Free Republic

Speaking about outgoing Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, President Obama reminded reporters that the family of the former U.S. Senator from Colorado was of Spanish descendent – dating back to the 16th century. “His ancestors were living here before the Mayflower set sail,” Obama said. “As he explains it — and relevant, as we are working to get immigration reform passed — his family did not cross the border, the border crossed them. And that’s why, when I needed somebody to lead Interior, I didn’t have to look very far.”

Chicago police are no longer responding in person to 911 calls reporting vehicle theft, garage burglary or simple assault in a change aimed at freeing up officers to deal with more serious crimes. According to a report in the Chicago Sun-Times, the change came into effect on Sunday and also covers crime where the victim is "safe, secure and not in need of medical attention" and the offender is "not on the scene and not expected to return immediately." Chicago authorities are hoping the change frees up more officers to attend to the most serious crimes, such as serious assaults...

Washington, DC --(Ammoland.com)- Reports out of Capitol Hill reveal that just-reelected turncoat West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin is about to stick a big knife in the back of American gun owners. And to make matters worse, he’s lying about what he’s doing. Both Manchin and House anti-gun crazy Carolyn McCarthy are claiming to be “working with NRA” to enact gun bans and national gun registries. NRA says flatly that Manchin is lying, and we believe he is. (The Hill, 1/24/13) Ironically, Manchin was the “gun owner’s best friend” on November 5 2012 — the day before his reelection to a...

Americans for Tax Reform head Grover Norquist says that large-scale immigration is good for America and the Republican Party — and that critics of easy immigration should get out of the way. “There are a whole bunch of people who are listening to loud voices, some of whom claim to be Republican … talking about [employers] who didn’t fill out the paperwork, about going after [an immigrant's] aunt,” said Norquist, whose opposition to tax increases has made him popular among Republicans and a hate-figure among progressives. Once advocates for tighter immigration are sidelined, the GOP will be able to win...

In a joint effort and rare demonstration of unity, Jewish and Arab residents of Hevron are beginning to repaint the city walls that have been desecrated and profaned with derogatory graffiti for over a decade. Jewish residents, Israeli police and local Arabs are coming together in this highly contentious area in an effort to restore and repair the city to its undefiled state, before anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim graffiti came to be one of its most notable traits, Israel’s Hebrew daily Maariv reported. Following the barrage of Arab attacks in 2001, which reached its peak when an Arab sniper killed 10-month-old...

Wahington - As the US Congress kicked off hearings on comprehensive immigration reforms, two well-known Indian-American experts made a compelling case for urgent steps to reverse its existing policies that “chase away” foreign talents graduating from American universities instead of capitalising on them. “We need the world’s best and brightest more than ever before. Yet, as the research of my team at Stanford, Duke and UC-Berkeley has shown, our visa policies are doing the opposite: chasing away this talent,” said Vivek Wadhwa, Director of Research at Duke University’s Pratt School of Engineering. While Wadhwa and Puneet Arora, Vice-President of Immigration...

Former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown is in talks with the Fox New Channel to join the network, a Fox spokeswoman has confirmed. She declined to say what role Brown would play at the cable network. The network recently cut ties with former GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and former Clinton presidential advisor Dick Morris. Brown, who lost his Senate seat to Democrat Elizabeth Warren in November, announced last Friday he would not be running in the special Senate election to fill the seat being vacated by Secretary of State John F. Kerry. Meanwhile, Kadant Inc. of Westford, a paper...

Environmentalists have cheered the decision by the Obama administration to tap Recreational Equipment Inc. CEO Sally Jewell as secretary of the interior, a position to be vacated by Ken Salazar. “In Jewell, President Obama chose a leader with a demonstrated commitment to preserving the higher purposes public lands hold for all Americans – recreation, adventure, and enjoyment,” Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune said in a statement. “Jewell’s unique experience and her love of America’s outdoors will be invaluable to the stewardship of the waters, lands and wildlife we’ve been entrusted to protect for our children,” said Frances Beinecke, president...

February 5, 2013 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- In Chicago, Judge Cynthia Brim wants to return to the bench. The Cook County judge was found not guilty by reason of insanity in connection with a shoving incident a involving a sheriff's deputy. Five times in the last 19 years, Cynthia Brim was hospitalized for treatment of a bipolar-related mental illness, including one instance in which paramedics had to remove her from her Markham courtroom. It's unclear to what extent her superiors were aware of her mental health needs. The altercation took place at the Daley Center last year, and shortly after that...

I love federalism. Which is to say, really, that I love competition. When states, like businesses, compete for their desired goals in a free-market scenario, everybody wins in the long run, because the policies that really work and appeal to the most people will come out on top.Texas and California are often compared as polar opposites in terms of their business-friendly policies; i.e., Texas is reliably ranked number one and California usually comes in around dead last. There are plenty of traditional and cultural factors that keep California an attractive place for venture capital investment, but an incoming raft of...

