Free Republic

As we head into the final stretch on health reform, big insurance company lobbyists and their partisan allies hope that their relentless attacks and millions of dollars can intimidate us into accepting the status quo. So I have a message for them, from all of us: Not this time. We have come too far. We will not turn back. We will not back down. But do not doubt -- the opponents of reform will not rest. So I need you, the members of Organizing for America, to fight alongside me. We must continue to build out our campaign -- to...

". . . Baltimore Mayor Sheila A. Dixon, a founding member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns coalition -- an anti-gun group led by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg -- has been found guilty on one count of fraudulent misappropriation by a fiduciary. When asked whether the mayor would step down from office, Dixon's attorney said, 'All things are being considered...' Baltimore's mayor was convicted Tuesday on a single charge she took gift cards intended for the city's poor. Although Sheila Dixon was acquitted of a felony theft charge, her conviction could force her from office..."

Rich -- After years of waiting and months of debate, it's easy to forget how painfully urgent the fight for health reform truly is. So consider this: Since the full Senate began debating its bill just two weeks ago, approximately 200,000 Americans have lost their health insurance. That's a staggering number, but it's important to see beyond the statistics to glimpse the true human toll. That's the size of a city like Richmond, Virginia or Des Moines, Iowa. Imagine knowing that every single man, woman, and child you meet there is suddenly one injury or illness away from bankruptcy and...

NO MUSLIMS FOUNDED AMERICA BUT PRESIDENT OBAMA THINKS THEY WERE THERE! by Lee S. Gliddon, Jr. Nov 14th, 2009 Dear Mr. Obama, OBAMA said, in his Cairo speech: “I know, too, that Islam has always been a part of America ’s story. Dear Mr. Obama: Were those Muslims that were in America when the Pilgrims first landed? Funny, I thought they were Native American Indians. Were those Muslims that celebrated the first Thanksgiving day? Sorry again, …those were Pilgrims and Native American Indians. Can you show me one Muslim signature on the United States Constitution? Declaration of Independence ? Bill...

The following is a copy of an article written by Spanish writer Sebastian Vilar Rodrigez and published in a Spanish newspaper on 1-15-08. It doesn't take much imagination to extrapolate the message to the rest of Europe - and possibly to the rest of the world. ===================================================== REMEMBER AS YOU READ -- IT WAS IN A SPANISH PAPER Date : Tue, 15 January 2008 14:30:20 -0500 ALL EUROPEAN LIFE DIED IN AUSCHWITZ By Sebastian Vilar Rodrigez I walked down the street in Barcelona, and suddenly discovered a terrible truth - Europe died in Auschwitz. We killed six million Jews and...

"...Hot, but a very nice breeze. I'm sure you've heard that the Republican party won the vote. Everyone on the island is very happy. On the voting day, many said "they weren't voting for a political party, they were voting for their freedom". Indeed, there is a renewed spirit among the locals. They are hopeful once again. I have to tell you, this country is very fragile. In a matter of four short months, many hotels, shops and restaurants have been forced to close. As a result of this political crisis, tourism all but came to a halt. Times have...

An update from Oklahoma : Oklahoma law passed, 37 to 9, had a few liberals in the mix, an amendment to place the Ten Commandments on the front entrance to the state capitol. The feds in D.C., along with the ACLU, said it would be a mistake. Hey this is a conservative state, based on Christian values...! HB 1330 Guess what.......... Oklahoma did it anyway. Oklahoma recently passed a law in the state to incarcerate all illegal immigrants, and ship them back to where they came from unless they want to get a green card and become an American citizen....

Dear [Forgiven Sinner]: Thank you for contacting me about healthcare reform. I appreciate the benefit of your views. As your United States Senator, one of my top priorities is to ensure that my constituents have access to affordable, quality healthcare. Today, nearly 3.5 million Illinois residents, 30.8% of the under 65 population, lack health insurance. Those who remain covered face rapidly rising premiums. A Kaiser Family Foundation report found that average insurance premiums have more than doubled in the past nine years, and the New America Foundation projects that, by 2016, coverage costs for an average Illinois family could top...

