Free Republic

Ron DeSantis isn’t committing to running for President again in 2028. At least not publicly. The Governor told Fox News Channel viewers that he didn’t “have any plans for the future” when asked about a future run by Maria Bartiromo on Sunday Morning Futures. The comments are interesting in light of those being his first public remarks since a reported conclave with donors and supporters in South Florida,

The Palestinian Authority (PA) and Hamas on Friday both denounced Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposal for the "day after" Hamas, which was discussed by the Political-Security Cabinet on Thursday. .....

Americans spend billions of dollars celebrating Valentine’s Day every year, but inflation is forcing many to rethink how they honor the holiday this year. Nearly half— 46 percent — of Americans say inflation is impacting their Valentine’s Day plans, according to a new WalletHub survey. Findings from the 200-person survey show that 24 percent of Americans don’t expect their significant others to spend any money on a gift this Valentine’s Day. But those who think their Valentine will splurge on a gift do not think they will spend very much. About 30 percent of Americans think their partner will spend...

Take Our Border Back Southern Border Convoy & 3-state Rally PEACEFUL ASSEMBLY & PRAYER Calling all active & retired law enforcement and military, Veterans, Mama Bears, elected officials, business owners, ranchers, truckers, bikers, media and LAW ABIDING, freedom-loving Americans. Join US ~ The time is now for WE THE PEOPLE to PEACEFULLY assemble in honor of our U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. To CALL ON OUR GOVERNMENT to TAKE ACTION for We The People and SECURE OUR SOUTHERN BORDER Make your Voices heard America!! Roll with us!! From Virginia Beach, VA to Eagle Pass, TX From Eagle Pass, TX...

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is encouraging Americans to “keep” their holiday plans and “get vaccinated” for protection, despite the fact that the coronavirus vaccine does not prevent one from contracting the virus or halt virus transmission. “Keep your holiday plans. Get vaccinated. Stay protected,” an image shared by the CDC reads, featuring a group of people smiling around the dinner table about to have a Thanksgiving meal. “Planning for COVID-19 protection makes for a safer, healthier holiday season. Get yourself and your loved ones vaccinated and stay up to date on your immunizations,” the caption...

The Israeli military found a USB key with instructions for the production of a “cyanide dispersion device” on the body of a Hamas operative who participated in the Oct. 7 terrorist attack, according to two Israeli officials and a copy of a classified Israeli Foreign Ministry cable obtained by Axios. It is not clear from the file whether Hamas had any serious or operational plan for using makeshift chemical weapons or whether the group had attempted to produce them. The Israeli Foreign Ministry’s weapons of mass destruction non-proliferation department sent a classified cable to Israeli embassies in dozens of capitals...

The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it will make $4.6 billion available to help states, localities and tribes implement their climate plans. The funds represent the bulk of a $5 billion effort under the Inflation Reduction Act to help local and state governments cut their greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. The administration has already put an additional $250 million to help them develop the plans. Biden administration officials told reporters that four states — Florida, Iowa, Kentucky and South Dakota — declined to participate; major metropolitan areas in those states did receive planning grants.

Spirits are high among the International Brotherhood of the Teamsters as negotiations with shipping giant UPS stay frozen ahead of a July 31 contract negotiation deadline, The Hill found in a range of interviews. If the Teamsters strike, some 340,000 drivers, warehouse workers and other employees could walk off the job in one of the largest labor actions in U.S. history. The potential strike is part of surging labor activity in the U.S. and around the world as a result of elevated inflation, which central banks have been attempting to fend off by raising interest rate in an attempt to...

A new report released by Vanguard shows the average account balance in retirement contribution plans dropped by 20 percent from 2021 to 2022. Vanguard’s report found that the average account balance for its defined contribution plans was $112,572 in 2022, down nearly $30,000 from the average in 2021. The report noted that 1 in 3 account holders had a balance of less than $10,000, about 25 percent had a balance of more than $100,000 and 12 percent had a balance of $250,000 or more. The report attributed the drop in average balances to “market performance and an evolving participant base.”...

President Joe Biden is preparing to announce his 2024 reelection bid next week, according to the Washington Post. Biden’s team is making the final touches to the president’s plans to launch his campaign, including “finalizing plans to release a video for the president to officially launch his campaign,” the Post reported after speaking with three people briefed on the plans. The Post noted that it could come as soon as Tuesday of next week, which would be on the fourth anniversary of his 2020 campaign launch. However, the Post said the official announcement could be delayed.

