Free Republic

Via RCP. Wait, wait, wait — before you start shaking your first at him, isn’t his point here oddly simpatico with what tea partiers say every day about Beltway squishes like King himself? It all depends on what benchmark you use to define “Republican.” The Republican establishment of the past 10 years has been fiercely interventionist, willing to bend on civil liberties in the name of fighting terrorism, and happy to back new entitlement programs like Medicare Part D so long as their guy’s in the White House. Rand Paul, by contrast, tilts towards isolationism, wants to sue the NSA...

Huma Abedin, a top staffer for Hillary Clinton and the wife of beleaguered and scandalized Anthony Weiner, was told to give her husband the boot — or leave the Clinton camp. “Huma has a choice to make,” an unnamed source said, to New York magazine. “Does she go with Anthony or does she go with Hillary?” This is the “biggest question among Hillary’s circle,” the magazine said, as the former first lady takes the stage as the Democratic Party’s most likely White House candidate for 2016. Ms. Abedin has been a close aide for years — but her husband’s sexting...

On September 13th, three Texas men were arrested for openly carrying legal pistols in Austin, Texas. All three men had Civil War era pistols which are not considered firearms under Texas law. Terry Louis Holcomb, a Huntsville area pastor, Scott Douglas Smith, a military veteran from San Antonio, and Gary Hayes, a quadriplegic, were arrested by state police for disorderly conduct, a charge that means the possession of a firearm for the purpose to cause alarm.

If you're still wondering -- despite the coy tweets, the impending avalanche of speeches, the assiduous fundraising for the renamed Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation -- whether Hillary Clinton is running for president, consider her reference Tuesday night to Teddy Roosevelt's man in the arena. Roosevelt disdained critics and carpers. "The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena," Roosevelt proclaimed, "who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat." Hillary Clinton is...

If Bill de Blasio wins this week's Democratic primary for New York City mayor, he can thank a Black teenage boy for his victory. No, I'm not referring to his biracial son, Dante, whose TV campaign commercial introduced voters to de Blasio's interracial family and Dante's huge afro. Instead, I'm talking about Trayvon Martin, the 17-year-old unarmed Florida boy who was shot and killed last year by George Zimmerman. After all, it was the Martin case, and the Zimmerman verdict that followed, that prepared New Yorkers for Dante de Blasio's subtle but powerful message against racial profiling. All summer long,...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK) New York City mayoral hopeful Anthony Weiner will appear in a live interview with TODAY’s Savannah Guthrie Monday, just a day before New Yorkers head to the polls to cast their vote in the primaries. A taped pre-interview between Weiner and Guthrie appeared Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” and Weiner admitted to Guthrie that his campaign was a gamble. “From the moment go, I was waging this campaign on a bet,” he said. “And the bet was basically that I know that people have embarrassing things they would hear about me and did know about me and my...

The mainstream media refuses to give it up. ABC News is trying to fool people into believing that Sarah Palin will be a presidential candidate. Check out this graphic and see it for yourself. Before RNC Chairman Reince Priebus was interviewed on This Week, ABC aired a pre-recorded video package with the announcer saying at the end, “There’s no shortage of prospective Republican candidates, and that makes it even more challenging for the party to resolve its ideological divide.” So let’s take a look at who ABC News thinks is a potential Republican presidential candidate: Ted Cruz? Check. Donald Trump?...

Money line: “This is what I do for a living.” Didn’t he predict a Bush/Clinton race in 2016 just nine months ago? If he believes what he says here about the parties swinging like “pendulums” from moderate nominees to ideologues and then back again, why would he have named Jeb as a strong contender last November? In fact, the roots of the counterargument are in Matthews’s own shpiel here: Most of the time, they head to the center. This is what Republicans did most successfully in 1952 – when, after twenty years of Roosevelt and Harry Truman – they wanted...