Dear Friends, The Congress is continuing its work to try to get healthcare reform legislation, and I believe the prospects are reasonably good that we will produce a bill. I hope that the bill will have the public option - and a robust public option. We will have a cloture vote tonight and I believe that we should be able to get 60 Senators at least to agree to start the debate. Click below to hear my take on healthcare reform: http://www.youtube.com/user/SenatorArlenSpecter#p/u/0/_cjXqFbdAeg It would be my hope that my colleagues would not draw lines in the sand or stay in...

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Nov. 20 (UPI) -- CIA Director Leon Panetta arrived in Pakistan Friday to discuss the issue of the location of the leadership of the Taliban with security officials. Panetta was to meet with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and top military and intelligence officials, Pakistan's The National newspaper reported. He is expected to discuss issues related to the leadership of the Taliban believed to be hiding in the tribal border regions along the Afghan border. Pakistani officials denied claims the leadership is in the area, the report said.

Looking for evidence of Obama's past, Fox News contacted 400 Columbia University students from the period when Obama claims to have been there, but none remembered him. Wayne Allyn Root was, like Obama, a political science major at Columbia who also graduated in 1983. In 2008, Root says of Obama, "I don't know a single person at Columbia that knew him, and they all know me. I don't have a classmate who ever knew Barack Obama at Columbia. Ever! Nobody recalls him. I'm not exaggerating, I'm not kidding." Root adds that he was also, like Obama, "Class of '83 political...

Lynne Stewart was sent to prison today. People throughout the United States and around the world recognize this as a great miscarriage of justice. Her indictment was an outrage. So too was her conviction. The fact that this seventy year old veteran civil rights attorney has been sent to prison is a crime itself. She is serving a 28 month sentence although the Court of Appeals has remanded her case back to the original trial court with the hope that her sentence will be lengthened. The Bush Justice Department had sought a 30 year sentence. “Lynne Stewart should be set...

After nearly 1,000 submissions, 20 amazing finalists, and more than 3 million views, we have the winner of the Organizing for America Health Reform Video Challenge. The winning video shows that our supporters' creativity and passion is more than a match for the slick ads and partisan spin doctors on the other side. In the next few days, we'll be using this video as the basis for a new television ad that will air across the country -- and you can help, by ensuring we have the resources to make the biggest impact. Check out the winning video now. http://my.barackobama.com/WinningVideo...

Dear Mrs. ####### Thank you for contacting me and sharing your thoughts on this issue. Your views are important to me as they play a key role in helping me determine the best direction for our nation and for Florida’s 2nd Congressional District. As you may know, H.R. 3962, America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009, was recently passed by the House of Representatives by a vote 220-215. I, along with 38 other Democrats, opposed this legislation. While this bill took some positive steps forward, such as increasing coverage and reforming insurance regulations, I felt that it did not do...

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico, Nov. 17 (UPI) -- A 7-year-old Texas boy and his father were shot to death in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, authorities said Tuesday. A spokesman for the Chihuahua state attorney general's office told CNN Raul Xazziel Ramirez of El Paso was shot in the back after he apparently crawled out their sport utility vehicle's window after shooting erupted Friday evening. His father, Raul Ramirez Alvarado, 35, was found dead behind the wheel, the U.S. news network said. At least 18 9mm shots were fired at the Geo Tracker, spokesman Arturo Sandoval said. No arrests had been made, the...

After moving to take control of just about every aspect of your life, the Obama-Pelosi regime is about to clamp-down on all conservative thoughts and expressions by applying the so-called Fairness Doctrine to the Internet. A few days ago, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), under the leadership of Barack Obama's recently appointed Chairman, Julius Genachowski, voted to move forward on what is commonly and deceptively called "Net Neutrality." Genachowski, incidentally, is the man who appointed Barack Obama's Diversity-Czar Mark Lloyd (need we say more). In addition to the FCC action, Congress may be poised to move very soon on so-called...

