Free Republic

In his second term, Richard Nixon had Watergate, but also the rescue of Israel in the Yom Kippur War. In his second term, Ronald Reagan had Iran-Contra, but also a treaty eliminating U.S. and Soviet missiles in Europe, his "tear-down-this-wall" moment in Berlin and his lead role in ending the Cold War. In his second term, Bill Clinton had Monica, but also came close to a peace treaty between Ehud Barak and Yasser Arafat. Obama's second-term scandals — IRS, Benghazi, wiretapping The Associated Press and Fox — are in the low-kiloton range compared to the resignation of Nixon or the...

One word, my friends: RINOgeddon. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that Christie earns 21% support when Republican voters are asked whom they would vote for if the party’s primary in their state were held today. Florida Senator Marco Rubio runs a close second with 18% of the GOP vote, followed by former Florida Governor Jeb Bush at 16% and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul with 15% of the vote. Congressman Paul Ryan, the unsuccessful Republican vice presidential candidate in 2012, picks up 13% of the Republican vote, with Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker dead last at six percent (6%)....

Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) recently expressed his concern about Sarah Palin someday becoming president and having control over the information gathered by the U.S government about Americans citizens. In an interview with Shark-Tank.net, Rep. Grayson said he has introduced a bill, 'The Mind Your Own Business Act,' that would ban the U.S. Department of Defense from gathering Internet, phone and other personal information about U.S. citizens without probable cause or evidence of a criminal offense, which is what the Fourth Amendment is supposed to do. Rep. Grayson explained how 'The Mind Your Own Business Act' was modeled "very closely after...

Can anybody unite a party that’s at war with itself? That’s the question Republicans are asking, and the answer might be former vice-presidential contender Paul Ryan, whose low profile amidst the intra-party squabbling suggests he is deftly positioning himself as Speaker in waiting or the GOP’s last best hope for 2016—either way a Hobson’s choice given the demoralized state of the party. Ryan wrote the budget that balances in 10 years, and that helped bring Congress to its knees, unable to find the votes to pass any of its traditional priorities, a farm bill or a transportation bill, much less...

Last week we ran a story analyzing an op-ed piece that one-time Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean wrote for the Wall Street Journal in which the former Governor of Vermont conceded that the Independent Payment Advisory Board was “essentially a health-care rationing body.” ObamaCare has been controversial from long before it passed by the narrowest of margins and probably no facet has drawn more critics that the IPAB. National Right to Life laid out the rationing problems that are part and parcel of the IPAB from the very beginning (www.nrlc.org/HealthCareRationing/ObamaHCRationingBasicDOCUMENTATION.pdf). Thus it was helpful that Dean admitted there really was...

Money line: “This is what I do for a living.” Didn’t he predict a Bush/Clinton race in 2016 just nine months ago? If he believes what he says here about the parties swinging like “pendulums” from moderate nominees to ideologues and then back again, why would he have named Jeb as a strong contender last November? In fact, the roots of the counterargument are in Matthews’s own shpiel here: Most of the time, they head to the center. This is what Republicans did most successfully in 1952 – when, after twenty years of Roosevelt and Harry Truman – they wanted...

The former governor and perhaps future senatorial candidate of Alaska is using her Twitter account to make one thing clear. Ever since she emerged on the national stage, basically everything she has said has been right. She was right about Fannie and Freddie. The tweet: Sarah Palin ✔ @SarahPalinUSA Hey media, now do you get it? http://fb.me/2wOtMgTqo 11:29 AM - 7 Aug 2013 218 Retweets 100 favorites The issue: The "it" to which she refers is her argument in September 2009 that the mortgage companies had "gotten too big and too expensive" for taxpayers. The vindication: The president's announcement on...

If you can’t win, you might as well go down swinging. At senior citizens. At an AARP-Univision mayoral forum this morning, mayoral contender Anthony Weiner pulled out the age card to taunt his most vocal challengers, 69-year-old Doe Fund founder George McDonald. Weiner is 48. Before the debate, Weiner put a hand on McDonald’s back and said hello, prompting McDonald to reply: “I would appreciate if you would never touch me again.” Weiner retorted: “What are you going to do about it, grandpa?” according to two sources. A mild overreaction by McDonald, but in his defense, who knows where that...

