Free Republic

It's early for significant polling in any Senate race, but this result from Suffolk University’s poll is an eye-opener. Despite having won a special election two years ago, most people considered Republican Scott Brown a long shot to win his next election in deeply-blue Massachusetts, especially up against Elizabeth Warren. Instead, Brown starts off the race up by nine over the Democrat: Republican Scott Brown (49 percent) has a 9-point lead over Democrat Elizabeth Warren (40 percent), according to a Suffolk University/7NEWS (WHDH-Boston) poll of likely general election voters in Massachusetts. Nine percent were undecided, and 2 percent would choose...

n his New York Times bestselling book, Throw Them All Out, Breitbart editor Peter Schweizer revealed how members of Congress enrich themselves and their relatives using earmarks and insider information. Now, the Washington Post, following in Schweizer’s footsteps, has conducted a study that found 16 members of Congress have used their power of the purse to benefit companies, colleges, and community groups tied to their relatives. *snip* Among those cited in the Washington Post report were the following (below):

C-SPAN's coverage of the 39th annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) continues Friday with speeches by the leading presidential candidates and Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell. The three top GOP candidates for the Republican nomination -- former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum -- are taking a break from the campaign trial to address attendees. Rep. Ron Paul was invited to speak but will instead continue campaigning.

"He could have stopped it, and should have stopped it," Huckabee said. CNSNews.com: Governor Romney should have stood up to the Court and said, "No"? Huckabee: He should've. (August 2008) Old news? Yes — and Mitt Romney hopes it will be ignored or forgotten. How does Romney manage to bury his past political sins? With a lot of help from his former critics — including Governor Huckabee — who seem to suffer from amnesia. But what of the media's duty to vet the candidates? Shouldn't every significant action in a candidate's record be under review? Why is the media —...

She always called him “Mr. President” — not Jack. He refused to kiss her on the lips when they made love. But Mimi Alford, a White House intern from New Jersey, was smitten nonetheless. She was in the midst of an 18-month affair with the most powerful man in the world, sharing not only John F. Kennedy’s bed but also some of his darkest and most intimate moments. In her explosive new tell-all, “Once Upon a Secret: My Affair with President John F. Kennedy and Its Aftermath,” Alford, now a 69-year-old grandmother and retired New York City church administrator, sets...

Below is a link for the anti-gun Superbowl ad.... .....despicable.

As his formidable campaign marches inexorably toward the nomination, Mitt Romney should learn a vital lesson from the guy who beat him in his first race for public office: Sen. Ted Kennedy. In 1980, Teddy lost his own bid for the presidency because he couldn’t answer a simple question about why he wanted the job. Like Kennedy, Romney could undermine his confident drive to unseat a stumbling incumbent unless he prepares clear, concise, and forceful responses on what he means to do with the office he seeks. Near the end of the disastrous Jimmy Carter administration, most analysts expected an...

One of Mitt Romney's fundraising "bundlers" works as a lobbyist for the Green energy firm Ener1, which became a flash point for Republicans last week after it filed for bankruptcy three years after receiving a $118.5 million grant from the Obama administration...

A federal lawsuit was filed Wednesday challenging the Veterans Affairs Department for refusing to recognize legally married gay and lesbian military couples and denying them the same family benefits as their heterosexual colleagues. With the repeal last year of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell allowing gays and lesbians to openly serve in the military, activists have now turned their focus to gaining full benefits for legally married same-sex active duty and veteran service members and their families. The Southern Poverty Law Center and the law firm WilmerHale filed the lawsuit Wednesday in Los Angeles on behalf of military veteran Tracey Cooper-Harris...

A Cambridge activist who says he’s sick and tired of living in a state whose official seal depicts a sword hanging over a Native American’s head has launched the most aggressive effort to date to force the Bay State to redo the 132-year-old image — but Indians and other advocates are distancing themselves from his audacious $24 million lawsuit. “It’s unfair to the native peoples,” Daniel DeGuglielmo said about the Great Seal of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He wants a judge to force the state to stop using the seal on its flags, buildings and papers. “It’s the Indian under...

An exuberant Ann Romney said on the evening of her husband’s Florida primary win Tuesday that she was amused by attacks on the former Massachusetts governor that characterized him as a “moderate” or a “liberal.” “It’s been funny to me. What’s next, a communist? I don’t know, it’s been humorous,” she said with a laugh during an interview with CNN moments before the network called the state for Mitt Romney. “We are looking forward to a win tonight.” Ann Romney said that she knew where Mitt’s true beliefs lay. “I know where his values are on a personal level. He...

