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GOP Rep. Duncan Hunter Pleads Guilty To Stealing Hundreds Of Thousands From Campaign

Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA50)
GOP Congressman Duncan Hunter pleaded guilty to stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from campaign funds for his personal use. Expenditures included a weekend-long bachelor party and a $140,000 family vacation to Italy. Not an accounting mistake; not a ‘witch-hunt’ as he previously claimed. From the Department of Justice:

U.S. Representative Duncan D. Hunter pleaded guilty in federal court today to the major count in his indictment, admitting that he knowingly and willfully stole hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign funds that he and his wife used to maintain their lifestyle.

According to the plea agreement, Hunter and his wife, Margaret, who pleaded guilty in June 2019, illegally converted more than $150,000 in campaign funds from 2010 through 2016 to purchase goods and services for their personal use and enjoyment, and engaged in 30 or more illegal transactions using campaign funds for personal use.

As detailed in the indictment, the Hunters stole money from the campaign for items as inconsequential as fast food, movie tickets, and sneakers; as trivial as video games, Lego sets and Playdoh; as mundane as groceries, dog food, and utilities; and as self-indulgent as luxury hotels, overseas vacations and plane tickets for their family pet rabbits, Eggburt and Cadbury – all while their family was otherwise deeply in debt.

During the course of the conspiracy, the Hunters overdrew their bank account more than 1,100 times in a seven-year period resulting in $37,761 in “overdraft” and “insufficient funds” bank fees. They racked up $24,600 in finance charges, interest, and other fees related to late, over the limit, and returned payment fees for their credit cards. Hunter returns to court on March 17, 2020, at 9:00 a.m. for sentencing where he’ll face possibly five years in prison and $250,000 fine.

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Ambassador To Zambia Denounces 15-Year Prison Sentence For 2 Gay Men

(stock photo via Depositphotos)

(stock photo via Depositphotos)
(stock photo via Depositphotos)
Two gay men in Zambia were arrested for having gay sex in a private hotel room, and the High Court of Zambia has now sentenced the men to 15 years in prison for being intimate behind closed doors. The south-eastern African country, which retains its colonial-era laws, offers no legal protections for LGBTQ people. The men, Japhet Chataba and Steven Samba, booked the room in 2017. According to reports, a female worker peeked through a window and saw the men being intimate. Last week, a judge dismissed an appeal against their convictions for crimes against the order of nature (the legal term for gay sex in Zambia) sentencing them both to 15 years in prison. World map showing Zambia on continent of Africa The U.S. ambassador to Zambia, Daniel Foote, said in a statement: “I was personally horrified to read about the sentencing of two men, who had a consensual relationship, which hurt absolutely no one.” Foote implored the government of Zambia to review the case but received a fervent backlash for speaking out. In an official embassy statement, Foote announced he was forced to cancel attending World AIDS Day events due to threats against him. “I was shocked at the venom and hate directed at me and my country, largely in the name of “Christian” values, by a small minority of Zambians,” wrote the ambassador. “I thought, perhaps incorrectly, that Christianity meant trying to live like our Lord, Jesus Christ. I am not qualified to sermonize, but I cannot imagine Jesus would have used bestiality comparisons or referred to his fellow human beings as “dogs,” or “worse than animals;” allusions made repeatedly by your countrymen and women about homosexuals.” Foote’s official statement also made mention of the $500 million in annual assistance Zambia receives from the United States saying, “In these countries were we contribute resources, this includes partnering in areas of mutual interest, and holding the recipient government accountable for its responsibilities under this partnership.”

In an interview with Sky News, President Lungu defended his country’s homophobic laws saying, “Even animals don’t do it, so why should we be forced to do it?…because we want to be smart, civilized and advanced and so on.” “If there are such countries which will allow bestiality, let them do it but not here,” he added. Ah, yes – the old ‘compare being gay to having sex with animals’ argument. How fresh, how new… Zambia’s president told Sky News his government will officially complain to the Trump administration over Foote’s remarks. (source: Sky News)

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Kamala Harris Suspends Presidential Campaign Due To Lack Of Funds

Sen. Kamala Harris suspends her presidential campaign

Sen. Kamala Harris suspends her presidential campaign
Sen. Kamala Harris suspends her presidential campaign
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) has announced she is suspending her campaign for the Democratic nomination for president. In a statement posted to Medium, the junior senator from California gets down to brass tacks quickly: “My campaign for president simply doesn’t have the financial resources we need to continue. I’m not a billionaire. I can’t fund my own campaign. And as the campaign has gone on, it’s become harder and harder to raise the money we need to compete.” “In good faith, I can’t tell you, my supporters and volunteers, that I have a path forward if I don’t believe I do,” she continues. “So, to you my supporters, it is with deep regret — but also with deep gratitude — that I am suspending my campaign today.”

