Daily news coverage of politics, policy, and issues shaping the nation.
Sarah Palin colorfully roused an audience of social conservatives at the Values Voter Summit this afternoon, at one point mocking President Obama for his “latte salute” by raising a Styrofoam cup to her head after thanking U.S. troops. Palin’s speech came across more like a roast — of Obama, liberals and the “lamestream media” —…
David and Jason Benham, the twin brothers who lost their planned HGTV reality show after a liberal website attacked their Christian beliefs, say too many Americans are “afraid” to stand up for traditional values. “There are so many people who feel they’re going to lose their jobs if they not only say the things we…
Eric Holder’s plan to resign as U.S. attorney general will mark the end of nearly six contentious years at the Department of Justice. The nation’s chief law-enforcement officer was confronted with controversies throughout his tenure. The following timeline highlights some of the most noteworthy events. Use the arrows to advance or jump to an event…
Two weeks after receiving a chorus of boos from a Washington gathering of Middle Eastern Christians, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, today delivered a biblically inspired speech invoking an Old Testament psalm and calling on social conservatives to hold their values and religious convictions near when faced with adversity. “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy…
On April 6, 2007, Navy SEAL Sr. Chief Mike Day was shot 27 times by four al-Qaeda leaders. Despite the extensive close-range wounds, Day was able to defeat the terrorists, and according to Fox News, “walk under his own power to a medevac helicopter.” Day is currently looking forward to competing in the Ironman 70.3…
Cheerleader Asia Canada of Oneida, Tenn., wasn’t happy when her high school decided to replace a prayer before football games with a moment of silence, reports local NBC affiliate WBIR. So she took matters into her own hands. Oneida High School was reportedly pressured by the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee to end the…
Civil rights activist Al Sharpton, host of MSNBC’s “PoliticsNation,” says he’s consulting with the White House on Eric Holder’s replacement as attorney general. “We are engaged in immediate conversations with the White House," @TheRevAl said. Following news of Holder’s resignation Thursday, Sharpton tweeted a statement declaring his involvement in the administration’s search for a successor. “We…
Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Ind., who is staunchly pro-life, told the audience at the 2014 Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C., about his own encounter with abortion. Stutzman, who made a bid for House majority whip in June, told the audience of social conservatives today to offer compassion toward others because if they don’t, government will….
Naghmeh Abedini hasn’t seen her husband in more than two years. In July 2012, while Saeed Abedini was building a government-approved orphanage in Iran, the U.S. pastor was imprisoned for crimes against national security. The charges grew out of Abedini's involvement with Christian house churches in Iran. Abedini is serving an eight-year sentence at Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj, Iran,…
The phone call at 8:30 p.m. seemed routine for Cynthia and Robert Gifford—a bride-to-be inquiring about holding a wedding at their home, Liberty Ridge Farm in upstate New York. Then Cynthia Gifford realized the caller wanted to book their family farm near the village of Schaghticoke for a same-sex wedding. She politely declined. “We’re not hateful people,” Gifford…
Seven of every 10 families released by the Obama administration this year after entering the country illegally didn’t show up for follow-up appointments with authorities, the Associated Press reported today. AP said it obtained an audio recording of a confidential meeting held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at which one ICE official said thousands…
The unexpected resignation of Attorney General Eric Holder follows a series of court rulings against his Department of Justice over its failure to produce documents related to the government’s “Fast and Furious” firearms operation. Holder also has come under increasing congressional criticism for a tepid investigation of evidence that IRS officials deliberately targeted tea party…
More than a decade ago, on Nov. 10, 2001, President George W. Bush addressed the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, just as President Obama did yesterday. Each confronted a terrorist threat to the American homeland, as well as other countries, from groups in the Middle East. Obama ran for the presidency in 2008…
Administrators at a South Carolina high school confiscated American flags from students’ trucks on 9/11 as part of a rule preventing students from calling “an unusual amount of attention to oneself.” On the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, four students at Woodruff High School arrived at school with large American flags propped…
The “most transparent administration in history” is under fire once again. And this time the complaints are coming from journalists who cover the White House. A dispute over “pool” reports has some White House correspondents crying foul and accusing President Obama’s team of altering and censoring details before the information is distributed more widely to…
For two years, a self-described grassroots army has protested “The Rush Limbaugh Show” in a campaign to convince advertisers to pull their commercials from the talk giant’s radio program. Now, Limbaugh’s show is fighting back with a new report arguing that the supposed groundswell of outraged consumers is in reality 10 “hardcore” progressive activists. “It’s…
Five years ago, a group of atheist and agnostic students launched a campaign to hire a nonreligious chaplain at Tufts University. With the recent addition of a university-funded “humanist in residence,’ it appears their prayers—or lack thereof—have finally been answered. The new position is believed to be the first-ever university-funded campus chaplain catering to atheist,…
In a speech before the United Nations General Assembly today, President Obama presented his case for a global effort to defeat the Islamic State terrorist group, vowing to engage a broad coalition to dismantle the brutal jihadists’ “network of death.” Obama delivered his address two days after he expanded the American-led air campaign against the Islamic State,…
First comes love, then comes marriage. Or at least that’s how it used to go. According to a new Pew study, a record number of adults older than 25 have yet to be married, and by the year 2030 a quarter of those between age 25 and 34 never will have walked down the aisle….
Americans’ support for same-sex marriage has decreased, according to a new Pew Research Center poll. According to the poll, 49 percent of Americans now support same-sex marriage and 41 percent are opposed. That's a drop of five percentage points since February. "It is too early to know if this modest decline is an anomaly or…