If you can’t win, you might as well go down swinging. At senior citizens. At an AARP-Univision mayoral forum this morning, mayoral contender Anthony Weiner pulled out the age card to taunt his most vocal challengers, 69-year-old Doe Fund founder George McDonald. Weiner is 48. Before the debate, Weiner put a hand on McDonald’s back and said hello, prompting McDonald to reply: “I would appreciate if you would never touch me again.” Weiner retorted: “What are you going to do about it, grandpa?” according to two sources. A mild overreaction by McDonald, but in his defense, who knows where that...

“Keep Trayvon’s family in our prayers. Deeply unsatisfying verdict,” Anthony Weiner tweeted.The city's mayoral candidates quickly weighed in on Trayvon Martin case Saturday night, with many taking to Twitter to denounce George Zimmerman’s acquittal in the death of the black Florida teenager. Democrat Bill Thompson, the only African-American in the mayoral race, tweeted, “Trayvon Martin was killed because he was black. There was no justice done today in Florida”(continued)

First Lady Michelle Obama spoke at a DNC Fundraiser at the Manhattan home of fashion designer Tory Burch Wednesday evening. TPM was in attendance to provide press pool coverage. Our unedited pool report is below: "Your pooler is currently composing this report in a Starbucks a few blocks from Manhattan's Hotel Pierre where First Lady Michelle Obama just gave a speech at a DNC fundraiser in the home of fashion designer Tory Burch. In her speech, Obama encouraged the crowd to remain politically engaged and active though "the excitement that comes with the presidential campaign has faded." Pool was led...

A new Quinnipiac poll comparing potential Democratic candidates for 2016 comes to a familiar conclusion: Hillary Clinton, if she decides to run, would absolutely dominate the competition. The poll has 65 percent of potential Democratic voters picking Hillary Clinton as their presidential nominee in 2016. That's in line with multiple recent polls — including from Gallup, PPP, and PublicMind — showing Clinton as the overwhelming favorite in a Democratic primary. What's interesting about the Quinnipiac poll is that it conducted a separate survey in which Clinton was removed from the race. Which Democrats come out on top if Clinton decides...

The Boston Marathon tragedy is a reason for Congress to move faster – not slower – to overhaul the nation's immigration system, according to two co-authors of a Senate reform package. Some conservatives on Capitol Hill have suggested Monday's deadly bombings – allegedly orchestrated by a pair of young immigrants from Russia's volatile Caucasus region – should cause lawmakers to move more deliberately in their approach to immigration reform this year. But Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) – chief architects of a sweeping bipartisan immigration proposal unveiled last week – argued Sunday that their bill will help...

Growing momentum in the Senate for new gun control legislation has failed to flow down to the House, where just a handful of House Republicans have embraced a deal to expand background checks for firearm purchases. Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) and multiple Republican members of the Pennsylvania delegation are backing a compromise brokered by the Keystone State’s Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) that advanced in the Senate on Thursday. Yet in interviews, those lawmakers said they have had no discussions with the House GOP leadership and don’t know what the prospects for the legislation would be in a chamber dominated by...

A little known pro-gun lobby that’s well to the right of the National Rifle Association has complicated efforts to reach a solution on gun control legislation, top Democrats have said in recent days. The Gun Owners of America has been around for decades, operating mostly in obscurity, dwarfed by the lobbying and fundraising prowess of the NRA. The group’s big gripe is that the NRA is too squishy and willing to compromise, and its recent efforts to scuttle gun control legislation appear to be scaring away Republicans amenable to background checks. The results have frustrated Democrats trying to strike a...

Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) said Tuesday that the United States had the right to take preemptive military action against North Korea if there was "solid evidence" that Kim Jon Un planned to attack the U.S. or South Korea. "If we have good reason to believe there's going to be an attack, I believe we have the right to take preemptive action," King said on CNN's "Erin Burnett Outfront.""I don't think we have to wait until Americans are killed or wounded or injured in any way," he continued. "I'm not saying we should be rushing into war, don't get me wrong,...

Burdensome taxes and regulations, further taxes disguised as fees, and a reputation as a nanny state have finally reaped rewards for New York State: They’ve been heralded by a George Mason University study as the worst state in the nation for such things as fiscal, regulatory, and personal freedoms. Here are the final rankings: Fiscal Freedom – 50th Regulatory Freedom – 47th Personal Freedom – 48th Overall Freedom – 50th Via the New York Post: New York’s big government — with its hands deep in taxpayers’ pockets and regulations controlling everyone’s lives — has made the Empire State the worst...

