House Passes Equality Act-- Republicans Whine It Impinges On Their Right To Discriminate Against Gays

Aside from being Republicans serving in Congress, what do these 8 men and women have in common: Susan Brooks (R-IN), Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), Brain Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Will Hurd (R-TX), John Katko (R-NY), Tom Reed (R-NY), Elise Stefanik (R-NY), Greg Walden (R-OR)? They were the Republicans to stand up for their own LGBTQ constituents by voting with every single Democrat to pass David Cicilline's Equality Act (H.R.5). It's a simple, straight forward bill that prohibits discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity in areas including public accommodations and facilities, education, federal funding, employment, housing, credit, and the jury system. Specifically, the bill defines and includes sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity among the prohibited categories of discrimination or segregation. It allows the Department of Justice to intervene in equal protection actions in federal court on account of sexual orientation or gender identity. And it prohibits an individual from being denied access to a shared facility, including a restroom, a locker room, and a dressing room, that is in accordance with the individual's gender identity.

The bill passed with a big bipartisan majority-- 236-173. McConnell has already signaled that he will not permit a vote on the legislation in the Senate, ironic since he's a lifelong closet case himself who was kicked out of the military many decades ago for fondling a private's privates. Republicans don't admit that they're bigots when they try to block this kind of legislation. They claim it-- equality itself-- imposes on their freedom. Banning anti-LGBTQ discrimination is against their bizarre religion and will lead, the insist, to persecution of Christians. (No, no they really tell each other that.)

A morally "upright" Republican hate-monger like Florida crackpot Ross Spano-- who stole his election and should never have been seated-- warned that HR-5 will "allow the government to force its rigid and unyielding fist inside the church... It would deliver a crushing blow to the base of the tree of religious liberty." Could you even image having a lunatic who talks like that as a Reprsentative? Another GOP gay-hater and bigot from the Sunshine State, Greg Steube, also voted no, he says, to protect women athletes.

The Florida Republican argued that the bill will inhibit competitiveness in women's sports and women's eligibility for athletic scholarships.

"A sports team couldn't treat a transgender woman differently from a woman who is not transgender on the ground that the former is male-bodied," Steube said on the House floor. "Yet, the reality is [when] putting male and female bodied athletes together in open sport ... females lose."

"This is fear mongering about trans women playing in sports," California Rep. Katie Hil largued in opposition to the amendment. "No person is trying to game the system to participate in women's sports. That is a sad scare tactic." The Republican motion to recommit failed with only one Democrat, Rep. Dan Lipinski, voting in favor of the amendment; seven did not vote. Lipinski was also the only Democrat not to cosponsor the legislation.

Republican opponents also argued the measure would restrict individual religious freedoms and mandate "specific accommodations" in shared facilities that would put burdens on small businesses, schools, and other community places.

"Its vague and circular definition of gender identity will lead only to uncertainty, litigation, and harm to individuals and organizations that will be forced to comply with a law the authors don’t even seem to understand," Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) said on the House floor Friday. "This is a classic example of passing something now and figuring out what it actually means later ... If the devil is in the details, we’re in for a lot of devilish surprises."

In response, Cicilline, the measure's sponsor, argued that the bill "does not, nor could any legislation," supersede the First Amendment's religious freedom protections.

"H.R. 5 allows the standards set by prior civil rights law to not interfere with worship and religious practices by religious organizations," Cicilline added.

It's worth reminding people who Virginia Foxx-- one of Congress' most hateful and homophobic psychics-- actually is. Do you remember the name Matthew Shepard? He was the young gay man who was crucified-- literally-- and left to die next to a lonely Wyoming highway. While his grieving mother sat in the congressional visitors' gallery, this is what North Carolina 's premiere contribution to national evil and hatred had to say.



