Free Republic

WASHINGTON (AFP) – President Barack Obama's Democratic allies will pay in November 2010 mid-term elections for the "garbage" legislation they pushed through the US Congress, a top Republican lawmaker warned Thursday. Republican House Minority Leader John Boehner took aim at Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's remark Wednesday that she was "always in campaign mode" and would sell voters next year on Democratic achievements. "I hope she does a great job of marketing all the garbage they passed this past year," he said at a year-end press conference, vowing "we're going to continue to be the party of better solutions." Recent...

1. No elected official may hold consecutive terms. (in regards to congress)This would certainly do a lot to eliminate the power of incumbency and would not limit the number of terms that an qualified individual could be elected to an office. They'd simply have to return to their respective districts and live under the laws that they have enacted. They could run for office again the next election cycle. The idea here is to eliminate the career politician and reduce the amount of corruption that our current system seems to have fostered. It would hopefully end the era of elected...

Hello – is there anybody out there who still believes our leaders in Washington care about what the Constitution of the United States says? Or what it was intended to mean? Or even that it exists? If there actually is anybody out there who still believes this, recent discussions on Capitol Hill about proposed federal legislation should dispel such thought from the minds of even the most die-hard optimists. Legislation dealing with the delivery and cost of health care in the United States is nearing votes in both houses of the Congress. Although differing significantly in their details, the primary...

A New Jersey appeals court has concluded that Americans have no Second Amendment right to buy a handgun. In a case decided last week, the superior court upheld a state law saying that nobody may possess "any handgun" without obtaining law enforcement approval and permission in advance. That outcome might seem like something of a surprise, especially after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year in the D.C. v. Heller case that the Second Amendment guarantees "the individual right to possess and carry weapons in case of confrontation." But New Jersey Appellate Division Judge Stephen Skillman wrote on behalf of...

Unbelievable....these NJ commies will never give up their power and corruption!!

This bill will likely get all sorts of media attention in the next week and month. That's because Democrats are now thinking about repealing it. The exemption, known as McCarran-Ferguson, cedes regulatory control of the industry, on the business side, to individual states. Since health insurers are already heavily regulated at the state level, its repeal would have a much broader impact on property and casualty insurers — a group that has also found itself in Congress’s cross-hairs recently.

If Obama is eventually impeached because he really was born in Kenya, then would everything that he signed into law also become null? I also don't see Obama ever really being impeached unless the GOP as well as conservatives in general actually have a supermajority of Congressional politicians in place after mid-January '11.

I am looking for an older Article about Londoners encouraged to not lock their sheds---so criminals would not be injured.

State laws are changing all the time. For example, Arizona will make it legal for gun owners with permits to carry concealed weapons to take their fire arms into drinking establishments -- bars -- on September 29. Up until now, guns were barred from any kind of establishment where alcohol is served but that law no longer stands. Since this country came into existence, laws have come and gone, sometimes addressing very specific circumstances which no longer apply. Today, these outdated laws may seem just plain wacky to us but at some point they were very important. That's why we...

In case of a swine flu pandemic the French government has a plan to introduce emergency measures that would gut legal protections for citizens, the daily Liberation reported Tuesday. According to documents provided to the daily by a judges' union, the plan would extend the period police can keep a suspect in detention without charge or a hearing before a judge to up to six months. Suspects would also not be able to contact a lawyer until after spending 24 hours in custody.

Dear Editor, The Guyana political opposition is all up in arms about the story of the group of Mormons who have clearly broken the country’s immigration laws. Interestingly, the lawbreakers are all Americans and opposition activists are keenly playing up this aspect rather than seeing their departure as merely a procedural aspect of law and order. The government has said that the church may send in replacement missionaries provided their paperwork is intact. Recently, the opposition has taken to cozying up to anything American, even writing to the American government and asking the Obama administration to meddle in local politics....

The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal has ruled that Section 13, Canada's much-criticized human rights hate speech law, is an unconstitutional violation of the Charter right to free expression because of its penalty provisions. The decision released Wednesday morning by tribunal chair Athanasios Hadjis appears to strip the Canadian Human Rights Commission of its controversial legal mandate to pursue hate on the Internet, which it has strenuously defended against complaints of censorship. It also marks the first major failure of Section 13(1) of the Canadian Human Rights Act, an anti-hate law that was conceived in the 1960s to target racist telephone...

“Liberty is not a means to a higher political end,” Lord Acton wrote. “It is itself the highest political end.” As a classical liberal, like Acton, I naturally agree with this, and I think most other Americans would also, especially if presented with a clear and present threat to their liberty. I am not sure if most Europeans would, however. The impression I have from reading what appears about America in various European publications is that Europeans think that the U.S. Constitution confers certain rights on the nation’s citizens. As it happens, it does not. It simply acknowledges what the...