You’ll shoot your eye out kid! Or at least that’s what one Assemblywoman must believe of children that attend gun shows with their family. Linda Rosenthal (D) has introduced a new bill that would ban children under 12 from attending a gun show in New York state. Via the Times Union (the sarcasm is fantastic): The bill was put forward by Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal, who hails from that trackless wilderness and sportsmen’s paradise known as Manhattan. “Children should be learning to read and write, not to shoot a firearm,” Rosenthal says in a statement, as if the two skills were...

An Albany Councilwoman who attended and spoke at an event last year that featured a veritable who’s-who of former domestic terrorists (bomb makers, convicted cop-killers), is now requesting funding for a “community based anti-violence program” according to the Times Union. As an esteemed member of the Common Council, Barbara Smith is requesting state funding for the anti-violence program known as SNUG. According to the Times Union report: A local delegation — including state Sen. Neil Breslin, Harris Oberlander, head of the Trinity Alliance, the nonprofit that runs the SNUG program; Common Councilwoman Barbara Smith; and Assistant Police Chief Brendan Cox...

Apparently the heat from last week’s gun control rally got to state Assemblyman Al Stirpe, a Democrat representing the 121st district. Stirpe voted in favor of New York’s gun legislation, the SAFE Act. During a meeting on Thursday, several protesters asked the Assemblyman questions that they described as “legitimate and sincere”. But Stirpe felt he was being shouted down without being able to provide answers to the questions. And that’s when this happened… Via Syracuse.com: “I said ‘If you blanking guys would care more about education and the crumbling roads and bridges in our state, you’d be living in a...

Hudson City Alderman David Marston says Second Amendment supporters are “gun-toting Tea Party psychotards.” A New York alderman is in hot water after lashing out at Second Amendment supporters as “gun-toting Tea Party psychotards” and threatening to “beat you barbarians back.” Hudson city Alderman, Dave Marston, sent this email tirade out to Johanna Johnson-Smith (JJ), a main organizer for the first NY SAFE Act protest rally in Albany last month. Johnson-Smith was concerned about the new gun control laws the city was proposing. Here is Marston’s response. Via Mental Recession: Dear Joanna Johnson-Smith, Its really neat that all you gun...

Hudson city Alderman, Dave Marston, has found himself in a bit of hot water after an e-mail exchange that saw him refer to Second Amendment supporters as “gun-toting Tea Party psychotards”, implying that all gun supporters are “unemployed”, threatened to “beat you barbarians back”, and tosses in a Nazi reference for good measure. Apparently Mr. Marston didn’t get his party’s memo concerning the “new tone” in politics.

Their official name is the Richmond County Tea Party Patriots -- and they arguably put Congressman Michael Grimm (R-NY) in office twice, first in 2010 when Tea Party supported this U.S. Marine veteran for the U.S. House, and again in 2012. Grimm won the 2010 general election for his district which covers both parts of New York City's Staten Island and Brooklyn with 51 percent of the vote. Grimm won the 2012 general election for the post-Census New York 11th District with 52.8 percent of the vote. One doubts Michael Grimm could have gotten into office in this "purple" District...

Ambassadorships are the fairy dust of domestic goodwill for every President, and usually go to either big donors or prominent political supporters. While some go to professional diplomats, a significant percentage usually go to cronies for loyalty, both present and future. With that said, the latest trial balloon from State and the White House is a bit curious: Caroline Kennedy is the “leading contender” on the short list of candidates President Obama is considering to be the next ambassador to Canada, a senior Democratic official tells Fox News. Kennedy, the daughter of the late President Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis,...

