Free Republic

Beloved Kansas State University football coach Bill Snyder on Thursday endorsed Sen. Pat Roberts for re-election and is appearing in a new television ad for the three-term Republican incumbent, potentially giving the GOP a boost in a race with national implications. Roberts’ campaign launched the statewide spot just five days before the election, which has Roberts locked in a tough contest with independent candidate Greg Orman, a 45-year-old Olathe businessman and co-founder of a private equity firm. Snyder is highly respected throughout the state and college football and has largely remained aloof from politics....

(Snip)Not all is entirely well in the Commonwealth, though. In cities and towns far removed from the shiny new towers of Cambridge’s Kendall Square or Boston’s Seaport District, the economic picture looks much dimmer. Meanwhile, cracks are showing in the edifice of state government itself. The Department of Children and Families, the Probation Department, the state crime lab, the board that regulates compounding pharmacies, the state Labor Department’s unemployment system, the Health Connector website — voters have come to know all these terms as shorthand for the kind of bureaucratic failures that make them doubt state government’s ability to help...

<p>TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee has endorsed Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts as he battles an aggressive GOP primary challenge from tea party candidate Milton Wolf.</p> <p>Huckabee announced his endorsement Thursday. He described Roberts as a conservative warrior and said he's fought tirelessly for lower taxes and federal government spending.</p>

Conservative writer Ann Coulter is enthusiastically endorsing Tea Party-backed candidate David Brat in his primary challenge of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) in the upcoming June primary, citing Cantor's support for immigration reform. In her nationally syndicated column, Ms. Coulter wrote that her endorsement was based on Brat's opposition to Cantor's immigration policies. Ms. Coulter labeled Cantor a "Maniacal Amnesty Supporter" in the column, and described him as "amnesty-addled." "Cantor says 'immigration reform could be an economic boon to this country,'" wrote Coulter. "You don't have to be an economics professor [like Dave Brat] to know that bringing in...

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Former Oklahoma House Speaker T.W. Shannon is touting the endorsement of Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas in Shannon's race for the Republican nomination for Oklahoma's open U.S. Senate seat.Shannon campaign consultant Trebor Worthen told The Associated Press Wednesday that Cruz has endorsed Shannon and is set to appear at a rally in Tulsa along with former Alaska Gov. and GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin and U.S. Sen. Mike Lee of Utah.Palin and Lee endorsed Shannon previously.

Ted Cruz waded into a contested open-seat primary in Oklahoma on Wednesday, endorsing former Oklahoma House Speaker T.W. Shannon over Rep. James Lankford. Though Cruz has shied away from endorsing Republican Senate incumbents locked in contested primaries, the Texas Republican had no qualms backing Shannon, who is increasingly drawing support from the Republican Party’s right flank in his bid to take the seat of retiring Sen. Tom Coburn.

Sarah Palin: Ex-veep nominee backs three Dixie Senate hopefuls. Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin (R), whose support often helps propel underdog conservatives into the winner’s circle, has now endorsed three Republican US candidates who are challenging establishment-backed contenders. The latest is in Mississippi, where Palin has given her imprimatur to state Sen. Chris McDaniel (R) in his challenge to six-term US Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS). Before that, Palin endorsed Oklahoma House Speaker T. W. Shannon (R) over US Rep. James Lankford (R-OK), and Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel (R) in a multi-candidate field to succeed US Sen. Johnny Isakson...

One day after her “Squeal” TV brought her national attention, Joni Ernst picks up the endorsement of Sarah Palin. The former Alaska governor, 2008 vice-presidential nominee and conservative firebrand calls Ernst a “champion for life, small government, and lower taxes.” Here is what Palin had to say when announcing her support for Joni Ernst in Iowa’s U.S. Senate race: “If Nebraska’s Deb Fischer can see through the bull in Washington, then Iowa’s Joni Ernst can help her cut through the pork. Growing up on a hog farm in Southwest Iowa, Joni has taken her “pork cutting” skills to the Iowa...

Sarah Palin, who announced a number of midterm endorsements recently, signaled a spring awakening for fellow mamma grizzlies this week, throwing her support behind three female House and Senate candidates on Thursday after backing Iowa’s Joni Ernst the day before. The latest Republican recipients of the Tea Party star’s coveted imprimatur are Florida Senate Majority Leader Lizbeth Benacquisto, who’s running in her state’s 19th Congressional District; and former Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel and Minnesota state Sen. Julianne Ortman, both of whom are U.S. Senate candidates. All three endorsements were announced on the former Alaska governor’s Facebook page, and...

Former Alaska governor and vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin has endorsed GOP U.S. Senate candidate Julianne Ortman, who is running in a crowded field of Republicans angling to unseat Democratic Sen. Al Franken. In a post of her Facebook page, Palin slammed Franken, a former “Saturday Night Live” star and liberal radio host, calling his political career a “joke.” Palin also heaped praise on Ortman, a state senator, calling her a “conservative champion” and a “fighter for life and for our Second Amendment rights.” “Let’s give voters a contrast this fall: a clown vs. a Mama Grizzly, an Obama 100...