WE FIGURED HIM OUT! By Ben Stein Why is President Barack Obama in such a hurry to get his socialized medicine bill passed? Because he and his cunning circle realize some basic truths: The American people in their unimaginable kindness and trust voted for a pig in a poke in 2008. They wanted so much to believe Barack Obama was somehow better and different from other ultra-leftists that they simply took him on faith. They ignored his anti-white writings in his books. They ignored his quiet acceptance of hysterical anti-American diatribes by his minister, Jeremiah Wright. They ignored his refusal...

This should be read and understood by all Americans Democrats, Republicans, EVERYONE!! To President Obama and all 535 voting members of the Legislature and the Senate. It is now official you are ALL corrupt morons: The U.S. Post Service was established in 1775 You have had 234 years to get it right and it is broke. Yet, two non-government businesses, UPS & FedEx, company's who did not get any government subsidies starting from scratch, have far superseded the USPS in their successes! Social Security was established in 1935. You have had 74 years to get it right and it is...

We just finished going through the submissions to OFA's Health Reform Video Challenge, and they're great. There are personal stories that grab your heart, brilliant summaries of what reform would really mean, and plenty of biting satire that calls out the insurance lobbyists. Out of nearly a thousand excellent videos submitted, we're down to the top 20. Now it's your turn to watch the finalists and vote for your favorites -- and then we'll air the winner on national television. http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/hrvcratings The top 20 ads will also be voted on by our panel of experts and artists, including Black Eyed...

I just got a fund raising email from Hoffman. He mentioned ONE and only ONE person that was supporting him. Here is the line from the email: "Tim Pawlenty did his research and he has endorsed Doug." No mention of Sarah, No mention of Fred or any other real conservative. That really bothered me. Pawlenty isn't very conservative and is a late comer to supporting Hoffman. In fact, he didn't support Hoffman until the tide had turned and he came out with his first lead in a poll. Hoffman could easily have supplied a link to Fred's commercial or Sarah's...

Berlin (dpa) -- Khaled El-Masri, a German national of Lebanese descent who attacked the mayor of a southern German town last month, was possibly motivated by hurt religious feelings after a brothel opened near a mosque, lawyers said on Monday. El-Masri stormed into the office of Neu-Ulm Mayor Gerold Noerenberg on September 11, punched him and threw a chair at the man, inflicting hand and face injuries which required medical treatment. The 46-year-old, who was held by the CIA in Afghanistan for nearly six months, was arrested after the attack. Prosecutors said they had found a letter, which stated that...

Barack says we need to have a conversation about race in America . Fair enough. But this time, it has to be a two-way conversation. White America needs to be heard from, not just lectured to.... This time, the Silent Majority needs to have its convictions, grievances and demands heard. And among them are these: First, America has been the best country on earth for black folks.. It was here that 600,000 black people, brought from Africa in slave ships, grew into a community of 40 million, were introduced to Christian salvation, and reached the greatest levels of freedom and...

Received this in an e-mail yesterday, best explanation I've seen yet. --From a teacher in the Nashville area "We are worried about 'the cow' when it is all about the 'Ice Cream.' The most eye-opening civics lesson I ever had was while teaching third grade this year... The presidential election was heating up and some of the children showed an interest. I decided we would have an election for a class president. We would choose our nominees. They would make a campaign speech and the class would vote. To simplify the process, candidates were nominated by other class members. We...

Senator Obama was nearly 17 minutes into his July 2, 2008, speech in Colorado Springs, Colorado when he deviated from his pre-released script and performed without the teleprompter net saying: "We cannot continue to rely on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set. We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tt2yGzHfy7s In January, without any recognizable corporate media coverage, Rep. Bob Filner, a California Democrat, introduced H.R. 675. http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h675/show. The bill would amend title 10 of the United States Code and extend...