Harris adds, however, that she will keep fighting for “what this campaign has been about. Justice for The People. All the people.” She goes on to list the many issues she made central to her candidacy including inadequate teacher pay, gun violence, unconstitutional state abortion laws, and speaking to the experiences of Black women and people of color. The senator closes her statement expressing gratitude to all of her supporters, friends, husband, and family, before adding: “And I want to be clear: although I am no longer running for President, I will do everything in my power to defeat Donald Trump and fight for the future of our country and the best of who we are.” Harris has been a longtime ally to the LGBTQ community going back to her days as Attorney General of California when she denounced her state’s Proposition 8 prior to its passage. She refused as AG to defend the homophobic law, which led to the Supreme Court ruling in 2013 that anti-LGBTQ groups seeking to defend the measure had no standing to do so. As a result, Proposition 8 was overturned. Harris also urged the California state legislature to ban the use of ‘gay panic’ or ‘trans panic’ legal defenses in crimes against LGBTQ people. As a senator, she supports the Equality Act and for allowing trans people equal access to public accommodations. In 2018, she introduced the Do No Harm Act which would prohibit the federal Religious Freedom From Restoration Act from being used against the LGBTQ community. She also introduced legislation to ensure that LGBTQ Americans were properly counted in the census. Key LGBTQ issues cited on her campaign site include:

  • Rollback the Trump/Pence hate agenda by reversing Trump’s actions to harm the LGBTQ+ community, including the transgender service ban and guidelines to protect students from discrimination and harassment.
  • Establish a Chief Advocate for LGBTQ+ affairs in the White House to ensure that LGBTQ+ Americans are represented in hiring and policy priorities across the government.
  • Fight for full equality for the LGBTQ+ community by passing the Equality Act and other laws to ensure that everyone is safe and supported at work, at school, and throughout their communities.

I like Harris a lot, and see a huge career in front of her. I think she instantly becomes a front-runner for Vice President, or Attorney General in the next (Democratic) administration. (source: Medium)  

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Trump Loses Appeal To Block Congress From Bank Docs

Trump walks past reporters with no comment
Donald Trump (image via public domain/White House)
From the New York Times:

A federal appeals court said Tuesday that Deutsche Bank must turn over detailed documents about President Trump’s finances to two congressional committees, a ruling that is almost certain to be appealed to the Supreme Court.

The decision was a victory for House Democrats as they investigate Mr. Trump and his businesses. It means that extensive information about Mr. Trump’s personal and business finances — which the president has spent years fighting to keep secret — has moved a step closer to becoming public.

Democratic-controlled congressional committees issued subpoenas to two banks — Deutsche Bank, long Mr. Trump’s biggest lender, and Capital One — this year for financial records related to the president, his companies and his family. Mr. Trump sued the banks to block them from complying.

Team Trump has seven days to appeal. Bet that they will.

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Elton John Drops F-Bomb Tirade On Security Guards Mid-Song

Pop superstar Elton John shocked his audience on Sunday when he stopped mid-song to go on a curse-laden rant at two security guards “Hey, you two security guards with the girl. F— off. Bring her back here immediately,” he said. “Come on you c—s. Morons, you both are, morons. You don’t treat girls like that. Leave her alone, you turds.” After hearing some gasps from the audience for using the c-word, Elton John apologized. “I apologize for the ‘c-word,’ I just hate people being assaulted, especially women by security guards. I have a pet hate of security guards anyway.”

Speaking to the Australian morning show Sunrise, journalist Peter Ford came to the defense of the security guards and added some behind-the-scenes info:

“A patron was in an area where she was not ticketed to be. The security guards, acting on the instructions of Elton John’s own team, tried to get her out. Elton caught it out of the corner of his eye and decided, I think, to play to the crowd by going on this rant.

“These were two people doing their job. Imagine how demeaned they would have felt at being abused by Elton John on the stage and then to have thousands of people in the crowd cheer him on. I think it was an appalling thing to do. If he’s got an issue he should be taking it up with his team, and today he should offer some sort of apology to the guards.”

(image via Depositphotos)

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News Round-Up: December 2, 2019

Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Woofy Wes Dupree (above) answers the eternal Sondheimian question “Does anyone still wear a hat?” • The Atlantic: John McWhorter does a better job expressing what I tried to say last week about that Pete Buttigieg ‘Lying MF’ hit piece essay. • NY Post: A woman in Brazil was sentenced to 25 years in prison for stabbing her gay son to death after the hitmen she hired didn’t get it done. • Tweet of the Day: Paul Rudnick re-captions this photo from the White House in perfect form.

• White House: For the third year in a row, Donald Trump did not mention LGBTQ people in his World AIDS Day proclamation. It goes without saying that, while not a ‘gay’ disease, HIV/AIDS disproportionately affects LGBTQ people. • The Hill: Donald Trump loves to nickname his political opponents and he’s decided the latest entrant in the Democratic primary will be called “Mini Mike Bloomberg.” For the record, Bloomberg is 5’8″ tall. • Esquire: Still handsome, confident and charming at 82, Billy Dee Williams comes out as gender fluid in a new interview. Williams returns to the role of ‘Lando Calrissian’ in the upcoming Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. • Christmas Music: From the “required-listening” classic holiday album,  Barbra Streisand – A Christmas Album (1967).

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New Buttigieg Ad Goes Up In South Carolina

Mayor Pete Buttigieg listens to an African-American woman speak.

