Tag: quisling

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Laughable: Quisling Touts Trump As “Most Pro-Gay President” In History

Richard Grenell for Log Cabin Republicans (screen capture)
The Log Cabin Republicans, an organization representing conservative LGBTQ voters, recently released a misleading video featuring Richard Grenell, the openly gay former Ambassador to Germany, praising the Donald as the “most pro-gay president in American history.” That’s certainly some serious hyperbole (and a lie), but it was right up the Donald’s alley as he retweeted the clip with the caption, “My great honor!!!” The video, which has been viewed over 5.2 million times on Twitter at this writing, is meant to attack former Vice President Joe Biden’s record on LGBTQ issues. In the clip, Grenell (who briefly served as acting Director of National Intelligence) points to Trump being the “first president in history to be pro-gay marriage from his first day in office.” What Grenell doesn’t note is that marriage equality was the law of the land by that time, decided in 2015 by the U.S. Supreme Court. It’s not exactly an act of courage to acknowledge the law. When asked about the issue shortly after his electoral win in 2016, Trump told CBS News reporter Lesley Stahl his personal view on the matter was “irrelevant” and that he considered the matter “settled.” He added, “I’m fine with that.” Hardly a glowing endorsement of marriage equality. Especially when, during the campaign, he sent mixed signals about gay rights. While Trump mentioned “L. G. B. T. citizens” during his nominating convention speech (in a halting cadence that sounded like he’d never used the phrase in his life), he went on to tell Fox News he would “strongly consider” appointing judges who might overturn same-sex marriage. Grenell also mentions the Trump administration’s supposed push to end the criminalization of homosexuality around the world. You might recall the initiative, announced to be headed up by Grenell himself, was unknown to Trump when he was asked about it. And, since the announcement of the campaign, there’s been no news or apparent action on the issue. NBC News also reported that State Department deputy spokesperson Robert Palladino downplayed Grenell’s new effort, describing it as “long-standing,” “bipartisan” and “really is not a big policy departure.” Additionally, Trump’s administration has attacked the LGBTQ community on numerous fronts including the transgender military ban, arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court LGBTQ people shouldn’t be protected under federal civil rights law, and supporting taxpayer-funded religious adoption agencies that refuse to place children in LGBTQ homes.

Just this week, the Trump Administration intrinsically erased LGBTQ people from an updated foreign policy on gender and women’s empowerment by the U.S. Agency for International Development. Throughout the video, Grenell ignores that transgender people even exist as he only uses the terms “gay and lesbian.” Grenell also alleges that Biden believes “gays are security risks,” which is a pretty far stretch as Grenell is referencing an off-hand statement made almost 47 years ago. Biden was reportedly ‘startled’ by a question about gays serving in the military and civil service at an informal event with neighbors in 1973. According to the conservative Free Beacon, Biden responded, “My gut reaction is that they [gay people] are security risks but I must admit I haven’t given this much thought,” he said. “I’ll be darned!” You’ll note Grenell doesn’t mention the incident happened back in 1973, and he also doesn’t include the part of Biden’s response that said he hadn’t given the subject much thought. In reality, Biden’s movement on LGBTQ rights has pretty much mirrored the nation’s perspective. He’s publicly evolved to become a champion for gay rights – most memorably coming out in support of same-sex marriage in 2012 just days before President Obama. While Joe Biden has promised full-throated support for the Equality Act, which would extend existing civil rights protections to LGBTQ people, Trump and the majority of his fellow Republicans have stood firmly against the legislation. Biden has also named a fierce Black lesbian, Karine Jean-Pierre, as the chief of staff for vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris. If you want the facts, click over to GLAAD for an extensive list of Trump’s attacks on the LGBTQ community. For information about Biden’s plans for LGBTQ equality, check out my report on his proposals for our community here.