Foxx never apologized and has voted against every equality bill that has ever come before Congress-- proudly and loudly, always making sure everyone knows she stands for hatred and intolerance. Her district is safely gerrymandered so that she is re-elected year after year without ever doing anything for anyone but herself and other selfish multimillionaires. Meanwhile, yesterday, what's left of poor old Pat Robertson was ranting and raving on evangelical TV. Clearly, God has cursed him:





Austin and Houston are what you could call WOKE cities. Both Travis and Harris counties-- the westernmost and easternmost components of a gerrymandered shitshow (TX-10) by Tom Delay-- are open and welcoming parts of Texas where people expect everyone to be treated fairly and equally. By cutting Austin up like a pie, Texas Republicans succeeded in disenfranchising voters there-- putting them into 4 bizarrely-drawn congressional districts, 3 of which are predominately Republican. One of the conservative anti-LGBTQ congressmen that gerrymander had forced on Austin is multimillionaire-- he married well-- crackpot and Trump bootlick Michael McCaul. Progressive Democrat Mike Siegel held him down to a 51.1% win last year and Siegel has every intention of finishing the job next year, In fact, please consider contribution to his campaign by clicking on the Lone Star State ActBlue thermometer on the right. After the vote on the bipartisan H.R.5 yesterday, Mike told us he would have gladly joined the vast majority of congressmembers who voted for it. "The Equality Act is about making sure everyone can access work and housing and education and other public services, without fear of discrimination. Unfortunately, here in the Texas 10th, in a district that includes strong LGBT communities in the Austin and Houston areas, our 'representative' voted to legalize hatred. To legitimize oppression and bigotry. To endanger his very constituents, who he is sworn to protect. This is only the latest example of Michael McCaul failing to stand up for Texans. We are working hard to ensure this is the beginning of his end."

Crackpot Utopia: The Year in Republican Crazy, Part 6

• And now a word about South Carolina
• Pat Robertson and his magic asteroid
• I'll have a pack of Twizzlers and an IUD to go, please


Eight-year-old South Carolinian Olivia McConnell (see No. 1, Exhibit B) thinks she's so-o-o smart just 'cause she's smarter than the whole of her state's GOP. Okay, she's only eight, so she doesn't realize that this isn't all that remarkable a feat.

Crackpot Utopia: A dream world as envisioned by republicans; a manifestation or expression of the deranged, warped alternate universe inhabited by republicans, at least in their minds. See also: Bachmannism, Boehneresque.

by Noah

1. And now a word about South Carolina!

There are a lotta nuts out there. Sometimes they band together and form whole states. When it came to all of that secession talk after the 2012 presidential election, South Carolina worked hard to not be outdone by fellow nut states Texas, Mississippi, and Alaska. Hell, they've even elected Lindsey Graham as one of their U.S. senators, more than once! And let's not forget that, at Fort Sumter, they started the Civil War, which for them has never ended.

But, putting all of that aside, let's just look at two exhibits from South Carolina from this past year. Keep in mind that some republicans will say defensively that the true crazies are in some sort of vast minority within their party. Always ask yourself, who puts the crazies in power?

Exhibit A: Meet Todd Kincannon

Um, "LEGAL CORRESPONANT"?
Is this some kind of secret code?

In the midst of the preelection media scare campaign on the subject of Ebola, Todd Kincannon, former executive director of the SC GOP, went even more full-blown-wacko than any of the usual suspects from FOX, CNN, or the talk radio asylum. Here's Kincannon on Twitter, vying for his Crazyspeak of ohe Year trophy:

People with Ebola in the U.S. need to be put down humanely immediately.

Well, at least he said "humanely." I suppose that does separate him from a lot of his republican brethren, who wouldn't care about being humane. But then he added:

The protocol for a positive Ebola test should be immediate execution and sanitation of the whole area. That will save lives.

  Kincannon, who claims to be "pro-life," also managed to blame the spread of Ebola on the people of Africa, who, in his deranged crackpot republican mind, have been "eating each other." Well, you know how they are.

(By the way, did you notice how the subject of an impending Ebola pandemic -- Obama's fault, again -- disappeared completely from the so-called liberal media the day after Election Day?)

