Tag: Joe Biden

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Biden, Karofsky Win As Wisconsin (Finally) Counts Primary Vote

A week after Wisconsin voters were forced to choose between staying safe from the COVID-19 threat and voting in their state’s election, the results are finally being tabulated. First, former Vice President Joe Biden has been declared the winner of the Democratic primary there. With 63 percent of the vote counted, he currently has 64 percent of the vote versus Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) with 31 percent. Republican lawmakers in the state forced the elections last week and refused to extend any mail-in vote deadlines primarily because a state Supreme Court seat was being decided and the GOPers know lower turnout favors their side. But not in this instance. Even though polling sites in Milwaukee (a Democratic stronghold) were cut from 180 to only 5, the voters did turn out, they stood in line, and they chose the liberal in the race, Dane County Circuit Judge Jill Karofsky. Her victory marks the first time in a dozen years a Supreme Court challenger beat an incumbent.

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Bernie Sanders Endorses Joe Biden: “We Have To Make Trump A One-Term President”

In a joint live stream today, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) officially endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden for president and he asked his supporters to do the same. “Today I am asking all Americans … to come together in this campaign to support your candidacy,” Sanders told Biden. From the New York Times:

In throwing his weight behind his former rival, Mr. Sanders is sending an unmistakable signal that his supporters — who are known for their intense loyalty — should do so as well, at a moment when Mr. Biden still faces deep skepticism from many younger progressives.

The two men appeared via live stream on split screens — each on each other’s live streams — talking to each other. “We need you in the White House,” Mr. Sanders said to Mr. Biden. “And I will do all that I can to make that happen.”

Mr. Biden said: “I’m going to need you. Not just to win the campaign, but to govern.”

On Sunday, however, the Democratic Socialists of America tweeted in no uncertain terms they will not support Biden. #smh

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Bernie Sanders Ends His Bid For Democratic Presidential Nomination

L-R Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders
The Washington Post is reporting Sen. Bernie Sanders is ending his presidential campaign on Wednesday, clearing former Vice President Joe Biden’s path to the Democratic nomination and a showdown with Donald Trump in November.

Sanders’s decision closes one of the most remarkable chapters in modern political history. His advocacy for sweeping liberal ideas, such as Medicare-for-all and tuition-free public college, shifted the national debate over the role of government.

His unexpected success in the first three primary contests made him the best-performing socialist contender in U.S. history, as well the strongest Jewish presidential candidate. At 78, Sanders was also the oldest candidate to go so far in the process.

But his campaign’s failure to capture the support of a majority of Democrats, on sharp display once the field narrowed to Sanders and Biden, underlined the limits of his left-leaning politics. A loss in the Michigan primary was especially damaging, undercutting Sanders’s message that he could expand the Democratic electorate by winning industrial areas.

Sanders also was unable to win widespread support in the African American community, a fatal problem in a party where black voters play a critical role.

Sanders added that he will remain on the ballot in upcoming primary states in an attempt to assemble delegates in order to exert significant influence over the party platform and other functions,” Sanders said in Burlington. “Then together, standing united, we will go forward to defeat Donald Trump, the most dangerous president in modern American history.” It seems to me that Barack Obama is now free to hit the campaign trail as a surrogate for Biden now that the nomination seems determined.

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Poll: Biden Leads Trump By 6 Points In Vital Swing State

L-R Former Vice President Joe Biden, Donald Trump
A new poll by the University of North Florida Public Opinion Research Lab shows Donald Trump’s mixed messages and slow response to the ongoing coronavirus health threat is having a negative impact on his standing with voters in the vital swing-state of Florida. Pollsters found that 55% said the federal government has not gone far enough in taking action against COVID-19. The poll found 45% strongly or somewhat approve of the job Trump is doing to address the pandemic, while a majority of 53% disapprove. Asked if the election were held today, who voters would support for president, former Vice President Joe Biden trumped Trump by six points, 46% to 40%. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the president’s top health advisor, scored the highest rating with 85% approval and 6% disapproval among registered Florida voters.