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Anti-Gay Homocon Aaron Schock Comes Out

Aaron Schock (image via Instagram)
Disgraced former Illinois Congressman Aaron Schock has finally told the world the worst kept secret in the world. In a lengthy personal essay posted on his Instagram account as well as his personal website, the Republicans – who famously voted against LGBTQ interests while in the House of Representatives – tells the world, “I am gay.” After “working through a list of people” who he wanted to tell first hand over the past year including family members, he says >he’s ready to make a public statement. “The fact that I am gay is just one of those things in my life in need of explicit affirmation, to remove any doubt and to finally validate who I am as a person,” writes Schock. “In many ways, I regret the time wasted in not having done so sooner.”

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Link in profile to full text

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In his essay, he reveals how denial and mistakes led to even deeper denial and greater mistakes. He goes on to share “his story” which began in the rural Midwest and a family “centered in faith and its particular traditions.” It was in church life – “Memorizing Bible verses, going to church camp, attending services at least twice a week” – that Schock says he “thrived.” He chronicles his path through high school where he realized his “goal-focused personality” helped him to “force [his] thoughts in other directions” when he felt “drawn in the direction of [his] natural orientation.” After holding several local public offices, he says his arrival in Washington in 2009 as the youngest member of Congress was a heady experience as he received “a lot of attention,” which he admits he enjoyed. But soon he was aware of “speculation” he feels occurred because he was single, how he dressed, and his “preoccupation with physical fitness.” Soon after, he says “Untruthful stories were written” by the news media. Referencing the scandal that revolved around his office in Washington being redecorated in the style of a hit television show, Shock shares he wondered why “the news media would run with an utterly false story about me and a show I’d  never even heard of, and still haven’t seen, Downton Abbey.” Along the way, he takes swipes at the “woke” media calling reports about him “another way, albeit sophisticated, to be teased about being gay.” He explains his work in Congress included being responsive to the interests of his Illinois constituents. “Perhaps correctly, perhaps not, I assumed that revealing myself as their gay congressman would not go over well. I put my ambition over the truth, which not only hurt me but others as well.” He adds, “I also, in retrospect, realize that I was just looking for more excuses to buy time and avoid being the person I’ve always been.” Schock details the investigation that led to his resignation from Congress, during which he planned to come out to his family, but felt it would be best to wait until the legal wrangling was done. Once the charges of improper use of campaign funds were dropped in exchange for repaying $68,000 to his congressional campaign fund and $42,000 to the IRS, he again planned to come out to family. But first, he attended the Coachella Festival last year and photos of him with assorted men reached his mother before he did. When he spoke to her, she (and the rest of his family) reportedly did not take the news of his sexuality well. “Pictures online made clear what I was en route to tell my mother in person.  She told me to turn around and go back to LA. I wasn’t welcome at home for Easter.” Like many LGBTQ people who go through a similar reaction from family members, Schock holds out hope his family will eventually come around. He goes on to justify his anti-LGBTQ positions and votes (he opposed same-sex marriage, the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell) by pointing to political leaders at the time. “In 2008, as a Republican running in a conservative district, I took the same position on gay marriage held by my party’s nominee, John McCain,” writes the 38-year-old. “That position against marriage equality, though, was also then held by Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama as well.” While he’s correct about that timeline, what Schock misses there is McCain, Obama and Clinton weren’t secretly gay voting against their own interests. And, by the way, what about the 12 years since then? Also, Obama and Clinton never proposed or voted for a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. And in 2010, as Obama was working to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, Schock voted against the repeal. In fact, Schock’s record on LGBTQ issues was so anti-LGBTQ the Human Rights Campaign gave him a rating of zero. The former congressman says if he were still in office he would support LGBTQ issues “in every way” he could. He also hopes that sharing his story will “help shine a light for young people, raised the way I was, looking for a path out of darkness and shame.”

