Free Republic

No matter how Jack Lew performs at his Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday, his nomination to be Treasury Secretary has already produced one big winner: the Cayman Islands. The Caribbean low-tax haven is getting a political rehabilitation thanks to Mr. Lew's participation in a Cayman-based fund he invested in while working at Citigroup C +0.16% from 2006-2008. For years Democrats have denounced the Caymans, which has no corporate income tax, as a refuge for tax cheats. In 2012 President Obama ripped Mitt Romney for investments based there. But now an Obama spokesman suggests that Mr. Lew's Caymans investment, a Citigroup...

Gov. Jerry Brown ought to cut his Texas brother, Rick Perry, a little slack. Texas Gov. Perry arrived in the Golden State this week trolling for California businesses he could poach and carry home with him in his saddlebags. His trip here comes on the heels of a Texas radio come-on, which aired statewide, and which Brown memorably dismissed as "barely a fart." But there are reasons why Perry's efforts deserve more serious scrutiny. One is that the campaign exposes an important shortcoming of Texas' job-development program: It focuses on using incentives to steal jobs from other states because it's...

MEXICO CITY — A young woman cradling a large crucifix left Mexico’s holiest shrine, the Basilica of St. Mary of Guadalupe, on a recent afternoon and stopped at a tent outside, where soldiers were piling up pistols and rifles on a table, part of a citywide cash-for-guns program. -0- They are sending social workers door to door to remind residents that it is illegal to have a gun without a permit and that a gun at home does not guarantee protection. The workers have been spreading the word about the exchange and compiling an informal census on attitudes about guns....

We've heard another State of the Union speech, and my president said grand things like: "Think about ... a future where we're in control of our own energy ... I will not cede the wind or solar or battery industry to China ... I will not back down from protecting our kids from mercury poisoning ..." Actually, he said that in 2012. I write before this year's speech, but he says basically the same thing every year: With more spending, government can fix everything. But I have this dream -- one where my president walks to the podium, and he...

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi probably picked up some votes among avid video gamers by shooting down an attempt by Chris Wallace of Fox News to link gun deaths with violence in video games. On "Fox News Sunday With Chris Wallace," the host asked Pelosi about proposals to study the connection between popular culture and violence just as viewers saw action video clips from "Call of Duty: Black Ops II" and "Grand Theft Auto." "We don't need another study, respectfully," Wallace said. "I mean, we know that these video games where people have their heads splattered, these movies, these TV...

Major news from Major “Shirty Business” Garrett: Major Garrett ✔ @MajorCBS I am reliably informed Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, will soon announce backing Chuck Hage. WH and Hagel backers believe they have 60 votes. Remember, to date, not a single Senate Democrat has said he/she will oppose Hagel. That’s 55 votes in the bank. Thad Cochran is 56 and Collins would be 57. Murkowski’s a safe bet in situations like this to err on the side of bipartisanship, so that’s 58. All O needs is two more to bust the filibuster and he’s got a variety of centrist Republicans who...

Obama Seeks 29 New Programs: ‘Nothing I’m Proposing Should Increase Deficit by Single Dime’ February 13, 2013 By Terence P. Jeffrey (CNSNews.com) - President Barack Obama said in his State of the Union Address on Tuesday night that nothing he was proposing in the speech would “increase our deficit by a single dime.” He then proposed at least 29 new government programs. “Tonight, I’ll lay out additional proposals that are fully paid for and fully consistent with the budget framework both parties agreed to just 18 months ago,” said Obama. “Let me repeat: Nothing I’m proposing tonight should increase our...

BANGKOK — The Thai military is urging people in its troubled south to stay indoors after soldiers repelled a large-scale attack on a base by scores of armed militants. At least 16 of the attackers were killed in one of the biggest death tolls in the nearly 10-year insurgency by Malay Muslims seeking autonomy from Buddhist Thailand. The Thai army says at least 60 heavily-armed insurgents, dressed in military-style fatigues, attacked a base early Wednesday in southern Narathiwat province. The military says it was tipped off to the planned attack, was ready and suffered no casualties in the exchange of...

In his State of the Union address tonight President Obama said: “After years of talking about it, we are finally poised to control our own energy future. We produce more oil at home than we have in 15 years. We have doubled the distance our cars will go on a gallon of gas, and the amount of renewable energy we generate from sources like wind and solar – with tens of thousands of good, American jobs to show for it. We produce more natural gas than ever before – and nearly everyone’s energy bill is lower because of it.” Yes...

