Free Republic

This will be a weekly post. Count is now 190 judges confirmed. 137 District Court judges 51 Circuit Court judges 2 Supreme Court justices

LONDON - Of all the sports at the Tokyo Olympics later this year none inhabit the frontline of climate change quite like surfing. Which is why when the wave sport makes its debut on Chiba’s Tsurigasaki Beach, there will be more than gold medals at stake. As well as showcasing the world’s elite surfers to a brand new audience, International Surfing Association (ISA) president Fernando Aguerre says the goal will be to also highlight the growing threat to the planet’s oceans. Surfers, he says, are the ambassadors of the oceans and the eyes of the world when it comes to...

Democratic presidential candidate and former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg was met with protesters representing the group Queers Against Pete outside of a private fundraising event at the National LGBTQ Center for the Arts in San Francisco on Friday. Inside the building, two activists attempted to disrupt the fundraiser after Buttigieg was asked about his husband, Chasten, by a member of the audience. "I respect your activism," Buttigieg said, "but this is a gathering of supporters of our campaign and I just got a question about my husband and I'm really excited to answer it." After being shouted down,...

Since a leading contender for the Democratic presidential nomination has endorsed it, since most of his opponents have refused to denounce it, and since a majority of young people appear to approve of it, now is a good time to ask: what exactly is socialism? In a free market, you can buy just about any product you can afford so long as you are willing to pay the market price. Since market prices tend to reflect the social cost of production, in order to consume a good, you must pay what it costs society to produce it. On the supply side, people...

[snip] On Wallace's MSNBC show this afternoon, Never Trumper Rick Wilson predicted that if Sanders were the nominee, he would lose 44 states to President Trump. Wallace, putting on her former strategist's hat, expressed grave doubts about Sanders's electability, given his weak support among African-American voters and his democratic socialist label. But, determined to reaffirm her Trump-hating credentials, she prefaced her critique by declaring: "I'm on the record. I will vote for whomever -- I will, I will gladly and easily and handily vote for Bernie Sanders if he's the nominee."Get the rest of the story and view the video...

Hey Democrats — don’t shoot the messengers! The party of Hillary Clinton is doing what it does best: pointing the finger. But this time the Dems aren’t blaming President Trump or Russian bots or even James Comey. Instead, the liberals are turning their rage toward voters. The folks from the New Hampshire primary and the Iowa Caucus (all those deplorable-credulous-boomer-rubes) are under fire from the woke warriors. In fact, the far left dislikes these voters almost as much as they hate the electoral college. The night of the Iowa Caucus, the L.A. Times ran an opinion piece titled, “Forget the...

BALTIMORE - Former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh has asked for a sentence of one year and one day in prison in relation to her guilty plea in the “Healthy Holly” book scandal that led to her fall from grace and resignation from office last year, with her attorneys arguing she has already suffered greatly. “Ms. Pugh has become a tragic figure - an inspiring person dedicated to helping her community who is now a disgraced, unemployed felon, and who has lost everything that she had,” her attorneys wrote in a sentencing memorandum Friday that included some redacted sections. “We submit...

Unilever, one of the oldest multinational consumer goods companies, pledged this week to stop advertising ice cream to children. By the end of this year, the company will stop marketing and advertising foods and beverages to children under the age of 12 in television and print, and for children under 13 via social media channels. Unilever may not leap to mind when it comes to frozen dairy confections, but it should. The company owns premium brands Ben & Jerry’s and Talenti, workhorse ice creams Breyers, Klondike and Good Humor, and specialty bars and ice cream treat brands Magnum, Cornetto, Viennetta,...

U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., was briefly detained by police Friday when she joined airline catering employees in a protest at Detroit Metro Airport, according to reports. Photos posted on social media showed Tlaib, 43, sitting in the road outside the airport’s Delta terminal, along with eight other protesters - while a larger group of protesters demonstrated on the sidewalk nearby. Many held signs reading, “One Job Should Be Enough,” as the group called for better wages health coverage. Initial reports said Tlaib was arrested in the matter, but a union official later said Tlaib was only briefly detained.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and an abortion-rights group backed a Texas primary challenger looking to unseat an anti-abortion Democrat on Thursday night, attacking his record and accusing him of wanting to "maintain the status quo" after he launched an attack ad against his opponent. In a letter sent to progressive activists in the MoveOn advocacy group, Ocasio-Cortez took aim at Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas' 28th district for receiving an "A" rating from the National Rifle Association and opposing her Green New Deal proposal. The abortion-rights group NARAL also accused him of launching a "dishonest" ad campaign against the progressive primary challenger...

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Friday announced the first director of a new office within the House to establish best practices for lawmakers to receive confidential information from whistleblowers about government wrongdoing. The office was established as part of the House rules package adopted in January of last year at the start of the current session of Congress. But the appointment of its first director comes after the conclusion of the process launched by House Democrats to impeach President Trump. Pelosi said that she has appointed Shanna Devine, who most recently worked at the progressive watchdog Public Citizen, to lead...

Under a plea deal, the U.S. government won't pursue the death penalty for a man facing murder charges for killing a U.S. Border Patrol agent during a gunfight that used gang weapons linked to the Justice Department's botched "gun-walking" program Operation Fast and Furious. The Justice Department indicted Rosario Rafael Burboa-Alvarez last year in connection with the death of Border Patrol agent Brian Terry. Under the plea deal, Alvarez pleaded guilty to one count of murder Monday and now faces 360 months in prison, local media reported Monday. ... Terry's supporters have slammed the government for not pursuing more aggressive...

The White House announced this week that President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will attend the Daytona 500 this weekend at the Daytona International Speedway. Not only that but— President Trump will be the Grand Marshal of the Daytona 500 on Sunday. And not only that but— President Trump will reportedly take a lap around the track in the “Beast” presidential limo! What’s not to love? The Daytona Speedway President released a statement on Friday. Daytona International Speedway President Chip Wile released a statement confirming Trump will attend the race that read, “Daytona International Speedway has been privileged...

Sweden: “Refugees” rob 18-year-old, urinate in his mouth, call him “disgusting Swede, son of a whore” FEB 14, 2020 1:00 PM BY ROBERT SPENCER These migrants may not be Muslims. Their behavior, however, is reminiscent of the deeply ingrained Islamic contempt for unbelievers: “Muhammad is the apostle of Allah. Those who follow him are ruthless to unbelievers, merciful to one another” (Qur’an 48:29). Ibn Kathir says that the dhimmis, the “People of the Book” who have submitted to Islamic hegemony as per Qur’an 9:29, must be “disgraced, humiliated and belittled. Therefore, Muslims are not allowed to honor the people of...

A granddaughter of a 92-year-old Queens woman who was raped and murdered last month allegedly by an illegal immigrant spoke at the White House Friday — and slammed New York’s city’s “sanctuary city” policy. Daria Ortiz, 19, one of victim Maria Fuertes’ grandchildren, spoke at the invitation of President Trump during an event focusing on border security with members the Border Patrol agents union. “Unfortunately, my grandmother had to be example of why something like this, [these] horrific crimes should never happen,” an emotional Ortiz said in the South Court Auditorium in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building...

Very easily the president's finest and most inspiring speech to date. Get ready for a LANDSLIDE in 2020!! Here's to the FUTURE! #TRUMP2020 "This nation is our canvas. And this country is our masterpiece. We look at tomorrow and see unlimited frontiers just waiting to be explored. Our brightest discoveries are not yet known. Our most thrilling stories are not yet told. Our grandest journeys are not yet made. The American age, the American epic, the American adventure, has only just begun. Our spirit is still young. The sun is still rising. God's grace is still shining. And, my fellow...

Chicago residents woke up Friday to subzero temperatures on Valentine’s Day that were the coldest in 47 years. The city recorded minus 2 degrees shortly before sunrise at O’Hare International Airport, according to the National Weather Service. That’s one degree cooler than the city experienced in 1943 — and was also the coldest day so far this season. But it’s still well above the coldest recorded Valentine’s Day on record in 1905, when the city saw temperatures of minus 11. SNIP

February 15 2020 Saturday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 1 Kgs 12:26-32; 13:33-34 Jeroboam thought to himself: “The kingdom will return to David’s house. If now this people go up to offer sacrifices in the temple of the LORD in Jerusalem, the hearts of this people will return to their master, Rehoboam, king of Judah, and they will kill me.” After taking counsel, the king made two calves of gold and said to the people: “You have been going up to Jerusalem long enough. Here is your God, O Israel, who brought you up from...

Is it just me, or is it getting crazier out there? CLIPS

80s flashback classic!