Marjorie Taylor Greene rap video is latest Republican Party embarrassment

 

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has made a fool out of her party again. This time with a tone deaf rap video

While I was never a fan of the Republican party, there was a time in which I had some respect for them. But how can you respect a party whose governing philosophy is all about getting rich from lies, grievances, and the largesse of billionaires funding their naked pursuits of power? Maybe Obama becoming president did break the GOP? Maybe Trump's successful 2016 presidential campaign freed their minds from the so-called shackles of pretending to be respectable. Either way, the Republican party seems to be strapped face down on a airplane descending to the lowest depths of hell.

And the rap video below featuring Congresswoman Majorie Taylor Greene is an example of how nasty the GOP crash will be when it does happen. Greene is like the main character in the fable of The Mischievous Dog in that she is reveling in something which makes her look like a fool. Who is the person rapping in this video? Who cares. Feel free to google him if you want to, but you won't get any answers from me. All he represents is depths of filth the GOP seems to be knee deep in. Obviously, they don't seem to be embarrassed by it, so I will go ahead and be embarrassed for them. Folks may think that losing any sense of shame insulates them from being shamed, but they are generally wrong.

Hey look everyone; the Mayor of MAGAVILLE, it's the official MTG rap video! pic.twitter.com/03FwtWl8w8

— Kenny Akers (@KeneAkers) July 17, 2023

'School board faces backlash for not defending employees against 'groomer' slur' & other Mon midday news briefs

Roanoke County School Board faces backlash​ - A schoolboard which does not stand up for its employees deserves the backlash it receives. 

The Right Is Using the Anti-Abortion Supreme Court Ruling to Attack Trans Care. Will It Work? - We will see . . . 

“Our best days are ahead”: Trans congressional candidate Sarah McBride still believes in America - I love her enthusiasm and positive attitude. Those are two things we must never allow the opposition to take from us. 

Ron DeSantis fires roughly a dozen staffers in a campaign shake-up - Poor baby. Mr. Culture War is having problems.

Nikki Haley Is Losing Her Culture War Campaign - And so is Haley. Good.

All the Celebrities Who Came Out As LGBTQ+ in 2023 (So Far) - So far . . .

Casey DeSantis channeling Anita Bryant in sad attempt to save husband's flailing presidential campaign

Florida activist and former state legislator Carlos Guillermo Smith got it right with this tweet about how the Ron DeSantis presidential campaign is attempting to use his wife Casey as a political asset. 

And how it's actually not a good look.

 In the 1970s, Anita Bryant became infamous with her attacks on the LGBTQ community. She was probably the first who recognized how homophobia disguised as Christian faith can be a devasting political tool. And she used it with abandon.  She made horribly inaccurate claims about how gays are recruiting children and then used her "Christian beliefs" to shield herself from accusations of bigotry. It was successful for her at first, but her crusade eventually destroyed her career and marriage. 

Mrs. DeSantis is obviously copying Bryant's modus operandi of scapegoating LGBTQ people, even down to the 'recruiting' narrative. While I certainly don't wish ruin for the DeSantis marriage, I sincerely hope this desperate shift from Ron DeSantis to his wife as sort of fiercely protective "grizzly mother" helps to wreck his flailing presidential campaign.

It certainly appears so.

'Hair product line severs relationship with Michigan hair stylist after she bans trans and queer customers' & other Thur midday news briefs.

Traverse City salon fallout: Hair product line drops salon after anti-transgender post - This is what's called 'consequences culture.' She doesn't want to serve trans or queer clients. A beauty product line has refused to supply to her. The end. 

Michigan AG: Salon Owner’s Refusal of Service to Transgender Clients Unacceptable - And it gets better (or worse) depending on who you're rooting for. 

Trial over Alabama transgender care ban for minors delayed until 2024 - Meanwhile that awful law cannot be enforced.

Christian city officials wants to close public library over book about trans people​ - More of the same from the book burners.

