Free Republic

On Friday, Democrat Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger (MD) announced that he will not seek re-election for the seat he has held since 2003. Ruppersberger called the decision "difficult" but acknowledged that it's time to "pass the torch" to the younger generation. "This was an incredibly difficult decision for me because, now more than ever, Congress needs thoughtful, end-game representatives like me — members who care more about constituents and our country and less about cable news hits," Ruppersberger said in a statement, according to Politico. "But it is time to pass the torch to a younger generation of leaders and I...

The intercepts occurred under CIA Director John Brennan and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. The new disclosures are contained in two letters of “Congressional notification” originally written to key members of Congress in March 2014, but kept secret until now. In the letters, then-Intelligence Community Inspector General Charles McCullough tells four key members of Congress that during “routing counterintelligence monitoring of Government computer systems,” the CIA collected emails between Congressional staff and the CIA’s head of whistleblowing and source protection. McCullough states that he’s concerned “about the potential compromise to whistleblower confidentiality and the consequent ‘chilling effect’ that the...

On July 31, when all eyes were focused on the Ted Cruz-stoked chaos unfolding in the House chamber over the border bill, the Republican-led House Intelligence Committee did something rather remarkable. It voted to declassify its Benghazi report. After two years of investigation, it found no evidence to buttress any of the conspiracy theories surrounding the Sept. 11, 2012, attack that killed Chris Stevens, the U.S. ambassador to Libya, and three other Americans. We didn’t get this news from committee chairman Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.). Nope. There was a story in the San Francisco Chronicle on Friday. A press release...

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — An American soldier is released in a prisoner exchange with the Taliban. The U.S. government is under fire for how they got his freedom.

The Talk Shows August 11th, 2013 Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.MEET THE PRESS (NBC): Reps. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, and Steve King, R-Iowa; Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo.; Anu Bhagwati, executive director, Service Women's Action Network.FACE THE NATION (CBS): Reps. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md., and Peter King, R-N.Y.; Michael Hayden, a former head of the CIA and the National Security Agency.THIS WEEK (ABC): Edward Snowden's father, Lon; Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J.; Reps. Ed Royce, R-Calif., Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, and Louie Gohmert, R-Texas; Donald Trump.STATE OF THE UNION (CNN):...

The Talk Shows August 4th, 2013 Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): Reps. Eric Cantor, R-Va., and Justin Amash, R-Mich.; Michael Hayden, a former head of the CIA and the National Security Agency.MEET THE PRESS (NBC): Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga.; former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.FACE THE NATION (CBS): Reps. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Michael McCaul, R-Texas; and Sen. Chuck U. Schumer, D-N.Y.THIS WEEK (ABC): Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Reps. Peter King, R-N.Y., and C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md.STATE OF THE UNION...

The Talk Shows April 28th, 2013 Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): en. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas.MEET THE PRESS (NBC): Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.; Reps. Peter King, R-N.Y., Keith Ellison, D-Minn., and Joaquin Castro, D-Texas. FACE THE NATION (CBS): Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., and Claire McCaskill, D-Mo.THIS WEEK (ABC): Reps. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., and Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md. STATE OF THE UNION (CNN): en. Dan Coats, R-Ind.; Reps. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Bennie...

SNIP The other lawmakers in attendance (beside Sen. Richard Lugar R-IN) were Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD), Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-TX), Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI), Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD), Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA), Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Sen. John Kyl (R-AZ), Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA), Rep. Buck McKeon (R-NY), Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), and Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA). Deputy National Security Advisor Denis McDonough held a conference call with...

BALTIMORE - Rep. C.A. "Dutch" Ruppersberger (D) said Wednesday he won't seek the Senate seat being vacated by fellow Democrat Paul Sarbanes. Ruppersberger said "there is a great deal for me to continue to accomplish in my role on the (House) Intelligence Committee." Kweisi Mfume, a former five-term congressman and president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and activist A. Robert Kaufman have said they'll seek the Democratic nomination in 2006. Democratic representatives Benjamin Cardin and Chris Van Hollen also have both expressed interest. On the Republican side, Lt. Gov. Michael Steele has said he is...

Story Number: NNS040419-05 Release Date: 4/19/2004 11:36:00 AM By Journalist 1st Class Brigette A. Moritz, Naval Reserve Naval Media Center BALTIMORE (NNS) -- Twenty-six Reservists from Naval Reserve Center (NRC) Baltimore received awards during a ceremony April 17, for rescuing passengers of the Lady D, a Baltimore Harbor water taxi that capsized during a storm March 6. Within minutes of the accident, the Reservists were in the NRC’s small landing craft and on the scene. According to Chief Storekeeper Ricardo Duncan, administrative department head for Fleet and Industrial Supply Center Norfolk, Det. 106. Once the Reservists reached the water taxi,...

For the first time, Democrat C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger has opened a significant lead against Republican Helen Delich Bentley in their race for Maryland's 2nd Congressional District, according to a new poll. The Maryland Poll - conducted for The Sun and The Gazette newspapers - found that Ruppersberger, the Baltimore County executive, leads the former congresswoman 46 percent to 38 percent, with 15 percent undecided with less than a week before Election Day. When undecided voters leaning one way or the other are taken into account, Ruppersberger's lead increases to 49-40.

Election: Late-deciding voters will likely sway close contests for the state's top office and for two congressional seats. The race for Maryland governor is deadlocked and will be decided by voters who have yet to choose between Democrat Kathleen Kennedy Townsend and Republican Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., and by a shrinking pool of others still willing to change their minds, a new poll released yesterday shows.