Kelly Timilty, who served on the Governor’s Council for nearly two decades, died today. She was 49. Timilty, who lived in Roslindale, served District 2 under five governors and was first elected to the council in 1994, officials said. She died after a brief illness early this morning, but no cause of death has been released.

The Romney yesterday campaign denied knowing about a 2002 flier distributed by the Romney campaign during Gay Pride Week in Massachusetts while he was running for Governor. Fehrnstrom told the Huffington Post's Sam Stein, "I don't know where those pink flyers came from. I was the communications director on the 2002 campaign. I don't know who distributed them... I never saw them and I was the communications director." Fehrnstrom continued "I never saw them and I never approved them. I'm not quite sure where they came from." But a former Romney campaign volunteer who is now a fiscal policy scholar...

Former Sen. Fred Thompson (R-Tenn.) on Sunday attacked Mitt Romney for "unseemliness and overkill" in his aggressive campaign against Newt Gingrich, the candidate Thompson has endorsed.

Ronald Reagan’s eldest son Mike Reagan has issued a statement lambasting Mitt Romney and his supporters for claims that Romney’s Republican presidential rival Newt Gingrich was a strong critic of President Reagan. Reagan says such claims are false. Even Rush Limbaugh, shocked by the Romney claims, chimed on his Thursday radio broadcast to say "This is obviously a coordinated attack to take Newt out here in Florida." Rush slammed the Romney-backed smear campaign against Newt. “That kind of stuff is why people hate Romney so much," Limbaugh said. Limbaugh added that Newt has always been a conservative from his early...

Obama called on lawmakers to pass a bill that would halt "insider trading" by members of Congress. Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown introduced legislation last year to ban members of Congress and their staff from trading stock based on non-public information. Brown championed the cause after watching author Peter Schweizer discuss his book on the subject called "Throw Them All Out" on "60 Minutes." Schweizer’s analysis focused on members of Congress whose stock market profits correlated with legislative matters under their consideration. One of the politicians cited in the book for apparent "insider trading" was Bay State Sen. John Kerry

Over the past six months, the Democrats have cleared the field for Lizzy Warren. Her coronation as their Senate nominee will give the Harvard Law professor a direct shot at our hometown Sen. Scott Brown. It is a dangerous move on behalf of the Democrats to anoint a novice candidate who has not been fully vetted. But clearing the primary path might be a good strategy for Republicans to adopt against U.S. Rep. John Tierney. Many believe the North Shore district is the GOP’s best chance to capture a congressional seat in Massachusetts. Unlike Lizzy, former state Sen. Richard Tisei,...

Rick Santorum said he would be pleased with a third-place finish in South Carolina Saturday but vowed to stay in the presidential race through the Florida primary no matter what. He also blasted his "desperate" rival Mitt Romney for perpetrating "cheap stuff" as Mr. Romney's position as front runner here melted away the past week... "We finally were given the victory in Iowa," Mr. Santorum said. "If we had had it two weeks ago, it might be a very different situation. It might have been a very different race." Mr. Santorum also said he was disappointed in Mr. Romney after...

With the field of Republican candidates down to four, GOP voters trickled to the polls on the first day of early voting in South Florida with plenty of opinions about their choice to challenge President Barack Obama in November. Many said they were deciding between former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in what has been a rollercoaster race. Romney is ahead in Florida, with more than 40 percent of GOP supporters, followed by Gingrich with 22 percent, Sen. Rick Santorum with 15 percent and Texas Rep. Ron Paul with 9 percent, according to an average...

Update: Chris Cillizza of WaPo tweets that “Close Jeb Bush ally tells me that no Romney endorsement is in the works.” Jeb’s camp being coy, or is he getting cold feet about throwing in with Romney after tonight’s drubbing?

Auroras may dazzle more people than usual this weekend as Earth receives a glancing blow from an enormous solar outburst that erupted on Jan. 19. The outburst, known as a coronal mass ejection (CME), was detected by sun-watching satellites. Researchers at the University of Alaska's Geophysical Institute predict that auroras should be visible from Seattle, Des Moines, Chicago, and Cleveland, to Boston and Halifax, Nova Scotia Saturday and Sunday nights, weather permitting. ... Space Weather Center forecasters say they expect the encounter to generate a weak geomagnetic disturbance beginning around 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time Sunday Jan. 22 and lasting...

