Posts

Posted on

It’s National Voter Registration Day, So Get Ready To Flex Your Vote

(image via celebrity photographer Mike Ruiz/Instagram)
Today is National Voter Registration Day, so just in case…here’s some info you might want to use. So many people believe their one vote may not matter in elections, but they do. How do I know? Check this out. Donald Trump won Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin  – all three – with less than one percent of the vote. LESS THAN ONE PERCENT. He won Florida by less than 2 points. But, check out how many LGBTQ voters there were that not only didn’t vote but didn’t even REGISTER to vote.
(graphic via VoteProud.org)
Clearly the LGBTQ vote could – and should – make a difference. VoteProud.org is a non-partisan movement to inspire the LGBTQ+ community to register and vote. Working to combat voter apathy among all marginalized Americans, their movement demands all citizens are treated equally. ​ The group has partnered with When We All Vote, a non-partisan voting effort co-chaired by Michelle Obama and several other influential voices who are changing the culture around voting using a data-driven and multifaceted approach to increase participation in elections.

If you click over to VoteProud, you can easily check your voter registration or – if you’re not registered already – do it right there.

View this post on Instagram

We are weeks away from the single most important thing we can do this decade. If we cannot mobilize every single person we know to vote, we will suffer unprecedented oppression and hatred for the next 4 years and beyond. The earth will be stripped of its resources leaving the next generation with nothing. We will all be stripped of our rights as minorities, LGBTQ people, women and pretty much everyone else whose net worth is less than $20 million. If we can each inspire 1 person to vote, we can say that we did something. Doing nothing is no longer an option. PLEASE REQUEST YOUR MAIL IN BALLOT AT WWW.VOTE.ORG TODAY! I will personally shout out every single person who DMs me a pic of their Absentee ballot application form. I long for a time when we aren’t motivated by hatred and divisiveness. We can have it but ONLY OF WE TAKE IT! Rest In Peace #ruthbaderginsburg #VOTE #MIKERUIZ #absenteeballot #mailinballot #votebymail #LOVE

A post shared by mike ruiz (@mikeruizone) on

Posted on

Mitt Romney Won’t Block Senate Floor Vote For Supreme Court Nominee

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT)
Republican Senator Mitt Romney of Utah has announced he will not block a floor vote for Donald Trump’s nominee to replace the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court before the upcoming presidential election. From NPR:

Romney issued a statement Tuesday that he intends “to follow the Constitution and precedent in considering the President’s nominee, and if the nominee reaches the Senate floor he intends “to vote based upon their qualifications.”

Romney’s support for moving ahead means that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is all but certain to have the 51 votes he needs to take up the nomination. Just two GOP senators, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, have said they oppose taking up the president’s nominee to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg in a presidential election year.

Romney, the party’s 2012 nominee for president, has been one of the few Republicans in the Senate to oppose Trump. In his statement, he asserted that the “historical precedent” of election-year nominations is that the Senate “generally does not confirm an opposing party’s nominee but does confirm a nominee of its own.”

“If the nominee reaches the Senate floor, I intend to vote based upon their qualifications,” concludes Romney’s statement. In 2016, nearly nine months before the presidential election, Senate Republicans refused to vote on President Obama’s nominee for the high court, Merrick Garland, claiming it was “too close to the election.” At the time, nothing was mentioned about ‘opposing party’ nominees. Trump has tweeted that he will announce his nominee to replace Ginsburg on Saturday. We are now just 42 days before the 2020 election day.

Posted on

News Round-Up: September 21, 2020

Me and the Snoop
Some news items you might have missed: • Snoop Watch: Taking a ride with Snoopy (above). He’s soooo good in the car… #BeagleLife • Law And Crime: A federal judge in Wisconsin ruled on Monday that absentee ballots postmarked as mailed on Nov. 3—namely, Election Day—shall be counted up to six days later. • The Advocate: Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden denounced Poland’s so-called ‘LGBT-free zones’ as “having no place in the European Union or anywhere in the world.” Biden has pledged to make LGBTQ+ rights around the world a priority of his administration.

• Flip-Flop: In a letter to his Senate Judiciary Committee colleagues, Sen. Lindsey Graham says he’s reversed on confirming a Supreme Court Justice so close to a presidential election because he thinks Democrats were mean to Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearings. • Tennessean: Former Nashville Councilman Tony Tenpenny died of complications due to COVID-19 on Sunday after several weeks in the hospital. In the months before his death, the conservative Republican shared several social media posts expressing doubts about the coronavirus pandemic including a post calling the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) “pure lying asses.” • Reuters: Spain has recorded 31,428 more coronavirus cases since Friday, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to 671,468, health ministry data showed on Monday. Spain has the highest number of COVID-19 cases in western Europe and regional authorities have ordered a partial lockdown from Monday in some Madrid neighborhoods where cases are rising fast. • ETonline: I thought the Television Academy did a terrific job presenting its virtual Emmy Awards last night, although some of the attempts at comedy fell a bit flat without a live audience’s reaction. For instance, having lost earlier in the Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series category (for the 4th time), a stunning Laverne Cox presented the award for Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series and did a funny bit about missing out on the award. But the tone of her voice – plus no live audience to laugh along with her – made for an awkward moment, and ABC censored part of her remarks.

