Free Republic

Florida is taking a strong stand against retail theft and “porch piracy.” Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday signed into law a bill that would crack down on criminals participating in shoplifting rings and engaging in other types of property crime. While doing so, he took some shots at California and New York for going easy on those committing these offenses. Amid widespread retail theft occurring across the nation, state and local governments are grappling with putting a stop to these operations while others are simply responding with a shrug. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, DeSantis announced...

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa — Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida lashed out at the media Monday after networks declared former President Donald Trump the winner before some caucus sites had started voting. “It is absolutely outrageous that the media would participate in election interference by calling the race before tens of thousands of Iowans even had a chance to vote,” said DeSantis spokesman Andrew Romeo. “The media is in the tank for Trump and this is the most egregious example yet.”The news broke at a caucus site here right around the same time a surrogate for Mr. DeSantis had taken...

Former President Donald Trump is distancing himself from attorney Sidney Powell in the wake of her guilty plea in the Georgia election interference case. “Sidney Powell was one of millions and millions of people who thought, and in ever increasing numbers still think, correctly, that the 2020 Presidential Election was RIGGED & STOLLEN," Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform Truth Social on Sunday. "Despite the Fake News reports to the contrary, and without even reaching out to ask the Trump Campaign, MS. POWELL WAS NOT MY ATTORNEY, AND NEVER WAS," he wrote.*** Eric Segall, a law...

Donald Trump remains on top of the polls among Republican presidential candidates, but the gap between the former president and his onetime political protégé could be narrowing following the first GOP debate. A new poll from Public Opinion Strategies — a polling firm working for the DeSantis' campaign — shows Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis closing in on Trump among Iowa voters. The poll, obtained by Fox News Digital, interviewed 400 Iowa likely GOP caucus-goers and included a ballot test that saw DeSantis rise from 14% support up to 21% post-debate. Trump slid by one percentage point, from 42% to 41%....

Most people say former President Donald Trump should go to trial for his various cases regarding classified documents and attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election prior to the 2024 contest, in which he appears likely to be the Republican nominee. According to a new POLITICO Magazine/Ipsos poll, 62% of people said they believe Trump should stand trial for his storage of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, for which he was indicted in June, prior to the 2024 presidential election in November. Sixty-one percent also believed he should stand trial for cases regarding alleged attempts to subvert...

Former President Donald Trump’s eldest son Donald Trump Jr. did not acquire Mar-a-Lago in the weeks leading up to his father’s arrest in Fulton County, Georgia, Trump Jr. told Breitbart News exclusively.

Donald Trump transferred the ownership of his Mar-a-Lago resort to his son just days before the ex-president was arrested in Georgia, RadarOnline.com can report. According to online property records, the former president “sold” his Palm Beach, Florida property for $422,000,000 on August 4. However, a deeper investigation into the Mar-a-Lago sale found that the 1100 S Ocean Blvd, Palm Beach property was sold to a company called Mar-a-Lago, Inc. The Express reported that the owner of Mar-a-Lago, Inc. – and its registered agent – is none other than 45-year-old Donald Trump Jr. Zillow – the online real estate marketplace that...

That rapidly growing wind power development kills birds in ever increasing numbers is clear. That it also kills whales and other marine mammals is becoming clear. So the policy question is how much killing is enough, before we stop killing more? This question seems not to be asked. The stampede to build huge amounts of wind power, on land and at sea, is potentially devastating to a great many species. Our focus has been on the growing threat to whales and other marine mammals from offshore industrial wind. But this is just part of a much deeper pattern of runaway...

Through both his private-sector career and his time in politics, Donald Trump has earned a reputation for thinking big (or “big league”). While not all of The Donald’s visionary ideas have come to pass, the 45th president doesn’t let that deter him from continuing to push the envelope, taking things with an “aim for the moon so you land among the stars” attitude. With the 2024 election amping up and a likely primary challenge from popular Republican Governor Ron DeSantis on the horizon, Trump finds himself faced with the need to draft a platform that will not only distinguish him...

Former President Trump plans to attack Bush-era Republicans in his remarks to the Conservative Political Action Conference Saturday and urge those in attendance to finish the job of transforming the GOP by backing him for the White House in 2024. Trump is expected to deliver CPAC’s keynote address at roughly 5:30 p.m. in remarks that are expected to last roughly 90 minutes. Trump has been a staple of the annual gathering for years, delivering marquee speeches during and after his presidency. The event, this year in National Harbor, Maryland, is now dominated by his most ardent supporters and he is...