Retail sales barely rose in January as tax increases and higher gasoline prices restrained spending, suggesting a slowdown in the pace of consumer spending early in the first quarter. The Commerce Department said on Wednesday retail sales edged up 0.1 percent after an unrevised 0.5 percent rise in December. The modest gain, which was in line with economist's expectations, suggested that households were responding to the expiration of a two percent payroll tax cut on January 1. Taxes also went up for wealthy Americans.

In 1986, at the closing session of the Communist Party shindig in the Karl Marx Theater in Havana, Castro had declared, “Let no one think that what I have here is a lengthy speech; it is the party’s program.” He then went on to speak for 7 hours and 10 minutes. Obama’s ridiculous 6600-word marathon is also not a lengthy speech; it is the party’s program. The professional flatterers and fawners in the media have long since given up describing the teleprompter-in-chief as a talented speaker. These days Obama gives speeches that not only sound like they were read from...

After publicly boasting that she voted twice for President Obama in November, a left-wing Ohio activist associated with a George Soros-funded group claims she did nothing wrong by double-voting. “There’s absolutely no intent on my part to commit voter fraud,” said Melowese Richardson, a longtime Cincinnati poll worker and Democratic activist whose unlawfully cast ballot canceled out a lawful ballot and thereby deprived another citizen of his or her right to vote. Voter fraud, also known as vote fraud, election fraud, and electoral fraud, refers to the specific offenses of fraudulent voting, impersonation, perjury, voter registration fraud, forgery, counterfeiting, bribery,...

Over the last decade, as activists started pushing colleges to accommodate transgender students, they first raised only basic issues, like recognizing a name change or deciding who could use which bathrooms. But the front lines have shifted fast, particularly at the nation’s elite colleges, and a growing number are now offering students health insurance plans with coverage for gender reassignment surgery. No college or university offered such treatment just six years ago, but when Brown University said last week that its student health plan would be extended to cover sex-change surgery beginning in August, advocates for transgender students said Brown...

Former Navy Seal Gabriel Gomez has announced his intention to run in the special election to fill the vacancy left by John Kerry. A private-equity investor, Gomez now has until the end of the month to collect the 10,000 signatures necessary to get on the ballot. If successful, we would face state Rep. Dan Winslow, a former Romney staffer, in the primary April 30th. “As I look at Washington," Gomez said in a public statement, "I see a lot of unproductive noise and bickering, and I see two parties attacking each other at all times over every issue. I see...

On Tuesday, President Obama and the first lady used the State of the Union spotlight to pay tribute to an innocent teenage girl shot and killed by Chicago gang thugs. On Friday, Obama will travel to the Windy City to decry violence and crusade for more gun laws in the town with the strictest gun laws and bloodiest gun-related death tolls in America. Does the White House really want to open up a national conversation about the state of Chicago? OK, let's talk. Obama, his wife, his campaign strategists, his closest cronies and his biggest bundlers all hail from Chicago....

A few days ago, a man tried to assassinate Lars Hedegaard in Copenhagen - an event Mark wrote about here and here, but about which the broader western media has been shamefully silent. Last summer, Mark had the honour of presenting Lars with a Defender of Freedom award at the European Parliament. Here is some of what Mark had to say: Thank you. I don't spend a lot of time in the European Parliament or in Brussels, and one of the few things that could persuade me to set foot here is the opportunity to say a word for the...

In just 58 seconds, Joe Scarborough has rendered an imagined response to last night's SOTU demolishing President Obama's failed economic record. Delivered on today's Morning Joe, Scarborough scalded PBO's pitiful performance on the economy. Highlights from the Hall of Shame: four million more Americans out of work today than when Barack Obama became President; average income down 5% since the end of the recession. View the video here.

The Senate Armed Services Committee was set to approve the nomination of Chuck Hagel for secretary of defense Tuesday, but several Republican senators told The Cable they will insist he receive 60 votes on the Senate floor before he is confirmed. The committee debated the Hagel nomination in anticipation of a Tuesday afternoon vote that is expected to fall along party lines, with all committee Republicans voting against the nomination. After the committee acts, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is expected to call for a final floor vote on Thursday, just before the Senate goes on vacation. Several GOP...