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Toasted 🥥☀️

A post shared by Aaron Schock (@aaronschock) on

In closing his essay, he says family members still suggest so-called “conversion therapy” to him. But at a recent wedding, his mother did inquire as to whether he was seeing someone and if so, she is interested in meeting him. LGBTQ media has covered Schock’s story for quite some time over the past few years mainly because he is ‘one of us’ but wielded his position in a manner that didn’t help but hurt the LGBTQ community. In his post, he never apologizes for those political calculations. His lack of remorse is rather stunning. Imagine the mental Jui-Jitsu that compels you to run for Congress and advocate for conservative anti-LGBTQ legislation while having sex on the DL and then expecting sympathy and understanding. I wish he hadn’t been raised by narrow-minded people who taught him to hate or doubt himself. It’s worth noting that he finally comes out as a 38-year-old rich white guy living in Los Angeles. How brave. That said, I celebrate that Schock has come to a place in his life that he can live his truth out loud. I realize everyone comes to this in their own time. I do wish his essay wasn’t so layered with self-pity. But, in the end, we can all only be who we are. LGBTQ folks on social media responded:

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Guess What Disgraced Former Congressman Got Handsy At Carnaval?

Aaron Schock gets a bit handsy with gay circuit party promoter Eliad Cohen
L-R Aaron Schock & Eliad Cohen (photo via Rob Shuter)
The city of Rio de Janeiro was full of LGBTQ travelers from all over the world last week for the annual Carnaval celebrations. The event, known for sexy costumes, rowdy fun and beautiful people everywhere you look. The siren call of Carnaval even drew disgraced, totally-not-gay former Congressman Aaron Schock down to the sun and fun along with other well-known gays. Naughty But Nice gossip guy Rob Shuter shared a few pics of Schock getting cozy with woofy Israeli actor and circuit party promoter Eliad Cohen at the plush Fasano Hotel. In the above photo, Schock gives Cohen a hand with sunscreen, and below took a few snaps of Cohen relaxing at the rooftop pool of the Fasano.

 

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Disgraced former Congressman Aaron Schock Getting Cozy With Out Israel Actor Eliad Cohen

A post shared by Naughty Gossip (@thenaughtygossip) on

Here’s more of Cohen and Schock taking in the sun and fun together. As you can see, Schock took the time to ‘Like’ many of Cohen’s pics.

 

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Life sucks 😛🥥🇧🇷

A post shared by Eliad Cohen (@eliad_cohen) on

 

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Bom dia Rio 🇧🇷

A post shared by Aaron Schock (@aaronschock) on

 

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Toasted 🥥☀️

A post shared by Aaron Schock (@aaronschock) on

Now, to be clear, I don’t have a problem with anyone living their best life. But – Schock still has an issue with the gay community for the anti-LGBTQ political positions and votes he cast while in Congress including voting against the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and opposing same-sex marriage. The only reason that came to an end was when criminal charges were brought against him for using campaign funds for re-decorating his Congressional office a la Downton Abbey, taking expensive trips on the taxpayer’s dime and buying pricey gifts. The charges were eventually dropped in an agreement which includes Schock repaying $68,000 to his congressional campaign fund and $42,000 to the IRS in exchange for dropping all felony charges against him. Since then, he’s been seen kissing guys at Coachella with his hands down their pants, tipping go-go boys in Mexico, frolicking on the beach with a wanna-be ‘Insta-Influencer,’ and even had his selfie pics and video leaked to the internet. The community still feels if he wants to be embraced, he still needs to address his political past when he took aim at the LGBTQ community. When Schock attended an evening last September at a popular West Hollywood bar, drag queen Jonnie Reinhart spoke to him about his anti-gay past. At the time, he told Reinhart he was working on “putting out a statement.” Well, how long does it take to draft that statement? It’s five months later, gurl, tick-tock. It is curious that Cohen, a gay celebrity in the dance party world due to his celebrated Papa Party events, wouldn’t know (or care?) about Schock’s less-than-loving treatment of the community. As Rob Shuter asked in his report, “What message is Cohen sending to his 1.3 million gay followers by embracing someone like Schock who has yet to apologize for his anti-gay past?”