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News Round-Up: March 27, 2020

Ryan Worley (image via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Chippendales’ Ryan Worley (above) has the right idea for a Friday night. Man, this week kinda kicked my butt… How are you folks doing? Thinking best thoughts everyone’s way. • Fox News: Former Vice President Joe Biden bests President Donald Trump by nine points in a 2020 ballot test, in the first Fox News Poll since Biden became the de facto Democratic nominee. Notably, Biden has an eight-point edge in battleground states (48-40 percent). However, Biden’s advantage grows to 25 points, 57-32 percent, in close counties (where Hillary Clinton and Trump were within 10 points in 2016). • NewNowNext: Click over to read a deep dive into the many husbands of “Joe Exotic,” one of the stars of the bizarre docu-series Tiger King. I watched the first two episodes last night after seeing everyone talk about it. It’s quite the odd assortment of big cat ‘private zoo’ characters. • Out Music: Bounce into the weekend with this new cut from Bright Light Bright Light – “This Was My House,” a sugar-rush of dancefloor pop featuring Madonna’s longtime backing vocalist duo Niki Haris and Donna De Lory. “The song is about how the safe spaces for the LGBTQ+ community have been fractured of late with a palpable uprising of anti-LGBTQ+ and xenophobic rhetoric, which is scarily even more real now as these public spaces are closed for the foreseeable future due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said the artist.

• NY Daily News: New Yorkers should be prepared for the city to remain in “pause” due to coronavirus through May even as President Trump gives Americans “false hope” the country will reopen by Easter next month, Mayor de Blasio said Friday. “We have to be ready for that and I think it’s going to spread in the country,” de Blasio said when asked if the city would be closed through May. “This idea of Easter is, unfortunately, a false hope. It would be better for the president to be blunt with people that we’ve got a really tough battle ahead.” • KIT212: Kenneth rounds up the best of local gay rags in the U.S. and around the world including DNA Magazine featuring Nordic hottie Patrik Isoaho (below).

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Biden Gets Endorsement From Huge Public-Service Union

Former Vice President Joe Biden (image via Instagram)

Former Vice President Joe Biden received a big endorsement from one of the nation’s largest public-service unions today.

From the Washington Post:

The 35-member executive board of the American Federation of County, State and Municipal Employees met Monday afternoon, speaking by teleconference because of the coronavirus outbreak, and voted unanimously to support Biden.

“We believe that it’s time to prepare to work like hell for Joe Biden and to bring the party together so we’re unified behind one candidate,” AFSCME President Lee Saunders said in an interview with The Washington Post.

Members of the board used “a lot of colorful language” to describe how President Trump’s policies have hurt workers, particularly in the Midwest, according to a person familiar with the proceedings who was not authorized to discuss a private meeting.

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News Round-Up: March 19, 2020

(image via OMG Blog)
Some news items you might have missed: • OMG Blog: This dog (above) recreated Madonna’s iconic photos to hilarious results. • Reuters: A pill containing two HIV drugs that was touted as a potential treatment for the novel coronavirus was not effective, according to a study released late on Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine. • Slate: The Coronavirus Diaries – “The guys are wild on Grindr right now.” • The Recount: As Trump pivots to coronavirus crisis mode (finally), let’s take a look at the months of downplaying and denial.

• Washington Post: Breaking with tradition, more than 80 career national security professionals have signed an open letter of support for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, saying that President Trump “has created an existential danger to the United States.” • Las Vegas Review-Journal: Little Darlings strip club in Las Vegas will begin offering drive-through strip shows for those who want to indulge in some adult entertainment, but do not want to enter the building, per the CDC’s recommendations that people keep 6 feet in distance between themselves and others. Ten minutes shows will cost $100 plus tip. • CBS News: Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has announced the end to her bid for the Democratic presidential nomination after consistently low rankings in national polls and dismal finishes in primary contests. Making her announcement, she endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden for president. • KIT212: New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo chatting with his brother, CNN host Chris Cuomo is pretty funny as the bros fight on-air about who was their mom’s favorite child, calling their parents, and breaking curfew growing up.

