Free Republic

WASHINGTON (AFP) — US lawmakers on Friday "strongly condemned" what they called Beijing's harsh pre-Olympic crackdown in China's Muslim-populated far northwest Xinjiang region. The bipartisan leadership of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus in a statement cited "credible" reports about a July 9 conviction in a closed trial of 15 minority Muslim Uighurs on terrorism charges that led to "the immediate execution of two" of them. Three others were given suspended death sentences and the remaining 10 received life imprisonment, it said. These are "abuses of due process and rule of law," said caucus co-chairmen Democrat Jim McGovern and Republican Frank...

Police officials in the beautiful and historic South Carolina city of Charleston have identified a major new public safety menace requiring their immediate attention. This latest threat -- being met by the authorities with an aggressive public awareness campaign and “sting” operations coupled with hefty fines in excess of $1,000 -- is not drugs, gangs, or illegal immigration. The threat posed the good citizens of Charleston is: Uber! Uber is a fast-growing, popular digital app for smart phones that provides consumers in Charleston and many cities across the country and around the world with an alternative to traditional taxi services....

The Democratic National Committee over the weekend set its preliminary 2016 presidential primary calender, with the four traditional carve-out states -- Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada -- holding contests in February and everybody else after that. The calendar mimics what we've seen from Republicans, who have basically agreed on the same order of succession. Here's how that looks: Feb. 1 -- Iowa caucuses Feb. 9 -- New Hampshire primary Feb. 20 -- Nevada caucuses Feb. 27 -- South Carolina primary From there, all other states would be permitted to hold contests between March 1 and June, with party...

Once the cops have pinned a non-violent suspect to the ground, how many times are they allowed to punch him in the head? Is it fewer than 20? I would say so, but I'm not a Greenville County, South Carolina, deputy. Greenville officers approached a man at a Walmart parking lot on Saturday. The man appeared to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and didn't respond to police questions or instructions. Eventually, the officers followed the man inside the store, where they attempted to detain him. The deputies claim the man resisted, though video footage of the incident...

George Soros gave $500,000 apiece to House Majority PAC and the League of Conservation Voters Victory Fund. Climate-change activist Tom Steyer gave the biggest super PAC donation in July with $7.5 million. Super PACs spent July beefing up for the fall campaign. Many groups filed new disclosure reports this week, leaving a paper trail littered with big checks from big names. Democrats dominate the list of notable July donors ... Michael Bloomberg is staying plenty active in his post-mayoral days. Aside from funding his gun-control-focused super PAC, Bloomberg has written checks to Senate Majority PAC and super PACs that backed...

Independent U.S. Senate candidate Thomas Ravenel and Beaufort County Councilman Rick Caporale will talk about their campaigns with Beaufort Tea Party members at 5:30 p.m. Monday at Fuji's Restaurant on 97 Sea Island Parkway on Lady's Island. Ravenel is the former state treasurer and newly minted reality TV star. He joined the race against Sen. Lindsey Graham last month as a petition candidate with the support and signatures of more than 17,000 registered voters across the state. Caporale was set to defend his seat representing part of Hilton Head Island and greater Bluffton against Colleton River Plantation resident Lynn King....

A Georgetown lawyer representing members of the Myrtle Beach Hells Angels said in a statement Friday that more than 100 charges against his clients related to arrests in April 2012, have been dismissed. John M. Hilliard III said his clients were charged in what Horry County Police called Operation Red Harvest, where he said allegations included charges of kidnapping and lynching along with various marijuana-related charges against members of the club. “There was never any credible evidence against any of my clients, a fact that I have repeatedly pointed out to the prosecution since the time of the original arrests,”...

Nikki Haley and her kids...

Sumter - Gov. Nikki Haley and two high profile health care advisors boarded a private plane to Bentonville, Ark., more than a year ago for a closed-door meeting with Wal-Mart executives. They hoped to convince the largest retailer in the country to launch a new primary care strategy in South Carolina. "We told Wal-Mart, 'We think this is perfect,'" said Tony Keck, director of the state Medicaid agency, who attended the meeting. It seems Wal-Mart agreed. On Thursday, the company opened its fourth and fifth "Care Clinics" in Sumter and Florence. The first three clinics, staffed by licensed nurse practitioners,...

America did not become great by keeping people out. We are great because, throughout our history, we have held our doors wide open to those seeking a new start, economic opportunity, and a chance to raise their families in peace and freedom. Tragically, our outdated immigration laws no longer uphold this quintessentially American vision. The country founded and built by immigrants now erects unnecessary barriers that turn aspiring Americans away and tear families apart.