The most common argument against allowing health insurance to move across state lines is that each state has their own state laws governing health insurance and thus it is not practical to do this. Different states have different levels of regulations and allowing health insurance to cross state lines would turn into chaos and take power away from the states the critics say. The critics say that insurance companies will simply set up shop in those states with the loosest regulations.

I hate drivers that refuse to follow the law. The other day I was driving to work down a busy street; I had just passed under the freeway, and was approaching an intersection, where there were a lot of people waiting to turn left. To my right I saw a car exit the freeway, zoom past me, cutting me off, and pull in front of all the cars waiting to turn left, cutting them off and turning left himself. I was dumbfounded that anyone could be so reckless and irresponsible. It occurred to me, if this person cares so little...

A coworker of mine say's that it is illegal to not have valid identification on thier posession. Is this true? Can a person be arrested or cited because they cannot produce identification when asked for by a police officer? Thanks for any insight.

Despite bans on the practice in seven states and the District of Columbia, 26 percent of drivers still drum out messages on their phones - even though 83 percent of drivers say the practice should be illegal...Americans sent about a trillion text messages in 2008 - triple the amount sent just in 2007 - or about 3.5 million a day.

WASHINGTON — Amid a wave of publicity about drug-related gun violence along the Mexican border and police killings in U.S. cities, more Americans than ever oppose new government efforts to regulate guns. Recent polls show shrinking support for new gun control measures and strong public sentiment for enforcing existing laws instead. So strong is the shift in public opinion that a proposed assault-weapons ban — once backed by three in four Americans — now rates barely one in two. Frank Newport, editor in chief of the Gallup Poll, told reporters Tuesday that “every bit of data is showing us that...

A civilized society's first line of defense is not the law, police and courts but customs, traditions and moral values. Behavioral norms, mostly transmitted by example, word of mouth and religious teachings, represent a body of wisdom distilled over the ages through experience and trial and error. They include important thou-shalt-nots such as shalt not murder, shalt not steal, shalt not lie and cheat, but they also include all those courtesies one might call ladylike and gentlemanly conduct. The failure to fully transmit values and traditions to subsequent generations represents one of the failings of the so-called greatest generation. Behavior...

Artur Davis, D-Ala., admitted that the law would not protect a pastor from prosecution. Scarborough reported the U.S. plan is to be voted on in the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday. "Hate crimes laws are actually 'thought crimes' laws that violate the right to freedom of speech and of conscience," warned Liberty Counsel. "Hate crimes laws will have a chilling effect on people who have moral or religious objections to homosexual behavior. Evidence of a person’s beliefs will be used against any individuals who are even suspected of criminal activity. "Hate crimes laws are unnecessary, as criminal laws already provide criminal...

Serious (Intentional??) flaws in two firearms bills. "As Maine goes....so goes the nation" old saying

JUDGES should interpret the Constitution according to other nations' legal "norms." Sharia law could apply to disputes in US courts. The United States constitutes an "axis of disobedience" along with North Korea and Saddam-era Iraq. Those are the views of the man on track to become one of the US government's top lawyers: Harold Koh. Obama has nominated Koh -- until last week the dean of Yale Law School -- to be the State Department's legal adviser. In that job, Koh would forge a wide range of international agreements on issues from trade to arms control, and help represent our...

Land of the free...home of the brave. Really? How long will many of us fool ourselves into believing that we are KEEPING that course? Recent political efforts prove that we lose more than we gain from our very own government. While it is reasonable to expect regulation that enhances our nation and our people and even our security it is getting less and less so. This is a research effort...what is desired is for those on Free Republic to reply with what you used to be free to do in your lifetime that you can no longer do either at...

The fine print in the stimulus bill authorizing the AIG bonuses, which was rushed through the U.S. Congress at lightning speed, has led to a renewed call for politicians to read legislation before they vote on it.

No one wants to see a beautiful 18-year-old girl commit suicide. No one wants to make any worse the pain that surviving family members feel. No one wants to make light of the situation that causes a child or young person to chose suicide, either. But high emotion makes for bad laws and this is no exception. Last year, Jessica Logan imagined that she was sending a nude cell-phone photo of herself only to her new boyfriend. But he was not as circumspect as she might have hoped passing the salacious picture to his friends, and they to theirs, until...

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey is smoothing out differences over a plan to ban bare-it-all bikini waxing. The state is reversing course on the proposal after angry salon owners complained about losing business ahead of swimsuit season.

Driving shirtless, drinking juice in public, or just forgetting to flush the loo: Here are 10 odd laws that can get you in trouble around the world. When studying up for a trip to the Holy Land, you might come across this warning: Whatever you do, don’t take a bear to the beach. Americans expect to experience some difference in laws when they travel the world, but some laws we found just sounded insane. In France, it’s illegal to name a pig Napoleon. In Florida, single women can’t parachute on Sundays. And in England, you may urinate anywhere in public,...