He’s still living with his mother in Cambridge, but 31-year-old Joseph P. Kennedy III said he’ll move soon into the 4th Congressional District and begin charting a possible run for Barney Frank’s open seat. (snip) Kennedy appeared with Gov. Deval Patrick’s former spokesman Kyle Sullivan and was far more professional than his first encounter with the Herald two weeks ago, when he called the reporter “dude” then said he was at work and couldn’t answer any questions.

In a recent article published by The Daily Beast, its Washington bureau chief, Howard Kurtz, reasoned that if “moderate” Mitt Romney wins the Republican nomination for President, he’ll need to choose a running mate with the conservative bona fides to balance the ticket. While the notion that Mitt Romney is "on the verge of sewing up the Republican nomination" is still just a neo-con fantasy (especially in light of Ron Paul’s surging poll numbers and his respectable showing in Iowa and New Hampshire), pundits and soi disant opinion makers have suggested that the former Governor of Massachusetts choose a VP...

Mitt Romney penned an op-ed in the Orange County Register Monday carrying the new line of attack on President Obama's energy policy: the Solyndra collapse is more evidence he wrote that the government "shouldn't be playing venture capitalist" when it comes to alternative energy projects. "It's not merely that government bureaucrats are bad at picking winners" he wrote. "The very process invites cronyism and outright corruption." But Romney is a private-sector venture capitalist by vocation, and during his tenure as Massachusetts Governor, he set up a program almost exactly like the ones he's now denouncing. In 2003 Romney launched the...

A funny thing is happening to Mitt Romney on his way to Florida: ¡He is becoming so aware of Latino voters, that he’s practically becoming Latino himself! Oh, wait, amigos -- ¡Mitt is suddenly so Latino that he’s eligible for Mexican citizenship! ¿You think I’m kidding? Although up to now about the only time he’s mentioned Latinos is to say NO (a word conveniently the same in both English and Spanish), in one of his last appearances in New Hampshire, ¡he dropped the little known fact that his dad was born in Mexico! Yup, suddenly, Romney’s so one of us,...

An intern from Mitt Romney's 2002 gubernatorial campaign says that his campaign did authorize and pay for the distribution of a Gay Pride Week flier, despite adamant denials from Romney's current staff that the handout was authorized. The flier, printed on pink paper, wishes recipients "a great Pride weekend," and could prove the latest ammunition for Romney's GOP foes seeking to paint the former governor as not sufficiently conservative. "On pride weekend, the campaign sent a contingent of about a half-dozen of us to the post-parade festival on Boston Common to hand out those fliers," Josh Barro, a former Romney...

Jon Huntsman was endorsed by Columbia, S.C.'s The State newspaper on Sunday. The endorsement comes less than a week before the South Carolina primary and comes as Huntsman quickly tries to gain traction in the Palmetto state. The State's endorsement is actually similar to what happened just before the New Hampshire primary: Mitt Romney's hometown paper, The Boston Globe, backed Huntsman in a long editorial in which it compared Romney with the former Utah governor. Like the Globe endorsement, The State praised both Romney and Huntsman but said Huntsman was the better candidate. "There are actually two sensible, experienced grownups," The...

A bill has been introduced in the United States Senate which will authorize the federal government to revoke the citizenship, creating practical expatriates, of American citizens. Introduced by Connecticut Independent Joe Lieberman and Massachusetts Republican Scott Brown, S 1698, the “Enemy Expatriation Act,” is a simple, 2 page document which offers apparently innocent amendments and additions to existing federal legislation. (1) That legislation, known as Title 8, “…outlines the role of aliens and nationality in the U.S. Code.” And it is just one small piece of this massive and complex law which the Enemy Expatriation Act seeks to modify, that...

With Newt Gingrich breaking out of the pack as the conservative alternative to front-runner Mitt Romney in South Carolina, he came under attack Friday from an old friend and colleague in Congress, former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania. Santorum had largely avoided political attacks against Gingrich, whom he once considered a political mentor. But on Friday, the glove came off as Santorum took the former House speaker to task for being insufficiently conservative on climate change, free markets and health care. "Conservative alternatives don't go out and attack the capitalist system as he has done. Conservative alternatives don't promote...

