Tag: Kamala Harris

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News Round-Up: June 13, 2022

Members of the House committee investigating the Capitol riot say they have uncovered enough evidence for the Justice Department to consider an unprecedented criminal indictment against former President Donald Trump for seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Donald Trump (screen capture)
Some news items you might have missed: • AP News: Members of the House committee investigating the Capitol riot say they have uncovered enough evidence for the Justice Department to consider an unprecedented criminal indictment against former President Donald Trump for seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Continue reading “News Round-Up: June 13, 2022”

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On The 20th Anniversary Of The 9/11 Attacks

On the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the U.S.

President Joe Biden and First Lady Dr. Jill Biden were joined by former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, and former First Ladies Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton at a ceremony in New York City commemorating the 20th anniversary of the deadly 9/11 attacks. Continue reading “On The 20th Anniversary Of The 9/11 Attacks”

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Podcast: Pride Month 2021, Bakery Hit By Homophobia, The Latest From Eli Lieb

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 headlines: • For the first time in five years, the LGBTQ community not only received full-throated support from the man in the Oval Office, but President Joe Biden, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris all issued video greetings to LGBTQ Americans for Pride Month • Congress votes to make Pulse Nightclub a national memorial • Gay men in the UK will have an easier time donating blood • A bakery in Texas experienced hideous homophobia for saying ‘Happy Pride’ and then the internet stepped in • Eli Lieb drops the perfect anthem for Pride Month ‘Boys Who Like Boys’ All that and more in this episode of The Randy Report

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Pride Month Greeting From Vice President Kamala Harris

Vice President Kamala Harris shared a video greeting for Pride Month

Pride Month greeting from Vice President Kamala Harris
Vice President Kamala Harris
A Pride Month greeting from Vice President Kamala Harris was shared today on Twitter. In the video, Harris recalls officiating the wedding of Kris Perry and Sandy Stier, whose lawsuit paved the way for the historic Supreme Court ruling that made marriage equality the law of the land. “LGBTQ Americans proudly serve in our military and at every level of government,” says Harris before adding, “We know there is work to be done to achieve full equality.” In the video clip, Harris tells LGBTQ Americans “I want you to know: We see you. We hear you. President Joe Biden and I will not rest until everyone has equal protection under the law. Happy Pride!” Over the weekend, Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff made a surprise appearance at the DC Pride Walk. Harris’s participation made her the first sitting veep to walk in a Pride parade. Earlier today I shared a Pride message from President Biden and the First Lady as well.

Of course, a Pride Month greeting from Vice President Mike Pence would have never happened during the previous administration.

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Harris Makes History As 1st Sitting VP To March In Pride Parade

Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff surprised Pride celebrants at DC Pride on Saturday

Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff surprised Pride celebrants at DC Pride on Saturday Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff made a surprise appearance at the Capital Pride Walk in Washington, D.C. on Saturday. Harris’s participation made her the first sitting vice president to march in an LGBTQ Pride parade. From The Advocate:

Harris’s appearance came as a surprise, and the crowd around her cheered, according to a White House press pool report. She and Emhoff marched for about a block down 13th Street, waving and wishing onlookers “Happy Pride,” and stopped to speak to participants and spectators for about 10 minutes.

Harris called for passage of the Equality Act, a comprehensive LGBTQ+ civil rights bill that has been approved by the U.S. House of Representatives but has yet to come to a vote in the Senate.

“We still have so much to do,” she added, according to the pool report. “We celebrate all the accomplishments. Finally marriage is the law of the land. We need to make sure that our transgender community are all protected. … There is so much more work to do and I know we are committed.”

Harris and Emhoff were dressed appropriately for the event, Washington’s NBC affiliate reports. She wore a pink blazer and a T-shirt printed with the words “Love Is Love,” while he wore a T-shirt with “Love First” in rainbow letters.

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News Round-Up: February 3, 2021

Pete Buttigieg sworn in as Secretary of Transportation by Vice President Kamala Harris with husband Chasten at his side

Pete Buttigieg sworn in as Secretary of Transportation by Vice President Kamala Harris with husband Chasten at his side
Pete Buttigieg sworn in as Transportation Secretary by Vice President Kamala Harris (photo: office of the Vice President)
Some news items you might have missed: • Instagram: A day after his 86-13 confirmation vote in the Senate, Pete Buttigieg (above) was sworn in as Secretary of Transportation by Vice President Kamala Harris as husband Chasten Buttigieg held the bible. • Outsports: Josh Leafer was a high school athlete who threw parties and chased girls. But it was all a cover. So he started a TikTok account, @closeted_fratguy, asking, “Anyone else like totally straight but secretly gay?” Over the last year, Leafer has heard from hundreds of other secretly gay guys who were wondering the same thing. Oh – and he came out 🙂 • Out Music: British indie-pop band Pale Waves has released a deeply personal video for their latest single “She’s My Religion,” which features frontwoman Heather Baron-Gracie and her life partner Kelsi Luck in a series of candid vignettes showing that even the most mundane moments can be transformative when paired with the right person.