The Ukrainian government has revealed it plans to be a full European Union member-state within two years ahead of a historic Ukraine-EU summit in Kyiv. “We have a very ambitious plan to join the European Union within the next two years,” revealed Denys Shmyhal, the Prime Minister of Ukraine, in comments to POLITICO. “So we expect that this year, in 2023, we can already have this pre-entry stage of negotiations,” Shmyhal continued, speaking ahead of a summit between President Volodymyr Zelensky’s government and top eurocrats at the European Commission and the European Council.

President Biden’s Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is taking steps towards requiring state and local governments to submit “equity plans” to the federal government to display compliance to fair housing rules. President Biden’s HUD submitted a proposed rule that would require local governments to submit plans and reports relating to civil rights concerns or else risk losing subsidies from the federal government, the Washington Examiner reported. The requirements are part of a rule called “Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing” and are said to follow through on one portion of the 1968 Fair Housing Act, which mandated that localities “affirmatively...

President Biden is on track to signal his reelection plans in the next few weeks, despite a self-inflicted classified documents controversy that has energized the GOP and put his political team on its heels. “It’s still very much in the works and nothing has changed,” said one source familiar with the planning around the president’s forthcoming 2024 campaign bid.

Two-thirds of Americans say rising prices across the board will affect their Thanksgiving plans this year, a survey from The Vacationer revealed. The survey asked respondents if high levels of inflation are affecting their Thanksgiving plans this year. The vast majority said the country’s current economic state is, in fact, affecting their plans in some way. About a quarter, 24.73 percent, attributed the issues to the high cost of food, while 16.75 attributed it to the increased travel cost “due to gas prices.” Another 25.02 percent said both the increased cost of food and gas will affect their plans.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will reveal her future congressional career plans to her colleagues Thursday, her spokesperson said late Wednesday — as some speculate that her activist daughter could succeed the towering political figure. The announcement came hours after Republicans regained control of the House with incumbent Republican Rep. Mike Garcia’s victory over Democrat Christy Smith in California’s 27th Congressional District. “Speaker Pelosi has been overwhelmed by calls from colleagues, friends and supporters,” Pelosi’s deputy chief of staff, Drew Hammill, said in a Wednesday night tweet. “This evening, the Speaker monitored returns in the three remaining critical states. The Speaker...

The alleged Buffalo supermarket shooter shared his rambling plans for his deadly racist attack a half-hour before he gunned down 10 people on Saturday, a new report said. Payton Gendron, 18, invited people to a private chat on the Discord app that revealed his white supremacist views and outlined how he’d scouted the Tops Friendly Markets in a crazed plan to kill as many black people as possible, CNN reported.

Federal Reserve officials agreed to shrink the central bank’s balance sheet by a maximum of $95 billion each month, minutes from the March meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee revealed on Wednesday. Fed officials in March hiked the target for overnight lending and the interest paid on reserves by a quarter of a percentage point, to a range of 0.25 to 0.5 percent. The minutes released Wednesday revealed previously undisclosed details about the Fed’s plans to shrink its enormous stockpile of bond holdings.

The White House announced Friday that President Joe Biden would host a press conference on Wednesday, a rare departure from his access-stingy staff. The president’s press conference will take place on the eve of one-year anniversary of his presidency after a series of losses on his legislative agenda.

McALLEN, Texas—In interviews last weekend, some illegal immigrants said they plan on working when they settle in the interior of the United States. Others said they want to study here first so they can support their families. A migrant from Honduras told The Daily Caller News Foundation that he worked dishwashing and other restaurant jobs in Guatemala before crossing through Mexico and eventually entering the U.S. unlawfully near La Joya, Texas. He and another Honduran man said last Saturday night that they plan to study so they can better support themselves and their families once they’re settled in the U.S....

SPRINGFIELD -- The wide availability of COVID-19 vaccines has changed the state's approach for mitigating the virus' spread statewide and in schools. For school districts, that means suggested rather than required guidance, with an emphasis on local control in imposing mitigations. For the governor's office, that means there are "no plans" to reinstate some of the mitigation measures and economic shutdowns that were commonplace earlier in the pandemic.