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Trump, Of All People, Denounces “Censorship” In Morning Twitter Rant

Donald Trump, who earlier this week took away former CIA Director John Brennan's security clearance as punishment for speaking out against him, took to Twitter this morning to denounce (of all things) "censorship."
Donald Trump

Donald Trump, who earlier this week took away former CIA Director John Brennan’s security clearance as punishment for speaking out against him, took to Twitter this morning to denounce (of all things) “censorship.”

Claiming “social media is totally discriminating against Republican/Conservative voices,” the Trumpster lamented that “Too many voices are being destroyed, some good & some bad.”

This probably has more to do with nutjob/InfoWars host Alex Jones being shut out of practically all social media for his continued baseless rantings.

Remember, Jones is the guy who claimed the Sandy Hook shooting was faked. He publicly called out to Trump to save him from being cut off of social media.

This looks like his request has been answered.

Note: Trump appears to have tweeted these missives right after Fox & Friends discussed the issue – more proof that Trump has never had an original thought in his life.

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Podcast: Oklahoma Parents Threaten Trans 5th Grader; Anthony Starble’s Latest Track “Paperweight”

 In this week’s podcast:

• An Oklahoma school district shut down after parents of students threatened violence on a transgender 5th grader

• That anti-gay Colorado baker is at it again – this time denying a cake to a trans woman

• Smart guy Matt Baume reminds us when ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ went gay for just one episode

• A gay Afghanistan teen was denied asylum by Austria for not being ‘gay’ enough

• Plus, out musician Anthony Starble’s new remix of “Paperweight”

All that and more in this episode of The Randy Report – Hit the play button below:

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Donald Trump: It’s “Sad” They Caught My Tax-Cheating Former Campaign Chairman

Donald Trump

A presidential pardon for Paul Manafort is on its way, trust me.

Donald Trump yelled at the press this morning on the White House lawn, telling them he was going to New York and New Jersey for “work, all work.”

He gets very defensive about his golf games, doesn’t he?

Along the way he predicted the 2018 midterms would be very good for Republicans, and he claimed he’s received great support for revoking John Brennan’s security clearance, ending up with this about his former campaign chair:

“I think the whole Manafort trial is very sad. If you look at what’s going on, it’s a very sad day for our country.He worked for me for a very short period of time, but you know what? He happens to be a very good person. And I think it’s very sad what they’ve done to Paul Manafort.”

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News Round-Up: August 17, 2018

#woofilicious Joel Green

Some news items you might have missed:

•  InstaHunk Joel Green is scrubbing up for the weekend. #TGIF #woof

• First Lady Melania Trump announced she will address a cyber-bullying conference, and the Twitterverse howled.

• A gay couple in Belgium were brutally beaten by homophobic neighbors.

• A Portland man has been arrested for threatening to blow up an apartment complex for HIV+ gay men, or as the perpetrator put it – “where f*cking f*gg*ts live.”

• A judge in Michigan has ruled that attacks on transgender folks fall under the state’s hate crime laws since “gender” is listed as a “protected class.”

•My Instinct Magazine colleague, Samuel Murrian, ranked all of Madonna’s studio albums from best to worst in honor of the Queen of Pop’s 60th birthday.

•And how about one more peek at Mr. Joel Green as we head into the weekend…?

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Out Music: MNEK “In This Crazy World”

Out musician and producer MNEK drops his latest single, “In This Crazy World,” today in advance of his upcoming album, Language.
Out musician/producer MNEK

Out musician and producer MNEK drops his latest single, “In This Crazy World,” today in advance of his upcoming album, Language.

Promising his debut album to be a ‘black, gay, pop experience,’ the 23-year-old musician describes the new album as, “So special to me because it’s something I’ve put my heart and soul into writing and producing and singing.’”

The lyrics go right to the personal as “In The Crazy World” ruminates on not only race issues but coming out:

A father is disappointed by his son, Somewhere in this crazy world
He’s told him that he’s in love with someone, Let’s high and mourn him
He’s coming out, he can’t keep it in
Somewhere, somewhere, somewhere, somewhere in this crazy world tonight

“I’ve waited for the day my debut album is released my entire life, so naturally, I’ve designed it to be listened to from start to finish,” shares MNEK. “Every song flows into each other in a way that tells a sonic story. I’ve learned so much as a musician over the years and most importantly as a young man.”

After signing his first publishing deal at the age of 14, MNEK has spent the past ten years in the music industry writing and producing for A-list artists like Madonna, Kylie Minogue and Beyoncé.

At 23, the U.K. artist now has one billion streams to his name, between his early material and wider collaborations. “Never Forget You,” MNEK’s duet with Zara Larsson, topped Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart and has been certified 3x Platinum in the U.S.