Posted on

Congress Approves 988 Suicide Hotline

(image via Unsplash/Ian)
The U.S. House of Representatives today passed the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act, which when implemented will allow Americans to simply dial ‘988’ to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, instead of the current ten-digit number. Passage of the bill authorizes the funding mechanisms needed for 988 to be successful and it contains several key LGBTQ-inclusive provisions, including requirements for LGBTQ cultural competency training for all Lifeline counselors and the establishment of an Integrated Voice Response option for LGBTQ youth and other high-risk populations to reach specialized care. Sam Brinton (they/them pronouns), Vice President of Advocacy and Government Affairs for The Trevor Project, commended Congress in a statement saying, in part, “This passage is a historic victory, as this is the first explicitly LGBTQ-inclusive bill to pass unanimously in history — and 988 will undoubtedly save countless lives. The Trevor Project is the world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & questioning (LGBTQ) young people. According to The Trevor Project’s 2020 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health:

  • 40% of respondents seriously considered attempting suicide in the past twelve months, with more than half of transgender and nonbinary youth having seriously considered it
  • 68% of LGBTQ youth reported symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder in the past two weeks, including more than 3 in 4 transgender and nonbinary youth
  • 48% of LGBTQ youth reported engaging in self-harm in the past twelve months, including over 60% of transgender and nonbinary youth
  • 1 in 3 LGBTQ youth reported that they had been physically threatened or harmed in their lifetime due to their LGBTQ identity
  • 46% of youth report they wanted psychological or emotional counseling from a mental health professional but were unable to receive it in the past twelve months

(via The Trevor Project)

Posted on

Judge Throws Out Trump Lawsuit To Stop Mail-In Voting In Nevada

Donald Trump

The Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee (RNC) lost today in a legal court fight meant to derail mail-in voting in Nevada for the 2020 presidential election. From Talking Points Memo:

U.S. District Judge James Mahan on Monday threw out the Trump campaign’s lawsuit over Nevada’s vote-by-mail measure that directs all local elections officials to send mail-in ballots to all of the registered voters in the state.

Mahan ruled that the Trump campaign, along with the Republican National Committee (RNC) and the Nevada GOP, “make no showing” of an unfair advantage against GOP candidates caused by the measure, known as Assembly Bill 4 (AB 4).

The judge described the plaintiffs’ claims–that voting by mail hurts Republicans and that mail-in ballots illegally distort the vote count–as “generalized and speculative.”

“Plaintiffs never describe how their member voters will be harmed by vote dilution where other voters will not,” Mahan wrote. Republican candidates “face no harms that are unique from their electoral opponents.”

Trump has repeatedly attacked AB 4 in his attempts to undermine and suppress the vote in the battleground state. In sowing seeds of doubt, the Donald continually alleges – without any evidence – that Democrats (but not Republicans) would somehow cheat with mail-in voting. And yet the last time there was any voter fraud of note actually found, it was on behalf of a North Carolina Republican candidate back in 2018. Several states – including Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Utah, and Washington – have handled their elections via mail-in ballots for years with no irregularities reported.

Posted on

The Best Kind Of ‘Schitt’s-Storm’ At The 72nd Emmy Awards

The stars of Schitt’s Creek at the 2020 Emmy Awards (image via Instagram/SchittsCreek)
It was a Schitt’s-krieg at the 72nd Annual Emmy Awards Sunday night as the LGBTQ-themed Schitt’s Creek swept the major comedy categories winning a record-breaking 9 Emmys, the most ever for a comedy series in a single year. It was quite the capper for the sixth and final season of the show which has become beloved by straight and queer audiences alike, drawn in by the series’ celebration of inclusivity and diversity. The series spent much of the season on the touching, and often hysterical, same-sex love story between Dan Levy’s ‘David Rose’ and Noah Reid’s ‘Patrick.’ Catherine O’Hara was the first cast member to be honored on Sunday night as she scored for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. The win marked O’Hara’s first at the Emmys. “This is so cool,” said O’Hara from a viewing party in Toronto. “I will forever be grateful to Eugene and Daniel Levy for the opportunity to play a woman of a certain age—my age—who gets to fully be her ridiculous self.” Eugene Levy followed that winning Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series for his role as the show’s patriarch, Johnny Rose. His son and series co-creator Dan Levy and his co-star Annie Murphy both picked up statues for their performances in the Outstanding Supporting Actor and Actress categories.

At that point, an overwhelmed Dan Levy tweeted out, “What the actual f*ck!”

