Tag: Elizabeth Warren

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News Round-Up: January 24, 2020

Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Ramses Principe (above) waxes grateful about the journey thus far. Always a good idea, no? Follow the hunky fitness expert on Instagram here. • Washington Blade: A woman falsely accused a circuit party that caters to queer people of color of being “an organized sex party” setting off a string of investigations. • ABC News: Two-thirds of Americans in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll say the U.S. Senate should call new witnesses at Donald Trump’s impeachment trial. • Talking Points Memo: Sen. Elizabeth Warren has pledged to release all impeachment-related documents that the White House has barred should she become president.

• KIT212: Kenneth rounds up the what’s what in local gay rags across the country. Check the latest from Gloss Magazine (below) here.
The latest issue of Gloss Magazine (via Kenneth-in-the-212)
• The Gaily Grind: A Republican ‘family values’ candidate was busted for joining a dating website for married men looking to cheat. • CNN: Bernie Sanders is facing a backlash from some Democrats after his campaign trumpeted an endorsement from comedian Joe Rogan, a popular podcast and YouTube talk show host with a history of making racist, homophobic and transphobic comments. Sanders’ national press secretary issued a statement that read, in part: “Sharing a big tent requires including those who do not share every one of our beliefs, while always making clear that we will never compromise our values. The truth is that by standing together in solidarity, we share the values of love and respect that will move us in the direction of a more humane, more equal world.”

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Poll: Joe Biden Continues To Lead By Double Digits

Former Vice President Joe Biden (image via Instagram)

From The Hill:

Former Vice President Joe Biden leads the field of Democratic presidential hopefuls by double digits a month ahead of the Iowa caucuses, according to a Harvard CAPS/Harris poll released exclusively to The Hill.

The poll shows Biden registering 30 percent support among Democrats nationally. In a relatively distant second place is Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who notched 17 percent in the survey. 

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is lingering in the No. 3 spot with 12 percent support. No other candidate registered double-digit support. Former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg came in fourth place at 7 percent, while former tech executive Andrew Yang notched 3 percent support.

Still, recent polls in early primary and caucus states show a more fluid race. 

An Emerson College survey of likely Iowa Democratic caucusgoers released last month showed Biden and Sanders in a statistical tie for first place, with 23 percent and 22 percent support, respectively.

And a WBUR-MassINC poll of New Hampshire Democrats from December showed Buttigieg and Biden knotted at the top with 18 percent and 17 percent, respectively. Sanders wasn’t far behind in that survey, with 15 percent support.

And here’s some eye-popping news – former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg has tied Warren for third place in the latest Hill/HarrisX poll:

The former New York City mayor is now in a dead heat for third place with top-tier candidate, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who also received 11 percent support. Biden, meanwhile, continues to lead the Democratic field with 28 percent followed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) at 16 percent.

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News Round-Up: December 23, 2019

Alex Abramov (image via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Alex Abramov (above) offers this quickie #instagay take on getting ready for the holidays: remove shirt, add Russian fur hat and lights, shoot. • OUT: The mother of a child who committed suicide due to excessive bullying has sued the school on the basis of neglect and creating a hostile environment for LGBTQ students. • Instinct: The streaming giant teased its upcoming true crime documentary based on the real-life story of bisexual pro football player turned murderer, Aaron Hernandez.

• Christianity Today: The president of the evangelical magazine supported his editor in chief’s recent op-ed calling for the removal of Donald Trump. “The global Body of Christ — and the community of evangelicals — is vastly larger than our domestic political squabbles. But partly on behalf of that global body, we can no longer stay silent. We write for a readership of One. God is our Tower. Let the whirlwind come.” • The Verge: Theaters are receiving a new version of Cats with “some improved visual effects,” just days after it premiered to dismal reviews. Last-minute tweaks apparently left room for mistakes like Judy Dench’s human hand slipping through unnoticed.

• AP News: After Sen. Elizabeth Warren accused Mayor Pete Buttigieg of holding fundraising events in “wine caves” serving $900 bottles of wine, the owners of the venue that hosted the event pushed back. They say wine caves are common at wineries in Napa Valley because they’re good for storing wine at cool temperatures.; no $900 bottle of wine were served; and no one attended thinking they would become besties with Mayor Pete. • Advocate: Schitt’s Creek creator and star Dan Levy called out UK television channel 4Music for editing out same-sex moments from the series. • Will & Grace: Sean Hayes tweets a photo of the fab four taking a final bow as the last episode of Will & Grace was shot, and the unexpected revival of the hit sitcom comes to a close.