Kincannon doesn't just get all repug over Ebola. If you click on the provided Daily Kos link, you'll find some choice four- and five-letter words to describe one of his party's favorite targets for hate and demonization, Nancy Pelosi. He also has some special republican wisdom on the vagina of Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis. I could go on about that, but I covered the Republican Party's ever-continuing War on Women in Part 4.

Exhibit B: The SC GOP and the fossils

We all know how republicans feel about nasty things like females, education, and dreaded (dare I say it?) science. But in third-grader Olivia McConnell the South Carolina republican party was set up as the paradigm for utter derangement by one inquisitive eight-year-old who obviously has more smarts than almost her whole state put together. Here's what happened when the budding paleontologist butted heads with her state's paleo-republicans.

Olivia, who loves hunting for fossils everywhere she goes, found out that one of the very first fossils found in America, an ancient mammoth, was unearthed right in her own home state of South Carolina. At the same time, she found out that her state was one of only seven states in our whole country that had no designated state fossil. So Olivia set out to rectify the situation by writing a nice letter to SC Gov. Nikki Haley and other state lawmakers, including her state representative, Robert Ridgeway, and her state senator, Kevin Johnson, both Democrats. Said Olivia:

I wanted it to be the state fossil because I didn't want that history to be lost, and our state not to get credit for it.

Both Ridgeway and Johnson loved the idea. What could go wrong?

Enter the republicans, the party of obstructionism and total kookery. The proposal actually passed the state's House by a huge margin, a bipartisan margin, but then, when it went to the state Senate, republican senators, led by Kevin Bryant -- a creationist who has compared President Obama to Osama bin Laden, voted to block a rape crisis center, and called climate change a hoax -- insisted that any proposal designating the mammoth as the state fossil not only must include a reference to said mammoth's creator, aka God, but also must mention that the mammoth in question, like all mammoths, was "created on the sixth day with the other beasts of the field." In fact, Bryant and fellow republican Sen. Mike Fair wanted three -- count 'em, three -- verses from the Book of Genesis added to any designation of the mammoth as the state fossil. Why not just ship it with a Bible?

The Book of Genesis also implies that the mammoth and everything else, including mankind, came into being 6000 years ago. But mammoths went extinct, probably hunted to extinction by us two-legged critters, about 10,000 years ago. Damn, that math and science thing gets tricky when you're a republican.

Eventually, the bill became law, with the sixth-day reference but without mention of any gods or God. Perhaps little Olivia McConnell should have just proposed that Senator Bryant be named the state fossil.


Nuttier than a Columbian mammoth? That's our Kevin.


2. Pat Robertson and his magic asteroid
(Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 6)

Any chance that the age in question
is the Age of Republican Crazy?

Again, let us not think that the über-crazy Pat Robertson is some sort of fringe republican. No, this loon has quite a legion of followers within his party. In fact, he has frequently been put forward as "presidential material" in republican primaries and in discussions of top republican leaders. So, with that in mind, I give you yet another Great Moment In Pat Robertson. The man is a Crazyspeak Award nomination machine!

I wrote a book. I wrote a book. It's called The End of the Age and it deals with an asteroid hitting the Earth.

OK. So far, not so bad. But then --

I don't see anything else that fulfills the prophetic words of Jesus Christ other than an asteroid strike. There isn't anything that will cause the seas to roil, that will cause the skies to darken, the moon and sun not to give their light, the nations terrified on Earth saying "what's happening?"

And then Mr. Doomsday said, as Mr. Doomsdays have been saying for thousands of years, always recalculating the date of our doom when the big day doesn't come:

Hey, just get ready. Get right and stay right with the Lord. It could be next week. . . .

Yeah! It's Chicken Little yelling, "The sky is falling. The sky is falling." But in that story, people stopped believing Chicken Little. In this story, they send him money.


It's almost unfair to the other contenders to consider the Reverend Pat for the Crazyspeak of the Year Award. As long as he draws breath, won't he have to be a favorite?


3. I'll have a pack of Twizzlers and an IUD to go!



2014 was the year that New York's reactionary Cardinal Timothy Dolan and his FOX "News" disciples, among others on the right, informed us that women can obtain birth control by walking into "any shop on any street in America."