'How dare you!' - Fired up mom brings the smoke in school board meeting to protect LGBTQ students from bad policies

Don't let the right fool you with their false narratives about fired up parents supposedly being solely on their side. LGBTQ kids have parents too and they don't need any astroturfed groups to manufacture the fire for them. They bring their own, like this mother recently did in front of the Wilson School Board in Tennessee as she defended not only her child, but other LGBTQ students, from bigoted school board policies.

'Rollout for South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem's anti-LGBTQ whistleblower hotline is hot mess' & other Wed midday news briefs

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is having problems. And she deserves those problems.

Surprise! The rollout for Kristi Noem’s anti-LGBTQ+ “whistleblower hotline” has been a total sh*tshow - She deserves every bit of the chaos.

At least 88 out LGBTQ athletes competing in the 2023 Women’s World Cup, a record​ - This is wonderful. 

Mississippi’s new book-banning law denies minors access to e-books & audiobooks - This, on the other hand, is ridiculous. 

Supreme Court’s Anti-LGBTQ Ruling Has Already Incited Discrimination - Yes it has. BUT the subject in question WILL learn TODAY. 

Michigan Salon Owner Refuses to Serve LGBTQ+ Community Because of ‘Pedophiles’ - More details about the above news brief. As I said, she is learning the hard way even as we speak.

The grift is real: Kid Rock still sells Bud Light even after helping to start boycott

It has always been a grift. From The Daily Beast by the way of JoeMyGod:

After Bud Light’s brief partnership with a transgender influencer sparked right-wing outrage, Kid Rock established himself as one of the brand’s strongest critics. But CNN’s recent visit to his signature bar in Nashville— Kid Rock’s Big Ass Honky Tonk & Rock ‘n’ Roll Steakhouse—told a different story. “Despite the online bravado, and talk of a boycott, Bud Light was available when CNN stopped in recently,” CNN reporter Ryan Young said in a segment that aired Tuesday morning. “It is not clear if the ban had been lifted or if there ever had been one to begin with.” The visit by CNN comes after some patrons had posted on social media about spotting Bud Light at the bar. After Bud Light sent free beer to transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, Kid Rock filmed himself shooting up a case of the iconic beer. 

 This really isn't a new development. Newsweek reported the same thing last week: 

 Despite his vocal opposition to Bud Light, Kid Rock's Tennessee bar is still selling the beer, according to a Newsweek source. Kid Rock was one of the first to publicly dismiss Bud Light and its parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev, filming a video of himself shooting crates of the drink with an assault rifle after the brand sent transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney a personalized beer can.

 This reaction made it surprising to some when it was claimed in June that the Kid Rock's Big Ass Honky Tonk Rock N' Roll Steakhouse was still selling Bud Light. another social media user seemed to dismiss this with a viral video, saying it wasn't sold there, but a source has come forward to Newsweek, showing pictures of Bud Light being sold and drunk at Kid Rock's establishment. 

 And that article made reference to a June tweet proving the same thing:

In other words, this is hardly a new or shocking development. If anything, it underscores just how lazy and overpaid some members of the American media are. Most likely very few will note this stunning degree of hypocrisy because the Bud Light controversy has run its course. It's no longer a hot item for the media to waste time with frivolous debates about the trans community (but talking to very few members of the trans community) while convincing themselves that they doing hard hitting work. 

Cut them some slack. They're practically bending over backwards to justify to themselves the embarrassingly large paychecks they receive year after year. The real shame is that this newest revelation would create a fruitful discussion about how people can easily be manipulated into a frenzy over something as irrelevant as a little beer campaign featuring a transgender woman. And also about how it has led to more vilification against trans Americans. 

But I doubt anyone is going to talk about that.

The only person who probably gained from all of this this is Kid Rock. He got an obscenely large amount of attention by helping to usher a boycott against a beer which he continued to sell during said boycott. He's probably laughing at all of the trouble he caused. 

Then again, knowing Kid Rock, he's probably doing this to us all:

'Did Ron DeSantis's anti-LGBTQ ad backfire against his presidential campaign?' & other Tue midday news briefs

A narrative seems to be forming that Ron DeSantis's recent anti-LGBTQ ad backfired against him. Badly.

‘Crossed the line’: String of anti-gay ads from DeSantis force Trump supporters to flip on LGBTQ support

Ron DeSantis’ very gay ad: Who made this steaming pile? 