His most recent single, “Colour” featuring Hailee Steinfeld, (which OUT Magazine called “the song of the summer”) reached a massive 25 global New Music Friday playlists and streams now surpass 17 million.

Additionally, his single “Tongue” was named as “one of the best songs of 2018” by PAPER Magazine, which hailed the track’s “deliciously seductive lyrics, a sick bassline, and killer vocals.”

MNEK has announced a three-date U.K. tour in October, making stops in Manchester, Birmingham, and London.

Language drops September 7, and you can check out “In This Crazy World” below:

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Settlement Reached In California Prison Lawsuit Alleging LGBTQ Abuses

(photo credit: Donald Tong via Pexels)

In 2014, a group of LGBTQ inmates at the Alternative Lifestyle Tank at the West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga filed a federal class action lawsuit alleging hate speech by the prison guards and extreme incarceration due to their sexual orientation and/or gender identity.

According to The LA Times, attorneys for the plaintiffs now say they have reached a settlement with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

Among the allegations raised by the lawsuit:

• Under the guise of “protection,” LGBTQ inmates were held in their cells for up to 23 hours a day

• The plaintiffs say they were subjected to derogatory hate speech and anti-gay slurs by prison guards and staff

• They were not allowed to take part in educational programs or drug rehabilitation programs

• They were unable to participate in work programs that could potentially reduce their sentences or attend religious services

The lead plaintiff, former sheriff’s deputy Dan McKibben, told the press at a 2014 news conference when the lawsuit was filed, “When you’re sworn, you’re sworn. And I took that oath.”

“These guys, every other minute, were violating that,” he added. McKibben died in 2016 before a resolution could be reached.

Veronica Pratt, a 33-year-old transgender woman, told The LA Times on Wednesday, “It was just depressing. It was demeaning.”

“It’s a struggle being incarcerated and then to have someone tell you ‘You can’t go to classes, you can’t try to better yourself’ because of your sexual orientation,” said Pratt. “It’s degrading.”

More from The LA Times:

The settlement agreement, which was filed in federal court in Riverside, would compel the county to offer more housing options for gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex inmates; lift restrictions on participation in work, educational, religious and community reentry programs; and establish a committee that will meet regularly with incarcerated gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people to discuss their housing options.

Transgender and intersex inmates will also have the opportunity to be housed based on their gender identity.

The settlement also includes a nearly $1-million payment that will be divided among class members. And the Alternative Lifestyle Tank will be renamed the GBTI Unit — gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex.

LGBTQ inmates will still have the choice to be housed in the newly-named unit, but the new agreement dictates that they will have access to rehabilitation/education courses and any other programs available to other inmates.

A spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Department declined to comment because the settlement has not been approved by the judge.

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Trump Blames “Local Politicians” For The Cancellation Of His $92 Million Military Parade

Donald Trump

This morning’s Twitter rant from Donald Trump went after “local politicians” in Washington, D.C. who Trump blamed for the astronomical price tag on his ego-stroke of a military parade.

When the cost of putting on the parade (that only Trump wants) jumped from $12 million to $92 million, the Pentagon cancelled (“postponed”) the ceremonial waste of money.

“The local politicians who run Washington, D.C. (poorly) know a windfall when they see it. When asked to give us a price for holding a great celebratory military parade, they wanted a number so ridiculously high that I cancelled it. Never let someone hold you up!,” wrote the Trumpster.

“I will instead attend the big parade already scheduled at Andrews Air Force Base on a different date, & go to the Paris parade, celebrating the end of the War, on November 11th. Maybe we will do something next year in D.C. when the cost comes WAY DOWN. Now we can buy some more jet fighters!” he added.

To be clear, I’m all for supporting and honoring our military. But instead of Trump getting off on his own little ego trip, how about we spend the $92 million on helping homeless and unemployed vets?

The mayor of Washington, D.C. clapped back at the prez saying she was the one who brought “the realities of parades” to the reality star in the White House.

#Boom

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Pentagon Cancels Trump’s Military Parade After Price Tag Jumps To $92 Million

Donald Trump

Donald Trump was so impressed by the Bastille Day celebration in France last year, he decided he wanted to throw a similar parade utilizing the U.S. military.

A big to-do marching down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.

Usually such expressions of military might are rare and occur after the end of a major conflict. The last such parade happened in 1991 after the conclusion of the Persian Gulf War.

But Trump wanted his parade even though he’s touted cost-savings in the military lately. Most recently he cancelled military exercises with South Korea saying they were a waste. Those military games would have cost about $14 million.

Early estimates put the price tag for the military parade at around $12 million.

But today, a Pentagon official leaked an updated estimate that showed the parade would cost upwards of $92 million – almost 8 times the original estimate.

And so, this evening The Washington Post is reporting that the parade is now cancelled or postponed with the intention to “explore opportunities in 2019.”