 

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Let the sun shine Rio ☀️🇧🇷

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Drag Queen To Aaron Schock: ‘You Can’t Have Your Cake & Eat It Too’

For months now, the LGBTQ media has reported on totally-not-gay former Congressman Aaron Schock as he’s turned up in photos and video clips making out with gay men at Coachella, tipping go-go dancers at gay clubs in Mexico and posing on the beach with gay social media mavens. The interest in Mr. Schock is borne out of the fact that while in office he openly opposed LGBTQ rights. His public positions and anti-gay votes included supporting a  constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and voting against the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. He has never apologized or addressed his reasons for such policy positions while continually denying he is gay. He’s never publicly come out. His most recent foray into LGBTQ social life was a visit to the popular West Hollywood bar Revolver when he attended a karaoke night hosted by local drag queen Jonnie Reinhart. When word got back to Reinhart that Schock was in the audience, Reinhart felt a responsibility to do or say something.

In a video post to his Facebook page, Reinhart admits that he’s not “a confrontational person,” but in light of Schock’s well-documented hypocrisy, couldn’t shake a sense of obligation to address Schock. In his video, Reinhart says he knows there are folks who would have loved to have seen Schock thrown out of the bar or had a drink thrown in his face. “My job is to literally make people feel comfortable and in comes this situation, where clearly other people were aware he was there,” Reinhart recently told Insider.com. “There was a general elephant in the room.” https://www.facebook.com/JonnieReinhart/videos/2482800321758244/ Instead of calling Schock out on the microphone, Reinhart decided to perform “F*ck You” by Lily Allen. As the song began, Reinhart told the crowd, “This song goes out to someone in the audience. And it goes out to anybody who votes against gay rights.” Reinhart figured that would send a subtle message, and expected Schock to leave. But after the song, a friend of Schock’s approached Reinhart to chat, which inspired the drag queen to speak to the former congressman directly. Like many, Reinhart believes Schock still owes the LGBTQ community a public apology for his anti-gay positions.  “Keep in mind, my blood was boiling, my heart was pounding,” shares Reinhart in his video. “So I went up and shook his hand and I explained to him why I was upset that he was there, why other people were upset that he was there, and I basically told him that he wasn’t going to be welcomed in gay spaces until he began the process of apologizing and healing the harm that his actions have caused.” According to Reinhart, Schock listened and expressed appreciation for addressing him directly. Addressing his political record, Schock apparently told Reinhart “that he did not identify as gay at that time, and it wasn’t until years later that he began to explore and understand his sexuality.” Then, Schock shared with Reinhart “his experience of being publicly outed” and how his family had reacted to the news of him being gay. “Basically, he told me his family’s reaction was not positive, it was very bad,” shares Reinhart. “And he insisted that he wasn’t looking for sympathy, and he said that he was working on putting out a statement.” Reinhart didn’t go into Schock’s personal details that were shared in the conversation that night since “he’s actually no longer a public official.” Schock apparently asked about Reinhart’s own coming out experience and the drag performer shared that he was publicly outed when he was 13, so he grasps how difficult it is to be outed. But, says Reinhart, “It doesn’t excuse his [Schock’s] behavior.” “I told him that he can’t have his cake and eat it too, and I told him that I’ll be waiting for his statement,” added Reinhart. “He told me that he hoped that he could talk to me again, we shook hands, and that was that.” Reinhart concludes by telling the viewer his goal in the conversation was to “extend an olive branch,” adding “I believe you can have a respectful conversation with somebody while still telling them that they have f*cked up and they need to do better.” While I find Reinhart’s civility in his encounter with Schock admirable, it’s worth noting that Schock has now been out and about with his openly gay forays for several months. If he’s planning to address his anti-LGBTQ past, how long does it take to pen a statement? As I have previously reported, Schock left office in public disgrace in 2015 amid corruption charges including mail fraud, filing false tax returns, theft of government funds, and more. In March, he was offered and accepted a sweetheart deal by federal prosecutors who agreed to drop all charges if he repaid $68k to his campaign fund and $42k to the IRS. (source: Insider – images via Facebook, Instagram)

