Free Republic

Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI) said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that abortion “is on the ballot in all 50 states’ because of a potential national abortion ban. Host Kristen Welker said, “Former President Trump held a rally last night. He did not mention the issue of abortion, but earlier this week he noted that abortion laws are left up to the states. he said he wouldn’t support a national ban. How concerned are you that his efforts to straddle the line could effectively weaken this issue for Democrats?”

Tens of thousands of Americans have been made redundant at large companies this year. according to Warn Tracker, a website that tracks upcoming layoffs based on WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988) notices. The WARN Act mandates that employers conducting large-scale layoffs or closures notify employees as well as state government officials of job losses at least 60 days in advance. WARN notices must be served by companies that have 100 or more full-time employees or 100 or more employees who, in aggregate, work at least 4,000 hours per week, excluding overtime.

(NEXSTAR) — Decades ago, buying a home for $100,000 or less was the norm. Today, you need to earn at least $100,000 just to afford a “typical” home, according to a new analysis. Data tracked by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis shows the average sales price for homes sold in the U.S. was $492,300 last quarter, down from $552,600 a year prior. While there are signs of improvement, home sale prices are nowhere near where they were 40 years ago: in Q4 of 1984, the average sales price for houses sold nationwide was $97,800.

A federal district court has overturned the Biden administration's climate rule that required states to track and set reduction goals for greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles on highways. In a sweeping judgment late Monday, Judge Benjamin Beaton of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky ordered the Federal Highway Administration to stand down on the rules, which the agency finalized in November. The ruling represents a major victory for the State of Kentucky, which challenged the regulations alongside 21 other states. "President Biden’s radical environmental agenda has lost touch with reality, and Kentucky families, farmers and workers...

Nine states show up again and again as the most repressive states in the union of the United States of America. With the occasional exception, these states refuse to honor the Constitution; they have extremely restrictive policies on who may bear arms, they ban common rifles, they ban the ownership of suppressors, and they tend to have high taxes. They are all controlled by the Democratic Party.The nine most repressive states are California, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island.Of those nine states, all but Rhode Island have enacted bans on some semi-automatic firearms, usually...

The NCAA announced Wednesday it will lobby state gambling boards to ban player proposition bets in an effort to curb harassment against individual student athletes. As March Madness tournaments get underway, the college athletics organization said prop bets — those made on the specific stat lines of players, like how many points, rebounds or turnovers they make in a game — are harmful to the sport. “Sports betting issues are on the rise across the country with prop bets continuing to threaten the integrity of competition and leading to student-athletes and professional athletes getting harassed,” NCAA President Charlie Baker said...

This really is March Madness! Minnesota Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan posted her office pool brackets for the NCAA Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments on social media – to let everyone know she picked the winners based on which states offer legal abortion. “I filled out my brackets based on whether those schools are located in a state that protects access to abortion care,” the Democrat posted on X Thursday. “By this measurement, it’s only fair that Minnesota didn’t make the tournament because they’d have been a favorite for the title.”

The astronomic rise in mortgage rates and spike in home prices over the past year has pushed a key tenet of the American dream out of reach for millions of families. Now, there is another obstacle to homeownership: higher home insurance premiums. The average cost of home insurance for a $300,000 property in the U.S. surged 12% in 2023 to roughly $1,770 per year, according to a new report published by Insurify, an insurance comparison website headquartered in Massachusetts. However, home insurance is even more expensive in states plagued by severe weather and other climate-related catastrophes. In fact, as the...

Republican Reps. Chip Roy (Texas) and Dan Bishop (N.C.) introduced the Standing Up to the Executive Branch for Immigration Enforcement Act, or “SUE for Immigration Enforcement Act,” on Wednesday. The six-page bill is being marked up by the House Judiciary Committee.Incidentally, "marked up" is the process by which a U.S. congressional committee debates, amends, and rewrites proposed legislation.So the bill was filed in response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last July that held that Texas and Louisiana did not have standing to challenge a policy implemented by embattled Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas — I know: Try to control...

The latest polling from Bloomberg News/Morning Consult shows former President Donald Trump beating His Fraudulency Joe Biden in seven out of seven swing states. According to the poll, a big factor is Biden opening up our southern border to allow millions of unvetted illegal aliens to invade our country, suck the welfare rolls dry, and cancel out our votes: Six in 10 swing-state voters say President Joe Biden bears responsibility for a surge in [illegtal immigrants] at the US-Mexico border, a downbeat signal for his reelection prospects as Republicans largely avoid blame on the issue, a Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll...