Mayor Pete Buttigieg listens to an African-American woman speak. The Hill reports Mayor Pete Buttigieg is putting $2 million behind his first campaign ad buy in South Carolina in advance of the upcoming Democratic primary in February. As has been widely reported, while the mayor has surged in Iowa and New Hampshire, he’s struggled with attracting black voters, which explains the new ad in South Carolina where black voters make up 60+ percent of the Democratic voting base. Says Buttigieg in the ad: “In our White House, you won’t have to shake your head and ask yourself, ‘Whatever happened to ‘I was hungry and you fed me. I was a stranger and you welcomed me.’ When I say we’ve got to unify the American people it doesn’t mean pretending that we’re all the same. It means unifying around issues from wages and family leave to gun violence and immigration. The hope of an American experience defined not by exclusion but by belonging.” According to the RealClearPolitics average, former Vice President Joe Biden has a strong lead in South Carolina, at 35.3 percent followed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), at 16.3 percent, and Sen. Bernie Sanders(I-Vt.), at 12.8 percent. Buttigieg is in fourth place, at 6.5 percent.

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Elizabeth Warren’s Emotional Moment With LGBTQ Teen

Sen. Elizabeth Warren has an emotional moment with LGBTQ teen about acceptance Sen. Elizabeth Warren had a touching exchange about acceptance with a young LGBTQ voter during a campaign stop in Marion, Iowa. The Democratic White House hopeful was taking questions from the audience when a 17-year-old named Raelyn asked a question about acceptance. “I was wondering if there was ever a time in your life where somebody you really looked up to maybe didn’t accept you as much, and how you dealt with that?” asked the teen. Warren paused before answering, “Yeah – my mother and I had very different views of how to build a future.” “She wanted me to marry well, and I really tried, and it just didn’t work out,” continued the senator quietly as her voice broke. “And there came a day when I had to call her and say, this is over. I can’t make it work. And I heard the disappointment in her voice. I knew how she felt about it. But I also knew it was the right thing to do.” “And sometimes you just gotta do what’s right inside and hope that maybe the rest of the world will come around to it,” explained Warren. “And maybe they will and maybe they won’t. But the truth is, you’ve gotta take care of yourself first and do this.” Warren then walked over to the teen and the two hugged.

Raelyn (she asked to not share her last name) told ABC News after the event that Warren’s “care for the LGBTQ Community” is what captured her attention in the first place because “it’s been a struggle with that, with people close to me.” “She gives me hope, which is not something that I’ve really had with other politicians, and I’ve followed politics for a while,” she added. Raelyn says she’s also following the campaigns of openly gay Mayor Pete Buttigieg and progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders, it’s Warren’s ‘authenticity’ that draws the teen in. “I just think she actually cares about the people that she talks about,” explained Raelyn while waiting in Warren’s selfie line. “I know everybody always says, oh, they’re just politicians. They’re just saying things to get your vote, but I don’t think it’s like that with her. I think she actually genuinely cares about what she’s saying.” Raelyn shared with the Massachusetts senator she plans to be a precinct captain for her campaign during the upcoming Iowa caucuses. (source: ABC News)

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Trump’s Golf Trips Have Cost Taxpayers $115 Million

From HuffPost:

With his Thanksgiving vacation, President Donald Trump’s golf hobby has now cost Americans an estimated $115 million in travel and security expenses ― the equivalent of 287 years of the presidential salary he frequently boasts about not taking.

Of that amount, many hundreds of thousands ― perhaps millions ― of dollars have gone into his own cash registers, as Secret Service agents, White House staff and other administration officials stay and eat at his hotels and golf courses.

“I love golf, but if I were in the White House, I don’t think I’d ever see Turnberry again. I don’t think I’d ever see Doral again. I don’t ever think I’d see anything. I just want to stay in the White House and work my ass off.” – Donald Trump speaking at a February 2016 campaign rally (public domain image via White House/Flickr)

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‘Will & Grace’ Actress Shelley Morrison Dies At 83

Shelley Morrison on ‘Will & Grace’ (screen capture)
Shelley Morrison, who played Megan Mullally’s sassy housekeeper ‘Rosario’ on the NBC sitcom Will & Grace, has died at 83. Variety reports the actress passed away at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles due to heart failure after a brief illness.

Rosario, who hailed from El Salvador, was originally written to appear in just one episode of the hit NBC series, but her dynamic with Megan Mullally’s Karen resonated so well with audiences that the character went on to appear in 68 episodes over eight seasons of the original series. According to co-creator Max Mutchnick, Morrison was asked to reprise her role for the revival of ‘Will & Grace,’ but had decided to retire from acting completely.

Before her turn on “Will & Grace,” Morrison was best known for playing Sister Sixto on “The Flying Nun” alongside Sally Field in the late ’60s and early ’70s. She also had extensive credits as a guest actress, including roles on “The Partridge Family,” “Three’s A Crowd,” “My Favorite Martian,” “Laredo,” “Gunsmoke” and “General Hospital.” All four stars of the hit sitcom paid tribute to Morrison on social media.