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NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll Show Hillary Clinton Leading Trump +6

The new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll shows Democrat Hillary Clinton heading into the first presidential debate with a 6 point lead over Republican Donald Trump.

From NBC News:

In a four-way horserace, Clinton gets support from 43 percent of likely voters and Trump gets 37 percent, while Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson is at 9 percent and the Green Party’s Jill Stein is at 3 percent.

In a head-to-head matchup without those third-party candidates, Clinton’s advantage expands to seven points, 48 percent to 41 percent. This is the NBC/WSJ poll’s first general-election poll of likely voters in the 2016 race.

The poll was conducted after her bout of mild pneumonia.

Sixty-eight percent of Hillary supporters say they will definitely vote for her; 66% of Trump supporters say the same of their candidate.

A majority of Hillary voters (50%) say their vote is for her as opposed to against Trump (44%).

Forty-one percent of Trump voters say their vote is more about supporting him than opposing Hillary; 51% of his supporters identify their votes as an “anti-Hillary” vote. 

The survey also shows President Obama’s approval rating at 52%.

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Must-See: Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s Awesome Take-Down Of Wells Fargo CEO

I’d seen folks post this video of Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s epic take down of Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf at yesterday’s Senate Banking Committee hearing, but I just got around to watching.

I know a 17 minute video seems long (in internet terms), but this is well-worth the watching.

THIS is what we want to see our elected officials say and do – hold folks accountable.

Without raising her voice, Warren calmly repeats that Well Fargo has perpetuated a “scam.” After he claims being “accountable,” she directly asks the CEO if he has offered to resign, given back a nickel of the millions and millions he made while Wells Fargo created some 2 million fake accounts to prop up it’s stock value (fraud), or if he’s asked any senior executive to resign.

This is really great political theater. And what we should be seeing in all our elected officials.

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Music Video: Lady Gaga “Perfect Illusion”

Check out Lady Gaga’s music video for her new single “Perfect Illusion.”

This is the first single to be released from her upcoming fifth studio album entitled Joanne out Friday, October 21st.

I’m a fan of Gaga, but this music video is a tad busy to watch with the uber-cuts and flashing lights, etc.

And there is the issue of that key change in the song.

That said, I’m sure it will still be a hit for LG.

Thoughts?

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Broadway’s Andy Mientus Celebrates Bi-Week

Andy Mientus, star of NBC’s SMASH and the Broadway revivals of Spring Awakening and Les Miserables, encourages all his fellow bisexuals to “come out, come out, wherever you are” during Bi-Week.

(What? Bisexuals don’t get a full month???)

Via Instagram:

Hey so it’s #biweek- the week for the Bi kids to be visible.

I try to be visible all the time just by being true to who I am openly, but I know many people struggle with this because of the stigma associated with bi-ness.

I know that some of you, probably friends even, are reading this and rolling your eyes- “oh he’s still holding on to that? Who is SHE kidding?”- and I don’t blame you. Not many are open about it so we appear to be very rare creatures, maybe even mythical.

I’ve definitely felt the pressure to just accept being lumped in as gay when I meet new people- correcting them feels super political and unnecessary in the moment but then later I realize that it’s my own shame.

I don’t write this to position myself as an activist or a role model. I try to be the best person I can be always but I am just an actor, not a queer-studies professor, and I am learning along with everyone else. I have and will continue to put my foot in my mouth on issues so I won’t pretend to know everything.

What I do know is that because of my platform as an actor, kids reach out to me almost daily confused about their sexuality and it breaks my heart to learn that they are denying their hearts, bodies, and souls just because of what other people will think of them.

We now talk about LGBT+ issues constantly but how often do we really consider the B in there? Have you ever doubted someone who tells you they are Bi- “Sure, Jan”- or debated the validity of that claim behind their back? Do you have a preconceived idea of what bi “really” looks like based on what TV and movies have told you? Do you think of it just as a sexual kink or as a true identity?

When I encounter ignorance about my identity, I always try to approach it from a place of warmth and education, so this is not me lecturing the monosexuals out there. I’m inviting you this week to think about your own feelings towards bisexuals and ask yourself if there is any lingering doubt or prejudice there.

If you think you could be bi, ask yourself what is holding you back from accepting it- is it your own developing feelings or your fear of society around you? Together, we can end that stigma.

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Gov. McCrory Trails Dem Opponent By 5 In North Carolina Governor’s Race

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory

Republican Gov. Pat McCrory of North Carolina gets more bad news today via the latest PPP poll showing him trailing Attorney General Roy Cooper by 5 points, thanks in part to McCrory’s unwavering support of anti-LGBT law, HB2.

For the first time this entire cycle PPP finds a clear leader in the race to be North Carolina’s next Governor: Roy Cooper. Cooper’s at 46% to 41% for Pat McCrory, with Libertarian Lon Cecil at 2%. When undecideds and Cecil voters are asked who they’d pick if they had to choose between Cooper and McCrory, Cooper’s lead ticks up to 50/43.

McCrory continues to be unpopular, with only 41% of voters approving of him to 49% who disapprove. This makes 39 months in a row we’ve found his approval rating under water. Voters are generally having a positive reaction as they’ve become more familiar with Cooper, with 40% of voters rating him positively to 32% who have a negative opinion.

The story in this race is Cooper’s strength with independent voters. He leads McCrory 44-33 with them in the full field, and 50-34 with them in the head to head. By contrast, McCrory defeated Walter Dalton by a 2:1 margin with independents in 2012. But they have largely soured on him with now only 36% approving of him to 49% who disapprove.