As the Democratic Party of Wisconsin continues to provide staff support to Madison millionaire Mary Burke and hold meetings behind closed doors to clear the field for her, Party leaders continue to cry foul over the out-of-touch candidate’s viability. Here’s what Democrats have said so far this week about the would-be candidate for Governor: “I was at an event with Mary Burke the other day…She’s got the charisma of a turnip.” [1] -Democrat Rep. Brett Hulsey, on Burke’s candidacy. “But I have been talking with people, listening to what they have to say, and I keep hearing over and over...

Cindy Sheehan is running for Governor of California. Her formal announcement will be made in a few weeks, but the campaign team is being put together now. A very few of the specialized positions may be compensated, but basically everyone involved in the campaign will be donating their labor. Can you help? If you can write, edit, speak to people on the telephone, participate in social media activities, register voters, pass out leaflets, raise money, or organize campaign coffees, here is what you need to do to get involved in Cindy’s campaign: Send a message, with your full contact information...

Freshman Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and some other Republicans think they know why the GOP didn't win the last two presidential elections: They weren't conservative enough. "If you look at the last 40 years, a constant pattern emerges," Cruz told ABC. "Anytime Republicans nominate a candidate for president who runs as a strong conservative, we win. And when we nominate a moderate who doesn't run as a conservative, we lose." It's not a new thought, but it's dead wrong on several different levels. First of all you have to pretty far in right field to think John McCain and Mitt...

Mickey: Stay down, Stay down Rocky 1974 John Rambo: Live for nothing or Die for Something Rambo 2008 I was watching Morning Joe today and as usual the entire table was united in asserting that Ted Cruz and the Tea Party caucus was wrong to consider fighting to de-fund Obamacare highlighting a piece by Krauthammer This is about tactics. If I thought this would work, I would support it. But I don’t fancy suicide. It has a tendency to be fatal. They stressed the wisdom of Krauthammer’s assertion that the GOP should not fight. It seemed an odd assertion since...

A gun-rights group in the bellwether presidential primary state of New Hampshire has warned New Jersey Governor Chris Christie that signing gun control bills passed by his state's Legislature could have consequences if he runs for president in 2016. The Pro-Gun New Hampshire coalition urged its members this week to call and email Christie to ask him to veto the proposed laws, posing a political dilemma for Christie as he seeks re-election in November in the Democratic-leaning state while also eyeing the national stage. Christie has a September deadline to sign a number of firearm-related bills seen by their supporters...

Rent free in their empty heads. There would be no home field advantage in Alaska for Sarah Palin if the former governor made a run for the White House in 2016, according to a new poll released Friday. Hillary Clinton, the front runner for the Democrats in 2016, would beat Palin 49-40 in a hypothetical match-up, according to a survey from Democratic firm Public Policy Polling. Palin is the only potential GOP candidate Clinton topped in poll. Despite it being her home state, only 18 percent of Alaskans think Palin should make a bid for the White House in 2016,...

In a recent poll of Alaska voters, George Zimmerman -- who was recently acquitted in the shooting death of Florida teen Trayvon Martin -- got a surprising 2 percent support as a hypothetical Republican presidential candidate. The newest Alaska survey from Public Policy Polling shows Hillary Clinton's only chance of winning the state in 2016 would be in a matchup against Republican Sarah Palin, where Clinton would lead 49/40 percent. Clinton trails all other Republican candidates in the survey. Out in front, Chris Christie leads her by 8 points at 46/38, Jeb Bush leads at 49/42, Rand Paul is up...

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: Here's Greg in Nashua, New Hampshire. You're next on the EIB Network. Hello. CALLER: Hi, Rush. Based on what you're saying about the Republican Party abandoning a large chunk of the American population -- including conservatives -- or even being any real opposition to the Democrats on Obamacare and apparently everything else, I'm wondering whether Sarah Palin's recent gambit that if the GOP... I think she calls them the GOP brain trust on the Greta show. If the GOP is indeed abandoning her as well as a large swath of American voters, she's going independent. Palin is...

