Free Republic

Since the early days of the Cold War, the president of the United States has been known as the "Leader of the Free World." According to several media outlets, this is no longer true. The title originated in the late 1940s after World War II but did not become popular until the early 1950s. The "free world" first consisted of the Allied powers that stood up against the Axis powers during the Second World War. As the Cold War took shape, the free world became non-communist countries, led by the United States, that resisted the Soviet Union and pursued capitalism...

President Obama will bring athletes, coaches, academics and parents to the White House later this month for a summit on youth sports safety and the dangers of concussions, an administration official said Thursday. "As both a parent and an avid sports fan, the president loves and appreciates the role that sports play in the lives of young people, and his administration is committed to helping ensure that children continue to be active and play sports safely," the official said in a statement. At the forum, the president will argue for a "team approach" to preventing and treating concussions, the White...

Senior officials in the White House have said that Israel Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu “is desperate and weak,” in reaction to Netanyahu's remonstrations against the deal struck with Iran over its nuclear weapons program. Israeli television Channel 10 quoted the officials as saying “His pronouncements show a lack of self-confidence,” in an unusually harsh personal attack on Netanyahu. “We are not perturbed by his vocal opposition.” .....

... One possible scenario, which undoubtedly unites us all, is that these hopes for democracy and a gradual, stable peace process are realized in Egypt. However, this is not the only possible scenario. Because far away from Washington, Paris, London – and not so far from Jerusalem – is another capital in which there are hopes. In this capital, there are leaders who can also see the opportunities that change in Egypt could bring. They also support the millions who took to the streets. They too speak about the promise of a new day. But for the people in this...

JERUSALEM — Two photographs adorn the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Together they illuminate a portentous fact: No two leaders of democracies are less alike — in life experiences, temperaments and political philosophies — than Netanyahu, the former commando and fierce nationalist, and Barack Obama, the former professor and post-nationalist. One photograph is of Theodor Herzl, born 150 years ago. Dismayed by the eruption of anti-Semitism in France during the Dreyfus Affair at the end of the 19th century, Herzl became Zionism's founding father. Long before the Holocaust, he concluded that Jews could find safety only in a national...

Netanyahu Reaffirms 'Right To Build' In Jerusalem Benjamin Netanyahu "Jerusalem is not a settlement; it's our capital" Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asserted Israel's "right to build" in Jerusalem, amid a row with the US over plans for new homes in the city. "Jerusalem is not a settlement, it's our capital," the Israeli prime minister said in Washington. But he did not mention controversial plans to build 1,600 new homes in East Jerusalem in his speech. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton earlier urged Israel to make "difficult but necessary choices" for peace. The Palestinian Authority is furious at Israel's...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday sought to project calm amid a deepening crisis with the United States, seen as the worst rift between the close allies in decades. "We opened the papers this morning and saw the analyses and reviews. I suggest we not get carried away, and calm down," Netanyahu said ahead of a weekly cabinet meeting. "We know how to deal with situations like these, calmly, responsibly and seriously," he said.