Please join me on Tuesday night as I announce my 2012 campaign for Congress for the Massachusetts 4th District

ATLANTA -- As the GOP races settles into South Carolina, Mitt Romney isn’t enjoying the double-digit lead he held in New Hampshire, according to a survey conducted Wednesday night. The former Massachusetts governor’s lead is so small in the Palmetto State that he’s essentially tied with Newt Gingrich, according to a poll for the Savannah Morning News and the Augusta Chronicle conducted by InsiderAdvantage/Majority Opinion Research. Romney’s 23 percent and Gingrich’s 21 fall within the 3.6 percent margin of error. Rick Santorum, who came in second in the Iowa caucus is in third place in South Carolina with 14 percent,...

  1-5-01 Kid didn't know it was '02 yet. I have prepared this statement in regards to the act I am about to commit. First of all, Osama bin Laden is absolutely justified in the terror he has caused on 9-11. He has brought a mighty nation to its knees! God blesses him and the others who helped make September 11th happen. The U.S. will have to face the consequences for its horrific actions against the Palestinian people and (illegible, could be Iraq?) by its allegiance with the monstrous Israelis who want nothing short of world domination! You will ...

“This is not a time for us to shrink. This is a time for us to have bold colors, not pale pastels.” -- Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum campaigning at the Rockingham County Nursing Home in Brentwood, N.H. It doesn’t look like Mitt Romney could lose New Hampshire, but then again, he can’t really win it either. Even a 20-point landslide by Romney in New Hampshire would be instantly discounted as merely meeting expectations for the former governor of the neighboring state who keeps a summer home there. The only way Romney could make news in New Hampshire would be...

Joseph P. Kennedy III, the son of former U.S. Rep. Joseph Kennedy, is launching an exploratory committee in preparation for a likely run for the seat recently vacated by U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, sources confirmed this morning. Kennedy, a 30-year-old prosecutor who is the grandson of late Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, is slated to step down from his post in the Middlesex District Attorney’s office and will open up an exploratory committee, which will allow him to begin raising money to run for the seat. His last day as a prosecutor will be Jan. 20, said a spokesperson for...

Here’s a pretty clear sign of which way the politics are moving in the fight over Obama’s decision to employ a recess appointment to install Richard Cordray as head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Senator Scott Brown — who’s facing a stiff populist challenge from Elizabeth Warren, the creator of the agency — has now come out in support of the move. His statement, sent over by his office: “I support President Obama’s appointment today of Richard Cordray to head the CFPB. I believe he is the right person to lead the agency and help protect consumers from fraud...

Second part, final part. Some in the GOP and "conservative" talking heads need to do the same for both: chastise Obama for not wanting to run on his record and his gearing up to run a super negative campaign against the eventual GOP nominee and also chastise Romney for not happily running on his record, and sitting back and letting others do his attacking for him against fellow GOP candidates. Romney needs to run on his record, right? What is in Romney's record that he shouldn't be proud of?

Tomorrow less than 20 percent of registered Republicans in Iowa are going to tell us who they believe should take on President Obama. Presidential candidate Jon Huntsman, who has bypassed the caucuses, said last week that Iowa picks corn, not presidents. Is he correct? Well, if you ask Mike Huckabee, he would say yes. But on the other hand, Obama did win the state. Iowa’s importance will be in whittling down the field of contenders. It is most likely going to claim several conservatives, which means that their voters could flock to another right-wing candidate — not necessarily the frontrunner....

ATLANTIC, IOWA — Rick Santorum really has arrived, it seems. After meeting with voters in a diner here Sunday, Mitt Romney hosted a rare press conference where he was more than happy to take Santorum on in the way he has other surging candidates in the past. It’s a sign that Santorum’s surging poll numbers have caught the attention of Romney, who’s pushing hard to win here in Iowa, a state he wasn’t able to win during his 2008 White House run. Anecdotal evidence suggests some voters are choosing between the two men — three undecided Iowans I talked to...

SIOUX CENTER, Iowa--Here's where we stand in the final day before the caucuses. According to the latest survey from Public Policy Polling, it looks like a statistical dead heat between Mitt Romney, Ron Paul and Rick Santorum for the top slot in the state. With a margin of error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points, Romney leads with 19 percent, followed by Paul with 18 percent and Santorum with 17 percent...

Mitt Romney's top ten is made up of Goldman Sachs, followed by Credit Suisse (Switzerland), Morgan Stanley, Barclays (UK), Bank of America and JP Morgan. In contrast Romney's co-frontrunner in Iowa, Ron Paul, has a top three donor list made up of the US Army, US Navy and US Airforce.