On his first day as an official candidate for the U.S. Senate, Lowcountry businessman and reality television star Thomas Ravenel thanked his supporters for signing and collecting the signatures that put him on the November ballot against incumbent “Republican” Lindsey Graham, Democrat Brad Hutto and Libertarian Victor Kocher. “A lot of people worked very hard on that (signature) effort – and I’m tremendously grateful to each one of them,” Ravenel said. ”This is democracy in action – whether the warmongers and welfare statists in Washington like it or not.”

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COLUMBIA, SC — Onetime Republican Thomas Ravenel officially is running for the U.S. Senate again, this time as a petition candidate. The S.C. Election Commission certified the 10,000 signatures required for the former S.C. treasurer and reality TV star to be on the ballot in November as a challenger for the seat held by U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2014/08/06/3604749/thomas-ravenel-signatures-certified.html?#storylink=cpy

Independent conservative Thomas Ravenel has been certified as a candidate for the U.S. Senate in South Carolina, meaning his name will appear on the November ballot alongside incumbent “Republican” Lindsey Graham, Democrat Brad Hutto and Libertarian Victor Kocher. The certification of Ravenel – the star of Bravo TV’s reality television show Southern Charm - means he has met the state’s threshold of 10,000 valid signatures, according to election officials. That’s not a big surprise, as Ravenel submitted more than 17,000 signatures last month and was within 60 valid signatures of qualifying for the ballot when we checked in on his...

Over the weekend, both the Senate and the House approved $225M in funding for the Iron Dome. The bill passed by unanimous consent in the Senate and by a 395 to 8 vote. Opposition to the funding of the Iron Dome demonstarted an unfortunate bi-partisan measure – four Democrats and four Republicans voted against it. The four Democrats were Keith Ellison (MN-05), Zoe Lofgren (CA-19), Jim Moran (VA-08), and Beto O’Rourke (TX-16); The four Republicans were Justin Amash (MI-03), Walter Jones (NC-03), Tom Massie (KY-04), and Mark Sanford (SC-01). Rep. Ellison explains vote on “Meet the Press”: “Because a ceasefire...

You may recall that on Friday, in what would have been a Christmas Miracle were it not several months early, Congress actually got something done. It was the passage of a bill approving $225M in funding for Israel’s Iron Dome defensive missile system. It was quite the bipartisan effort in retrospect, garnering an overwhelming 395 votes in the House with only eight in opposition. One of those eight was Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison, and as The Corner reports, he went out on the weekend gab circuit to explain why he didn’t support the measure. “Because a cease-fire is what we...

Recently a video has gone viral of one man taking a stand against Sharia law and Islam. Many Americans believe this is long overdue, given the fact that the power of religion is used to control, oppress, and mistreat millions of people throughout the world. Unfortunately, in today’s society, it is a major risk to speak out against any religion. This forced silence is a major reason that people have been unwilling to challenge what many would agree is blatantly wrong. Now, one Navy Seal decided to speak out a political conference, claiming, “They are intent on killing the American...

Twelve states filed a lawsuit against the Obama administration on Friday seeking to block an Environmental Protection Agency proposal to regulate coal-fired power plants in an effort to stem climate change. The plaintiffs are led by West Virginia and include states that are home to some of the largest producers of coal and consumers of coal-fired electricity. The suit was filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. The other plaintiffs are Alabama, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota and Wyoming. The E.P.A. rule, announced by President Obama on June...

COLUMBIA - The Republican members of South Carolina's congressional delegation sent a letter to the secretaries of Homeland Security, and Health and Human Services, requesting additional information concerning undocumented children being housed in South Carolina. In the letter dated July 28, the congressmen expressed frustration after the Department of Health and Human Services announced that 350 undocumented children were placed with sponsors in South Carolina without notice to local authorities. "We are troubled that this data is just coming to light and was not provided to Congress or our delegation in a timely and regular fashion," read the letter, which...

Boeing will build the 787-10 Dreamliner exclusively in North Charleston, the Chicago-based aerospace giant announced Wednesday. The 787-10 is the largest of the Dreamliner family and the announcement of its construction at the North Charleston site has been expected for months. Design of the 787-10 is underway in Everett, with final assembly of the first 787-10 scheduled to begin in South Carolina in 2017. "We looked at all our options and found the most efficient and effective solution is to build the 787-10 at Boeing South Carolina," said Larry Loftis, vice president and general manager, 787 program, Boeing Commercial Airplanes....