Free Republic

Dover, TN - It has happened again - a companion dog has been shot and killed by the police. In this case, the dog's name was Girl - she was a German shepherd who was a constant companion to 73 yr-old Blanks "Buddy" Phippen. Back on January 21, Buddy and Girl were sitting in their front yard when a car crashed into a nearby utility pole. From this point on, details become a bit muddy.

Richard Viguerie has an interesting observation regarding the methodology of Ron Paul’s campaign intended to leave Paul as the last not-Romney standing, Ron Paul Goes Bird Hunting: "Experienced bird hunters and fighter pilots know you don’t aim for the leader of a flight — you start at the back of the flight and work your way forward. This is apparently what Congressman Ron Paul is doing to his opponents in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Rather than aim at purported frontrunner Mitt Romney (who should be the number one target of his libertarian supporters), Ron Paul has been...

<p>In 1993, Mitt Romney was a successful businessman with an urge to enter public life and a plan to challenge Ted Kennedy for a Senate seat from Massachusetts.</p> <p>Romney was also a high-ranking official in the Mormon church -- in charge of all church affairs in the Boston area -- with a dilemma over abortion. Romney was personally pro-life, and the church was pro-life, but a majority of the Massachusetts electorate was decidedly pro-choice.</p>

A French court has given former President Jacques Chirac a two-year suspended prison sentence for diverting public funds and abusing public trust. Mr Chirac, 79, was not in court to hear the verdict because of ill-health but denied wrongdoing. President from 1995 to 2007, he was put on trial on charges that dated back to his time as mayor of Paris. He was accused of paying members of his Rally for the Republic (RPR) party for municipal jobs that did not exist. The prosecution had urged the judge to acquit Mr Chirac and nine others accused in the trial. Two...

Jon Corzine, the former CEO of the bankrupt brokerage firm MF Global, has testified before Congress about his role in the company losing nearly a billion dollars. His responses were tentative, claiming ignorance of events. This prompted committee member, Rep. David Scott, D-Ga., to remark that it was the "height of disbelief" for Corzine ....

Spike Lee Ridicules Herman Cain: ‘Negro, Please’ Posted By John Nolte On October 19, 2011 @ 3:22 pm In Celebrity News, Politics | 147 Comments The New York Times piece Lee refers to here is the most appalling piece of race-baiting I’ve read in years. You can read my write-up about it at Big Journalism [1]. The reaction the Times was looking for is exactly this kind of thing from Spike Lee.

MIAMI, Aug. 4 (UPI) -- GOP presidential hopeful and ex-Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty said he would tell young workers they'd have to work to an older age to collect Social Security. People born after 1959 now have to wait till age 67 to collect full benefits. "If you're on the program now or anywhere near eligibility, you shouldn't have your benefits impacted," Pawlenty told The Miami Herald during a campaign stop. "But if you're in the next generation, we're telling you now, with several decades of warning, we're going to gradually raise the retirement age over time. If you're lower...

The White House called a groups of veterans organizations for a meeting to discuss the impact if an agreement isn't reached on raising the debt ceiling. They met with administration officials in the Roosevelt Room at the White House at 4:30p.m. Tuesday. David Autry, spokesman for Disabled American Veterans (DAV), said his organization received a call Monday night about the meeting. Autry says his group has been in consultation with the White House off and on about the issue. Monday night in a prime time address to the nation, President Obama once again brought up the issue that veterans checks...

SALEM, Ind. -- Police said a Washington, Ind., man killed his infant son because he was frustrated by the child’s crying. According to the Washington Times-Herald, police said Corey Lyons told them he became so frustrated with the 4-month-old's crying, he repeatedly slammed the boy's head against the floor. The Washington Times-Herald reported that's one of several versions of what happened. An affidavit states he first told them the child fell out of his arms, but later said he knelt down, grabbed the baby's shoulders and slammed the child's head repeatedly on the floor. A preliminary autopsy report said the...