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Texas Gay Bar Faces Boycott After Trump-Supporting Owner Announces Run For Congress

Mauro Garza (image via campaign website)

The LGBTQ community of San Antonio, Texas, is boycotting a local gay bar after the Trump-loving owner announced he is running for the Republican nomination for Congress in the county’s district.

Mauro Garza is the openly-gay owner of the Pegasus Nightclub in San Antonio.

He has announced he will be running for the GOP nomination for the state’s 20th Congressional District hoping to face-off against incumbent Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro, a longtime LGBTQ ally.

His announcement tweet garnered one ‘Like.’

Texas’ 20th District is located in Jefferson County – the state’s only ‘pivot’ county. Pivot counties are those that voted for Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012 but went to Donald Trump in 2016.

Castro, who was first elected to Congress in 2012, easily won reelection in 2018 with more than 80 percent of the vote.

Garza proudly identifies as conservative and is a member of the Log Cabin Republicans.

An enthusiastic supporter of Donald Trump, he campaigned in 2018 to be the Republican nominee for Texas’ 21st District but fell woefully short of winning the nomination coming in 15th in the Republican primary garnering less than 1 percent of the vote.

He’s mainly remembered for running around in a red MAGA-type hat with the slogan “Make TX-21 Greater.”

Hardly the stuff of political legend.

If you check out Garza’s Twitter feed, you’ll find a litany of anti-Democratic attacks and retweets from the Donald’s account. He’s also a staunch supporter of virulently anti-LGBTQ Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

The LGBTQ folks in San Antonio aren’t having Mr. Garza’s campaign announcement, and a boycott of his nightclub has been launched.

Local activists have launched a Twitter account, @ProtestThePeg, urging local patrons and performers to ditch the club.

The group also demands that Garza “sell Pegasus & the property itself so that LGBTQ money no longer goes to supporting xenophobic, racist, misogynistic, and anti-LGBTQ ideologies.”

In their call for a nationwide boycott, Protest The Peg singled out RuPaul’s Drag Race alum Kennedy Davenport who performed at Pegasus in July and has shown no public support for the boycott.

“We understand there are many artists who rely on the entertainment industry as their source of income,” they wrote in a statement. “We are fully aware of the limits systemic oppression can impose on us to secure employment and meet our needs. We recognize that our spaces are the safest for LGBTQIA+ talent to work.”

“However, the LGBTQIA+ entertainment industry provides different platforms that reach large audiences,” the group continued. “We ask that you use those platforms responsibly and refrain from contracting talent to attend or perform at Pegasus Nightclub.”

On his campaign website, Garza promises to “advocate Conservative Reform for the LGBT+ Community,” whatever that might be.

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Totally-Not-Gay Former Congressman & The ‘Abs Over Principles’ Instagrammer

'Totally-not-gay' former Republican Congressman Aaron Schock was recently caught on video tipping a go-go dancer at Boy Bar, a gay club in Mexico City this past weekend.
‘Totally-not-tipping’ Aaron Schock (screen capture)

Totally-not-gay, former GOP congressman Aaron Schock reappeared on social media again, this time on the Instagram account of someone named Jeremy Cormier.

Other outlets are designating Cormier as an Instagram “influencer,” but I’ve honestly never heard of him. This post will probably be the most exposure he ever receives, considering after perusing his IG account, his life goals seem to be perfecting his abs and hanging with shirtless boys.

A trainer friend of mine pointed out he might want to balance some other body parts during workouts like his under-developed pecs or even consider a ‘leg day’ once in a while, but I’m not an expert so,…

Posting a photo of himself with Schock on his account, Cormier captioned the post, “Beach bros.”