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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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New Poll Indicates LGBTQ Voters Have A Double-Digit Favorite

Photo of Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Mayor Pete Buttigieg

Photo of Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Mayor Pete Buttigieg
L-R Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Mayor Pete Buttigieg
A new poll conducted by YouGov/Out Magazine shows LGBTQ voters are definitely leaning towards a particular Democratic presidential candidate and it’s Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. I’ll say upfront any polling should be taken with a grain of salt, but this does provide a glimpse into what some folks may be thinking at this time. Announced as a ‘first of its kind’ survey of likely Democratic primary voters who identify as LGBTQ, the results show Warren easily outpaces her fellow Democrats garnering 31 percent of those polled. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) came in second with 18 percent, former Vice President Joe Biden pulled in 16 percent, and out South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg received 14 percent support. Everyone else in the field scored in the single-digit range. 31% – Elizabeth Warren 18% – Bernie Sanders 16% – Joe Biden 14% – Pete Buttigieg 6% – Kamala Harris 3% – Cory Booker 2% – Julián Castro 2% – Amy Klobuchar 2% – Andrew Yang 1% – Tulsi Gabbard 1% – Marianne Williamson All other candidates scored zero support. The data-crunchers at YouGov surmise Warren resonates so strongly with LGBTQ voters because LGBTQ voters tend to be more liberal than the average Democratic primary voter. According to Alissa Stollwerk, Vice President of YouGov Blue, “Seventy-seven percent of LGBTQ+ Democratic primary voters identified in our survey as very or somewhat liberal, approximately 20 percentage points higher than the percentage of Democratic primary voters overall who identify as very or somewhat liberal in our surveys.” For instance, respondents said they overwhelmingly prefer bold structural reforms (68%) versus incremental changes in policy (28%). Asked who could beat Donald Trump in the general election, 53 percent said Warren could win, 52 percent said Biden would trump Trump, 46 percent indicated Sanders could come out on top, 29 percent gave the nod to Buttigieg, and 26 percent said Harris could beat Trump. More from the survey: • 93% disapprove of the job Trump is doing as president; 89% strongly disapprove • 89% say Trump should be impeached and removed from office • 73% say the epidemic of violence against transgender women of color is the most critical issue facing the LGBTQ Community today; 60% said complete nondiscrimination protections; 59% indicated LGBTQ youth homelessness In a statement to Out, Stollwerk notes that such polling “is a snapshot of a group of people at a given time” and should be viewed as such. But the results do offer insight into “the viewpoints of these Democratic voters, what issues are important to them, and what they want to see in the next Democratic nominee for president. (source)

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Warren Pledges To Reverse Trump Military Trans Ban On Day One

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
Democratic White House hopeful Sen. Elizabeth Warren has released a detailed plan on the rights of service members, veterans, and military families, which includes a pledge to reverse Donald Trump’s ban on transgender service members on day one of her presidency. In a tweet, she wrote, “A Warren administration will protect the rights of LGBTQ+, women, Black, and Latinx service members. I’ll reverse Trump’s shameful ban on trans service members on Day One. My administration will protect veterans and family members of serving military personnel from deportation.”

“I’ll reverse it on the first day of my presidency,” says Warren in her plan, adding that “the only thing that should matter when it comes to allowing military personnel to serve is whether or not they can handle the job.” Her plan states she would make sure trans soldiers would be provided with “all medically necessary care related to the health of transgender people” including transition-related surgery.

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News Round-Up: November 5, 2019

The Chippendales (photo: Kip Canyon)
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: So, apparently the world-famous Chippendales (above) work out…a lot. #dang • Politico: Sen. Elizabeth Warren has pledged that her first step as president would be to overturn President Donald Trump’s decision to prohibit transgender troops in the military. • Men’s Health: Rugby legend Gareth Thomas, who recently came out as HIV-positive, covers this month’s issue of Men’s Health UK. “It’s a sign of where we are that a man LIVING with HIV is on the cover of Men’s Health,” wrote the 45-year-old athlete on social media.

• Fox News: A new poll from Fox News shows former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton beating Donald Trump in a hypothetical 2020 head-to-head matchup – and she’s not even running. • OUT: A daycare center in Switzerland has come under fire for turning away a pair of twin boys because they have gay parents. The family was informed the boys would not be welcome in the playgroup because their parents’ relationship is “neither normal nor natural.” • Campaign Ad: Mayor Pete Buttigieg, currently landing in 3rd place in Iowa polls, has a new campaign spot out in Iowa that highlights national unity. Titled “Sun Comes Up,” the ad asks voters to imagine the first day when Trump is no longer president, as Buttigieg promises to pick up the pieces of our divided nation.

