Free Republic

Supporters of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' now suspended campaign are sending a warning to Donald Trump, threatening to withhold their votes from him should he win the GOP nomination this summer. A number of DeSantis backers expressed their frustrations with Trump supporters, whom they tangled with during the nomination race, and signaled that they could be holding a grudge that has the potential to cost the GOP the general election. Another pro-DeSantis account, @KaladinFree, warned Trump supporters that their candidate of choice "can't afford to lose ANY" DeSantis fans. It said that if Trump lost the 2020 election, presumably with...

President Biden is expected to announce a controversial deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping aimed at slowing the deadly flood of fentanyl across the United States. The two leaders are tipped to announce a deal as they meet Wednesday at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference in San Francisco, one of the cities most blighted by what has become the deadliest drug in the US. “We’re hoping to see some progress on that issue this coming week,” National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Monday, ahead of the meeting. “That could then open the door to further cooperation on other issues where...

President Vladimir Putin will provide Chinese President Xi Jinping with detailed "clarifications" on Russia's point of view on the Ukraine conflict during Xi's state visit to Russia that begins on Monday, the Kremlin said. During a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the two leaders would discuss themes in a peace plan for Ukraine proposed by Beijing last month. "One way or another, the topics that figured in this plan will inevitably be touched upon during the exchange of views on Ukraine" between Putin and Xi, Peskov said.

Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., revealed on Sunday that he is being placed on the House Republican Steering Committee in exchange for supporting Kevin McCarthy for House speaker. Donalds revealed the new appointment during a Sunday appearance on "Sunday Morning Futures" with Maria Bartiromo. His appearance followed an epic 15-ballot election for McCarthy to become House speaker. To become speaker, McCarthy had to make concessions to a small group of hardliners who refused to support him until he yielded to their demands. "I’m frankly just happy that it’s all over with, and that we got something transformational and sound for the...

Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) gave the 20 conservative holdouts four more concessions before Thursday’s continued speakership vote. The concessions, negotiated Wednesday night between McCarthy and his critics, are meant to peal several members away from the group of 20 holdouts. McCarthy needs 16 lawmakers to break ranks with the so-called “rebels.” The concessions McCarthy made are significant. Axios and Politico Playbook reported: One member motion threshold needed to force a vote ousting a speaker, instead of five. More House Freedom Caucus members on the House Rules Committee (two seats). Pledges to hold votes on lawmaker term limit and border security...

The head of the Kedumim local council, Hananel Dorani, has expressed his sorrow at the passing of Shalom Sofer Hy"d who passed away following severe injuries sustained in a terrorist attack two weeks ago. "Shalom was a kind and generous man, an ish chessed," Dorani said. "He will be sorely missed for the righteousness and pleasantness of his ways. "The new government must now cancel all the statements and actions made by the outgoing government that led terrorists to believe that they could succeed, and it must also bring a halt to all thought of making concessions to the Palestinian...

Senate lawmakers finalized negotiations on bipartisan gun and school safety legislation Monday, with the bill text expected to be made public as soon as lawmakers return to Washington on Tuesday. Lawmakers at the heart of the negotiations say a deal was clinched after Democrats made concessions to bring wary Republicans on board. Democrats compromised on incentives for states to adopt red-flag laws and the broadening of restrictions on gun ownership for people accused or convicted of domestic violence. “I’m confident that there’s serious negotiation that [are] very close,” President Biden told reporters while vacationing at his oceanside home in Rehoboth...

A senior U.S. official says the United States is open to discussions with Russia on curtailing possible future deployments of offensive missiles in Ukraine and putting limits on U.S. and NATO military exercises in Eastern Europe as part of strategic talks to begin next week. Y MATTHEW LEE, AP Diplomatic Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States is open to discussions with Russia on curtailing possible future deployments of offensive missiles in Ukraine and putting limits on U.S. and NATO military exercises in Eastern Europe as part of strategic talks to begin next week, a senior Biden administration official said...

The surface transportation construction industry has long had to rely on Washington for its prosperity. We spend most years holding our breath and hoping we will receive more Federal funding to fix our crumbling roads, bridges and highway systems. Currently in the United States, 7 percent of bridges are structurally deficient, and 19 percent of major highway pavements have deteriorated. Yet, our existing financing structure has few tools to address the looming reconstruction challenges facing existing infrastructure. In 2020, Congress passed a one-year extension of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act. While the one-year extension of the FAST Act...

2020 is shaping up to be the most hotly contested presidential election since 1876. In that inauspicious year, as you may recall, Democrat Samuel Tilden won the popular vote, but after a protracted Electoral College battle, Republican Rutherford B. Hayes was declared the winner in exchange for his promise to end Reconstruction and remove federal troops from the South.The Compromise of 1877 – as it was called – was a historical tragedy which paved the ways for decades of Jim Crow. However, the precedent it set could be used for nobler purposes today. Donald Trump should take a leaf from...