Afederal jury found a Hardin, Montana man guilty of selling eagle feathers in South Dakota Tuesday. The jury found that Harvey Hugs, 59, is guilty of three counts of violating the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act in 2020 after a two-day trial at the federal courthouse in Rapid City. The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act was enacted in 1940. The act prohibits the possession, use and sale of eagles or their feathers and parts. Exceptions to the act include the use of eagles by Native Americans. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service operates the National Eagle Repository as...

Evangelical pastor Franklin Graham, a longtime supporter of former President Trump, says he will not endorse Trump — or any candidate — in the 2024 GOP presidential primary. “I’m going to stay out of it until after the primaries have finished,” Graham told CBS News on Friday at the March for Life rally in Washington, D.C. Graham also told CBS News that it was an “easy decision” not to endorse someone during the 2024 primaries. CBS noted Graham doesn’t generally endorse primary candidates, but his remarks come as tensions have been rising between evangelical groups and Trump in the months...

Things keep changing. A few months ago I thought Trump would not run. Then I thought he would run. Now, I don’t think so once again. And one of the tells is the subtle shot he took at DeSantis over vaccines. The fact is that Trump, if he runs, is not a shoo-in. And this could be an epic battle for the chance to beat Kamala Harris like a drum in 2024. And, at least according to people like you who took my most recent Twitter poll, Trump is not a shoo-in. He’s dropped to just one-third support from nearly...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration on Wednesday finalized a rule that lets wind-energy companies operate high-speed turbines for up to 30 years — even if means killing or injuring thousands of federally protected bald and golden eagles. Under the new rule, wind companies and other power providers will not face a penalty if they kill or injure up to 4,200 bald eagles, nearly four times the current limit. Deaths of the more rare golden eagles would be allowed without penalty so long as companies minimize losses by taking steps such as retrofitting power poles to reduce the risk of...

The punishment for killing a golden or bald eagle in the United States comes at a hefty price. Simply having eagle feathers or parts in your possession will land you in prison with a heavy fine to pay. Felony killing of eagles comes with a fine of $250,000 and prison time. These penalties fall under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. This law, originally passed in 1940, provides for the protection of the bald eagle and the golden eagle (as amended in 1962) by prohibiting the take, possession, sale, purchase, barter, offer to sell, purchase or barter, transport,...

Federal authorities are investigating the deaths of at least six golden eagles at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power's Pine Tree Wind Project in the Tehachapi Mountains, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Tuesday. So far, no wind-energy company has been prosecuted by federal wildlife authorities in connection with the death of birds protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. A prosecution in the Pine Tree case could cause some rethinking and redesigning of this booming alternative energy source. Facilities elsewhere also have been under scrutiny, according to a...

This is a phenominal video. Would not have believed it unless I had seen it. Makes me want to take a trip over there and spend some time with these old boys to experience it in person. HUNTING WOLVES WITH GOLDEN EAGLES IN MONGOLIA Big birds those. Wouldn't want a couple of those sic'ed on me I will tell you. Look at the size of those talons. Looks like in many cases they go after the throat and then hold them there...and in a couple of cases when it looked like the wolf might get the upper hand...another Eagle quickly...

Some people are still under the delusion that Linux is written by unwashed hackers living in their parents' basements whose only social life is playing D&D and having flame wars over IRC (Internet Relay Chat) about whether vi or EMACS better and debating Picard versus Kirk. Nothing, nothing could be further from the truth. The LF (Linux Foundation) has just released a new report, "Linux Kernel Development: How Fast It is Going, Who is Doing It, What They are Doing, and Who is Sponsoring It." This comprehensive study of the last three years of Linux kernel development, from version 2.6.11...

BEIJING, Feb. 28 -- Zhejiang Golden Eagle said Friday that a charitable body launched by Microsoft Corp. founder Bill Gates and his wife had bought into the Shanghai-listed textile maker, the second time the Gates foundation making investments in the A-share market on the Chinese mainland. The Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province-based Golden Eagle said in its 2004 financial statement that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation had owned 607,040 shares as of the end of December 31 to become its fourth-largest shareholder. The Golden Eagle purchase followed earlier announcement by Shanghai-listed water utility Nanhai Development Co. that the Gates foundation...

A long day got longer as we headed north on the Point Reyes Peninsula. We all suffered from “scope-eye,” that strange affliction known to birders and photographers who spend inordinate amounts of time staring with one eye through a spotting scope or viewfinder. Afternoon birding can be slow, but we hoped a visit to Teal Pond would perk things up a bit. Maybe we would see Blue-winged Teal loafing at the water’s edge or Wilson’s Snipe probing the muddy shoreline....(snip) We instantly pulled off the paved road and fixed our eyes on this scene of utter chaos in the adjacent...