Natasha Harris, a mother of eight, drank up to 10 litres of Coke a day, equivalent to more than twice the 400mg recommended safe limit of caffeine, an inquest into her death was told. Releasing his decision on Tuesday, coroner David Crerar found that she died of cardiac arrhythmia caused by the effects of caffeine, as well as poor nutrition. Christopher Hodgkinson, her de facto partner, had told the inquest that Ms Harris was addicted to Coca-Cola. "The first thing she would do in the morning was have a drink of Coke, and the last thing she would do in...

Fiscal Policy: President Obama now says the deficit problem is all but fixed, so we can stop all this unpleasant talk about spending cuts and get on with government spending. Maybe this is good politics, but it's reckless policy. In the run-up to his State of the Union speech, Obama was running around telling everyone how we've already "cut our deficit by more than $2.5 trillion," and are now "more than halfway towards the $4 trillion in deficit reduction that economists . .. say we need to stabilize our debt." Clearly Obama wants all the dreary talk of deficits off...

The Buckley Rule has been much invoked in recent weeks, in this space and elsewhere, and on almost every occasion it has been both misquoted and misapplied. As one who was present at the formulation, I feel obliged to record the “originalist” intention. It was the winter of 1964 and the unresolved question at NR editorial meetings, week to week, was this: Whom should the magazine support for the Republican presidential nomination? To outsiders, the question would have seemed all but settled. Issue by issue, NR gave every appearance of being all in for Barry Goldwater. Heck, there were those...

An emboldened, second-term President Obama on Tuesday made clear that if lawmakers don’t tackle climate change, he will do an end run around Congress and use his executive powers to curb greenhouse gas emissions linked to global warming. The commitment — delivered during Obama’s fourth State of the Union address — shed more light on how the president plans to make good on his inaugural vow to combat climate change as he showed he is willing to flex his muscle on the issue. “If Congress won’t act soon to protect future generations, I will,” Obama pledged. “I will direct my...

“I mean I needed water, what am I going to do?” he said. “God has a funny way of reminding us we’re human.”

The budget posted a surprise surplus in January for the first time in five years, as the Treasury likely benefited from a windfall when payroll tax cuts expired. The budget registered a $3 billion surplus, the first time there had been a surplus in January since 2008, Treasury Department data showed on Tuesday. Economists had been looking for a $2 billion gap. The surplus compared with a $27 billion deficit in January 2012...

- View full site Shooting victim heads to DC February 12, 2013 04:46 PM EST A 17-year-old girl injured in a drive-by shooting prepared to head to Washington, D.C. with U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz for President Obama's State of the Union address. On April 17, 2012, Megan Hobson was injured in a drive-by shooting when her sister's car was riddled with bullets. "I laid across the back seat. With me laying across the back seat, I had been hit with an AK-47 rifle," she said. "The bullet penetrated through my hip. It went through the bumper, the trunk, and...

The Bible’s teaching on human sexuality is clear: The only kind of sexual intimacy Scripture countenances exists between one man and one woman, within marriage. This teaching is restrictive, limiting, narrow. It also possesses the singular advantage of being accurate, in the sense of being a faithful representation of what the Bible says. One need not agree with the Bible to acknowledge its clear teaching. Regarding efforts to diminish the Bible’s teachings about homosexuality, specifically, former Benedictine monk Luke Timothy Johnson, now of Emory University, writes, “I have little patience with efforts to make Scripture say something other than what...

Recently a video emerged in which pro-Assad militiamen can be seen beating and shooting a prisoner to death. What might seem remarkable is that the militiamen are insulting Islam in the process, mocking the takbir — that is, the cry of “Allahu akbar” — the Islamic conception of paradise for martyrs. In the first half of the video, one of the executioners — disparaging Muhammad — shouts, “F—k you and your prophet.” Later, another of them yells, “Damn your God.” It may come across as odd that pro-Assad militiamen would disparage the Islamic religion in such a crude manner, but...

"I do skeet shooting." Of course you do, Mr. President. "I do skeet shooting all the time." Which is why skeet shooters (not "doers" of skeet or "skeeters" as you call them) took a quick look at your photo and noted your aim is straight ahead, not upward where the clay target would be. They also noticed you're pictured using a gun designed for trap shooting, wearing dark sunglasses on a cloudy day, holding the gun incorrectly, your shoulder shows no reaction to what should be the gun's recoil, and a few other oddities. There's also the White House press...