In a wide-ranging interview with The New Republic published Tuesday, Sen John McCain (R-AZ) praised former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, his running mate in the 2008 presidential race, for "exciting" the GOP base in a way the senator couldn't achieve. Asked if it "bothered" him when people said his legacy was choosing Palin as his running mate in 2008, McCain said "no." "We were four points down when I chose her and three points up afterwards," he told the magazine. "She held her own and, some people said, won a debate with the vice president. She did everything I ever...

Gotta figure her lead would be even bigger without Joe Miller in the field here. Her nomination for the taking? Alaska should be a top tier pick up opportunity for Senate Republicans next year…but their top choice of a candidate is Sarah Palin. 36% of GOP primary voters in the state say they’d like Palin to be their standard bearer against Mark Begich to 26% for Mead Treadwell, 15% for Dan Sullivan, and 12% for Joe Miller. Palin leads mostly based on her strength with ‘very conservative’ voters where she gets 43% to 20% for Treadwell, but she also leads...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)When truth is prevented from ever reaching the ears of the American public during a presidential campaign the consequences can often be tragic. Consider the case of the 2008 mainstream media cover up and strict avoidance of Obama’s long time connection to Black Nationalist minister Jeremiah Wright and his firebrand racist comments. The media shackled the truth and allowed then U.S. Senator Obama to skate all the way to his election as president. What is even worse was former Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin’s recent revelation that the John McCain presidential campaign actually banned her from talking about Rev. Jeremiah Wright...

For the creation was subfected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope... Rom 8:20 The Establishmedia is all atwitter that Obama was able to give speech on the economy and not put the entire country to sleep with his recycled pabulum. He obviously does not have his heart into giving speeches about the economy the way he does about racism. One he thinks he knows something about and the other he has not gotten a clue which the economy proves. Can anybody say they are better off today...

Trayvon Martin's brother Jahvaris Fulton steps down after taking the stand during the George Zimmerman trial in Seminole circuit court, July 5, 2013 in Sanford, Florida. Zimmerman is charged with second-degree murder for the February 2012 shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin.The brother of Trayvon Martin, whose shooting death by George Zimmerman gained international attention over the past year, is currently serving as an intern for Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Fla., her office confirmed to NBC News. A Florida jury found Zimmerman not guilty of a crime in Martin’s death on July 13. Martin’s brother Jahvaris Fulton attends Florida International University...

In a preview of the debate to come within the Republican Party ahead of the 2016 presidential election, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie denounced Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and other libertarians as having "dangerous" views on foreign policy. At a Republican governors forum in Aspen, Colo., Christie railed against opposition to the National Security Agency surveillance programs. On Wednesday, the House narrowly voted to defeat an amendment that would have curtailed the NSA's ability to collect data on telephone calls. Lumping Paul in with those House members, Christie suggested that Paul and other libertarians should explain their positions to widows...

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) on Thursday took a big swing at libertarian-leaning lawmakers in both parties, calling the ideology, when applied to national security, “a very dangerous thought.” His comments come just one day after the House narrowly rejected a sweeping amendment to defund the National Security Agency’s surveillance program. Addressing the bipartisan coalition that joined together to nearly push the so-called Amash amendment through, Christie told lawmakers who harbor libertarian views on the issue to explain their position to the victims of 9/11, the Washington Post’s Aaron Blake reports. He also included Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) in...

Des Moines, Iowa — The front line of the Republican civil war may be Grand Avenue, a hilly road that cuts through the heart of Iowa’s biggest city. On one side of the street is the gold-domed state capitol, home to Republican Terry Branstad, Iowa’s longest-serving governor. On the other side is a weathered brick building housing the Iowa GOP, which is chaired by A. J. Spiker and David Fischer. Both men are faithful allies of Ron Paul, the retired Texas congressman who twice ran for the Republican presidential nomination. These days, relations between the two camps are as messy...

