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Arizona Certifies Biden Win In The Grand Canyon State

Arizona has officially certified its results of the 2020 election cycle indicating President-elect Joe Biden won the Grand Canyon State’s 11 electoral votes. The certification also makes it possible for Senator-elect Mark Kelly to be sworn in to the U.S. Senate this week. From CNN:

Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, certified the election results Monday morning, saying the elections process was the most secure in recent history, “despite unfounded claims to the contrary.” The state’s Gov. Doug Ducey and Attorney General Mark Brnovich, along with Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Brutinel, witnessed the certification, as required by state law. These three officials are Republicans.

Ducey, who echoed Hobbs’ comments and praised the integrity of Arizona’s election system, also said he would sign official documentation on Monday and have it hand-delivered to the president of the US Senate, so that Kelly “can be sworn in as swiftly as possible.”

More than 3.4 million ballots were cast in Arizona this election cycle indicating a turnout of nearly 80% of eligible voters in the state. The official tally shows Biden beat Donald Trump by 10,457 votes. Donald Trump’s lawyer Jenna Ellis complained on Twitter the certification was ‘rushed’ but it’s been 27 days since Election Day – the exact same length of time as in 2016.

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Nurse Suspended For ‘Cavalier Disregard’ For COVID In TikTok Video

(stock image of a nurse working in a hospital)
An oncology nurse who works at a hospital in Salem, Oregon, took to TikTok recently to brag about how she doesn’t follow coronavirus guidelines outside of work. The clip used audio of screaming in a scene from ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas.’ “When my co-workers find out I still travel, don’t wear a mask when I’m out and let my kids have play dates,” the nurse wrote in the video’s caption. The clip has since been deleted, but others have shared a ‘duet’ version of the video posted by a TikTok user who captioned their own video, “To each their own, but why would you brag about it to others?” That post has garnered over 287K responses as of this writing. The Washington Post reports the oncology nurse has been placed on administrative leave in light of her video.

In a statement, the hospital said the nurse, who has not been publicly identified by her employer, “displayed cavalier disregard for the seriousness of this pandemic and her indifference towards physical distancing and masking out of work.”

“We also want to assure you that this one careless statement does not reflect the position of Salem Health or the hardworking and dedicated caregivers who work here,” said the hospital, adding that an investigation is underway.

@amandabutcher2To each their own, but why would you brag about it to others? 🤦🏻‍♀️ I guess we could ask Loveiskind05 #nurse #covid #health #pandemic #fyp #foryou ♬ original sound – Amanda Butcher

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Teachers’ Homophobic Chat Left Open During High School Zoom Class

(image via Change.org)
Some high school teachers in New Jersey are in hot water after sharp-eyed students noticed (and screen captured) a homophobic chat among educators left open on a science teacher’s desktop during a Zoom class. From NJ.com:

In a group chat dated Wednesday, Dumont High School teachers appear to bash the sexual orientation and lifestyle of one of their co-workers.

“Why is that kid with the gay gym teacher?” asks one, according to a screenshot of the chat posted online.

“Is that her adopted kid? Who is gonna be all f—-d up growing up watching 2 chicks kissing and calling them both mom,” says another, according to the screenshot.

Dumont Mayor Andrew LaBruno said Wednesday the comments were made between Dumont High School teachers during a group chat while the Zoom class was taking place. Someone captured the chat and shared it with others, the mayor said.

In a statement posted to Facebook, LaBruno called the comments “disturbing and extremely appalling” and said he is calling on schools Superintendent Emanuele Triggiano to investigate the matter.

A petition at Change.org calling for the homophobic teachers’ resignations has more than 18,000 signatures at this writing.