In other news: 

Casey DeSantis has been declared “America’s Karen” & we’ve never heard a more fitting nickname - Mrs. DeSantis taking a leading position in her husband's presidential campaign doesn't seem to be working. 

“Drag isn’t hurting anyone”: The teen star of ‘Drag: the Musical’ has no time for hate - Keep shining, young man. Don't let anyone dull your light.

Alex Kane wins MLW World Heavyweight title, becomes second out LGBTQ male world champion ever - Visibility matters.

Federal court says school district can't restrict 11-year-old trans girl from using girls' bathroom

 

A victory in Wisconsin underscores just how ugly attacks against the trans community are. 

From NBC News:

A federal judge has blocked a Wisconsin school district from requiring transgender students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that match the sex they were assigned at birth while a lawsuit plays out against the school. U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman said Thursday that the Mukwonago Area School District must allow a transgender student to use facilities that align with their gender identity, temporarily blocking a policy approved last month by the school board, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. 

The order comes in a lawsuit brought anonymously by an 11-year-old transgender student and her mother. The judge ruled that the school’s policy was causing emotional and mental harm to the student, who was described as a boy at birth but has identified as a girl since she was three years old.

 It's an 11-year-old child. Why is a policy attempting to force her to use the boys' bathroom necessary? Who is she hurting? From the way some people behave about this sort of thing, one would thing she was doing something other than normal bodily functions. Headlines from far-right publication prove that point by attempting to paint a lurid picture:

Gateway Pundit:

Clinton-Appointed Liberal Judge Rules Wisconsin School Must Let Trans-Identifying Biological Male Students Use Girls’ Restroom

Daily Wire: 

Wisconsin School District Must Let Trans-Identifying Student Use Girls’ Restroom, Federal Judge Orders

But even The Daily Wire, in spite of its headline, lends credence to questioning why such a policy banning trans kids from using restrooms of their gender identity is necessary:

The judge’s decision blocks the district from keeping the 11-year-old boy out of the girls’ bathroom. The temporary restraining order states that the boy has been using the girls’ bathroom since he was in third grade and is entering sixth grade. The boy is reportedly currently attending summer school and was told by school district staff that he must use either the boys’ bathroom or a gender-neutral option. The restraining order also says the boy is suffering “emotional and mental harms” due to the bathroom policy.

 

Since the trans girl was already using the girls' restroom since third grade, what would be the harming with allowing her to use it now? It's doubtful many folks reading publications like The Daily Wire or The Gateway Pundit would get past those headlines with an objective mind intact.

Unfortunately, when it comes to trans issues - particularly trans issues involving kids - the simplicity which is usually there is always ignored by the right and their readers. It's all about exploiting people's fears about predators attacking kids in places where they are vulnerable.  That in itself is a justified fear, but in the worldview of the right, trans kids aren't seen as vulnerable. In fact, they would like these kids not to be seen at all.  

This is because their visibility makes it difficult for grifting outfits like The Daily Wire and The Gateway Pundit and the transphobes they feed off of to forget that when we talk about protecting children, that also means trans children.

'US religious right at center of anti-LGBTQ+ message pushed around the world' & other Mon midday news briefs

US religious right at center of anti-LGBTQ+ message pushed around the world​ - I hate to say it, but this is a serious code red situation here. Bloggers with limited resources, or any resources, can combat this. It is going to take all of us, so please stop with the arguments about pronouns, claiming that our community should divest from each other, whining about people adding more colors to the rainbow flag, and all of the other petty internal squabbles which some of us seem to be obsessed with. We have SERIOUS issues here. 

Controversial ‘Pride Month’ video highlighted by Ron DeSantis campaign disappears - Let's hope that DeSantis's presidential aspirations follow. 

7 GOP attorneys general threaten Target over Pride display - What the hell is this? 

Glenn Youngkin Strips LGBTQ+ Young People of Resources in Virginia - Youngkin doesn't believe in protecting LGBTQ kids.