New York State Assemblyman William F. Boyland, Jr., already under federal indictment for bribery, now stands accused of falsifying more than $67,000 in travel expenses over a five year period. According to the Times Union, Boyland filed false claims on 609 out of the 975 days that he requested travel reimbursements during that time span. The State Comptroller’s Office has declined to make the report public, and Albany County District Attorney David Soares, a Democrat, has still failed to take action against Boyland, despite specific requests from colleagues in the Assembly. Via the New York Post: Embattled state Assemblyman William...

Why is it that The Right is described as “anti-choice” when The Left is talking about abortion? But The Left is not regarded as anti-choice when they talk about gun control? When The Left talks about “saving just one life” by doing things like banning guns, why doesn’t that logic apply to late term, partial birth, or any abortion? Have you ever seen an Intact Dialation and Extraction procedure? There no denying that what the doctor is doing is killing a viable human life. Let me be clear on this, I believe an abortion, in 99% of cases, is a...

ALBANY – Gov. Cuomo’s job approval rating dropped faster than a speeding bullet this month as Republicans and gun owners started turning against him after he rammed through the nation’s first post-Newtown gun control law, a new poll has found. Democrat Cuomo’s approval marks slid from 74-13 percent last month to 59-28 in the Quinnipiac poll out today — a day after the New York-affiliate of the National Rifle Association filed a notice of claim to sue to stop enforcement of the law, arguing it unconstitutionally deprives New Yorkers of their rights. While voters in non-gun homes still gave Cuomo...

Last week we showed you a Democrat wish list for gun control proposals, as presented by Assemblyman Steve McLaughlin. The list was given to McLaughlin by a colleague in the Senate, and includes a host of radical Second Amendment-trampling ideas, including the confiscation of so-called 'assault weapons', the re-labeling of semi-automatic shotguns as 'assault weapons', and the confiscation of magazines hosting 5 rounds or more. More video clips from the debates leading up to the Governor's over-reaching gun grab are surfacing, and there is clear evidence supporting the list presented by Mr. McLaughlin as reality. Democrat proposals are so radical...

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott is rolling out the welcome mat for New Yorkers who would like to keep their guns—and their money. Abbott used his campaign money to produce and place ads on media websites in New York City and Albany encouraging residents to move to Texas. Why? To avoid the severe gun restrictions put into place by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, as well as the high income taxes of the Empire State. One ad reads: "WANTED: Law abiding New York gun owners seeking lower taxes and greater opportunities." If the viewer clicks on the ad, the link...

Late last night, New York Assemblyman Steve McLaughlin, one of the few Republicans with a strong enough spine to stand up to the new gun legislation, released the following statement on his Facebook page. "Here it is. This is the video where I was asked to keep the Democrat proposals for the NY SAFE Act away from the public. This list was given to me by a colleague and it is not confidential. This bill was an attack on the 2nd amendment and the Democrats clearly wanted to dismantle the work of the Founding Fathers. None of these amendments were...

Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) joined MSNBC anchor Thomas Roberts on Wednesday to applaud strict new gun laws passed by the New York State legislature and signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo this week. He said that he was glad that the legislature, and the federal government, were doing something in the wake of the murder of children and teachers in Newtown, Connecticut. He noted, however, that New York is more progressive than some places and some regions, particularly the American South, have “cultures that we have to overcome” in order to enact stricter national gun laws. “This is not Constitutional rights,...

Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) joined MSNBC anchor Thomas Roberts on Wednesday to applaud strict new gun laws passed by the New York State legislature and signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo this week. He said that he was glad that the legislature, and the federal government, were doing something in the wake of the murder of children and teachers in Newtown, Connecticut. He noted, however, that New York is more progressive than some places and some regions, particularly the American South, have “cultures that we have to overcome” in order to enact stricter national gun laws. “This is not Constitutional rights,...

This week, as lawmakers in Congress braced themselves for a protracted and impassioned debate over gun control, Democratic governors moved swiftly to push tough new gun laws in response to the school massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo easily shepherded legislation through a divided state legislature to produce the strictest gun laws in the country. Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley has proposed similarly stringent measures, including a ban on assault weapons, while Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper has called for universal background checks on all gun sales. And what do all three governors have in common (besides a strong...