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Podcast: LGBTQs Named For Biden White House, New Holiday Music & More

The Randy Report podcast

The Randy Report podcast delivers the week's top stories in a quick, convenient podcast - 'the 60 Minutes of gay news - only shorter' In this week’s podcast: • The Biden/Harris transition team has named LGBTQ White House veterans to prominent roles in the incoming administration • The murderer of a transgender teen has been sentenced to life in prison • Homophobic high school teachers in New Jersey were caught dissing a queer colleague during a Zoom class • Award-winning singer/songwriter Justin Utley released his first holiday single, “All is Bright” • First Lady Melania Trump planned to light the White House in rainbow colors during Pride Month but the idea was shut down • A new poll shows LGBTQ voters did NOT turn out in record numbers for Donald Trump after all All that and more in this episode of The Randy Report podcast

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InstaHunk Round-Up: November 29, 2020

Checking in on some of my favorite InstaHunks this weekend. What can I say? I like to look at nice things 🙂

First up, Jeff Ferreira says he’s ‘single in Rio de Janeiro,’ but I spy two wine glasses in the pic… Wait a second, though, international performer and former Mr. Continental, Ramon Ventura, appears to be in Rio as well – so maybe we could get the two together?

 

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A post shared by Ramon Ventura (@ramonventura3)

Fitness model Killian has a new book, Bliss, available to order. Where’s my dang credit card???

 

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A post shared by Killian (@killian___)

Personal trainer and author Bruno Baba thinks he looks fat in this photo but “at least I’ll be warm in the winter.” #ICanShowYouSomeFat

 

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A post shared by Bruno Baba (@baba_bruno)

And big and beefy GymBear (Wes Dupee) has a cute and cozy Christmas tree up and ready for the holidays:

 

 

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A post shared by Wes Dupee (@gymbear79)

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Maria Bartiromo Trends On Twitter After Disastrous Trump ‘Interview’

Fox News Channel host Maria Bartiromo began trending on Twitter this morning after allowing Donald Trump to call into her ‘Sunday Morning Futures’ program where he ranted on several baseless claims about the results of the 2020 presidential election without one fact check in sight. As Trump threw blame left and right — at one point suggesting the FBI and Justice Department might be involved in a conspiracy to stop his reelection — Bartiromo sat silently with only an occasional tilt of her head to indicate any sense of journalistic curiosity. The Donald complained about ‘massive dumps’ (poor choice of words considering #DiaperDon recently trended on Twitter) which we can only guess referred to the adding of mail-in ballots in some states that weren’t allowed (by law) to be counted until after the polls closed on Election Day. #MassiveDumps soon began to trend on social media as well. Trump also attacked Dominion Voting Systems saying the machines and software were defective. What he didn’t address, however, is that Dominion systems were used in 24 states during the 2020 election, including states Trump won like Louisiana, Iowa, Missouri, and Ohio. And yet, Trump hasn’t challenged the veracity of the voting there… During one exchange, Bartiromo posited, “If you take out the swing states…” which makes no sense, obviously. We can’t just pretend Nevada, Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan don’t exist. “So this is no longer about you, President Trump. This is about America and many people agree with you,” Bartiromo actually said out loud.

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Trump Pays $3 Million For Wisconsin Recount, Biden Wins Again

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has cleared the way for a state ban on the harmful practice of conversion therapy

The recount of the presidential vote in Wisconsin – requested and paid for by the Trump campaign to the tune of $3 million – is complete and it appears Joe Biden’s lead increased by 87 votes. From the Washington Post:

The recount of presidential ballots in Wisconsin’s two largest counties finished Sunday, reconfirming that President-elect Joe Biden defeated President Trump in the key swing state by more than 20,000 votes.

After Milwaukee County completed its tally Friday and Dane County concluded its count Sunday, there was little change in the final breakdown of the more than 800,000 ballots that had been cast in the two jurisdictions. As a result of the recount, Biden’s lead over Trump in Wisconsin grew by 87 votes.

“The Wisconsin recount is not about finding mistakes in the count, it is about finding people who have voted illegally, and that case will be brought after the recount is over, on Monday or Tuesday,” tweeted Trump on Saturday as he saw the writing on the wall. “We have found many illegal votes. Stay tuned!”