EXCLUSIVE: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recently told a group of both legal and illegal immigrants and their families that enforcement of existing immigration laws, as currently practiced, is "un-American." The speaker, condemning raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, referred to the immigrants she was addressing as "very, very patriotic." "Who in this country would not want to change a policy of kicking in doors in the middle of the night and sending a parent away from their families?" Pelosi told a mostly Hispanic gathering at St. Anthony's Church in San Francisco. Video: Click here to view the video of...

Several European countries have restricted gun laws in the wake of school massacres, gang violence and other gun-related crimes: _Finland announced plans Wednesday to impose stricter restrictions on firearms, including raising the minimum age for handgun ownership from 15 to 20. The proposal was prompted by two school massacres within a year in which lone gunmen opened fire on classmates and teachers. _Germany, where a gunman killed at least 11 people Wednesday, raised the legal age for owning recreational firearms from 18 to 21 following a 2002 shooting in Erfurt that killed 16 people, including 12 teachers. _Belgian lawmakers passed...

Midwest News Illinois Bill Would Require Gun Owners to Buy $1M in Liability Insurance February 18, 2009 An Illinois state lawmaker is proposing that gun owners be required to carry personal liability insurance of at least $1 million. Rep. Kenneth Dunkin's bill seeks to amend the state's Firearm Owners Identification Card Act to provides that any person who owns a firearm in the state maintain a $1 million or higher policy of liability insurance "specifically covering any damages resulting from negligent or willful acts involving the use of such firearm while it is owned by such person." A gun owner...

Now I know where I'll move when I retire "MT: House aims to shoot down federal gun controls" Read on

The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), the far left anti-gun group under investigation for voter fraud, could be eligible to receive millions, if not billions of dollars from the economic bailout bill that passed out of the House of Representatives. ACORN was an aggressive supporter of Barack Obama -- who had served as the group's legal counsel and even trained ACORN in "community organizing" -- in the presidential election. The Obama campaign even paid the group $800,000 for "voter turnout," the very activities that came under scrutiny by the FBI. In October 2008, ACORN's Las Vegas office...

111th CONGRESS1st SessionH. R. 40To acknowledge the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of slavery in the United States and the 13 American colonies between 1619 and 1865 and to establish a commission to examine the institution of slavery, subsequently de jure and de facto racial and economic discrimination against African-Americans, and the impact of these forces on living African-Americans, to make recommendations to the Congress on appropriate remedies, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESJanuary 6, 2009Mr. CONYERS (for himself and Mr. SCOTT of Virginia) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the...

The Obama administration backed off Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner’s statement last week that China is “manipulating” its currency. In an interview with CNBC on Thursday, Vice President Joe Biden said the administration has made “no judgment” on whether the Chinese have manipulated their currency, an accusation that would have international legal ramifications. “The policy of this administration is going to be to say to China, which occasionally the last administration was reluctant to do. `You're a major player on the world scene economically, and you've got to play by the rules that

US Army report states that America may be forced to intervene in Mexico to prevent the country from collapsing at the hands of organised crime and drug cartels. The report compiled by the army’s highest command has placed Mexico alongside Pakistan as possible failed states of the future. The report states: “Two large and important states bear consideration for rapid and sudden collapse: Pakistan and Mexico.” Mexico has a population of 110 million and shares a two thousand mile border with America. It also is next to the smuggling routes linking the US with the drug-growing areas of South America...

A reader sent along a story published in a Bulgarian newspaper about an outrageous-sounding scheme offered to foreigners: Invest in real estate. Win American citizenship. Yes, it’s true. And I’ve told you about it before. More on that in a minute. From Bulgaria: Investment in real estate in US guarantees a green card 16:58 Thu 15 Jan 2009 - Nick Iliev The purchase of a piece of property in America, a single-family house, a PUD (planned unit development) or a condo (flat within a condominium) will guarantee you and your family a green card. This is one of the extreme...

The United States will need $1.6 trillion to repair damage to its infrastructure from a massive influx of immigrants, a new report reveals. In his report titled, "The Twin Crises: Immigration and Infrastructure," prominent researcher Edwin S. Rubenstein examines 15 categories of infrastructure: airports, border security, bridges, dams and levees, electricity (the power grids), hazardous waste removal , hospitals, mass transit, parks and recreation facilities, ports and navigable waterways, public schools, railroads, roads and highways, solid waste and trash, and water and sewer systems. Rubenstein, a financial analyst and former contributing editor of Forbes and economics editor of National Review,...