Anti-LGBTQ state laws are failing to stand up in courts, according to NBC News

Saturday's ridiculous ruling by federal court ruling that Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for trans kids can temporarily go into effect was an anomaly. According to NBC News, a majority of the recent laws passed to undermine LGBTQ rights have been falling in courts.

A record number of bills aimed at restricting the rights of LGBTQ people have become law in the past three years, but the majority of those that have faced legal challenges haven’t held up in court, according to an NBC News analysis, legal experts and the American Civil Liberties Union, which has filed legal challenges against some of the laws. 

 Of the 20 states that have passed into law restrictions on transition-related care for transgender minors, 11 have faced lawsuits. Five — Arkansas, Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky and Florida — have had their restrictions completely or partially blocked by federal judges who ruled they violated the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause. Oklahoma’s has been iced by a legal agreement while litigation continues.

 Tennessee’s care restriction was temporarily blocked by a federal court last month, but an appeals court lifted the injunction Friday, marking a rare loss in a series of legal victories for advocates fighting against transgender bans. The four other lawsuits over similar restrictions in Georgia, Idaho, Montana and Nebraska are still pending . . . 

 And it's not just laws and bills banning gender-affirming care for trans teens, either.

The legal losses for states that have attempted to limit LGBTQ rights extend beyond restrictions on transgender health care. 

 Twenty-two states have passed laws that bar transgender student athletes from participating on school sports teams that align with their gender identities, and judges last year temporarily blocked three of those in Idaho, West Virginia and Utah pending the outcome of litigation, according to the Movement Advancement Project. A federal judge in Montana also permanently struck down the state’s ban on transgender women playing on collegiate sports teams in September. 

 Laws that explicitly restrict drag shows have been passed in two states, Montana and Tennessee, though an additional four states — Arkansas, Florida, North Dakota and Texas — passed laws that regulate “adult” performances, which LGBTQ advocates say could be used to target drag performers. Last month, federal judges declared Tennessee’s restriction unconstitutional and temporarily blocked Florida’s. Three Montanans sued the state Friday over its drag-restriction law.

 Paul Smith, who successfully argued the 2003 landmark Supreme Court case Lawrence v. Texas, which found the U.S.’s remaining sodomy laws unconstitutional, said the repeated victories for LGBTQ people and advocates are “a sign that these laws are mostly being thought up based on their appeal to a certain frenzied group of people in the country who were very excited about picking on LGBTQ people right now, not based on their legal merits and sustainability.

NBC News points out that there have been some losses and legal experts it talked to is divided on the  possible narrative that a conservative Supreme Court would automatically rule against the LGBTQ community should these cases make it there.

The legal experts interviewed by NBC News were split on which of the cases could make it to the Supreme Court, but most of them agreed that drag restrictions would be the least likely to hold up, and that it would be harder to predict how the court would rule on transition-related care restrictions.

 Craig Konnoth, a University of Virginia law professor who previously served as a deputy solicitor general with the California Department of Justice, said the drag ban cases in particular have “a pretty good chance of continuing to win, even if it goes up to the Supreme Court.”

 “I think that with respect to health care decisions, after Dobbs, I am hesitant to say anything about the right of individuals to be able to access health care,” he said, referring to the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade and eliminated the constitutional right to abortion.

'Hypocrite Mike Pences lies about Biden while attacking trans youth' & other Fri midday news briefs

Hypocrite Mike Pence lies about Biden while attacking trans youth - When it comes to LGBTQ people, Mike Pence is always lying. And it's a sad commentary on his supposed faith.

Popeyes Franchise Ordered to Pay $50k After Harassing, Firing Gay Employee - Give it up! Turn it loose!

Georgia's Gender-Affirming Care Ban Stands for Now, Judge Rules - "Four families with transgender children and a national organization for such families, TransParent, last week filed a request for an emergency court order to keep the ban from going into effect. But U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Geraghty Wednesday decided to allow the law to stand because, she said, the request was filed too late, Atlanta TV station WANF reports. It was filed Thursday evening, less than 48 hours before the law was scheduled to go into effect Saturday. Attorneys for the state had said they needed more time to prepare their defense, and Geraghty allowed them that." 

