Court justices. Yet the Supreme Court thre out sodomy laws in all 50 states and recognized the right of government to seize land for any reason. And you couldn't pass your Social Security changes could you? Sorry, that was your last shot. Come November, we're going to start seeing more Democratic faces in the House. It's the end for you guys. You guys are celebrating when Bush's numbers go *up* to 45%. Then Faux...

Bush’s giant Right Wing Noise Machine (RWNM) loves to preach about the Bush economic miracle. In fact, the RWNM’s current thinking is Bush doesn’t spend enough time talking about his economic triumphs. If only he did, then everyone would fall in line and believe in the great Bush economic miracle. There is one problem with this argument: it’s a lie. Any way you look at the Bush economy, it comes up short. Today, I want to compare Bush’s job creation record with other economic recoveries. As usual, Bush comes up way short. The national Bureau of Economic Research has identified...

SISTERS, Ore. -- Tara O'Keeffe said even the manliest of men needs a good moisturizer. That's why the Oregon woman has created a moisturizer for the "working man" who frequents home-improvement stores. O'Keeffe's Working Hands is oil-free, hypoallergenic, unscented and sold in cans that look like car wax containers. She now sells 500,000 cans of the lotion annually in the United States. It's packaged in a fluorescent lime-green canister with tangerine print, a rubber grip and a holographic lid. The can is shaped like a hockey puck. The product has no fragrance and fits right into a tool chest. O'keefe...