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Thanks to his recent wins at both The Open Championship and the Scottish Open, Phil Mickelson pocketed more than $2.16 million in just two weeks. The world’s top golfer —who came under fire earlier this year when he complained about his supposed 60 percent tax rate as a California resident — is taking another hit on his recent earnings. According to Forbes, Mickelson has been subjected to the United Kingdom’s 45 percent tax rate for those who make more than £150,000 a year. In addition, the magazine reports, he will be taxed on a portion of...

In a veiled shot at influential neoconservatives within the Republican Party, Sen. Rand Paul tells The Brody File the following: “There are people who will do or say anything who are your enemies,” Paul said. “Those who believe in perpetual war are some of the most dangerous to our country, and I think they will do everything they can to try and vilify people who are trying to find a more reasoned approach where war is the last resort not the first resort.” While he didn’t mention any names, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that Paul...

Fox News just released a nationwide poll in generall in keeping with many others, finding voters are unhappy with the economy and want Obamacare repealed. But what's truly eye-opening are the comparisons of partisan opinions of President Barack Obama and George Zimmerman, who was acquitted July 13 of second-degree murder and manslaughter charges for shooting unarmed Miami Gardens 17-year-old Trayvon Martin on Feb. 26, 2012. Republicans have a more-favorable opinion of Zimmerman, a figure of sympathy to a number of conservatives, than Obama. That's right: The Democratic occupant of the White House is held in less favorable regard by Republicans...

A Marist poll released Wednesday indicates that Hillary Clinton is the clear frontrunner for the Democratic nomination in 2016, and that there is a very crowded and tight field among Republicans. Yahoo asked voters: Which candidate are you backing and why? Here's one perspective. COMMENTARY | The latest Marist poll of potential presidential candidates shows a couple of interesting results. First, Hillary Clinton is blowing away other Democrats. Second, the Republicans appear to be bunched up with no clear front runner. Turning one's attention to the Republican field, one looks upon Ted Cruz, the junior senator from Texas. Hot Air,...

"Not until I went to the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great." Alexis d’ Tocqueville, Democracy in America, 1835 The inspiration for this article occurred while reading "What about a third party candidate" by Rachel Lynn Robinson on Nolan Chart, www.nolanchart.com. Ms. Robinson, a Libertarian, asks: "Is it reasonable to elect a third party candidate simply based on their stance on a few key items?"...

Dear Sarah, I have never asked you for anything, but I am asking you to please lead the charge in helping us stop the Amnesty Bill from passing in the House. RUBIO is R.I.P. for me, so is McCain and the rest of the Gang of 8. Their careers mean nothing. Our country does. We’re stuck cleaning the damage they did by passing Amnesty in the Senate. As if that was not enough, they have the gall to continue working against us by targeting House Republicans to pass it there (see link below). They are disrespecting Americans and disregarding the...

DES MOINES, Iowa — Some Republicans are accusing the party’s neoconservative hawks of playing dirty pool in an attempt to smear Sen. Rand Paul as a bigot for having an aide who once expressed admiration for Lincoln assassin John Wilkes Booth. The aide, Jack Hunter, who quit on Monday, was eased out by Mr. Paul after a neoconservative publication revealed that, as a radio “shock jock” some years ago, Mr. Hunter advocated that the Southern states secede once again from the union. Saying he had become more libertarian and broad-minded since his days as the “Southern Avenger,” Mr. Hunter revealed...

We are out of Iraq; we are getting out of Afghanistan; there is no appetite for U.S. military engagement in Syria. What is a guy in uniform to do? On June 11, Michael Hirsh suggested that the United States has "lost its nerve" internationally. Obama, he argues, has stepped back from the global leadership role and military presence it once had. Many Americans support what Hirsh calls "America's gradual withdrawal from foreign entanglements" -- they want the U.S. military home soon, out of Afghanistan, and definitely not in Syria. Time, as my carpenter up in Maine says, for us to...

Senator Ted Cruz ✔ @SenTedCruz Reaganomics: You start a business in your parents' garage. Obamanomics: You move into your parents' garage. 6:51 PM - 20 Jul 2013 2,115 Retweets 695 favorites....