In reading up on Governor Cuomo's new gun legislation in New York, I came across a rather startling statement. Startling in it's pure and utter stupidity. And in what Cuomo termed "the Webster Provision" — a reference to the Dec. 24 killings of two firefighters fatally shot while responding to a call in a suburb of Rochester — the murder of a first responder will become a felony punishable by life in prison without parole. That's right, a future Presidential hopeful for 2016 is actually bragging about a provision in his gun law named specifically for one individual gun man,...

Democrat and local school board member, Ed McDonough is on trial in upstate New York for his alleged role in a voter fraud scheme that has already seen numerous colleagues implicated, of which four have already pled guilty. One of those colleagues, Dan Brown, brother and former campaign manager for Democrat City Councilman John Brown, received immunity from prosecution in exchange for his testimony. Monday's testimony may have revealed new depths to which the Democrats were willing to stoop in order to win elections. Mind you, we've already heard prior testimony that gives insight into just who the Democrats felt...

America has never had a female major party candidate nominated to be president, but the odds are growing that it will happen in 2016. The current favorite for the 2016 Democratic nomination is a woman, and there are at least four other potential candidates in both parties. It isn’t that female candidates haven’t tried. Hillary Clinton came the closest when she lost the Democratic nomination in 2008 to Barack Obama. Here’s a look at the top prospects for 2016, starting with the Democratic frontrunner. Hillary Clinton The current Secretary of State is a huge favorite for the 2016 nomination for...

President Barack Obama and Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney are virtually tied among Long Island voters, according to a Siena College/Newsday poll. Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts and co-founder of the Bain Capital investment firm, leads slightly among likely Nassau and Suffolk voters -- 47 percent to Obama's 45 percent. Seven percent of respondents said they were undecided or refused to declare their pick, and 1 percent opted for a third-party candidate. The poll has a 3-point margin of error. The results echo national polls that show a tight race leading up to the Nov. 6 election. In Nassau,...

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — Bullish Democrats are calling it a blow-out. Pundits are giving the president the slight edge. And the late-night insta-polls splashed across cable news chyrons initially appeared to give Obama a solid, if not game-changing, win. But the Romney campaign spent the hours after the contest contending that the debate strengthened their position — and they may have a point. A CNN/ORC International poll published late Tuesday identified Obama has the overall winner, 46 percent to 39 percent. But the poll also showed that Romney won on virtually every issue he's chosen to place at the center of...

Citing what they call an "impossible transaction" the campaign team for Wendy Long sent out a press release today accusing United States Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of filing a false tax return in 2010. Here is a copy of the press release: A cursory review of Senator Kirsten Gillibrand's taxes indicates a transaction that was impossible. But the New York Times refused to even examine the issue. U.S. Senate candidate Wendy Long said, "Two things stand out here: we have a tax code that even a U.S. Senator can't get right and a liberal media goliath that is playing one side...

Hudson, NY - Kathy Marchione, who has been Saratoga County Clerk since 1997, decided to challenge state Sen. Roy McDonald in the Republican primary for the 43rd District seat in part due to his 2011 vote in favor of same sex marriage in the state. “I would not have voted for gay marriage,” Marchione said in a phone interview last week. “He actually told people he was voting no and then he voted yes. I won’t tell people something and do something else.” Marchione calls herself a “true conservative” and said her belief is that the definition of marriage is...

. NBC News : Free Republic's Patton@Bastogne calls-out Myth Romney as a "Pathelogical Political Liar" at the Tampa 2012 GOP Convention ... Patton@Bastogne calls-out Myth Romney as a "Pathelogical Political Liar" in Tampa ...(click) Internet Link: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nbcnews.com/48798495 .

Here’s something I thought I’d never write: a moment of clarity from Charlie Rangel. You can watch the entire interview with The Perez Notes at the link, but we’ll pick up where Rep. Rangel begins discussing how attack ads destroy credibility, starting with Joe Biden’s “they goin’ to put y’all back in chains” in Danville, Virginia. Not only does Rangel describe the claim as laughable, he also says that the Obama campaign’s defense of it — that Biden meant economic hardship and not slavery — is ridiculous on its face: (VIDEO AT LINK) After Vice President Joe Biden infamously told...