Businesses use rainbow flags to defy anti-Pride mayor who called LGBTQ+ identity a “lifestyle”​ - Good for them!

Ex-NBA star Gilbert Arenas just became the #1 champ in the tiresome sport of whining about LGBTQ+ people - Yet another fool.

New DeSantis ad reeks of transphobia, homophobia, QAnon conspiracies, and sweaty desperation

This latest Ron DeSantis ad - brought to Twitter by his wife Casey - exudes desperation because he can't seen to catch up to Trump in the polls. The fact that his wife is taking the lead on this ad is significant. Apparently, he can't get shit together so she's taking the lead position.  And it seems Mrs. DeSantis is just as disastrous as her husband. I would describe this ad as the physical version of throwing sh!t at the wall and hoping some of it sticks. In this case, it's just about 'anti-woke' narrative we've been hearing lately. Except for the drag queens.  I can't believe it omitted the drag queens.

We will not allow you to exploit the innocence of our children to advance your agenda.

When you come after our kids, we fight back.

We are no longer silent.

We are united.

We are Mamas for DeSantis.

...and we will elect @RonDeSantis President of the United States.

Join our… pic.twitter.com/jo6HUATaVa

— Casey DeSantis (@CaseyDeSantis) July 6, 2023

 The ad, which is supposed to be launching some silly endeavor called Mamas for DeSantis, is being justifiably condemned as some QAnon type of trash.

Several journalists and political experts blasted the "bizarre" ad. Kimberly Leonard, politics correspondent for Business Insider said, "This video reveals something I've emphasized for a while: The DeSantises are in lockstep. She is fully engaged and supportive in her husband's political rise, and when it comes to policy they agree." 

 MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan wrote, "Imagine thinking in 2023 that the threat to our kids is from…masking in a pandemic? The actual threat to our kids, missing from this video, are mass shooters in schools, who are able to exist of course with the support of GOP gun laws." 

 Former President Barack Obama staffer Tommy Vietor commented, "A couple weeks ago, the DeSantis campaign was pitching stories about how his wife was the secret weapon to help sand off his weird, rough edges. Now she's releasing insane agitprop videos. Bizarre choice!" 

 Peter Schorsch, publisher of Florida Politics, added, "The more it becomes clear @RonDeSantis will not win in 2024, the more you’ll see them position @CaseyDeSantis for 2026." Deputy Political Editor at Courier Newsroom Keya Vakil, wrote, "This is utterly indistinguishable from QAnon."

No doubt, the only success this ad will probably have is dredging up the Lady MacBeth vibes about Mrs. DeSantis that the campaign thought it killed a few months ago.

Meanwhile, this is 0-2 for DeSantis in the ad department. The first ad, from his 'war room' attacking Trump and the LGBTQ community got called out for its bizarre violent, homoerotic undertones. It also started an ugly, but highly pleasurable to watch, feud amongst gay Republicans

To wrap up “Pride Month,” let’s hear from the politician who did more than any other Republican to celebrate it…

pic.twitter.com/FT7LdW4vls

— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) June 30, 2023

God help us all if this man somehow does become President. He's really NOT good at any of this.

'DeSantis doubles down on controversial anti-LGBTQ ad amid feud with gay Republicans' & other Thur midday news briefs

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis

Ron DeSantis doubles down on controversial anti-LGBTQ ad amid criticism​ - Of course he does and seeing the trouble it has caused gay Republicans and that awful 'Gay Against Groomers' group, I say - for now - keep on, Ronnie.

Gay Republicans finally turn on Ron DeSantis for his outlandish ad attacking LGBTQ+ people - THIS is delicious. 

Right-wing media smear trans people and BLM supporters following Philadelphia shooting - Good grief!

N.C. governor vetoes trio of LGBTQ restrictions in ongoing fight with GOP supermajority - But Republicans in NC have a supermajority so we will see how it goes. 

Trans man speaks out against famous anti-trans mother - I cannot imagine a sadder story than this one.