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Democratic Race Tightens Ahead Of Iowa Caucuses

Photo of Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Mayor Pete Buttigieg

L-R Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Mayor Pete Buttigieg
The latest New York Times/Siena College poll shows the Democratic field tightening in the 2020 Iowa caucuses race as Sen. Elizabeth Warren holds a slight lead over Sen. Bernie Sanders while Mayor Pete Buttigieg is surging to third past former Vice President Joe Biden. From the New York Times:

Ms. Warren appears to have solidified her gains in the first voting state while Mr. Buttigieg has climbed quickly to catch up with Mr. Sanders and overtake Mr. Biden, the one-time front-runner. Ms. Warren is drawing support from 22 percent of likely caucusgoers, while Mr. Sanders is at 19 percent, followed by Mr. Buttigieg at 18 percent and Mr. Biden at 17 percent.

The survey is full of alarming signs for Mr. Biden, who entered the race in April at the top of the polls in Iowa and nationally.

He is still in the lead in most national polls, but his comparatively weak position in the earliest primary and caucus states now presents a serious threat to his candidacy. And Mr. Biden’s unsteadiness appears to have opened a path in the race for other Democrats closer to the political middle, particularly Mr. Buttigieg.

(image via NY Times)
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Warren Takes The Lead In Two More Polls

Sen. Elizabeth Warren surges past former Vice President Joe Biden in latest Iowa poll

Sen. Elizabeth Warren surges past former Vice President Joe Biden in latest Iowa poll
L-R Sen. Elizabeth Warren, former Vice President Joe Biden
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) continues to surge in polls as 12 of the Democratic presidential candidates prepare for the 4th primary debate tonight. From the Washington Post:

The most recent George Washington University Politics Poll shows the senator from Massachusetts leads the Democratic field with 28 percent of the vote.

Sanders is second at 21 percent, and Biden, the front-runner since his entrance into the race, is at 18 percent. South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Kamala D. Harris each draw 5 percent.

And from Quinnipiac Polling:

According to a Quinnipiac University national poll released today, Warren receives 30 percent of the vote among Democratic voters and independent voters who lean Democratic, while Biden gets 27 percent.

Sen. Bernie Sanders trails the two frontrunners, getting 11 percent support, with South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg at 8 percent and Sen. Kamala Harris at 4 percent. No other candidate tops 2 percent.

This compares to an October 8 poll from Quinnipiac University, in which Warren received 29 percent, Biden got 26 percent, and Sanders had 16 percent of the vote.

But according to Morning Consult, Biden maintains his frontrunner status with an 11-point lead over Elizabeth Warren and a 13-point lead over Bernie Sanders ahead of the October debate, according to the latest edition of ‘Political Intelligence: The State Of The Democratic Primary. ‘ The report also finds that Sanders has seen his vote share decline in early primary states. Tune in to tonight’s Democratic debate on CNN coming to you from Westerville, Ohio.

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News Round-Up: October 14, 2019

Michael and I getting our Pride on at Las Vegas Pride this year
Some news items you might have missed: • Pride: We do LGBTQ Pride later in the year here in Las Vegas because June, the traditional month for Pride, is swelteringly hot. That’s Michael and I (above) briefly striking a pose. Check out more from Las Vegas Pride 2019 at the bottom of this post via Instagram. • Boy Culture: Scotty Bowers, the purported pimp and hustler to a slew of Golden Age of Hollywood stars, praised by some for his frankness and bashed by others as a fabulist, died Sunday at 96. • Politico: Sen. Elizabeth Warren is increasing pressure on Facebook to police false political ads on the social media platform. Her campaign made an ad with false claims and it was quickly approved.

• Unilad: This gay couple from Argentina adopted a baby living with HIV that was rejected by ten other families. • Instagram: Jake Gyllenhaal and Tom Holland (currently starring together in Spiderman: Far From Home) almost broke the internet when jokingly posting, “Forget the Biebers… We’re getting married.”

• Deadline: Billy Porter on trying to break into Hollywood, “We must speak life into ourselves, even when everyone around us is doing the opposite. I never saw anything that looked like me, and visibility – when we see ourselves reflected back – is so important.” And now, more shiny, happy people (including Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Chasten Buttigieg) at this year’s Pride celebration here in Las Vegas: