Gallup’s weekly poll on Donald Trump’s job approval took a big hit this week.
Trump is down 4 points to 41% this week from his all-time high on Gallup’s tracking poll of 45% approval last week.
Gallup: Sharp Drop In Trump’s Job Approval
Mid-Day Brain Break: Baby Hippo Loves To Play
Because you need to see a baby hippo play.
Walgreens Pharmacist Refuses Medication For Woman With Unviable Pregnancy
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| Nicole Arteaga |
Nicole Arteaga, a first-grade teacher in Arizona, recently got the sad news that her nine week-old pregnancy had stopped developing.
With no heartbeat, the pregnancy would end in a miscarriage.
Instead of going through a surgical procedure to remove the fetal tissue, Arteaga opted to use a medication to provide what would basically be a medical abortion.
The FDA has approved misoprostol to end a pregnancy within the first ten weeks.
But when she went to pick up the prescription at her local Walgreens, the pharmacist inquired as to whether she was pregnant. When she shared that she was, the pharmacist refused to fill the prescription based on “his ethical beliefs.”
Arteaga shared her experience with the Walgreens pharmacist on Facebook and the post has gone viral having been shared almost 40,000 times.
I stood at the mercy of this pharmacist explaining my situation in front of my 7 year old, and five customers standing behind only to be denied because of his ethical beliefs.
I get it we all have our beliefs. But what he failed to understand is this isn’t the situation I had hoped for, this isn’t something I wanted. This is something I have zero control over. He has no idea what its like to want nothing more than to carry a child to full term and be unable to do so.
If you have gone thru a miscarriage you know the pain and emotional roller it can be. I left Walgreens in tears, ashamed and feeling humiliated by a man who knows nothing of my struggles but feels it is his right to deny medication prescribed to me by my doctor.
Walgreens eventually contacted Ms. Arteaga “and apologized for how the situation was handled,” but said company policy allows their pharmacists to decline to fill prescriptions in such situations.
“To respect the sincerely held beliefs of our pharmacists while at the same time meeting the needs of our patients, our policy allows pharmacists to step away from filling a prescription for which they have a moral objection,” the company said in a statement.
Music Video: Eli Lieb “When You Need A Friend”
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| Eli Lieb |
Out singer/songwriter Eli Lieb shares this uplifting music video for his song, “When You Need a Friend,” which Eli wrote in the aftermath of a young, male transgender student as his old high school committing suicide.
Backed by The Trevor Project, Eli returned to his old school to reach out to kids there and spread some love.
Premiering the new video on NewNowNext, Eli shares:
“I wrote, ’When You Need A Friend’ inspired by his memory, but also for anyone in need,” he says. “I wanted people to know that times can be really tough but if you keep fighting through them, there’s a bright future ahead. I also wanted people to feel like they have a friend in me, even if they don’t know me personally. I want people to feel like when they play this song, that I am there with them offering support.”
If you read The Randy Report with any regularity, you know I’m a big fan of Eli and his music. Click here for more of my coverage of Eli.
Hit play on the video below, and you can also check out my recent interview with Eli for The Randy Report podcast.
Trump: SCOTUS Travel Ban Ruling Is “Profound Vindication”
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| Donald Trump |
After the Supreme Court upheld Donald Trump’s Muslim travel ban, the White House issued this statement celebrating the news and simultaneously attacking Democrats and the media’s “hysterical commentary:”
“Today’s Supreme Court ruling is a tremendous victory for the American People and the Constitution. The Supreme Court has upheld the clear authority of the President to defend the national security of the United States. In this era of worldwide terrorism and extremist movements bent on harming innocent civilians, we must properly vet those coming into our country.
This ruling is also a moment of profound vindication following months of hysterical commentary from the media and Democratic politicians who refuse to do what it takes to secure our border and our country.
As long as I am President, I will defend the sovereignty, safety, and security of the American People, and fight for an immigration system that serves the national interests of the United States and its citizens. Our country will always be safe, secure, and protected on my watch.”
June 26 – Our (Unofficial) National Gay Day
Today’s date holds a special place in the hearts of LGBTQ people in America.
June 26 is the date on which the Obergefell ruling was handed down from the U.S. Supreme Court in 2015 making marriage equality the law of the land.
On this same date in 2013, SCOTUS struck down the hateful ‘Defense of Marriage Act’ in favor of Edie Windsor resulting in all legal marriages being recognized by the federal government.
And on this date in 2003, the high court struck down sodomy laws with their ruling on Lawrence v. Texas.
If there ever is a ‘gay national holiday’ it truly must be on June 26.
While Donald Trump has continued to ignore the LGBTQ community during Pride Month, Democratic National Committee chairman Tom Perez issued this statement observing the importance of today’s date:
“Before the Supreme Court handed down its decision in U.S. v. Windsor five years ago, Edie Windsor said, ‘I think justice will prevail. Is that crazy?’ Because of her indomitable spirit and the activism of millions of LGBTQ Americans, justice did prevail. Love is love. And America is better for it.
“All across the country, LGBTQ Americans and their allies have organized for equal rights and brought our nation closer to fulfilling its promise of equality for all people – no matter who they are or who they love. Today’s anniversaries remind us that while it may not happen overnight, progress is possible. As long as people raise their voices for what’s right, we can bend the arc of the moral universe toward justice.
“But our fight must continue. LGBTQ Americans still face inequality across our society – from bathrooms and boardrooms to bakeries and the ballot box. Every day, Republicans in Congress, the White House, and at the state and local level are trying to turn back the clock on LGBTQ rights. Even though marriage equality is the law of the land, that hasn’t stopped Republicans from trying to demean and delegitimize LGBTQ marriage through discriminatory adoption bills and so-called ‘religious liberty’ laws.
“The Democratic Party stands with LGBTQ communities in America and around the world. We believe that no one should face discrimination, bullying, or violence because of who they are or who they love. That’s why we’re working to enact legislation like the Equality Act to protect LGBTQ Americans. We believe in the values of inclusion and opportunity for all, and we will never stop fighting for the equality every human being deserves.”
“The march toward LGBTQ equality has been long and hard-fought — and it’s far from over. But some days, we’re reminded of just how far we’ve come. June 26th is one of those days.”
News Round-Up: June 26, 2018
Some news items you might have missed:
• Looks like InstaHunks Brett Miles and Alex Abramov (above) had a great time at NYC Pride this weekend 🙂
• A jury sentenced a gay man to death rather than life in prison because he’s gay and “we’d be sending him where he wants to go.” #Homophobes
• CBS News reporter David Begnaud, who has received widespread praise for his extensive coverage of the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, quietly came out publicly on Sunday tweeting a picture at a dinner with his partner, Jeremy: “Reporting the truth includes my own.”
Reporting the truth includes my own #happypride 🌈 pic.twitter.com/ABQyLhl6FT— David Begnaud (@DavidBegnaud) June 24, 2018
• A new bill in Ohio would require teachers, doctors and government officials to notify parents if a child ever acts “in a manner opposite of the child’s biological sex.”
• NBC News reports that Defense Secretary James “Mad Dog” Mattis is on the outs with Donald Trump because the Donald thinks Mattis “looks down on him.”
• Cher snuck into Chicago this past weekend to check out preview performances of the upcoming Broadway musical based on her life, The Cher Show.
What did she think? Always a straight-shooter, the Oscar winner said, “Some parts of it are really fabulous. We’re going to work on the other parts. In many parts, it was much, much better than I thought it would be. And there were no parts where I wanted to gouge my eyes out.”
This weekend, we had a visit from the legend herself. 🙌💋 pic.twitter.com/JIbsNI0yRW— The Cher Show (@TheCherShow) June 25, 2018
Report: 46% Of LGBTQ Folks Stay Closeted At Work
In a new survey of 1,615 straight and gay workers by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, 46% of LGBTQ employees stay closeted in the workplace because they are afraid of being stereotyped, damaging business relationships or making folks feel ‘uncomfortable.’
That’s a drop of only 4 points from 50% ten years when the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Degrees of Equality report was issued in 2008.
Of the straight respondents, half said there aren’t any LGBTQ employees at their place of employment.
According to The Wall Street Journal, over half of Fortune 500 businesses now have an executive tasked with addressing inclusivity and diversity at their company.
Even so, one in five LGBTQ employees say they’ve been told to dress in a more ‘feminine’ or ‘masculine’ manner.
Fifty-three percent of LGBTQ workers say they hear gay/lesbian jokes occasionally at work.
The number one reason why LGBTQ employees don’t say anything about negative comments about gay folks is they don’t believe the issue will be addressed and they don’t want to injure relationships with coworkers.
The new report by the HRC Foundation looks to “uncover the prevalence of LGBTQ workers feeling pressure to hide their sexual orientation and/or gender identity on the job and the cost of that hiding both to individuals and employers.”
You can download a PDF of the report, titled A Workplace Divided: Understanding the Climate for LGBTQ Workers Nationwide, by clicking here.
Supreme Court Upholds Trump Travel Ban
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| The U. S. Supreme Court |
The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld Donald Trump’s Muslim travel ban in a 5-4 decision.
From The New York Times:
Just a week after he took office, Mr. Trump issued his first travel ban, causing chaos at the nation’s airports and starting a cascade of lawsuits and appeals. The first ban, drafted in haste, was promptly blocked by courts around the nation.
A second version, issued two months later, fared little better, although the Supreme Court allowed part of it go into effect last June when it agreed to hear the Trump administration’s appeals from court decisions blocking it. But the Supreme Court dismissed those appeals in October after the second ban expired.
In January, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a challenge to Mr. Trump’s third and most considered entry ban, issued as a presidential proclamation in September. It initially restricted travel from eight nations, six of them predominantly Muslim — Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Chad, Venezuela and North Korea. Chad was later removed from the list.
The restrictions varied in their details, but, for the most part, citizens of the countries were forbidden from emigrating to the United States and many of them are barred from working, studying or vacationing here.
BREAKING: SCOTUS has upheld Trump’s Muslim ban. This is not the first time the Court has been wrong, or has allowed official racism and xenophobia to continue rather than standing up to it.History has its eyes on us — and will judge today’s decision harshly. #NoMuslimBanEver
— ACLU (@ACLU) June 26, 2018
As you read of the Supreme Court upholding Trump’s racist travel ban, please remember the Republicans STOLE a Supreme Court seat in 2016 and in fact—but for that POLITICAL CRIME—this would’ve been a 5-4 vote going the other way and upholding rather than abridging American values. pic.twitter.com/DYetlu7JhE— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 26, 2018
The Supreme Court of the United States just upheld Donald Trump’s discriminatory ban of Muslims from the United States.The reason this happened was that Republicans in the Senate stole a Supreme Court seat from Barack Obama, refusing to even consider his nominees
— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) June 26, 2018
Anyone who pretends that party control of the Senate doesn’t matter or that the blockade against #MerrickGarland was just business as usual should be required to read the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decisions on the #travelban, #votingrights and Texas’ #gerrymandering — over and over.— EJ Dionne (@EJDionne) June 26, 2018
Chris Hayes: ‘The Border’ Is a Convenient Metaphor For Anxious Whites
I usually tune into late night talk shows for folks to say something funny or clever.
But in this short segment from Late Night with Seth Meyers, MSNBC’s Chris Hayes succinctly breaks down what’s really behind today’s anti-immigration debate.
In discussing his trip to the southern border of the United States to examine immigration issues, Hayes is asked about Donald Trump going to Duluth, Minnesota, for a campaign rally and raging about ‘the border’ to his supporters there – in a state that isn’t directly impacted by folks crossing any ‘border’ into their state.
So – why do they rage? Because white folks are afraid America won’t be ‘America’ if our demographics shift.
Said Hayes, “It’s not actually ‘the border.’ It’s this idea of ‘invasion.’ The country is changing in ways they don’t like. The border is a convenient metaphor for that anxiety.”
And he’s right.
Watch the clip below.