Don’t you think $92 million would be better used helping our veterans in more concrete ways than marching soldiers down the street just to stroke Trump’s ego?

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News Round-Up: August 16, 2018

Andrew Serkin (via Instagram)

Some news items you might have missed:

• Miami-based InstaHunk Andrew Serkin (above) took a break from the sun. #LuckyUs

• An Oklahoma school district briefly shut down this week after people purporting to be parents of students used social media to make violent, epithet-filled threats against a transgender girl. “If he wants to be a female, make him a female,” one user wrote. “A good sharp knife will do the job really quick.” Another post read, “You know we have open hunting seasons on them kind. Ain’t no bag limit either.”

• Regarding the still-unfolding and massive molestation scandal wracking the Catholic Church in Pennsylvania, Catholic League president Bill Donohue today told followers the alleged victims were not raped: “they were groped or otherwise abused, but not penetrated, which is what the word ‘rape’ means.” #SRSLY

• A new twist in the #MeToo movement: An 11-month Title IX investigation recently found New York University Professor Avital Ronell responsible for sexually harassing her gay student, Nimrod Reitman.

• GQ Magazine got in hot water for calling these guys “stocky.”#Stocky???

• Omarosa Manigault Newman‘s tell-all Unhinged claims that Ivanka Trump hated the Saturday Night Live sketch that labeled her “complicit” in March 2017. According to Omarosa, Ivanka was “thin-skinned and could not seem to take a joke.”

• The California Senate has approved AB 2943, a bill that could protect LGBTQ people statewide from undergoing gay conversion therapy. The bill passed in the state Assembly in April. After heading back to the Assembly for a concurrence vote, the bill will hopefully be signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown.

• Donald Trump’s military parade this fall is shaping up to cost $80 million more than initially estimated. The parade, slated for Nov. 10, is now estimated to cost $92 million, blowing way past the original $12 million estimate.

• Queer artist Anthony Starble recently teamed up with The Klassiks to create an sexy EDM remix of his latest single, “Paperweight.” The new mix adds a catchy synth line and bass drops that kicks up the intensity from the original.

I like. Listen below and then head to iTunes for more from Starble here.

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Colorado: Anti-LGBTQ Baker Refuses To Sell Trans Woman A Cake

Anti-LGBTQ Colorado baker Jack Phillips of Masterpiece Cakeshop has filed a new lawsuit against Gov. John Hickenlooper and Colorado Civil Rights Commission officials alleging “religious persecution” over his refusal to bake a cake for a transgender individual.
Jack Phillips of Masterpiece Cakeshop

Anti-LGBTQ Colorado baker Jack Phillips of Masterpiece Cakeshop has filed a new lawsuit against Gov. John Hickenlooper and Colorado Civil Rights Commission officials alleging “religious persecution” over his refusal to bake a cake for a transgender individual.

According to The Denver Post, Phillips’ lawsuit states the commission found the baker violated the state’s LGBT protection laws this past June when he declined to bake a pink and blue cake for trans woman Autumn Scardina of Arvada who was celebrating her seventh year of gender transition. Phillips claims the cake would have amounted to endorsement of messages of sex and gender identity that conflict with his deeply held religious beliefs.

Upon being rebuffed, Scardina filed a complaint with the Colorado Civil Rights Commission which ultimately determined Phillips had discriminated against Scardina based on her gender identity which violates the state’s public accommodation laws.

“The woman on the phone did not object to my request for a birthday cake until I told her I was celebrating my transition from male to female,” Scardina wrote in her complaint, according to ThinkProgress. “I believe that other people who request birthday cakes get to select the color and theme of the cake.”

In a June 28 letter, the commission informed Phillips he was in violation of state laws and to find a way to reach an amicable resolution with Scardina.

According to the lawsuit, Phillips is seeking not only restitution for legal fees but $100,000 from the director of the civil rights commission in “punitive damages.”
Phillips gained national attention in 2012 when he refused to sell a wedding cake to a gay couple.

In June this year, his case made it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court which found the Colorado Civil Rights Commission may have been prejudiced against Phillips in doubting the sincerity of his religious claims and asked the commission to review the decision. The high court specifically noted at the time that the ruling was specific to this case only and not a broad pronouncement in support for LGBTQ discrimination.

In a press release, attorney Kristen Waggoner of the anti-LGBTQ law group Alliance Defending Freedom who is representing Phillips said, “The state of Colorado is ignoring the message of the U.S. Supreme Court by continuing to single out Jack for punishment and to exhibit hostility toward his religious beliefs.”

“Even though Jack serves all customers and simply declines to create custom cakes that express messages or celebrate events in violation of his deeply held beliefs, the government is intent on destroying him — something the Supreme Court has already told it not to do,” she added. “Neither Jack nor any other creative professionals should be targeted by the government for living consistently with their religious beliefs.”