From an e-mail on the inside: AMTrust Financial created a new subsidiary for the purposes of buying us called American Capital Acquisition Corporation (ACAC) Additionally – “Naturally, this announcement also raises questions about personnel and related matters. We are pleased to report that we expect a significant majority of the Personal Lines team to transition to ACAC.” I wonder if GMAC management feared the worst with the healthcare reform bill?

Organizing for America After months of negotiations, the health reform debate is about to move to the full Congress for the first time. With the insurance industry lobby pulling out all the stops to derail progress, we need everyone who supports reform to weigh in. So here's the plan: Set a new OFA record by getting 100,000 calls to Congress placed or committed to on a single day. On Tuesday, October 20th, OFA volunteers will gather at "Time to Deliver" call parties and neighborhood outreach events across the country. We'll get together in living rooms and public locations, and reach...

Facts about Sarah Palin by Dewie Whetsell, Alaskan Fisherman The last 45 of my 66 years I've spent in a commercial fishing town in Alaska. I understand Alaska politics but never understood national politics well until this last year. Here's the breaking point: Neither side of the Palin controversy gets it. It's not about persona, style, rhetoric, it's about doing things. Even Palin supporters never mention the things that I'm about to mention here. 1 - Democrats forget when Palin was the Darling of the Democrats, because as soon as Palin took the Governor's office away from a fellow Republican...

This Sunday Fox news, is going to air a very important documentary about Barack Obama, Sunday night at 8:00 PM central / 9 PM Eastern.The report will go back to Obama's earlier days, showing even then his close ties to radical Marxist professors, friends, spiritual advisers, etc. It will also detail his ties to Rev. Wright for 20+ yrs. How he was participating with this man, and not for the reasons he states! The report has uncovered more of Obama's radical past, and we will see things that no one in the media is willing to put out there. It...

- Q: What's the main problem with Barack Obama jokes? A: His followers don't think they're funny and everyone else doesn't think they're jokes. - Q: Why does Barack Obama oppose the Second Amendment? A: It stands between him and the First. - Q: What's the difference between Rahm Emanuel and a carp? A: One is a scum sucking bottom feeder and the other is a fish. - Q: What's the difference between Greta Van Susteren and Barack Obama? A: Greta only talks out of one side of her mouth. - Q: What does Barack Obama call lunch with a...

Top 10 Reasons Chicago Didn't Get the Olympics 10. Dead people can't vote at IOC meetings 9. Obama distracted by 25 min meeting with Gen. McChrystal 8. Who cares if Obama couldn't talk the IOC into Chicago? He'll be able to talk Iran out of nukes. 7. The impediment is Israel still building settlements. 5. We've been quite clear and said all along that we didn't want the Olympics. 4. This isn't about the number of Olympics "lost", it's about the number of Olympics "saved" or "created". 3. Clearly not enough wise Latina judges on the committee 2. Because the...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- A proposal to broaden abortion restrictions under the overhaul of the U.S. healthcare system was voted down Wednesday in the Senate Finance Committee. The committee, on a 13-10 vote, defeated an amendment offered by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, that stated the current ban on federally funded abortions except in cases of rape, incest or danger to the mother's health would apply to all aspects of health insurance in the healthcare bill, CNN reported. All but one Democrat on the committee -- Sen. Kent Conrad of North Dakota -- voted against the amendment. Sen. Olympia Snowe...

Dear xxxxx, We are just 40 days away and all the polls are showing the same thing; this race is neck and neck. But the only poll that matters is the one on Election Day and I am fighting to make sure that that's the one we win. A strong ground effort was what put Tim Kaine, Mark Warner and Jim Webb over the top in their campaigns, and we need more of that kind of one on one communication to win this election. We are planning the most ambitious voter contact operation ever undertaken for a gubernatorial election in...

The cavalry is here -- and they're in white coats and scrubs: More than a half a million doctors and millions of nurses are joining forces to help pass real health reform. Americans listen to their nurses and doctors when it comes to health reform -- and for good reason. If we can help them amplify their voices, it'll be a huge boost to our campaign for change. So we're working on a new television ad featuring their voices explaining why doctors and nurses so strongly support President Obama's plan -- and asking Congress to pass it. We'll run the...

Just had the following e-mail from the National Association of Retired Federal Employees (NARFE) sent to me: --------------------------- FROM NARFE During the week of September 21, the Senate Committee on Finance began considering over 500 amendments to their health care reform bill, including two which threaten the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP). First, Ranking Committee member, Charles Grassley, R-IA, proposed that federal workers and Members of Congress be required to join state-based health exchanges to purchase health insurance instead of FEHBP. The amendment approved by the committee was changed to make enrollment in the exchanges optional – rather than...

Mr. Carville, I happen to be one of those so-called birther's. By the way, where IS Mr. Obama's Long form Birth Certificate? And since we're on the subject, how about his Kindergarden records, high school records, college records (financial aid forms and transcripts), and any other record indicating his nationality at the time? Is there something in those records Mr. Obama does not want the people of America to see? Perhaps the good Mr. Obama is not a Natural Born Citizen of the US. Could that be the reason? And how were the activities of honest American citizens at the...

Senators are negotiating on Senator Max Baucus' ObamaCare 6.0 proposal and it hasn't even been written yet. Of course, to state the obvious, the fact that they're negotiating on something that hasn't been written means no one has read it yet either. And, to add even more insult to injury, it’s now clear they have no intention of letting you read it. You read that right. On an almost straight party-line vote, Democrats in the Senate Finance Committee squashed an amendment by Senator Jim Bunning that would have required Baucus’ ObamaCare bill to be posted on the Internet – for...

Jesse Jackson's Newest Staff Member You can't make up stuff better than this! Isn't politics grand? Jesse Jackson's Newest Staff Member is Mel Reynolds Jesse Jackson has added former Chicago Democrat Congressman Mel to Rainbow/PUSH Coalition's payroll. Reynolds was among the 176 criminals excused in President Clinton's last-minute forgiveness spree. Reynolds received a commutation of his six-and-a-half-year federal sentence for 15 convictions of wire fraud, bank fraud, and lies to the Federal Election commission. He is more notorious, however, for concurrently serving five years for sleeping with an underage campaign volunteer. This is a first in American politics: An ex-congressman...

Dear friends – Recently, I had the pleasure to speak to hundreds of thousands of freedom-loving Americans at a rally on the Mall in Washington, DC. This was quite simply one of the most electrifying events and incredible crowds I have ever seen. Men and women from all kinds of different backgrounds came together with just one purpose: to proclaim their belief in the undeniable truth: Freedom Works…but only if we let it. We must let freedom work to create more opportunities for Americans. It can power innovation and spur new investment. It can rekindle the individual spirit and give...

Dear MoveOn member, Thanks for signing up for a "Big Insurance: Sick of It" rally. Over 7,000 MoveOn members gathered at rallies in 38 states today to send a powerful message that we are sick of Big Insurance standing in the way of real health care reform. Were you able to make it to your local rally today? Click here: Yes, I attended a rally. No, I couldn't make it. Your feedback is critical—it helps us learn what worked well and what didn't. We read every single survey response, and use your feedback to plan our next steps together. Also,...

From: Blum, Joanne S. Sent: Friday, September 11, 2009 5:00 PM Subject: HELP NEEDED - To Protect State Revenues A Threat to Our Communities A small group of individuals are threatening to jeopardize Massachusetts working families by seeking to qualify a number of initiative petitions. One these would reduce the sales tax which would cut state revenues by approximately $2.5 billion. This would result in cuts in our communities to education, health care, public safety and other programs that we all depend on every day. If you see or have seen any petitioners carrying this or other petitions in your...

September 22, 2009 Thank you for contacting me regarding former White House advisor Van Jones. I appreciated hearing from you. On July 6, 2009, Van Jones, former special advisor for green jobs to the White House Council on Environmental Quality, resigned. Van Jones was not a direct adviser to the president and his position was not subject to confirmation by the U.S. Senate. Although Mr. Jones is entitled to his own opinions and to advocate for his beliefs, his past comments on a variety of topics may have been inappropriate for his appointment within the Executive Office of the President....

I received the email below. I don't know how I got on any Democrat mailing list. But they sure got my name wrong. Did anyone else receive these? I guess someone turned in my email addy to the White House for Obama's spies, and now I am going to get these emails from them. The "blame Bush for Obama's woes" is still going on! See the complete email below in my comments.

JERUSALEM, Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Israeli President Shimon Peres reportedly proposed last month to persuade the United States to not install a missile system in Europe. A report in Maariv Monday said Peres made the proposal to garner Russian support for sanctions against Iran, Peres discussed the matter during a two-day visit to Russia. The newspaper said Peres promised to use Israel's influence in Washington to abort erecting the U.S. missile shield in Poland and Czechoslovakia, in exchange for Russia's support to impose sanctions on Iran and reconsider the delivery of S-300 missile defense systems to the Islamic Republic. Peres...

How to prepare for the end of AmericaDaily Crux: Porter – judging by the number of clicks our stories on inflation and asset protection receive, it's safe to say many of our readers are worried about the U.S. dollar, inflation, taxes, and just general disaster. Could you tell us about what you think the biggest dangers are out there for investors? Porter Stansberry: The two main dangers investors face right now is number one, inflation; and then number two, taxes. I've written a lot about these two problems, but briefly, the size of the government's annual deficits have grown...

From a Romanian Newspaper (after 9/11/01) We rarely get a chance to see another country's editorial about the USA . Read this excerpt from a Romanian Newspaper. The article was written by Mr. Cornel Nistorescu and published under the title 'C'ntarea Americii, meaning 'Ode To America ') in the Romanian newspaper Evenimentulzilei 'The Daily Event' or 'News of the Day' ~An Ode to America ~ Why are Americans so united? They would not resemble one another even if you painted them all one color! They speak all the languages of the world and form an astonishing mixture of civilizations and...

From a California school teacher - - - "As you listen to the news about the student protests over illegal immigration, there are some things that you should be aware of: I am in charge of the English-as-a-second-language department at a large southern California high school which is designated a Title 1 school, meaning that its students average lower socioeconomic and income levels. Most of the schools you are hearing about, South Gate High, Bell Gardens , Huntington Park , etc., where these students are protesting, are also Title 1 schools. Title 1 schools are on the free breakfast and...

I already agreed waste, fraud and transparency should be addressed first. I mean you have to do that just to save Medicare. How does that help the uninsured. I mean do you really think the private insurance industry is going to lower premiums, or stop canceling people for no reason, or start covering people with preexisting conditions unless somebody makes them...

Date: Friday, September 11, 2009, 12:19 PM GOOGLE has decided to ignore 911 today, so today is the day I give BING an honest try, maybe I'll switch for good. Check out BING's main page for today 9/11/09. Feel free to pass this on.

Hello All, By now you have probably heard that President Obama came to Montana last Friday. However, there are many things that the major news has not covered. I feel that since Bill and I live here and we were at the airport on Friday I should share some facts with you. Whatever you decide to do with the information is up to you. If you chose to share this email with others I do ask that you DELETE my email address before you forward this on. On Wednesday, August 5th it was announced locally that the President would be...

By now you have probably heard that President Obama came to Montana last Friday. However, there are many things that the major news has not covered. I feel that since we live here and we were at the airport on Friday I should share some facts with you. Whatever you decide to do with the information is up to you. If you chose to share this email with others I do ask that you DELETE my email address before you forward this on. On Wednesday, August 5th it was announced locally that the President would be coming here. There are...