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PA Supreme Court Unanimously Rejects Another Trump Election Challenge

Donald Trump (image via Flickr/WhiteHouse – public domain)
Another loss for Team Trump as the Pennsylvania Supreme Court dismissed an election challenge led by U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, who attempted to argue that universal mail-in voting violated the state constitution. From NBC News:

Kelly, along with several other Pennsylvania Republicans, sought to invalidate millions of mail-in votes, which could have ceded a key state won by President-Elect Joe Biden to President Donald Trump.

The ruling said, “Petitioners sought to invalidate the ballots of the millions of Pennsylvania voters who utilized the mail-in voting procedures. … Alternatively, Petitioners advocated the extraordinary proposition that the court disenfranchise all 6.9 million Pennsylvanians who voted in the General Election and instead ‘direct the General Assembly to choose Pennsylvania’s electors.'”

The high court ruled no on all counts and said, “All other outstanding motions are dismissed as moot.” It said the claim could have resulted in the “disenfranchisement” of millions of voters.

The court also criticized Kelly and company for filing their lawsuit more than a year after the law establishing universal mail-in voting was passed by the state legislature. Today’s ruling wipes out a lower court order that had blocked officials from certifying the Keystone State’s election results. More than 26  election challenges filed by Team Trump have now been dismissed by courts in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and elsewhere. So. Much. Winning.

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Biden Gains Votes In Wisconsin Recount Requested By Trump

L-R President Donald Trump, former Vice President Joe Biden
Reuters reports the Trump requested recount in Wisconsin’s largest county concluded on Friday with Democratic President-elect Joe Biden gaining votes. Oops. The recount of nearly 460,000 ballots in Milwaukee County showed Biden gained 257 votes to Trump’s 125, resulting in a net gain of 132 votes for Biden. The unofficial statewide tally shows Biden defeated Trump there by about 20,600 votes. Since a full state-wide recount would cost the Trump campaign $7.9 million, the Donald chose to only recount Dane and Milwaukee counties — home to the cities of Madison and Milwaukee for the discount price of $3 million. Such recounts in the past have rarely changed the eventual results by more than a few hundred votes. Green Party candidate Jill Stein requested a more extensive statewide recount in 2016 and the recount only altered the results by 131 votes (in Trump’s favor).

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News Round-Up: November 27, 2020

(image via Instagram/MrOliverDoxie)
Some news items you might have missed: • Instagram: Today’s lead image comes from the adorable Mr. Oliver Doxie account – if you love dachshunds (and who doesn’t?) – you should follow here. The caption for the pic: “When you eat too much and wear a blanket around the house like…” #WhoHasntBeenThere? • The Hill: Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams are among the list of nominees for TIME Magazine’s Person of the Year distinction for 2020. • Kenneth-in-the-212: Check out Kenneth’s weekly collection of the what’s what in LGBTQ publications like entertainment journalist Karl Schmid on the cover of A&U Magazine (below).
(image via A&U Magazine)
• New York Daily News: Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro doesn’t intend to get vaccinated for coronavirus, despite having suffered from the virus himself earlier this year. A study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine said populations can safely stop social distancing if at least 75% of people are vaccinated with a shot that’s over 70% effective. • CBC News: A disabled young man who works as a greeter at a Walmart in British Columbia, Canada, was assaulted – pushed to the ground and punched repeatedly – after asking a customer to wear a mask in the store.

• Wall Street Journal: The number of people hospitalized in the U.S. due to Covid-19 surpassed 90,000 for the first time, as the pandemic loomed over Thanksgiving Day celebrations. • The Street: Walt Disney plans to lay off a total of 32,000 employees in the first half of 2021, a further reduction in its workforce as the Covid-19 pandemic and severe drop-off in visitors to its theme parks continues to slam its business. Still, the company will be issuing $1.5 billion to its shareholders.