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Biden Sweeps 3 More States, Sanders ‘Assessing’ His Campaign

L-R Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders
After losing all three Democratic primaries Tuesday night by double-digits, Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-Vt.) campaign manager on Wednesday said that the senator “is going to be having conversations with his supporters to assess his campaign,” according to The Hill. Noting that “the next primary contest is three weeks away,” Sanders’s campaign manager, Faiz Shakir, said in a statement that Sanders “is focused on the government response to the coronavirus outbreak and ensuring that we take care of working people and the most vulnerable.” This follows a brutal night for Sanders where he lost across the board to former Vice President Joe Biden. Biden won Florida’s primary 62 percent to Sanders’ 23 percent, per Buzzfeed News. In Illinois, it was Biden 59 percent to Sanders’ 36 percent, and in Arizona, the former vice president won 44 percent versus 32 percent for Sanders. Biden spoke after the three contests were called and he addressed Sanders’ supporters directly:

“Senator Sanders and I may disagree on tactics, but we share a common vision for the need to provide affordable health care for all Americans, reduce income inequity that has risen so drastically, to tackling the existential threat of our time, climate change.

“Sen. Sanders and his supporters have brought a remarkable passion and tenacity to all of these issues. Together, they have shifted the fundamental conversation in this country. So let me say, especially to the young voters who have been inspired by Senator Sanders: I hear you. I know what’s at stake. I know what we have to do.”

Biden began his delegate lead in the race by coming out on top in 10 of 14 contests on Super Tuesday. Then on March 10, Biden won five of six contests including Washington state which was considered a safe haven for Sanders. Political experts say Biden will have a nearly insurmountable lead in delegates by the time all of the votes are counted from this week’s primaries. Biden currently has around 1,180 delegates, while Sanders has just about 884 delegates. You can check the count as more delegates are allocated at RealClearPolitics. Candidates must garner at least 1,991 to officially clinch the nomination. Forty percent of delegates remain to be allocated. Ohio, scheduled to vote last night, postponed its primary at the last minute due to coronavirus concerns. Additionally, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, and Puerto Rico have also delayed their primaries.

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News Round-Up: March 12, 2020

Kumail Nanjiani (images via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • Men’s Variety: After getting into incredible shape for the upcoming Marvel film The Eternals, Kumail Nanjiani (above) says his new fitness led him to develop a subtle form of body dysmorphia. “I’d look in the mirror and I’d see my abs—and when I looked again, they would fade. I would just see the flaws.” • Sun-Sentinel: The inaugural LGBTQ+ Pride of the Americas, which would have been something of an international Pride event, has been postponed until the fall. The weeklong schedule of concerts, parties, street festivals, conferences, symposiums as well as a parade, fashion show, awards banquet and 5K run was to take place at various venues throughout Broward County. • NBC News: Former Vice President Joe Biden delivered a speech on combating the coronavirus pandemic that is spreading across the country. Biden drops this badass line at the 5:33 mark – “President Trump is welcome to adopt all of it today.”

• LGBTQNation: People who booked an Atlantis cruise for next week are getting angry that the company hasn’t canceled the cruise and won’t refund them if they don’t go, even though other major cruise lines are canceling due to coronavirus. • Twitter: You don’t get any more badass than Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) as she adds up the costs for a battery of coronavirus tests, then reads the federal regulations that gives the CDC director the authority to authorize paying for these tests for all Americans. And then gets him to commit to doing so. Watch below.

• Reuters: Gay dating apps like Grindr and Scruff are warning users to take precautions to avoid contracting coronavirus but are expecting an uptick in traffic as millions of people move online to talk rather than meet face-to-face in bars and clubs. • TalkingPointsMemo: Speaking at the White House today, Donald Trump falsely claimed that all people returning from Europe are being tested for Coronavirus and being quarantined if they are positive.