A leading House Democrat questioned Friday whether the Justice Department (DOJ) has the evidence to mount a civil rights case against George Zimmerman, the man acquitted of killing an unarmed black teenager in Florida. Rep. Henry Waxman (Calif.), the top Democrat on the Energy and Commerce Committee, said in a television interview that "it seems unlikely" Attorney General Eric Holder would file discrimination charges against Zimmerman. The killing of Trayvon Martin and Zimmerman's subsequent acquittal have sparked demonstrations around the country. Protests were scheduled nationwide on Saturday as disappointed court-watchers urged DOJ to pursue charges against Zimmerman. Waxman's comments put...

In the latest poll out regarding the Wyoming GOP primary for senate, incumbent Senator Mike Enzi holds a strong lead over challenger Liz Cheney. After announcing she would run for the Republican nomination in the 2014 Wyoming senate race, many Republicans had opinions of the choice. But in the latest poll out of Wyoming, Mike Enzi leads the former VP’s daughter by over 30 points. If the race were held today 55 percent said they would support Senator Enzi, whereas only 21 percent support Cheney’s efforts. Just over three-quarters of the state’s voters view Enzi favorably, compared with just 6...

Newly released information shows a very close relationship between President Obama and his man at the IRS, who delayed the Tea party applications. William Wilkins is a long time donor to the democratic party and once fought a case against the IRS in which he defended Jerimiah Wright and the Trinity Church in 2008. Wilkins was a registered lobbyist for Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr since 1988, and was also a member of the Tax Practice Group, where he counseled nonprofits on compliance. As a lobbyist, he spread money around to both republicans and democrats, but Wilkins worked for...

Near the end of March 2010, as Republicans outside Kentucky realized that Rand Paul might actually become a senator, Paul’s opponent received an unexpected and important-looking endorsement. “I’m a lifelong conservative, and I can tell the real thing when I see it,” announced Dick Cheney. “I have looked at the records of both candidates in the race, and it is clear to me that Trey Grayson is right on the issues that matter—both on fiscal responsibility and on national security.” Paul’s campaign was half-unsurprised, half-amused. They’d seen this coming a week before, when former Cheney policy adviser Cesar Conda emailed...

Inspired by the tourism board of Detroit. A "Pure Michigan" parody. It's short, and you'll laugh your head off!

CHEYENNE, Wyo. — U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi said Thursday he will continue to do what he believes is right, even if it's not popular, as he faces a Republican primary challenge from Liz Cheney. Enzi has kept a low profile since the daughter of the former vice president announced her campaign Tuesday. In a news release Thursday, Enzi said many people have been calling and emailing to offer their support. He said his focus remains on the job he was elected to do. "When the time comes, I am confident the people of Wyoming will vote for my results, dedication,...

Former state Rep. Pam Byrnes, a Democrat from Washtenaw County's Lyndon Township, announced Thursday she's running for Congress to help fix a "broken system" in Washington. Byrnes is seeking the 7th District seat held by Tim Walberg, a Republican from Tipton who unseated Democrat Mark Schauer in 2010 to regain the seat. Walberg held the seat in 2007 and 2008 before losing to Schauer in November 2008. Byrnes will take her shot at unseating Walberg in 2014. "Washington is broken and Tim Walberg is part of the problem. He puts special interests and corporations ahead of middle-class Michigan families," Byrnes...

Rep. Andy Harris, Maryland's sole Republican representative in Congress, is receiving attention for comments he made on WMAL radio Tuesday about last week's verdict in the trial of George Zimmerman. "We're hung up on this one case where this one fellow was in fact found not guilty by a jury," Harris said during the interview. "That's the way the American law system works. Get over it." Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer in Florida, fatally shot Trayvon Martin last year in a case that captured national attention. He was acquitted of second-degree murder and manslaughter charges on Saturday, sparking protests around...

Sarah Palin rippled political waters a few weeks ago when she said she would be open to the idea of a new right wing political party. Palin was a guest on Mark Levin’s radio talk show, a popular venue for conservative audiences. A Twitter questioner asked, “Would you & Mark Levin be willing to build a 'Freedom Party' if GOP continues to ignore conservatives?” Her reply: "I love the name of that party, the 'Freedom Party. And if the GOP continues to back away from the planks in our platform, from the principles that built this party of Lincoln and...

A new 36-page e-book, purports to guide “undocumented immigrants” through the many numerous manners in which they can receive free government cell phones. Otherwise known as Obamaphones. The book is produced by a website called FreeGovernmentCellPhones.net, which is run by a man named Mark Henry. Henry had been linked to another pro-Obamaphone website prior to the election, which featured flattering imagery of candidate Obama, gave him credit for spreading the wealth around, and served as a campaign propaganda tool. In fact, the new guide for illegal immigrants doesn’t hide their love of the program, or their love of the man...

For the first time this year, Republican strategists believe they're within striking distance of taking back control of the Senate, thanks to untimely Democratic Senate retirements and red-state Democratic recruits deciding not to run for Congress. The latest blow to Democrats: former Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer's surprising decision Saturday to pass up a campaign. Republican recognize that they only need to win three Senate seats in the most of conservative of states -- Arkansas, Louisiana and Alaska -- and Mitch McConnell could be a Majority Leader in 2015. (That is, if McConnell can hold onto his own Kentucky seat.) The...

“Keep Trayvon’s family in our prayers. Deeply unsatisfying verdict,” Anthony Weiner tweeted.The city's mayoral candidates quickly weighed in on Trayvon Martin case Saturday night, with many taking to Twitter to denounce George Zimmerman’s acquittal in the death of the black Florida teenager. Democrat Bill Thompson, the only African-American in the mayoral race, tweeted, “Trayvon Martin was killed because he was black. There was no justice done today in Florida”(continued)

And so it begins: Sarah Palin suggested she would run for the U.S. Senate seat in Alaska, and 72 hours later has fired the first volley against her potential opponent, one Sen. Mark Begich — a Democrat, former Anchorage mayor and spirited Palin-basher. He’s already questioned whether the former governor was even a resident of Alaska, then dismissed her as a viable candidate. Naturally, Mrs. Palin was charmed by the challenge, immediately deeming Mr. Begich the “Alaska chameleon” for his political track record. “You have voted for Obamacare, for massive tax increases, for carbon taxes which could cost Alaskans 21,000...

On Monday, conservative talk radio host Mark Levin said former officials in the George W. Bush administration attack Sarah Palin because they favor expanding government. "Sarah Palin has spoken out effectively, articulately, with great knowledge and confidence," Levin said, "about the destruction of this federal goliath." He then noted that when Palin speaks out against crony capitalism and the permanent political class, she comes under "personal, vicious, brutal attack," not just by Democrats but by Republicans as well. He said many of the Republicans who attack Palin worked in the Bush administration and disagree not only with her, but with...

A great interview with Governor Sarah Palin on a Tuesday afternoon. Sounding very much like George Washington, the rather reluctant leader, Governor Palin ends the interview with a bold statement about leading the party. Ronald Reagan was a democrat for most of his adult life. He famously said that he didn’t leave the democrat party, the democrat party left him. Governor Palin is saying what the rest of us are thinking. We’d MUCH rather revitalize the Republican Party than go in another direction, but …. and what else can be said but …. we haven’t left the GOP, the GOP...

Amazingly, THIS is supposed to be serious: Earlier this year, Jeb Bush told ABC that both his father George H.W. Bush, and brother George W. recommended he run for president in 2016. Mama Barbara Bush is not keen on the idea, declaring in April that “the nation’s probably had enough Bushes.” But in the constantly shifting equations of potential Republican hopefuls for future president and vice president, the former Florida governor’s name has been tied with another former governor: Sarah Palin. The pair have now been framed as a “the GOP’s only chance” in the race by American Thinker contributor...

State Sen. Mimi Walters announced Tuesday that she plans to run for the 45th Congressional District seat retiring U.S. Rep. John Campbell (R-Irvine) will vacate next year. Walters, a Republican, currently represents the 37th District in the California Senate. The district includes Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Irvine and portions of Huntington Beach and Laguna Beach. "John Campbell has served the people of Orange County, California and the United States with distinction and with a commitment to a firm set of principles," Walters said in a prepared statement. "He will leave behind some big shoes to fill. In Congress, I will...