Many state governors have called to support Texas in the border crisis. Former President Donald Trump posted to his Truth Social account that he is encouraging all "willing states to deploy their [national guard] to Texas to prevent to entry" of illegal immigrants.Trump made the call to do so after Texas Gov. Gregg Abbot declared an invasion and invoked Texas' right to "self-defense" in the First Article of the Constitution. At least 14 states have signaled supporting Texas in its efforts.Source: Trump Truth SocialIn the post, Trump touted his record on immigration when he was president. “When I was President,...

CNN — People who test positive for Covid-19 in California and Oregon are no longer expected to isolate for a set period of time — and those without symptoms don’t have to isolate at all, state policies now say. People with symptoms can return to school or work once their symptoms are improving and they’ve been fever-free for at least 24 hours, according to the state policies. These two states — which have tended to take a more precautious approach to pandemic policies — are the first to break from federal guidance from the US Centers for Disease Control and...

When deciding where to settle down and raise a family, there are many important factors to consider. The personal-finance website WalletHub released a new report ranking the best states to raise a family, evaluating states according to 50 metrics across five categories: family fun, health and safety, education and childcare, affor1. 1. Massachusetts WalletHub named Massachusetts the best state to raise a family, citing its low unemployment rate, good school systems, and safety for children's health and well-being.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on Sunday suggested the states can overrule the US Constitution and ban Trump from the presidential ballot. Pelosi appeared on ABC’s “This Week” to discuss Trump’s Colorado ballot appeal to the US Supreme Court with host George Stephanopoulos. .....snip..... The US Constitution has three requirements to be president: Be a natural-born citizen of the United States. Be at least 35 years old. Have been a resident of the United States for 14 years. Nancy Pelosi however on Sunday said the states can overrule the US Constitution and ban Trump from the ballot. Even George...

States throughout the country, including some red states, are breaking the law by persecuting religious schools and charities.Attempts to sideline religion from American public life are not new, but whereas conservatives typically think that this type of discrimination is endemic to blue states, the reality is much more complex. In fact, in a new Manhattan Institute report, Notre Dame Law Professor Nicole Stelle Garnett and I discover that states throughout the country are breaking the law by persecuting religious schools and charities.The Supreme Court, in last year’s Carson v. Makin, clarified that states cannot exclude religious organizations because they are...

Americans are again voting with their feet, which means the deep blue states of Illinois, California, and New York posted the top three population losses in 2023, while the red states of Texas, Florida, and North Carolina were the top three population gainers. Yes, yes, I am well aware my current home state of North Carolina has a Democrat governor. However, Republicans control the State Senate and House. In fact, Republicans have a veto-proof supermajority in the House. Here in The NC, we are governed by the GOP. When you compare 2022 state populations to 2023 state populations, New York...

Winter storm warnings are in effect for eight states, with a massive storm set to bring heavy rain, wind and snow to the eastern United States. The storm warnings are currently in effect for parts of Alaska, Idaho, New Hampshire, Viginia, New York, West Virginia, Vermont and Washington. In its latest forecast, the National Weather Service (NWS) said that a low-pressure system "will continue dumping heavy rain onto the Washington and Oregon coasts" on Sunday while spreading snow across the northern Cascades and northern Rockies.

America’s Founders fought a bloody revolution in order to escape the “absolute despotism” to which they had been reduced under the hereditary monarchy of the British government, a system that Thomas Paine said “laid the world in blood and ashes.” After that revolution was won, the Founders’ singular focus was to create a republic that would safeguard individual freedom and state sovereignty by vesting only limited, specifically enumerated powers in a federal government. The Constitution’s first ten amendments (the Bill of Rights), Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution, as well as the Ninth and Tenth Amendments establish clear limitations...

Citing the need for equity, lawmakers in several Democrat-controlled states have passed measures recently that make it harder to discipline students who act up in the classroom.Schools in California, Illinois, Minnesota, Maryland, and other states have adopted student discipline systems based on "restorative justice" instead of suspending students for bad behavior.That means, instead of giving students penalties for misbehavior, schools use "empathetic communication" to explain to students why their misbehavior is harmful.But at least one state has struck out in a different direction in the hopes of improving student success.In Oklahoma, Ryan Walters, the state superintendent of public instruction, has...

The “Golden State,” has long been a symbol of opportunity, innovation, and natural beauty. With its stunning landscapes, booming tech industry, and cultural diversity, it’s no wonder that millions of people have called it home for decades. However, California is experiencing what I like to call the “California Exodus.” Where are these Californians flocking to? This article will explore some states that have become popular destinations for those leaving the Golden State.