Now, Cormier could have just shared the pic with “a guy with great abs,” but instead went to the trouble of tagging Schock in the photo. So, Cormier had to know the attention (and not the good kind) he was about to attract.

And, maybe that’s the point. As one commenter wrote, “When abs are more important than principles.”

As I’ve reported many times, during his time in the House of Representatives, the Republican congressman from Illinois took public positions against LGBTQ issues like voting against the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, and for the anti-same-sex marriage Defense of Marriage bill. All while rumors abounded that he was a closeted gay.

In the past several months, Schock has been seen hanging with shirtless gays at Coachella, as well as making out and sliding his hands down the pants of a guy at the music festival as well.

In the photo above, Schock was captured tipping a gay go-go dancer in Mexico City.

You can find more on Mr. Schock’s escapades here.

A post shared by Jeremy Cormier (@jeremycormier) on Aug 9, 2019 at 9:32am PDT

James Duke Mason, who previously shared the photo of Schock at Coachella, wrote on the post:

“Jeremy, you know I love you, and you’re entitled of course to associate with whomever you choose to associate with- but this is disappointing. I don’t know who @aaronschock is in his heart, but this is a man who spent a decade actively fighting our rights and has STILL not apologized for it publicly. Think about the LGBT youth who have literally taken their lives because of anti-gay politicians like Aaron. This post really breaks my heart.”

Many of the comments noted the vast dearth of people of color in Cormier’s IG account.

I scrolled through his entire IG feed going back to 2013. There’s seriously not one black or brown face in any photo. In six years of posts.

Oh, wait – I did see one Asian man in a photo from 2016, but that was about it in terms of diversity.

Other than his abs, the only thing on display appears to be a sea of white gay men.

I think that tells us everything we need to know.

Maybe Cormier has more in common with Mr. Schock than we know.

Just to prove irony is dead, Mr. Cormier’s next IG post was attending a same-sex wedding, which Schock opposed while in office.

This post pretty much sums up his entire Instagram feed.

More the comments section:

“Nothing to see here, just a disgraced anti-gay politician who refuses to acknowledge his hypocrisy and the harm he has done to our community…”

“The dude’s Instagram feed is all the response y’all need. Look at it. What do you notice? Jeremy is more comfortable posting photos with antigay politicians than with anyone who isn’t nonwhite. White supremacy is a spectrum and takes on several forms from mild to serious, but the reality is Jeremy probably just shares Aaron’s worldview. ¯_(ツ)_/¯”

“What do y’all expect from an Instagram that’s a sea of white faces. These instagays who live in the world’s most diverse cities (New York, Los Angeles, etc.) and yet manage to never socialize with or build friendships with a single person who isn’t white have long ago told us who they are.”

“I thought trash was picked up on Mondays in Malibu.”

“This is so fucking corny and so typical of the instagay community. How do you not care he voted against our communities interest while in congress?”

“It’s the epitome of what white gay privilege looks like.”

Note – I did email Mr. Cormier to see if he had any statement he’d like to make about the post and Mr. Schock. I’ve not received a reply at this time. If he does respond, I’ll be sure to update this post.

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Gay Quisling In White House Sees No Problem With Trump’s LGBTQ Policies

Deputy White House press secretary Judd Deere (images via Instagram)

Openly gay Judd Deere lives in Washington, D.C. He has a boyfriend, attended DC Pride, and currently serves in the Trump White House as Deputy Press Secretary.

Tasked with touting Donald Trump’s policies – including those that erode LGBTQ progress – Deere recently told Buzzfeed News he doesn’t care what the LGBTQ community thinks of him. He says his rise in the Trump administration is proof Trump isn’t homophobic.

“I’m completely open about who I am,” Deere told Buzzfeed. “These individuals that I work with in this building don’t treat me any differently because I’m gay.”

But, there is a caveat to that statement as Deere admits he doesn’t “walk into the White House every day and say, ‘I’m Judd Deere; I’m gay.’”