This is a longish clip from Reuters in which Newt talks about the Iowa race. About two minutes in Newt makes clear that he’s not very pleased with Romney. Asked specifically why his appeal is limited to 22-23% he replies that Romney is a a moderate pretending to be a conservative then adds “people aren’t that stupid.”

Romney Would Veto Immigration "Dream" Act By Jane Sutton … LEMARS, Iowa (Reuters) - Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney said on Saturday he would veto a proposal granting U.S. citizenship to undocumented immigrants who were brought to the country as children, a pledge that won hearty applause from Iowa conservatives he hopes to win over. A young woman asked Romney about the bipartisan proposal known as the Dream Act, during an appearance at a crowded restaurant in Le Mars, a conservative Republican stronghold in western Iowa. "The question is if I were elected and Congress were to pass the Dream...

SIOUX CITY, Iowa — Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney says he would veto legislation that would allow certain illegal residents to become American citizens. During a campaign stop in western Iowa, Romney answered "yes" when he was asked whether he would refuse to sign what is known as the DREAM Act. Romney has said before that he would oppose the legislation, which would allow some illegal immigrant youths to earn permanent residency and eventually citizenship if they attend college or serve in the military.

US election 2012: Mitt Romney On Course For Historic Double Victory Mitt Romney could strike a decisive early blow in the contest to pick the Republican party’s presidential nominee by becoming the first candidate ever to win both the first two states to vote, opinion polls suggest. By Jon Swaine 01 Jan 2012 The former Massachusetts governor leads the party field both in Iowa, where tomorrow’s caucuses will give the candidates their first test, and in New Hampshire, where voters go to the polls next Tuesday. If successful, Mr Romney would become the first Republican challenger in the modern primary...

Some on the right have been pumping Rick Santorum relentlessly in the wake of Herman Cain's withdrawal from the GOP primary race. Now lo-and-behold, such new media bloggers can share much of the credit for the Pennsylvania Republican's unlikely rise in the Iowa polls over this last week, particularly those who got behind him early and/or put boots on the ground. Sure do love his platform... as I do Bachmann's. But the problem is that this 'Santorum surge' is coming purely at Newt's expense- and a direct result of underhanded scumbag Mitt Romney and his ma$$ive war chest, training the...

Travelers seemed to get a chuckle out of the holiday levity. But Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority officials weren't amused and initially said the dispatcher could be strongly disciplined.

Dubuque, Iowa - Continuing to contrast himself against Mitt Romney, the "Massachusetts moderate," Newt Gingrich declared he would grow the economy as president by reining in the government the way he had done with Ronald Reagan and Jack Kemp. "In 1982, Reagan was talked into a tax increase, I opposed it. Kemp and I led the fight against it. Reagan said it was a mistake; it was the biggest single mistake of his administration. In 1990, President Bush wanted to raise taxes and I opposed it. We had a huge fight. The majority of Republicans voted no. And this fight...

WILLIAMSBURG, Mass.—The coffee might not be gay, and the consumers are likely coffee lovers of every persuasion, but the message of this campy new brand is clear: Gay culture and gay history are splashing onto the coffee scene. Five fledgling blends make up the new brand. There are dark roasts such as "Red Hanky Roast" and "Second Date," dark and medium blends like "Weekend Pass" and "Good Morning Mary" and a medium roast called "Stone Butch Breakfast Blend." From the young blonde sailor on "Weekend Pass" to the woman carrying moving boxes on "Second Date," each blend sports humorously crafted...

Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry failed to submit enough valid signatures to qualify for the Virginia primary ballot, state GOP officials said Friday evening. Perry’s campaign told state election officials it had submitted 11,911 signatures, but a Virginia Republican familiar with the situation said that the Texas governor did not submit the required 10,000. Earlier Friday, the Republican Party of Virginia certified former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney and Rep. Ron Paul (Tex.) to appear in the March ballot. Four candidates — Romney, Perry, Paul and former House speaker Newt Gingrich — turned in thousands of signatures by the deadline. State...

WEST DES MOINES -- To understand Steve Deace's feelings toward Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, one need listen no further than the one-minute canned introduction to the "Deace Show." The song "Won't Get Fooled Again" by The Who plays and we hear an inspiring quote from President Ronald Reagan. The music shifts, then we hear the voice of President Obama, followed by remarks by Mitt Romney. Then Obama, then Romney. Then more Obama. "We are no longer a Christian nation," Deace plays Obama saying, before switching to Romney talking about supporting gun laws, a woman's right to choose, and the...