HB2 is causing McCrory big trouble as well. By a 20 point margin voters want to see it repealed- just 32% support keeping it on the books, to 52% who think it should be overturned. Among pivotal independent voters, there’s 56/29 support for repeal. There may be one simple reason HB2 is so unpopular – it’s a bill targeting LGBT people, yet only 19% of North Carolinians say they have a negative opinion of LGBT people, to 47% with a positive one and 34% who are indifferent. A bill cutting the rights of a group of people that only a small slice of the electorate has a problem with isn’t going to be very popular.

I have to comment on the “only 19% of North Carolinians say they have a negative opinion of LGBT people.” Isn’t it sad that almost one in five people in the state views LGBTs negatively and that can be characterized as “only?”

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Former Child Country Star, Out Singer Billy Gilman Kills On THE VOICE

Back in 2000, Billy Gilman became the youngest singer to have a Top 40 hit on the country music charts with his first single, “One Voice.”

His debut album of the same name went on to be certified double-platinum. For several years, he was famous as “that child country singer.”

Gilman came out in 2014 just days after fellow country singer Ty Herndon came out publicly. At the time, Gilman said he’d struggled with Nashville due to “whispers” about his sexuality, and in the aftermath of Herndon’s story, he felt the time was right. You can read my post on Gilman’s coming out here.

Last night, Gilman was a surprise contestant on The Voice, and just like 16 years ago, created a sensation.

Now an adult, Gilman has found his true voice, his true sound; and all four judges were impressed.

I have to say I heard about his appearance before I saw it.

My first thought was, “Well, he’s not new to the industry and he had his shot. This might not be fair.”

But watching the video below, I think there is a new ballgame here in that Billy Gilman of today is a different singer, a different artist and a different person that the “Billy” of 2000.

Truth be told, he kicks butt here. Terrific vocal and presence. I’m thinking good thoughts for him as he starts this journey on The Voice.

And even more that he’s bringing visibility to the LGBT community.

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Facebook User’s Response To Trump Jr.’s Skittle Tweet Goes Viral

Recently, Donald Trump Jr. caused a firestorm on Twitter when he posted the above image with text which read, “If I had a bowl of skittles and I told you just three would kill you. Would you take a handful? That’s our Syrian refugee problem.

Aside from the sad punctuation, the message of dehumanizing innocent refugees from a war torn country

Facebook user Eli Bosnick posted his response to the meme, and it’s gone viral.

“If I gave you a bowl of skittles and three of them were poison would you still eat them?”

“Are the other skittles human lives?”

“What?”

“Like. Is there a good chance. A really good chance. I would be saving someone from a war zone and probably their life if I ate a skittle?”

“Well sure. But the point-“

“I would eat the skittles.”

“Ok-well the point is-“

“I would GORGE myself on skittles. I would eat every single fucking skittle I could find. I would STUFF myself with skittles. And when I found the poison skittle and died I would make sure to leave behind a legacy of children and of friends who also ate skittle after skittle until there were no skittles to be eaten. And each person who found the poison skittle we would weep for. We would weep for their loss, for their sacrifice, and for the fact that they did not let themselves succumb to fear but made the world a better place by eating skittles.

Because your REAL question…the one you hid behind a shitty little inaccurate, insensitive, dehumanizing racist little candy metaphor is, IS MY LIFE MORE IMPORTANT THAN THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS OF MEN, WOMEN, AND TERRIFIED CHILDREN…

… and what kind of monster would think the answer to that question… is yes?”

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Florida: Hillary Clinton Leads Donald Trump +5 In Latest Monmouth University Poll

More good news for Hillary Clinton from Monmouth University:

Hillary Clinton holds a 5 point lead over Donald Trump in the crucial swing state of Florida. This is slightly less than the 9 point lead she held in a Monmouth University Poll of Sunshine State voters taken last month.

Among Florida voters likely to participate in November’s presidential election, 46% currently support Clinton and 41% back Trump. Another 6% intend to vote for Libertarian Gary Johnson and 1% support Green Party candidate Jill Stein, with 5% who are undecided. This compares to Monmouth’s August poll which had Clinton at 48%, Trump 39%, Johnson 6%, and Stein 1%.

Clinton has an overwhelming advantage among Hispanic, black and Asian voters who make up about one-third of the electorate, garnering 69% of this group’s vote to 16% for Trump. Her lead among non-white voters was a similar 69% to 19% last month. Trump’s 53% to 35% advantage among white voters is also about where it was last month (51% to 37%).

“Although Clinton’s lead is smaller than in our last poll, she is maintaining her advantage in Florida given the ominous state of her poll standing last week,” said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute. He added, “Florida has become less of a crucial battleground now that the campaigns’ attention has turned to the Rust Belt. However, a win here would make the path to 270 electoral votes that much easier for the victor and difficult for the loser.”

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Poll: Hillary Clinton Opens 5 Point Lead Over Donald Trump

From NBC News:

According to this week’s NBC News|SurveyMonkey Weekly Election Tracking Poll, Hillary Clinton now enjoys 50 percent support among likely voters and Donald Trump has 45 percent support.

In a four-way match up of likely voters, Clinton leads Trump by 5 points—45 percent to 40 percent. Libertarian Gary Johnson now has 10 percent support and Jill Stein maintains 4 percent.

Currently, 56 percent of likely voters think Clinton will win. Just 39 percent think Trump will win.