Obama to Pope: 'I have appreciated our work together over these last four years' President Barack Obama has released a statement on the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI and, as usual, it's all about himself. In three spartan sentences, he manages to use the word “I” four times. The use of the first-person singular is Obama's own Holy Tradition, a hallmark of both his rhetoric and his governing style. His administration is a Magisterium of one. Nonetheless, one line is particularly galling: “Michelle and I warmly remember our meeting with the Holy Father in 2009, and I have appreciated our...

Matthews described the speech as “tinkertoy” and “juvenile,” “primitive,” and “something you would hear on the high school debating team.”

Listen to the Quinn & Rose Morning Show from 6:00 to 9:00 Eastern on: www.wpgb.com (104.7 Pittsburgh, Pa) http://wysl1040.com/ (Rochester, NY) http://www.talkradio560.com/ (Frostburg, MD) http://wicofm.com/ (Salisbury/Ocean City, MD WOBX - Outer banks NC httphttp://www.wncoam.com/main.html (Ashland, OH) ://tunein.com/radio/The-War-Room-with-Quinn--Rose-p34761/ for archived shows And now on 166 XM

With this morning's announcement by North Korea that it has conducted its third nuclear test, experts are closely watching a network of seismic monitoring stations for hints of what sort of test it was. Ratios of radioisotopes could help to verify the explosion and perhaps even provide clues about the type of device detonated — but only if the radioactive gases can be identified before they decay. Seismic stations detected the underground blast at 9:57 a.m. local time. The data, from the US Geological Survey and the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), showed a sudden, strong...

Three years after the White House arranged a hero's welcome at the State of the Union address for the Fort Hood police sergeant and her partner who stopped the deadly shooting there, Kimberly Munley says President Obama broke the promise he made to her that the victims would be well taken care of. "Betrayed is a good word," former Sgt. Munley told ABC News in a tearful interview to be broadcast tonight on "World News with Diane Sawyer" and "Nightline." "Not to the least little bit have the victims been taken care of," she said. "In fact they've been neglected."...

The import or export of mercury is set to be banned © ShutterstockAfter six days of complex discussions in Geneva last week, governments from around the world agreed to a global, legally-binding treaty on Saturday to limit mercury use. This is the first new major environmental treaty in over a decade.The Minamata Convention on Mercury – named after the Japanese city where thousands of residents fell ill with mercury poisoning in the 1950s – covers a range of products and processes where mercury is used or released. Countries will be invited to ratify the treaty, which took four years to...

President Obama rehashed many familiar themes this evening, calling on Congress to act on a host of issues -- and vowing to take unilateral executive action if they fail to sufficiently address his priorities.  A few passages were newsworthy: Obama denounced the looming sequester cuts, voiced support for "modest" Medicare reforms, called for another stimulus, resurrected cap and trade, pushed comprehensive immigration reform, backed a national hike in the minimum wage, announced another major troop draw-down in Afghanistan, and insisted that Congress allow up-or-down votes on a series of gun control measures.  As is his habit, the president was not...

If Santa Claus had a State of the Union speech, it would sound much like President Obama’s latest. In it, Obama detailed a Christmas list of “investments” on Tuesday night that he wants government to make. In all, he included 11 separate versions of the term “invest” to indicate government spending – your tax dollars. The solution to all that spending was, of course, more taxes when Republicans have already said “no new taxes.” Naturally, the media loved it. MSNBC’s Ed Schultz called it “a stunning speech tonight.” CNN’s Jessica Yellin said Obama was “relaxed and confident.” Politico’s summary was...

A third nuclear test has been widely anticipated since DecemberSign North Korea is advancing its nuclear technology, say expertsSuggests country is closer to mounting a bomb on a missile'Greater explosive force' than the 2006 and 2009 tests North Korea a 'serious threat' to U.S., says Defence Secretary Leon Panetta World leaders condemned North Korea’s defiant nuclear test yesterday amid fears the Communist pariah state is developing a weapon that could strike the US.Outgoing US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said North Korea represented a ‘serious threat’,  adding: ‘We’ve got to be prepared to deal with that.’Even close ally China was...