“I wanted to give my fans a song to find themselves in,” Heather says of the intimate new video. “I wish I had a song like this when I was a young girl trying to find herself in the world.”

• Attitude Magazine: The new UK queer-centric drama series, It’s A Sin, has become one of Channel 4’s most successful shows ever since its launch last month. The series has already had 6.5 million views on All 4, making it the most-binged new series ever. Episode one has also become All 4’s most popular drama launch on record. • Quinnipiac Polls: Two weeks into the presidency of Joe Biden, a majority of Americans say, 61 – 34 percent, that they are generally optimistic about the next four years with Biden as president. • Politico: President Joe Biden traveled to the Capitol to pay tribute to Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick shortly after the ceremony began Tuesday night, briefly placing his hand on the urn in the center of the Capitol Rotunda, saying a prayer and sadly shaking his head as he observed a memorial wreath nearby.

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A New Day Dawns – Highlights From The 2021 Inauguration

Joe Biden is now the 46th President of the United States

At the 2021 Inauguration, Joe Biden was sworn into office as the 46th President of the United States And a new day has dawned. At noon Eastern Standard time, the United States celebrated the 2021 Inauguration as President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were sworn into office. Our four year national nightmare is over, the 2020 election is behind us, and the great work begins. Vice President Kamala Harris I’m sure many of you were watching the full ceremony today, but just in case, here are some highlights from the 2021 Inauguration: In addition to Biden and Harris’s swearing in moments, Lady Gaga sang the national anthem; a luminous Amanda Gorman, the nation’s first youth poet laurete called for Americans to “leave behind a country better than the one we were left;” and I smiled to see that Capitol Police hero Eugene Goodman, who led rioters away from the Senate during the Capitol building invasion, has been given a promotion and was given the honor of escorting Kamala Harris as she made her entrance.

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Biden, Harris Spend MLK Day Volunteering At Food Banks

Joe Biden spends MLK Day volunteering at a Philadelphia food bank

Joe Biden spends MLK Day volunteering at a Philadelphia food bank
President-elect Joe Biden (screen capture via The Hill)
FOX29 in Philadelphia reports President-Elect Joe Biden spent the morning of Martin Luther King Day, Jr. volunteering at food banks to help the homeless and those less fortunate.

Biden was volunteering as part of MLK Day of Service at Philabundance, assembling boxes of food for those in need.

The President-Elect and Dr. Jill Biden were among the many volunteers at the South Philadelphia location, working together to fill boxes of food. Joining them were daughter Ashley, granddaughter Finnegan Biden and a boyfriend of another Biden granddaughter, Peter Neal.

Philabundance is a member of Feeding America, a network of food banks across the United States. For more information on Philabundance and what they do, click on their website, here.

Similarly, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and soon-to-be Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff spent the holiday volunteering at Martha’s Table in Washington DC. The efforts are part of the Biden campaign’s national day of service ahead of the inauguration.

No word as to Donald Trump’s MLK activities today. The only known item on his schedule is his departure from the White House on Biden’s inauguration day.

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Mike Pence Calls Kamala Harris (Finally)

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and Vice President Mike Pence

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and Vice President Mike Pence
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and Vice President Mike Pence (images via campaigns)
Months after the election was called, Vice President Mike Pence (finally) called Vice President-elect Kamala Harris to congratulate her on her history-making election. From the New York Times:

Vice President Mike Pence telephoned Vice President-elect Kamala Harris Thursday to congratulate her and offer his belated assistance — filling a leadership role all but abdicated by President Trump, who is planning to fly out of the capital shortly before Joseph R. Biden Jr. is sworn in next week.

The Pence-Harris conversation, relayed by two officials briefed on the call, was described as gracious and pleasant. The discussion is the first time Mr. Pence and Ms. Harris have spoken since they debated each other last fall.

It also represents the only one-on-one interaction between the dueling 2020 presidential tickets: Mr. Trump has refused to call President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. and has not even fully conceded defeat.

The Times goes on to report that Pence may invite Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, to the vice-presidential residence prior to the inauguration ceremony next week. But the visit may not work out due to heightened security measures put in place since the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol building last week. Donald Trump has previously shared he will not attend the inauguration becoming the first president in 152 years to ghost on his successor. Neither will he meet with the Bidens at the White House before the inauguration as is presidential tradition. Trump will depart the White House in the hours before Biden’s swearing-in ceremony. According to the Times, he “hopes to depart to the blare of a military band, with a red carpet and military honors, those briefed on the planning said.”