SCF endorses T.W. Shannon for U.S. Senate in Oklahoma. Fellow Conservatives: We are very proud to announce our support today for T.W. Shannon (R-OK) who is running for the U.S. Senate in Oklahoma. T.W. Shannon (R-OK)As many of you know, U.S. Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) is retiring at the end of the year. Congressman Jim Bridenstine (R-OK) decided not to run for the seat, but T.W. Shannon has stepped forward for conservatives. T.W. Shannon is the former Speaker of the House in the Oklahoma legislature. He was elected by his Republican colleagues as the youngest and first African American House...

Washington, D.C. – Eagle Forum PAC, a conservative public policy organization founded by pro-family leader Phyllis Schlafly, is proud to endorse Chris McDaniel in the race to represent Mississippi in the United States Senate. “Chris McDaniel has a solid record when it comes to defending family values and our Constitutional liberties,” said Schlafly. “We need more legislators like him, who are not just Republicans but true conservative champions.” “He has proven that he is not afraid to stand against the bureaucratic establishment and the Obama Adminstration’s unprecedented overreach into our healthcare and the education of our children through Obamacare and...

With control of the U.S. Senate up for grabs this November, a single seat may determine who has the majority. That’s why Republicans should find it disconcerting that two of their establishment lions have broken ranks and are backing Democratic candidates in competitive races. The latest apostate is former senator John Warner of Virginia, who announced this week he is backing incumbent Democratic senator Mark Warner for reelection. He is thus giving the back of his hand to former RNC chairman Ed Gillespie, a former George W. Bush adviser, who has a decent shot at winning and is no wild-eyed...

<p>Former Republican Sen. John W. Warner on Monday endorsed his Democratic successor over a past national GOP chairman in the race for the U.S. Senate seat he held for 30 years.</p> <p>Warner told The Associated Press in a telephone interview that he is supporting Sen. Mark Warner, who is being challenged by Ed Gillespie in November's election. The Warners are not related.</p>

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) refused say whether he thinks former Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie (R) will be a good candidate for Virginia's Senate race, putting the National Republican Senatorial Committee vice chairman at odds with its chairman and many in his party.Cruz repeatedly refused to say what he thinks of Gillespie's background or chances as a candidate against Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.)."I like Ed Gillespie, he is a friend of mine, he's a good man. That's ultimately a decision for the voters of Virginia," Cruz told The Hill on Thursday evening, hours after Gillespie entered the race.He demurred...

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) is endorsing Baptist Minister Mark Harris (R) in North Carolina's Senate race, giving him a boost against the GOP establishment's preferred candidate. State House Speaker Thom Tillis (R) is the preferred candidate of establishment Republicans, but Harris hopes to consolidate social conservative support in the GOP primary, and Huckabee's endorsement is his highest nod to date. The former presidential candidate, fellow Baptist minister and social conservative leader praised Harris, who led the fight to ban gay marriage in North Carolina, as a "true conservative" in the race. The endorsement further boosts the chances that...

"...Ben Sasse is the rare candidate who can clearly and forcefully prosecute the case against ObamaCare, not only because it’s an unconstitutional assault on our liberty, but also because he’s read every word of it.” said Club for Growth President Chris Chocola...

JACKSON — The California-based Tea Party Express came to the Mississippi Capitol this morning to announce that it is endorsing state Sen. Chris McDaniel, a Republican from Jones County, to replace long-time Republican Sen. Thad Cochran in the U.S. Senate. Amy Kremer, chairwoman of the Tea Party Express, compared McDaniel favorably to congressional Tea Party darlings Rand Paul of Kentucky, Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Lee of Utah. McDaniel will empower the Tea Party to break up the “good old boy network” of entrenched Republicans such as Cochran, thus “sanitizing the U.S. government,” Kremer said. McDaniel, chairman of the...

Citizens United is endorsing Rep. Paul Broun (R-Ga.) in the crowded Georgia Senate primary. The nod from the conservative group will give the Tea Party favorite a boost — and establishment Republicans new reason to be concerned about the race. Establishment Republicans have publicly fretted about Broun winning the primary, fearing he might not be the party's best candidate in a general election. The congressman regularly refers to President Obama as a socialist and communist, and has said evolution and the big bang theories are lies "from the pit of hell."

Madison Project PAC Endorses Matt Bevin for Senate in Kentucky Madison Project Chairman Jim Ryun: “The only way to change the lackluster leadership in the Republican Party is to replace the career politicians who lead the party. Matt Bevin is brave enough to storm the castle of the GOP Establishment and challenge the sitting minority leader, and we are proud to stand with him and with millions of conservatives who feel disenfranchised by unprincipled GOP leaders like Mitch McConnell.” Washington, DC – The Madison Project PAC announced today that it is endorsing Louisville businessman Matt Bevin for Senate against Senator...