'Gays Against Groomers' imploding over DeSantis ad, allegations that founder is on DeSantis payroll

Gays Against Groomers is in the middle of an ugly feud to an anti-LGBTQ ad by DeSantis campaign

It looks like DeSantis' so-called "war on woke" has claimed a scalp, so to speak. But not one which he hoped for:

For the initiated, David Leatherwood is one of the founders of the group Gays Against Groomers (GAG). This group claims made up of gays and lesbians supposedly fed up with "left-wing" members of the community and supporters of "trans ideology" going after kids.

In reality, according to The Advocate:

GAG is not a grassroots initiative but a right-wing project seeking to gain political and financial advantage by using anti-trans rhetoric, according to the left-leaning media watchdog. GAG was formed last year “to protect the kids” from “sexualization, indoctrination, and medicalization,” Michell claims, and it has gained prestige in right-wing circles along with Chaiya Raichik’s Libs of TikTok, which also attacks the LGBTQ+ community. Both have promoted the use of the anti-LGBTQ+ slur “groomer.”

So what got Leatherwood upset? 

Last week, Ron DeSantis' campaign unleashed an ad on Twitter calling out Donald Trump for voicing support for the LGBTQ community in 2016. The ad was condemned by both folks on the left and right of the political spectrum. Gay conservatives in particular were incensed, claiming that they were misled by DeSantis. Some said they couldn't understand why DeSantis attacked LGBTQ people in general instead of the so-called far left of the community:

 LGBTQ conservatives, reacting to the video, said DeSantis had shown his true colors as an “anti-LGBT champion,” undermining his arguments that his support for the policies were about protecting children and parents’ rights. 

 “It’s like he’s going mask off,” said Brad Polumbo, a Michigan-based libertarian journalist. “The cat’s out of the bag.” Polumbo said he’d have considered voting for DeSantis at one time. “I’m somebody who has my fair share of policy disagreements with DeSantis, but I was considering voting for him in the primary before he entered the race officially,” he said. “Since then, he’s done thing after thing that really makes me increasingly write off that possibility.” 

 Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), who has endorsed Trump for president but vocally supported Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill on the campaign trail last year, said that in light of Friday’s video, he now feels that he was “used” and misled by DeSantis. “I used to think he was a great governor,” Santos, the first non-incumbent gay Republican elected to Congress, said of DeSantis. “Now, I’m starting to think differently.”

The ad caused gay Republicans and members of the DeSantis campaign to snipe at each other on Twitter with Leatherwood being in the middle of it all.

Then things got considerably ugly when Caitlyn Jenner got involved. Jenner, who at one time was seen as a positive role model for trans people, has made a name for herself with her anti-trans positions and statements.  She chose to interject herself in the middle of the argument by calling out Jaimee Mitchell, the other founder of Gays Against Groomers.

Mitchell did not take Jenner's comments well. She got downright nasty.

And this is where we came in, so to speak. While it has not been confirmed that Mitchell (and thus GAG) is on the payroll of DeSantis, some alleged former members tweeted support to Leatherwood and criticism of GAG, particularly Mitchell.

Viscount was voicing opposition to Mitchell as far back as May.

Important context as a Gays Against Groomers founder quits over allegations that cofounder Jaimee Michelle is on the DeSantis payroll: more than 23 members of the org have quit recently, including the Director of Operations, Director of Chapters, and NY Chapter leader. https://t.co/7f5KPREAu4 pic.twitter.com/UVYfMkTuxm

— Ari Drennen (@AriDrennen) July 5, 2023

So, this is where we are thus far. I don't know how or where this is going to end, but I am enjoying the ride. It couldn't be happening to a more deserving bunch of . . . people.

'Pete Buttigieg mocks DeSantis in aftermath of anti-LGBTQ ad controversy' & other Wed midday news briefs

Transportation Secretary Pet Buttigieg

Pete Buttigieg mocks Ron DeSantis for trying to 'prove' his 'manhood' - THAT was cold . . . and very astute.

LGBTQ conservatives say they feel misled by DeSantis - You misled yourselves. 

Parents of Trans Kids Seek to Block Georgia Ban on Gender-Affirming Care​ - I hope they are successful at it. 

'Sham' website customer likely didn't affect Supreme Court ruling on same-sex weddings, experts say - It is still a black mark, even though the effects of the ruling appear to be limited.