(Reuters) - An Ohio man was executed on Tuesday morning after the Supreme Court declined to hear his appeal, officials said. Daniel Lee Bedford, 63, was put to death by lethal injection Tuesday morning for a double homicide in Cincinnati in 1984, according to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. His defense attorneys had argued for clemency, citing dementia and mental retardation. A federal judge had granted Bedford a stay of execution Monday, but this was lifted by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court rejected his final appeal. Bedford was convicted of shooting...

A teenager from Kanawha County has admitted to beating and robbing an elderly woman. UPDATE 5/16/11 @ 11:30 a.m. CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- A teenager from Kanawha County has admitted to beating and robbing an elderly woman. Shane Peck pleaded guilty Monday to robbery and assault. Click here to find out more! Peck and another teenager, Joseph Gibson, broke into Geraldine Gibson's house in Big Chimney back in March. That is when police say they beat and robbed her. Geraldine Gibson was hurt so badly she was in ICU for days after the crime. Peck and Gibson say Geraldine's son...

Just as his alleged victim, the 13-year-old daughter of his ex-girlfriend, was sworn in to testify, former New Orleans police officer Christopher Buckley pleaded guilty this morning to raping the girl. Buckley, 39, was arrested in October 2008 after the girl told her story to her mother, also an officer with the NOPD. The Times-Picayune is not naming the woman because of her relationship with the victim. The victim, now 15, had been sworn in and was preparing to take the witness stand when Buckley decided to take a plea. In all, he pleaded guilty to seven counts of forcible...

The Facebook message was brief and chilling - ‘Bout 2 kill ma kid’. It was posted by 24-year-old Australian Ramazan ‘Ramzy’ Acar before he plunged a huge Ninja-style knife into the body of his two-year-old daughter Yazmina. As the girl lay dying, Acar posted another message, directed at the child’s mother, Rachelle D’Argent: ‘It’s ova - I did it.' Then he posted another vengeful Facebook message to Miss D’Argent, from whom he was separated, reading: ‘Pay back, u slut.’ Sickening details of the murder of Yazmina were revealed in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court today as Acar - wearing an oversize...

Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger sat down with Newsweek recently for one of the most extensive interviews since his January exit from office. Schwarzenegger addresses everything from criticisms of one of his final acts as the state's chief executive to his own body image in his post-bodybuilding days, saying the effect of aging on his 63-year-old physique makes him "feel sh--y when I look at myself in the mirror." Below are some excerpts from the more than 2,500-word piece. Read the full article at this link. On controversy surrounding his 11th hour decision to reduce the prison sentence for the son...

President Obama is opting not to visit the tornado-ravaged areas of the South, choosing instead to embark today on a three day tour out West where he will try to boost his political standing by talking up his approach to the deficit and raise millions for himself and fellow Democrats. The tornadoes, part of a storm that rampaged though six states Saturday, resulted in one of the worst disasters of any kind in the United States since the Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Scores were left injured or homeless while 45 people were killed – about four times as many as...

LONDON — The WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange suggested in comments published Tuesday that British journalists, including the editor of The Guardian newspaper, were engaged in a “Jewish” conspiracy to smear his organization. His remarks appeared in the magazine Private Eye, in an article by its editor, Ian Hislop, that outlined a rambling phone call Mr. Assange made on Feb. 16 to complain about coverage of WikiLeaks. The object of his ire was a Private Eye report last month that one of Mr. Assange’s associates in Russia, Israel Shamir, had denied the Holocaust. Mr. Assange complained that the coverage was part...

It doesn't look like Barack Obama will need to get his original birth certificate to state officials to be on the presidential ballot in Arizona next year. On a 5-3 vote Monday, the Senate Judiciary Committee defeated SB 1526 which would let Arizona impose its own requirements on what someone needs to prove before being on the ballot in the state. Three Republicans voted with the two Democrats on the panel to kill the plan offered by Sen. Ron Gould, R-Lake Havasu City. Virtually identical legislation was introduced in the House in the form of HB 2544. But that measure...