But wait! There’s more! Dan Levy was also honored for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series and Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series. And finally, the show took home the top honor, Outstanding Comedy Series. In accepting the award, Dan Levy took a moment to encourage viewers to get out and vote. “Our show at its core is about the transformational effects of love and acceptance and that is something that we need more of now than ever before,” said Dan Levy as he accepted the award. “I just wanted to say that for any of you who have not registered to vote, please do so, and then go out and vote because that is the only way we are going to have some love and acceptance out there. Please do that. I’m so sorry for making this political, but I had to!” His dad chimed in thanking his son for taking “our ‘fish out of water’ story about the Rose family” and transforming it into “a celebration of inclusivity, a castigation of homophobia, and a declaration of the power of love.”

Earlier in the week, Schitt’s Creek also won Emmys for casting and costumes at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards. It was quite the reversal of fortune for the show which was shut out of contention during its first four seasons. Last year, the Pop TV series garnered four nominations, including one for Outstanding Comedy, but went home empty-handed. In other queer Emmy news, RuPaul’s Drag Race won 6 awards including the show’s third-in-a-row Outstanding Competition Program Emmy Award and Mama Ru’s 5th straight win for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Competition Program.

Former Disney Channel star Zendaya (24) also made history as the youngest actress to win in the Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series for her compelling work as complicated queer teen ‘Rue’ on HBO’s Euphoria.

For a list of all of Sunday night’s winners, head over to Emmys.com. (source: The New York Times, Emmys.com)

Posted on

Poll: Majority Of Americans Don’t Trust Trump’s Promises Of ‘Safe’ Vaccine By Spring

The first confirmed case of the omicron variant in the U.S. has been discovered in California.

A new ABC News/Ipsos poll shows the majority of Americans have little to no confidence in Donald Trump vouching for the safety or effectiveness of a coronavirus vaccine he claims could be available to everyone by Spring 2021. From ABC News:

Fewer than 1 in 10 (9%) Americans have a great deal of confidence in Trump to confirm vaccine effectiveness with another 18% reporting only a “good amount” of confidence in the poll conducted by Ipsos in partnership with ABC News using Ipsos’ Knowledge Panel.

In contrast, 69% don’t have confidence in the president vouching for a vaccine, including 16% saying “not so much” and 53% saying “none at all.”

On Wednesday, CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield told the Senate Appropriations Committee that he did not foresee a coronavirus inoculation becoming “generally available” to Americans for another year. Later that day, Trump described Redfield as “confused” and said he thought Redfield made “a mistake.”

The survey also asked respondents which of the presidential candidates they believe is “more honest and trustworthy.” Biden scored much higher than Trump garnering 58 percent support on the question while Trump lagged 19 points behind the Democrat at 39 percent.

Posted on

Trump Alleges Ginsburg’s Dying Wish Was Penned By Democrats

L-R Donald Trump, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
According to NPR’s Nina Totenberg, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dictated this message to her granddaughter Clara Spera just days before her passing: “My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.” This morning, Donald Trump phoned into Fox & Friends, and with no evidence of any kind, alleged that Ginsburg’s dying wish was written by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), or Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). “I don’t know that she said that, or was that written out by Adam Schiff and Schumer and Pelosi?” said Trump. “I would be more inclined to the second. That came out of the wind, it sounds so beautiful. But that sounds like a Schumer deal, or maybe a Pelosi, or shifty Schiff. So that came out of the wind.” Schiff clapped back in a tweet: “Mr. President, this is low. Even for you. No, I didn’t write Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s dying wish to a nation she served so well, and spent her whole life making a more perfect union. But I am going to fight like hell to make it come true. No confirmation before inauguration.”

Posted on

News Round-Up: September 20, 2020

Some news items you might have missed: • NewNowNext: RuPaul (above) has made Emmys herstory by snatching her fifth consecutive Emmy for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Competition Program. RuPaul’s Drag Race is nominated for Outstanding Competition Program during this year’s Primetime Emmys, Sunday, September 20 at 8pm ET on ABC. • Edge Media: A gay couple in New York recalls the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg officiating their wedding. • KIT212: Check out Kenneth’s weekly round-up of the latest in LGBTQ publications like South Florida’s Hot Spots! (below) featuring Pose star Billy Porter.

(image via Hot Spots Magazine)
• New York Times: Democratic donors gave more money online in the 9 p.m. hour Friday after Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death was announced — $6.2 million — than in any other single hour since ActBlue, the donation-processing site, was started 16 years ago. Then donors broke the site’s record again in the 10 p.m. hour when donors gave another $6.3 million — more than $100,000 per minute. • The Nation: Last week, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) whistleblower told the press that agency officials had ordered him to downplay the threat of white supremacist terrorism. A recent DHS intelligence assessment about physical threats to the 2020 election season identifies “white supremacist extremists” as the foremost threat to the democratic process this year. • Out Music: Ahead of their upcoming, pandemic-delayed album Love Goes, Grammy winner Sam Smith busts some dance moves in the music video for the new electro-pop dance single “Diamonds.” The album was postponed from an original release date in June due to the coronavirus health threat. The powers that be also wisely rethought the original title, To Die For, with the pandemic in mind.