After a gaffe-filled week, Vice President Joseph R. Biden will go back on the campaign trail next week with visits to three relatively "safe" Democratic states. Mr. Biden will travel on Tuesday for campaign events in Minnesota, where President Obama leads presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney by an average of 10.5 percentage points in the Real Clear Politics average of polls. On Wednesday, the vice president will campaign in Michigan, where the Democratic ticket is ahead by an average of 7.7 points. And on Friday, Mr. Biden and his wife, Jill, will attend campaign events in New York state, where...

Although he was recently overheard saying Mitt Romney would do a better job of running the country, Mayor Bloomberg gave President Obama good marks yesterday for his job in office. “It’s easy to say that the president should be doing more, but he’s got a lot of things to balance,” Bloomberg said on CNN’s “Fareed Zakaria GPS.” “On balance, I think he’s doing a good job.” Pointing to a polarized Congress and troubles around the world, Bloomberg said Obama has gotten a bad rap. “I happen to think that Obama’s been a much better president than people give him credit...

The Obama campaign tonight aired its first national TV ad of the election cycle — a 30-second spot on the MTV Network that features actress Sarah Jessica Parker plugging President Obama’s record and soliciting donations for a campaign sweepstakes. “OK, the guy who ended the war in Iraq; the guy who says you should be able to marry anyone you want; the guy who created 4 million new jobs. That guy — President Obama — and his wife Michelle are coming to my house for dinner on June 14th,” Parker says to camera. “And I want you to be there...

CNBC’s John Harwood shares details from the fundraiser hosted by Ricky Martin, which is expected to bring a large sum of money to the Obama reelection campaign. >> i believe we have grown to marriage equal. >> that of course is south carolina congressman jim clyburn adding his support. he is the third ranging democrat in the house and one of the highest ranking african-american elected officials in this country. in a few hours, president obama will attend an lgbt fund-raiser hosted by openly gay entertainer ricky marine. it will be the first such event since endorsing marriage equal last...

Kevin McGrath, who currently sits on the Troy City Council, testified yesterday at the upstate New York voter fraud trial, that he was concerned about running for public office because of his history of substance abuse, and 'the fact that he is a convicted felon'. These days it seems, McGrath is far less concerned about public perception, at one point cracking a joke about his lack of drug-peddling business savvy - a comment that forced him to apologize to the judge. During his testimony, McGrath stated that he was not convicted of distributing 220 lbs. of pot, but rather, he...

Kevin McGrath, who currently sits on the Troy City Council, testified yesterday at the upstate New York voter fraud trial, that he was concerned about running for public office because of his history of substance abuse, and 'the fact that he is a convicted felon'. These days it seems, McGrath is far less concerned about public perception, at one point cracking a joke about his lack of drug-peddling business savvy - a comment that forced him to apologize to the judge. During his testimony, McGrath stated that he was not convicted of distributing 220 lbs. of pot, but rather, he...

Let's see... Paying for votes? Check. Tricking the mentally disabled? Check. And now, preying on those who struggle with the English language? Check. Democrats in upstate New York seemingly left no stone unturned, no voter they would not swindle, in an attempt to steal past elections. Via the Times Union: Testimony from voters in the city ballot-fraud case revealed the tactics politicians and political operatives used and the promises they made to allegedly convince residents to sign over their voting privileges. By 'politicians and political operatives' they mean 'Democrats and Democrat operatives'. There is after all, no other party on...

Is it possible that evidence against Democrats in Troy, New York,has finally hit rock bottom? When they weren't paying off college kids with their vote, they were apparently tricking mentally impaired voters into signing absentee ballots, telling them "the city made it easier to vote this year." A witness who testified in the upstate New York ballot fraud case explained that she would frequently visit two brothers, both of whom had 'mental disabilities'. Three men allegedly paid a visit to the family home of Michele Ziglitt one day. Two of the men were identified as Gary Galuski, and Anthony DeFiglio....