READING, Pa. -- 69 News has learned the local woman who is now drawing national attention for her videotaped fall into a fountain at the Berkshire Mall appeared in court Thursday for a hearing on criminal charges that were filed against her in 2009. Cathy Cruz Marrero, who appeared on ABC's "Good Morning America" Thursday morning after granting her first TV interview to 69 News on Wednesday, is charged with five felony counts, including theft by deception and receiving stolen property. She's due back in court April 21. Police said Marrero, who used to work at Zales Jewelers at the...

Jesse Jackson calls for a “Radical Reordering” of American Economy http://www.theblaze.com/stories/jesse-jackson-calls-for-a-radical-reordering-of-american-economy/

A San Jacinto man previously convicted of possessing child pornography was arrested again on suspicion of the same offense after deputies called to his home saw alleged explicit pictures of minors, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. James O’Neill, 53, was arrested and charged Friday with possession of child pornography, violating the conditions of his sex offender registrant status and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.

Per Foxnews, a local affiliate is reporting Rangel has struck a deal. FNC is working to confirm...

Oppose DISCLOSE! The Senate will hold another cloture vote on the First Amendment-shredding DISCLOSE Act as soon as Wednesday, July 28. Call the U.S. Capitol switchboard and urge your Senators to OPPOSE DISCLOSE! Call US Capitol toll free at the following numbers 1-877-851-6437 or 1-866-220-0044 1-866-340-9281 or 1-800-417-7666

Two teachers at Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School [MA] held up signs that said "End War" during a school assembly honoring students who enlisted in the military.

MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan on Wednesday became the latest host at that channel to lash out at Fox News. He frothed that Glenn Beck is a "scumbag" for touting the company Goldline. Ratigan promoted an investigation by Democratic Congressman Anthony Weiner of the business. He hyperbolically attacked, "The only problem here is that Glenn Beck and Goldline are largely snake oil salesmen and scumbags, trying to create money for themselves at the expense of everybody in this country." [Audio available here.]Ratigan's over-the-top language continued as he ranted, "That man there [Beck] is paid by that other company to be a snake...

Taxes: Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich is about as liberal as they come. Yet even he gets the obvious truth of a VAT: When added to other taxes, it would fall hardest on the poor. Clinton's labor guy is now comfortably ensconced as a professor at Berkeley. The nine books he has written have basically helped delineate liberal thinking since the late 1970s. Yet while many in his party, the Democrats, now yearn for a value-added tax (in addition to our current income tax) as a way to raise money to pay down the estimated $12 trillion in deficits over...

President Obama said today that he is not too worried about the controversial “deem and pass” strategy being considered on Capitol Hill, and that members should not “pretend” that a vote, in whatever form it ends up taking, is anything other than a vote for or against reform. "I don't spend a lot of time worrying about what the procedural rules are in the House or Senate," Obama said in an interview with Fox News' Bret Baier, "What I can tell you is that the vote that's taken in the House will be a vote for health care reform. And...

SHOCK jock Howard Stern has unleashed a tirade of verbal abuse at Oscar-nominee Gabourey Sidibe. “There’s the most enormous, fat black chick I’ve ever seen,” Stern said on his Sirius satellite show on Monday. “She is enormous. Everyone’s pretending she’s a part of show business and she’s never going to be in another movie. “She should have gotten the Best Actress award because she’s never going to have another shot. What movie is she gonna be in?” Stern and co-host Robin Quivers went on to discuss the impossibility of Gabby finding any work in Hollywood after Precious. “And Oprah’s lying...

You Lie! Barack Obama told audiences time after time that, “If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor,” under Obamacare. He demonized those who challenged this argument. This week we found out it was just words. Barack Obama finally admitted on Friday thay you will not be able to keep your doctor if Obamacare is passed. Glenn Beck discussed this stunning admission by President Obama: Obama finally admitted to the GOP you can kiss your doctor good-bye: The last thing I will say, though — let me say this about health care and the health care debate, because...