Education Minister Naftali Bennett (Jewish Home) has attacked Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu) over their support for a Palestinian state and the need for a political process with the Palestinians. "We will take down the government over anything that would lead to a division of the Land of Israel and the creation of a Palestinian state. We will fight it," he said during an interview on Meet the Press. "There will be no Palestinian state here. I will do anything to stop it," he promised. "We are in a government whose basic principles include...

A deal has been reached between the world powers and Iran over the latter’s nuclear program after a series of major American concessions, Ehud Yaari, the Middle East affairs commentator for Israel’s Channel 2 television, said Friday night. “It is done. It is done,” he said, and will be signed “early next week.” The aim of the agreement is to put a negotiated end to a 13-year standoff with Iran over its suspect nuclear program and to block its pathway to developing a nuclear bomb in exchange for lifting biting global sanctions. Israel’s leadership has relentlessly opposed the emerging agreement,...

Channel 2 analyst Ehud Yaari says agreement will be signed early next week after US drops demand for snap inspections; Obama faces challenge of securing Congress’ approval A deal has been reached between the world powers and Iran over the latter’s nuclear program after a series of major American concessions, Ehud Yaari, the Middle East affairs commentator for Israel’s Channel 2 television, said Friday night. “It is done. It is done,” he said, and will be signed “early next week.” The aim of the agreement is to put a negotiated end to a 13-year standoff with Iran over its suspect...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived on Sunday night in Washington D.C., where he is scheduled to deliver a speech before Congress on Tuesday. Speaking to reporters during an in-flight briefing, a senior official in the prime minister's entourage said Israel holds a significant amount of trustworthy information regarding the deal taking shape with Iran that points at concessions agreed to by the world powers that run counter to Israel's interests. The senior official travelling on the prime minister's plane noted that Netanyahu had received the impression that members of Congress are not fully aware of the details of the deal...

EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton called on Israel to reverse recent announcements regarding construction in Judea and Samaria in order to advance peace talks. Ashton said she viewed with “great concern” an Israeli decision to declare an area near the Gush Etzion Bloc south of Jerusalem as state land and the recognition of Jewish rights to the disputed Peace House in the Judean city of Hevron, a statement from her office said Friday. Ashton also lashed out at the “demolition of Palestinian property and the confiscation of EU humanitarian aid”. …

Democrats in House of Reps. joined J Street in supporting Obama administration's attempt to force Israel into making painful concessions Seventy-four Democrats in the House of Representatives have joined the dovish J Street organization in supporting the Obama administration's attempt to force Israel into making painful concessions to the Palestinian Authority. “In our view, support for a two-state resolution is inseparable from such support for Israel, its special relationship with the United States, and its very survival as a democratic homeland for the Jewish people,” the letter said. Seven Jewish members signed the letter, including Reps. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), John...

According to reports in Israel’s Hebrew-language media, the IDF is expected to recommend Israel make 'gestures' to the Palestinian Authority in order to bolster its stature following last week's deal with Hamas to free 1,027 terrorists for Gilad Shalit. The Shalit deal was widely hailed as a stunning victory for Gaza's ruling Hamas terror organization, launching them back to the fore of the Israeli-Arab milieu and rendering them stratospherically ascendant over rival PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement. Some analysts have suggested Israel's leaders timed the Shalit deal in such a way as to punish Abbas for his September statehood...

SYDNEY (MarketWatch) -- North Korea has reportedly agreed to let United Nations nuclear inspectors back into the country. The deal has been made as part of an attempt to ease tensions on the Korean peninsular, according to the reports on Monday.

Only 5% think diplomacy and sanctions can stop Iran, AJC poll finds. Although a slim majority of American Jews supports the Obama administration’s handling of US-Israel relations, a larger majority opposes any Israeli concession on Jerusalem as part of a peace deal, a survey released over the weekend by the American Jewish Committee revealed. Fifty-five percent of respondents said they approved of the administration’s policy regarding US-Israel relations. But 61% also said Israel should not be “willing to compromise on the status of Jerusalem as a united city under Israeli jurisdiction” as part of the framework of a peace settlement.

JERUSALEM, Israel -- By pushing for a Mideast breakthrough while de manding that only Israel make concessions, Presi dent Obama blundered badly in one of his first foreign-policy gambits. But it was a mistake that was largely irrelevant to the peace process for a simple reason: There was almost no chance of an agreement in any event. Obama's promises and threats, part of his courtship of Muslims, were designed to show he was not George W. Bush. It's a tiresome habit, but it didn't matter because he crashed into the same reality Bush met. The Palestinians and Israel remain deadlocked,...