California Rep. Henry Waxman said Thursday the environment and U.S. economy depend on congressional action to confront the threat of climate change. Waxman, chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, spoke as he opened Congress' first hearing on climate legislation. A group of 14 corporate

GRAND RAPIDS (WZZM) - Consignment shop owners who sell children's clothing and toys are not so affectionately calling it "Bankruptcy Day." On February 10th the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act will take affect, making it illegal for stores to sell items for children 12 and under unless they have been tested for lead and phthalates. Liz Cook, owner of The Rocking Horse Consignment Shop, says the mandate may not be problem for companies manufacturing new products. But, for businesses like hers that sell used products, it could mean the end. "You know I'm at a point I'm freaking out here....

From changing the color of baby chicks to shooting effigies to properly honoring the glory of the log cabin, Americans have spent valuable legislative hours throughout the years making sure we're on the straight and narrow.

From changing the color of baby chicks to shooting effigies to properly honoring the glory of the log cabin, Americans have spent valuable legislative hours throughout the years making sure we're on the straight and narrow. As a New Year arrives, here are 10 wacky laws that remain on the books across the country: 1. In Billings, Mont., it is illegal for anyone to sell, harbor or give away rats as pets or toys for any purpose other than to feed snakes or birds of prey. Scientists, however, can keep lab rats. 2. Using profanity is against the law on...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California's utilities, refineries and large factories must transform their operations to cut greenhouse gas emissions as part of a new climate plan before state regulators. On Thursday, the California Air Resources Board was expected to adopt what would be the nation's most sweeping global warming plan, outlining for the first time how individuals and businesses would meet a landmark 2006 law that made the state a leader on global climate change. It would hold California's worst polluters accountable for the heat-trapping emissions they produce _ transforming how people travel, utilities generate power and businesses use electricity. At...

A leading Russian political analyst has said the economic turmoil in the United States has confirmed his long-held view that the country is heading for collapse, and will divide into separate parts. Professor Igor Panarin said in an interview with the respected daily IZVESTIA published on Monday: "The dollar is not secured by anything. The country's foreign debt has grown like an avalanche, even though in the early 1980s there was no debt. By 1998, when I first made my prediction, it had exceeded $2 trillion. Now it is more than 11 trillion. This is a pyramid that can only...

Washington, DC -- A new survey that details the beliefs of evangelical voters and why they supported Barack Obama or John McCain finds those voters who supported Obama don't believe government can reduce abortions. Their views appear to be at odds with studies showing pro-life legislation save lives.

Criminal Aliens Freed In U.S. Rather Than Deported Thu, 10/16/2008 - 11:07 — Judicial Watch Blog Tens of thousands of foreign nationals, including violent convicted criminals, who have been ordered deported from the U.S. are instead released into the general population because their native countries won’t take them back. An alarming investigation conducted by one of the key federal agencies in charge of protecting national security (Immigration and Customs Enforcement—ICE) reveals that 139,000 foreigners with deportation orders remain free in the U.S. because they have nowhere to go. Nearly 20,000 of them have been convicted of serious crimes, including murder...

Hearing October 23 On Proposed Massachusetts Spay/Neuter Mandate Would Devastate Purebred Dog Breeding Statewide by JOHN YATES American Sporting Dog Alliance http://www.americansportingdogalliance.org asda@csonline.net BOSTON – The Massachusetts legislature’s Joint Commission on Municipalities and Regional Government has set an October 23 hearing on House Bill 5092, which would destroy purebred dog breeding and ownership rights statewide. The American Sporting Dog Alliance is urging all Massachusetts dog owners to immediately contact members of the committee to voice strong opposition to this legislation, and also to attend the hearing if possible. The hearing is set for Thursday, October 23, at 10 a.m. in...

Indeed, pro-lifers should insist that these candidates support pro-life parental-involvement laws. Such laws enjoy broad support and unlike other laws limiting abortion, they can be easily justified as a parental-rights issue. Furthermore, my recent study for the Family Research Council provides evidence that well designed parental-involvement laws have been surprisingly effective at reducing abortion rates among minors.

For years, I’ve been amazed at this idiotic quadrennial fascination with the beauty contest known as the (cue the trumpet fanfare) “PRESIDENTIAL RACE.” Our inattention and/or apparent desire for a king or a strong man dictatorship has allowed our system to morph to the present quasi-monarchy from its original foundations as a representative REPUBLIC. People, the most important thing we can remember about all of this is that the Founders constructed the system to put – AND KEEP -- the KEYS IN CONGRESS and current Gang of 535 could bring this out-of-control government spending and the steady usurpation of our...

COLUMBUS, Ohio - A judge on Tuesday sentenced a Somali immigrant to 10 years in prison for plotting to blow up an Ohio shopping mall with a man later convicted of being an al-Qaida terrorist. Nuradin Abdi, a cell phone salesman before his arrest, will be deported to Somalia after serving the sentence. U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley imposed the sentence as part of a plea deal Abdi agreed to in July. In a 20-minute statement to the court, Abdi's attorney Mahir Sherif said his client apologized to the people of the United States, the people of Ohio and the...