Gay Republicans are shocked that they are collateral damage in the DeSantis/Trump feud. What did they expect?

A recent conflict between FL Gov Ron DeSantis supporters and gay Republicans teaches an important lesson about those in our community who turn on their own. 

From Mediaite:

Log Cabin Republicans, the largest LGBT Republican organization in the U.S., condemned Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis after his campaign posted an ad attacking former President Donald Trump’s connections to the LGBT community. The bizarre ad, which was posted by the DeSantis War Room to Twitter on Friday, attacked Trump by playing a 2016 clip of him saying, “I will do everything in my power to protect our LGBTQ citizens.” 

 Trump made the comments following the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida, which left 49 people dead. The ad also showed clips of Trump with transgender Republican Caitlyn Jenner, before boastfully displaying a string of headlines that referenced DeSantis’ “draconian” and “evil” anti-LGBT policies.

“Today’s message from the DeSantis campaign War Room is divisive and desperate,” the Log Cabin Republicans said in a statement. “Republicans and other commonsense conservatives know Ron Desantis [sic] has alienated swing-state and younger voters.” The organization said that while “conservatives understand that we need to protect our kids, preserve women’s sports, safeguard women’s spaces and strengthen parental rights,” DeSantis’ “extreme rhetoric has just ventured into homophobic territory.”

 . . .Charles T. Moran, the national president of the group, also condemned DeSantis in his own post.“You could have gone after radical queers, @RonDeSantis – but instead you went after the ones who win the @GOP votes and get Republicans elected. People like me,” he wrote. “Wrong fight to pick, bud.”

The ad in question is below:

To wrap up “Pride Month,” let’s hear from the politician who did more than any other Republican to celebrate it…

pic.twitter.com/FT7LdW4vls

— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) June 30, 2023

 

As you can probably guess, DeSantis's ad has opened up an online war between his people such as aide Christina Pushaw and gay Republicans such as former Trump official Richard Grenell. Below is just a snippet from Twitter:

They all go on and on like this and it's delicious. THIS particular part below caught my eye because it signifies the essence of the entire situation:

David Leatherwood is co-chair of a far-right group called Gays Against Groomers. According to The Advocate:

The founder of Gays Against Groomers, Jaimee Michell, and her partners are former ultra-MAGA Trump followers who spread anti-transgender propaganda with QAnon conspiracy theories and links to extremist militias, according to a Media Matters for America investigation published last week. In response to accusations that it spreads homophobia and transphobia, GAG claims that, as a “coalition of gay people,” it and its members cannot possibly spread anti-LGBTQ+ propaganda.

 Furthermore, they claim that any attack on the group is homophobic. However, GAG is not a grassroots initiative but a right-wing project seeking to gain political and financial advantage by using anti-trans rhetoric, according to the left-leaning media watchdog. GAG was formed last year “to protect the kids” from “sexualization, indoctrination, and medicalization,” Michell claims, and it has gained prestige in right-wing circles along with Chaiya Raichik’s Libs of TikTok, which also attacks the LGBTQ+ community. Both have promoted the use of the anti-LGBTQ+ slur “groomer.”

 . . . Leatherwood began receiving attention for right-wing troll behavior online. Like Michell, he has ties to the “Stop the Steal” movement. On December 14, 2020, he spoke at an event hosted by Roger Stone. Also like Michell, Leatherwood celebrated the January 6 insurrection, praising the violent rioters, according to Media Matters. 

Queerty describes Leatherwood as a "gay Trump superfan" and gave a few examples of his unhinged tweets attacking Black Lives Matters, giving out COVID misinformation, and the following, which is highly ironic:

So David Leatherwood and other gay Republicans are angry that the groomer narrative and other ugly stereotypes they helped conservatives cultivate against other LGBTQ people has been turned on them. 

 

You dumbasses. What the hell did you think was going to happen? What did you expect?  You helped bigots spread lies against your own people and now you are surprised that the bigots have turned the lies against you? Are you actually surprised that you've been tossed over so needlessly?