While law enforcement officials scoured the hillsides above Big Bear on Tuesday for murder suspect Christopher Dorner, wardens from California's Department of Fish and Wildlife were called in to patrol the rugged terrain of Highway 38. It was on that highway that the officers first encountered Dorner, engaging the former cop in a white-knuckle chase involving two commandeered vehicles. The pursuit culminated in what officials described as a wild shootout between Dorner and a state game warden.The actions by alert wildlife officers may have set in motion Dorner's last stand — in a snowbound cabin, surrounded by police. The cabin...

FL Sen. Marco Rubio gave the GOP response to President Obama's State of the Union address. Now, delivering the opposing party response to a SOTU address is a very difficult task. The President speaks before the assembled chambers of Congress. The responder speaks to a camera in some unrecognized office. That said, the response does allow the opposing party to lay out a governing position for the American public. Unfortunately, Rubio used his time mostly to deflect attacks made by Obama. A prevent defense can work in sports, but rarely in politics.

The Boot Campaign set up in Georgetown, TX to say goodbye to our friend, Chris Kyle as his procession came from Midlothian, TX to Austin, TX. The procession was easily 10 miles long. What a great way to show your support. The amount of patriotism has really overwhelmed us!

EDITOR’S NOTE: The links in the following report may contain offensive language. The Detroit News wants you to know the black mob violence in Detroit over the weekend was limited to under 100 people. Which is not true. They also would like you know it was an “isolated” event. Which is also not true. And you could “get crazy people anywhere.” So it is not fair to single out Detroit. Which is so far from the truth you have to wonder if even the people at the Detroit News believe it. Others are saying this just more of the usual...

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President Barack Obama wants all 50 states to provide pre-kindergarten schools for 4-year-olds, a plan that the White House says will result in better prepared students and ultimately a more educated workforce. … Obama also wants the federal government to give the states incentives to provide full-day kindergarten. …

President Barack Obama wants an increase in the minimum hourly wage from the current $7.25 to $9 by the end of 2015. Obama also proposes the minimum wage be required to keep pace with inflation. … The proposal, which Obama made during his State of the Union address Tuesday, is sure to draw opposition from business groups and congressional Republicans who say higher rates increase costs and reduce employment. …

President Barack Obama is creating a commission directed to help improve voting, a reaction to widespread complaints about lengthy waits, growing photo ID requirements and shortened early voting periods. … Obama said that when Americans choose not to vote because they can’t wait hours to cast their ballot, “we are betraying our ideals”. …

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President Barack Obama delivered an “effective” State of the Union address that took an emotional turn at the end with the emphasis on gun violence, members of the media said after his speech on Tuesday. CBS’s Bob Schieffer called the speech much “better” than Obama’s inaugural address, which he said had come across as a “partisan lecture.” “I mean, the president’s inaugural address had sort of a partisan lecture tone about it,” Schieffer said after Obama wrapped. “This was a political speech, but it was well-written, it had a beginning, a middle and an end.”

The family of a U.S. agent killed in a 2011 ambush on a Mexican highway and another agent who survived the attack on Tuesday sued the government and nearly two-dozen other defendants. The federal lawsuit arises from the Feb. 15, 2011, attack on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents Jaime Zapata and Victor Avila. They were attacked in their armored sport-utility vehicle near San Luis Potosi, Mexico, shortly after picking up some equipment from another agent. Zapata died and Avila was seriously wounded. … On Feb. 15, 2011, Zapata and Avila drove from Mexico City to San Luis Potosi to...

Cardinal Peter Turkson, a 64-year-old Ghanaian prelate, is the bookmaker's early favourite to succeed Pope Benedict XVI. He told The Daily Telegraph Tuesday that his biggest challenge, should he be elected, would be to maintain an orthodox Catholic doctrine while "at the same time knowing how to apply it so that you do not become irrelevant in a world that has continuous changes". Cardinal Turkson, who holds one of the most important jobs in the Roman Curia and has been repeatedly promoted by Pope Benedict, was quick to take a conservative line on gay marriage and other "alternative lifestyles". "We...

(CNSNews.com) – For the second time in two years, Washington, D.C., has been ranked the number one city for cheaters. According to AshleyMadison.com, a web site that bills itself as “the world’s leading married dating service for discreet encounters,” the nation’s capital was at the top of the list of America’s Least Faithful Cities with 34,157 sign-ups – more sign-ups per capita in 2012. “With enormous public attention paid to political cheating scandals this year, including the Gen. Petraeus affair, there was no doubt that Washington residents would be influenced. Living in DC it’s crucial to keep up appearances and...