In the wake of a political setback for national health care legislation, Senator John McCain, the losing candidate in the last presidential election, advised his victorious 2008 adversary on Sunday that the way to get meaningful changes passed is to “start from the beginning” by meeting with Republicans. Mr. McCain, a Republican from Arizona, said on the CBS news program “Face the Nation” that President Obama should sit down with Republican leaders and begin adopting some of their ideas for improving the nation’s health care system such as overhauling medical malpractice lawsuits, allowing residents of one state to buy health...

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is launching perhaps his harshest attack yet on his own party and his gushiest praise of Democrats. "I believe my party has gone astray," McCain said yesterday, singling out GOP stands on environmental issues and racial set-asides. "I think the Democratic Party is a fine party, and I have no problems with it, in their views and their philosophy," he said. "But I also feel the Republican Party can be brought back to the principles I articulated before."

John Edwards has never admitted to fathering a love child with a one-time staffer, but new legal documents suggest the failed presidential hopeful is the baby's daddy - and may soon have to pay up big-time....

With Afghanistan hearings Tuesday and the annual Pentagon budget bill due on the House floor this week, a familiar face may be missing. Rep. John Murtha, chairman of the House Appropriations defense panel, was hospitalized Sunday night because of abdominal pains. The 77-year old Pennsylvania Democrat had been feeling ill with what he thought last week was swine flu but the hospitalization appears related to his gall bladder. “He’s currently resting and doing well,” his office said.

Just hours after Tiger announced his indefinite break from golf, his biggest sponsor was already talking about his triumphant return. TMZ spoke with a rep for Nike, who told us, "Tiger has been part of Nike for more than a decade. He is the best golfer in the world and one of the greatest athletes of his era. We look forward to his return to golf. He and his family have Nike's full support."

Last year liberals stripped the Patriot Act of enforcement and surveillance of "Lone wolf" terrorists in the US. Schumer: "After 8 years, this has not been fixed". Of course, he was not challenged on this total lie.

STREAMING ON FOX: http://interactive.foxnews.com/livestream/live.html?chanId=5

Every day we hear more news about the sad state of the U.S. economy. I know things are really bad, having read about the millions of people looking for work and personally knowing some who have been laid off over the past year. Last week I learned just how terrible it truly is in human terms, though, when Ted Turner revealed he is down to his last billion, or two, dropping to number 196 on the most recent Forbes 400 list. There are thousands of stories across the country about Americans suffering the effects of layoffs, extended unemployment, and foreclosure....

Some say U.S. senator should focus on emphasizing his conservative record. BY BEN SZOBODY The shouts of "traitor" that rained on Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham last week at a local town hall meeting revealed rifts among conservatives that some analysts say might signal trouble for center-right politicians such as Graham. Political experts say a burgeoning group of right-wing activists long seen as the fringe of the party is growing in influence, fueled by economic fears and populist ire over unchecked Washington spending and magnified by the power of the Internet. Whether they represent a vocal minority or the seeds...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Levi Johnston is going for the ultimate exposure — his bare body. Posing nude for Playgirl is next for the 19-year-old father of Sarah Palin's grandchild. Johnston's attorney, Rex Butler, said Wednesday that a formal agreement has not been reached with the online magazine but adds it's a "foregone conclusion" it will happen.

Statement from Assemblyman Mike Duvall regarding his resignation from office today: September 9, 2009 "I am deeply saddened that my inappropriate comments have become a major distraction for my colleagues in the Assembly, who are working hard on the very serious problems facing our state. I have come to the conclusion that it would not be fair to my family, my constituents or to my friends on both sides of the aisle to remain in office. Therefore, I have decided to resign my office, effective immediately, so that the Assembly can get back to work."

It appears the reason high level Obama appointee Van Jones has such a deep seated hatred for America has been found: He was a nerd who was bullied in school and was "always picked last" in team sports.In an undated interview published at Collage Foundation, Jones spoke of his growing up as a nerd and how he scammed a graduate degree from Yale:When you were younger, what were you interested in? I was mainly interested in journalism and poetry and writing. I read a lot of comic books, James Bonda lot of good guy vs. bad guy type of stuff....