Adding that the president “doesn’t treat me any different” because he’s gay, Deere cops to not knowing if Trump even knows he identifies as gay.

Like former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Deere is originally from Arkansas.

He previously worked for the state’s Attorney General which fought against listing both same-sex parents on a child’s birth certificate. Striking down Fayetteville’s LGBTQ nondiscrimination ordinance was also on the menu during his time there.

“I focused on hiring the very best people, and that’s why I hired Judd,” wrote Sanders, in an email to Buzzfeed. “I am proud to have him on our team to help on LGBT issues as well as the many others in his portfolio.”

(image via Instagram/JuddPDeere)

Speaking of ‘helping on LGBT issues,’ Deere says he has no problem with the Trump administration’s policies regarding the community.

His position is that none of the controversial, news-making policies are really discriminatory.

On whether a baker can turn away a same-sex couple looking for a wedding cake?

“Yeah, that’s fine,” says Deere. “I’ll just go find another cake shop that will.”

Trump’s ban on transgender military service members, Deere says trans soldiers “erode military readiness,” and adds that the ban was “developed through extensive studies within the military by senior military officials.”

Not true – Trump’s own generals have publicly shared they were surprised by the July 2017 tweets announcing the ban.

When it comes to allowing healthcare providers to deny treatment to LGBTQ people based on ‘sincerely held religious beliefs,’ Deere (towing the administration line) says Trump is protecting ‘conscience rights.’

Buzzfeed’s Dominic Holden asked Deere what Trump has done for LGBTQ Americans, and Deere points to the president’s promise to end the HIV epidemic by 2030, as well as launching a “global campaign to decriminalize homosexuality.”

Across the board, though, Deere maintains that any notion the Trump administration is anti-LGBTQ is “just a smear campaign.”

And when it comes to how he himself might be perceived after agreeing to the Buzzfeedinterview, the deputy press secretary is unfazed.

“I don’t go into a dark depression because somebody hates the person I work for, or wants to get upset at me because they think I’m crazy for working here, because it just doesn’t matter to me,” said Deere.

(source: Buzzfeed News)

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‘Totally-Not-Gay’ But Caught With His Hand In The ‘Tip Jar’

'Totally-not-gay' former Republican Congressman Aaron Schock was recently caught on video tipping a go-go dancer at Boy Bar, a gay club in Mexico City this past weekend.
‘Totally-not-tipping’ Aaron Schock (screen capture)

‘Totally-not-gay’ former Republican Congressman Aaron Schock was recently caught on video tipping a go-go dancer at Boy Bar, a gay club in Mexico City this past weekend.

The Daily Mail was first to share the video footage which quickly went viral.

“The last person I would expect to see in Boy Bar is a former Republican congressman,” said the individual who recorded 37-year-old Schock at the nightclub. “I was taking a video of the go-go dancer on stage and all of a sudden I saw him.

“He looked like he was enjoying himself,” added the source.

To be honest, I’m terrible with faces, so I don’t know that I would have recognized the former lawmaker in a gay bar in another country.

But Schock did post on his Instagram that he was visiting Mexico City over the weekend, so…

A post shared by Aaron Schock (@aaronschock) on Jun 22, 2019 at 5:15pm PDT

Schock resigned from Congress in 2015 amid allegations he had misappropriated campaign funds for his own use.

This past March, federal prosecutors agreed to drop 24 charges of fraud, making false statements and theft of government funds if he repaid more than $100,000 in misappropriated funds.

Over the past several months, Schock, who has never publicly come out, has been spotted frolicking with shirtless gay men in a number of locales including the Coachella festival and a West Hollywood hotel pool.

Long suspected of being gay, Schock angered the LGBTQ community by voting against LGBTQ rights and interests during his time in the House.

As a congressman representing Illinois, he voted against the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” against adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the federal hate crime laws, and for the Defense of Marriage Act, which would have defined marriage as only between a man and a woman.