I'm not surprised. Well, that's not completely true. I'm surprised that it happened so soon. You all have deluded yourselves into thinking that you are the "proper gays" and that those of us who don't fit your rigid ideas are damaging the community. You all have deluded yourselves into thinking if it weren't for us, the community would be accepted by folks like DeSantis, Pushaw, and other conservatives.

But you are now learning a valuable lesson. They never liked you. You think that you are above the rest of us, but in the eyes of DeSantis and company, you are just like us - "f@ggots, weirdoes, child groomers, and freaks" or to be succinct, "radical queers." 

The difference between you and the rest of us is that they couldn't openly despise you. This made you think that they didn't see you negatively.   You thought you were special. But you were never special. You were simply useful like a piece of toilet paper. And just like that toilet paper, when you are no longer useful, you are discarded. 

They don't care about you. They never did. And us - the LGBTQ people who you have maligned - don't care about you either.

So now what are you going to do?

The Supreme Court's terrible 303 Creative v. Elenis ruling - what you need to know

 

Editor's note - Friday's Supreme Court ruling concerning 303 Creative v. Elenis was a travesty simply for the fact that it was not an actual situation and being so, the plaintiff had no standing to pursue a lawsuit.  But since we're at this point, the important thing is to get a clear view of where we stand. A lot of folks have been freaking out, so I am relying on Lambda Legal to give a clear view of what happened and where do we go from here. (I highlighted some points which I think folks NEED to know)  

The U.S. Supreme Court today ruled in favor of a Colorado website design business – 303 Creative – which claimed the owner’s business involves “expression” and is therefore entitled to an exemption from the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA) so that she can discriminate against same-sex couples when designing and selling wedding websites. In its ruling, the Court found this particular business engaged in “speech for pay” by creating customized websites for carefully vetted clients using the owner’s original artwork and language.  That uniquely creative expression is protected by the First Amendment from being “compelled” by state law when contrary to messages the artist wishes to express. 

 Lambda Legal Chief Legal Officer Jennifer C. Pizer issued the following statement:  

 “Unlike yesterday’s affirmative action travesty, today’s smug attack on civil rights law will have limited practical impact in the marketplace because few commercial services involve original artwork and pure speech offered as limited commissions.  But today’s narrow decision does continue the Court majority’s dangerous siren call to those trying to return the country to the social and legal norms of the Nineteenth Century because it jettisons without even acknowledging what was part of the legal test for decades.  

  “Although misguided, today’s decision depends on its limited, uncommon facts – this business owner takes specific commissions, unlike most commercial enterprises that solicit customers widely, and she creates unique artwork for those selected customers.  Importantly, the decision also confirms that all forms of discrimination forbidden by Colorado’s law are subjected to the same constitutional standard, and that such laws serve compelling public purposes.   

 “Still, it is impossible to overlook the fact that this extreme Court majority yet again has set aside decades of sensible precedent that previously required that objective observers of commercial conduct would need to understand that any message conveyed by a commercially available service was that of the business owner rather than that of the customer.  Given the uniquely creative service at issue here, the impact is likely to be minimal.  But the door has been opened for potential future cases to expand this limited carve-out.  We will be vigilant against that possibility.”   

So basically, this is the deal in my opinion.

 The ruling in this case is limited because of extenuating circumstances. Even though the court ruled in favor of the web designer, it confirmed the need and justification for anti-discrimination laws protecting LGBTQ Americans.

BUT . . .

1. The ruling opens the door for future cases looking to test laws favoring LGBTQ rights.

2. The fact that SCOTUS agreed to hear this case even though there was NO CASE to begin with raises huge questions about the court's integrity as a whole and the motivations of certain members. I think that in the future, this case will be mentioned as proof of why the Justice Roberts era of SCOTUS was of poor quality.

For now, we do what we always do when there is a loss - pick ourselves up and continue to fight like hell. Pride month in general this year was a rough one. But we not only got through it but pulled out some wins in court. And we looked fabulous in our celebrations, like always. No matter how the opposition tries to spin it, we won.   But we should be used to that. LGBTQ people know how to win the hard way because we've done it so many times.

And we are going to do it again.

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Ron DeSantis

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