When a person amasses too much power, they often believe they are indestructible. What Karl Rove and company did last week in the New York Times, claiming that their new “Conservative Victory Project” would cure the ills of a disappointing campaign cycle, is laughable. The so-called “Conservative Victory Project” is nothing more than an attempt by establishment Republicans to cull the conservative movement. Why does Rove think he has a monopoly on wanting to win? At least Karl Rove and company are finally out front with their disdain for the conservative movement, and I am thankful for it. The battle...

(Reuters) - Defense Secretary Leon Panetta delayed deployment of an aircraft carrier strike group to the Middle East due to budget uncertainty on Wednesday, hours after warning that financial concerns were a threat to U.S. security. The outgoing Pentagon chief delayed the deployment of the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier and the USS Gettysburg guided missile cruiser, which were due to leave Virginia later this week, because of uncertainty over the department's finances, Pentagon spokesman George Little said."Facing budget uncertainty ... the U.S. Navy made this request to the secretary and he approved," Little said in a statement. "This...

Yesterday, NLPC Chairman Ken Boehm questioned Senator Robert Menendez' veracity after his office claimed that he did not know that his ex-aide Pedro Pablo Permuy (in photo) was involved with ICCSI, a company partly owned by his mega-donor Salomon Melgen. Menendez sought to pressure administration officials to support a contract for port security in the Dominican Republic that would have provided a windfall for Melgen. In a Miami Herald story today , Marc Caputo reports: Sen. Bob Menendez's ties to a former Miami aide who could benefit from a controversial overseas port contract, which the Democrat pushed for, extend to...

The Senate Armed Services Committee will not hold a vote Thursday on the confirmation of secretary of defense nominee Chuck Hagel, according to reports. “Hagel vote won’t be tomorrow in Armed Services,” Politico’s Manu Raju tweeted Wednesday afternoon. “Levin: “The committee’s review of the nomination is not yet complete.’” Foreign Policy’s Josh Rogin also confirmed the delay. Hagel’s murky financial entanglements are a major concern in the delay, according to sources close to the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC). Also of concern is a committee investigation into how Hagel and his Senate office handled a 2007 sexual harassment allegation made...

The Legacy Lives On! Mark’s Lost Dog & Cat Rescue Foundation “Conservatism is the antidote to tyranny precisely because its principles are the founding principles.” --Mark Levin in Liberty and TyrannyWelcome to “The Levin Lounge”… Step in and have a virtual FRink.Taking the country by storm, one radio station at a time – and kicking the BUTTS of the competition! Welcome all, to the most FUN LIVE THREAD on FreeRepublic.com! You can call Mark’s show: 1-877-381-3811

Tuberculosis is a devastating disease that kills nearly 2 million people worldwide each year. Although antibiotics exist that can ameliorate the symptoms, the courses of therapy last for months and don't completely eradicate the disease, which frequently recurs years or decades after the initial treatment. Now, in a classic case of bench-to-bedside research, scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine have discovered a possible reason for the disease's resistance: The ability of the tuberculosis bacteria to infiltrate and settle down in a particular class of stem cell in the bone marrow. By doing so, the bacteria take advantage of...

Bureaucrats “Giddy” With “Newly Minted Power” Black-clad federal SWAT teams could soon be descending upon your farm, ranch, home, school, or place of business. Case in point: Iowa farms. On November 29, 2012, Chuck Gipp, director of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR), told a budget committee his department needed $1.3 million for hiring 11 new agents to inspect the state’s livestock facilities, pursuant to federal regulations. The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had given the Iowa DNR 60 days to implement EPA-ordered inspections. EPA is threatening to take over enforcement if Iowa does not satisfactorily comply with its...

Reports out of Capitol Hill reveal that just-reelected turncoat West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin is about to stick a big knife in the back of American gun owners. And to make matters worse, he's lying about what he’s doing. Both Manchin and House anti-gun crazy Carolyn McCarthy are claiming to be “working with NRA” to enact gun bans and national gun registries. NRA says flatly that Manchin is lying, and we believe he is. (The Hill, 1/24/13) Ironically, Manchin was the “gun owner's best friend” on November 5 -- the day before his reelection to a six-year term let him...

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: I was told; I had not seen the story -- that I have made the Worst People in America list at the Huffing and Puffington Post. I didn't know who else was on it and I didn't know where I was. Well, I knew I was number ten. So naturally somebody on the staff went and looked it up and sent me the others on the list. Now, I'm number ten. Wayne LaPierre is number one. I just saw something else. Look at all these celebrities joining the gun control fight now. Tony Bennett and Chris Rock...

Two FBI sources have told The Daily Caller that the bureau’s inquiry into Democratic New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez is now based in New Jersey, not Miami. One added that pressure is mounting from the highest levels of the Justice Department to pursue the investigation. The change of focus away from the bureau’s Miami field office indicates that the government is focused primarily on Sen. Menendez — and not on his longtime donor Dr. Salomon Melgen, as political observers have speculated. Menendez is embroiled in a scandal sparked by allegations that he slept with underage prostitutes in the Dominican Republic....