To be clear, I’m never one to out a gay person UNLESS they used their position to harm the LGBTQ community while enjoying the privileges that we’ve fought for.

The Twitterverse has had a field day with the new-found video clip:

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Aaron Schock: I’m Not Planning A 2020 Run For Congress

Former U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock tells the Peoria Journal-Star that he has no plans to run for his old seat in Congress.
Aaron Schock (image via Instagram)

Former U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock tells the Peoria Journal-Star that he has no plans to run for his old seat in Congress.

Earlier this week, I reported that Schock had recently updated his Statement of Organization with the Federal Election Commission. The update included the language “office sought” as Illinois’ 18th District – the office he held for several years.

The former lawmaker told the Journal-Star that the recent filing on the account “simply changed the treasurer back to me.” The history on the FEC filing indicates the previous treasurer had been listed as Paul Kilgore. 

The account’s funds currently register as zero, and Schock said that “we don’t need a big third-party compliance firm like we had been using. They’re expensive.”

In 2015, Schock resigned from office in disgrace for alleged financial misconduct regarding his campaign funds.

Back in March, the Justice Department agreed to drop the corruption case involving false expense claims and inappropriate use of campaign funds. In exchange for paying $110,000 in restitution and taxes, the 24 felony counts against him were dropped.

The agreement did not require him to admit any wrongdoing, and left him without a criminal conviction.

At the time, the Republican told CBS News that he hadn’t shut the door on a possible return to politics at some point in the future.

“At 37-years-old, I don’t think I’ll ever say never,” said Schock.

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FEC Filing – Is ‘Totally-Not-Gay’ Aaron Schock Running For Congress Again?

Is former Congressman/current West Hollywood gadabout Aaron Schock planning on running for Congress again soon?
Aaron Schock (image via Instagram)

Is former Congressman/current West Hollywood gadabout Aaron Schock planning on running for Congress again soon?

Just days ago a Statement of Organization was filed or updated with the Federal Election Commission by Schock for Congress.

The date shown is June 7, 2019 and the form indicates it was signed by Schock himself.

The office sought is listed as Illinois’ 18th Congressional District and the party? Yep, still Republican.

The 38-year-old is also named as the Treasurer, although there’s not much to tend to since the Financial Summary shows 0.00 funds.

In 2015, Schock resigned from office in disgrace for alleged financial misconduct regarding his campaign funds.

Back in March, the Justice Department agreed to drop the corruption case involving false expense claims and inappropriate use of campaign funds. In exchange for paying $110,000 in restitution and taxes, the 24 felony counts against him were dropped.

The agreement did not require him to admit any wrongdoing, and left him without a criminal conviction.

At the time, the Republican told CBS News that he hadn’t shut the door on a possible return to politics at some point in the future.

“At 37-years-old, I don’t think I’ll ever say never,” said Schock. He added that he had “enjoyed being out of politics the last four years.”

Of course, we know he’s enjoyed a lot over the last few years than just “being out of politics.”

(image via Instagram)

The ‘totally-not-gay’ former Congressman has been spotted and photographed hanging, kissing and getting handsy with gay men at Coachella, flirting at WeHo pools and apparently getting busy on dating apps.

Now, nothing wrong with that – unless you spent your time in office opposing LGBTQ rights like voting against the repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’ or supporting a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

(images via Facebook/Queerty)

For the record, Schock denies being gay. So, there.

It is difficult to imagine how a run for political office would play out.

The recent stories and photos would definitely come up at some point, and he would have to address those, as well his insistent denials about being gay.

Would a conservative-leaning, Republican district vote for him? Or, in a wider context, who would vote for him? A guy who lied over and over on the issue, and voted against a community that he’s a part of?

Does Schock have a second chapter in politics in mind?

Or, maybe he just re-upped the FEC filing for “old times sake.”

We’ll just have to see.