Death, Republican Style It's the GOP that's out to get Granny.

Senator Ted Kennedy has died.

Michael Vic has been signed by the Philadelphia Eagles.

BY CHRIS CASTEEL Published: July 29, 2009 WASHINGTON — The Oklahoma congressional delegation wants U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to explain why the Justice Department got involved in a debate by the Oklahoma Legislature this year over making English the state’s official language. Oklahoma's congressional delegation wants Holder to explain why the Justice Department got involved in a debate by the Oklahoma Legislature this year over making English the state’s official language. The delegation sent a letter to Holder on Tuesday questioning why his Civil Rights division sent a letter to Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson in the midst of...

Former President Bill Clinton visited Central Intelligence Agency headquarters today to express his gratitude to employees and thank them for their role in protecting the United States against foreign threats. "I think it's critical to meeting the challenges that we face today and the ones we're likely to face tomorrow. I guess that's the most important thing I can say—that I am grateful to all of you for your service here," Mr. Clinton said. Mr. Clinton was also briefed on counterterrorism and regional hotspots by senior analysts at CIA headquarters. He said staffers are "trying to stop the big bad...

When Sen. Lindsey Graham announced his support for Sonia Sotomayor this week, right-wing radio talk show host Mark Levin said it was a sign that Graham is “unreliable ... as a thinker and a leader.” Wendy Long, counsel for the conservative Judicial Confirmation Network, called it proof that Graham “still lacks courage, statesmanship and an understanding of the Constitution and rule of law.” “May his antics get the attention they richly deserve.” The response from Graham: Enjoy life in the minority. In an interview with POLITICO Thursday, the South Carolina Republican defended his decision to back Sotomayor by laying out...

Watchdog group says $1.2M home to lure celebrities may get Feed The Children in tax trouble BY NOLAN CLAY Published: July 19>, 2009 © Copyright 2009 The Oklahoman A charity known for its heart-wrenching appeals for funds to feed starving children spent $1.2 million in donations on a house a few miles from Hollywood, an investigation by The Oklahoman found. Feed The Children, an Oklahoma City-based Christian relief organization, bought the new four-bedroom house in Burbank, Calif., in May 2007, records show. The daughter of the charity’s president then moved in, records show. The daughter, Larri Sue Jones, 43, told...

Feds subpoena Rep. Visclosky's offices By Roxana Tiron Posted: 05/29/09 12:41 PM [ET] Federal law enforcement officials have subpoenaed the congressional and campaign offices of Rep. Pete Visclosky (D-Ind.) to get information about a former defense lobby firm raided by the FBI, according to Visclosky. Certain Visclosky employees have also been sent grand jury subpoenas requesting documents related to the PMA Group, a lobby shop with strong ties to the Indiana lawmaker. Visclosky’s former chief of staff, Rich Kaelin, was a high-profile lobbyist at the firm that closed its doors at the end of March. “Federal law enforcement officials have...

Donald Sterling looks good. The 76-year-old billionaire owner of the Clippers always looks good, an occasional tousle of salt-and-cinnamon hair dangling over his expressive, perpetually tanned face. Sweeping into the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles the night of May 14 wearing a black suit and white tie, he directs photo ops before commenting to his companions about a Mag reporter: "Do you know why they're here? They want to know why the NAACP would give an award to someone with my track record!" For more than two years, Sterling has been staring down federal civil rights charges related...

Thursday was supposed to be the highlight of the year for more than 100 kindergarteners from Stafford County, Va. They got up early and took a chartered bus to the White House for a school field trip. But when they arrived, all the 5-year-olds got was a lesson in disappointment. The buses from Conway Elementary arrived at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue a little later than planned, and they were locked out. "We were going to the White House, but we couldn’t get in so I felt sad," 5-year-old Cameron Stine said. Parents say they were just 10 minutes late for their...