This was all about the Hobby Lobby case. Hobby Lobby objected to a provision in Obamacare that said employers had to include contraception in their benefits packages. To Hobby Lobby, that ran against their religious beliefs and it was off-to-the-courts time. The idea that women might want birth control for health reasons was ignored, but, hey, they're women and there's a war on. Eventually, the so-called Supreme Court sided with Hobby Lobby.

But, every shop in town? Who knew? This is wonderful news! Dolan says 7-Eleven is an example. Who else? Dunkin' Donuts? The Dollar Store? Will shoe stores, now that we have Obamacare eating away at the moral fiber of America, be luring in women with offers of contraceptives with each pair of shoes purchased? All I can say is, it's about time!

Dolan's side won this one. Chalk one up for the nosy morality police. So, with them now emboldened, will we have to worry that the next complaint from Dolan will be that batteries are so readily available and that women should not be allowed to purchase batteries without a note from their priest?


COMING UP: Speaking of batteries, right now Noah is recharging his. He says he's not done, though, that there's more 2014 Republican crazy to come. Isn't there always more Republican crazy to come?

NOAH'S 2014 IN REVIEW --
Crackpot Utopia: The Year in Republican Crazy

Part 1: Princess Liz Cheney tries for the Smoothie of the Year Award; "Miss Beck regrets" -- Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 1: Glenn Beck; and the Crackpot Party reacts to President Obama’s State of the Union speech [12/19/2014]
Part 2: Republicans wonder why normal people call them racists; Sean Hannity wants to self-deport; and the First Annual Mr. Burns Award, to ABC "shark" Kevin O'Leary [12/20/2014]
Part 3: Using fear, loathing, and paranoia to sell stuff; Arizona legalizes crack!; and Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 3: Bill O’Reilly [12/21/2014]
Part 4: A celebration of Michele Bachmann: Pray away the crazy?; What "War on Women"?; and the "Obama angle" on Malaysian Flight 370 [12/22/2014]
Part 5: The GOP and the kiss heard 'round the world; Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 5: Joe the Plumber [12/23/2014]
Part 6: A word about South Carolina; Pat Robertson and his magic asteroid; and I'll have a pack of Twizzlers and an IUD to go, please [12/24/2014]
Part 7: And so it begins: The running of the buffoons; Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 7, George Will has no idea what rape is; and Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 8, Rick Wiles calls for a coup [12/29/2014]
Part 8: Things to come: Forward into the past! (11 Presidential Dream Tickets); Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 9: Former republican VP nominee Paul "Crazy Eyes" Ryan; Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 10: Bryan Fischer of the American Family Association [12/30/2014]
Part 9: Pompous Blowhard of the Year Award: Bill O’Reilly; FOX "News" announces new spinoff: the "FOX Benghazi™" Shopping Channel!; Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 11: DiGiorno Pizza [12/31/2014]
Part 10: Newsmax -- Beyond Drudgery; and Crazyspeak of the Year nominees Nos. 12 and 13: Michele Bachmann, Kimberly Guilfoyle [1/1/2015]
Part 11: GOP and FOX whip up the hate over a POW exchange; and Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 14: Iowa asylum escapee Rep. Steve King [1/3/2015]
Part 12: Arizona Republican protests busload of YMCA campers; Crazyspeak of the Year nominee(s) No. 15: the Impeachment Variations (group nomination); Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 16: NM Rep. Steve Pearce [1/4/2015]
Part 13 (and last): TV for Dummies: Sarah Palin launches her own channel; Crazyspeak of the Year nominee No. 17: Arizona schools superintendent John Huppenthal (rhymes with Neanderthal); and the final Crazyspeak of the Year nominee -- and also the winner! [1/5/2015]

NOAH'S 2013 IN REVIEW --
A Prayer to the Janitor of Lunacy

For listings and links, see Part 1 of this year's series.

#

God Replies To Pat Robertson

-by Noah

Here in New York City on Sunday, we had some mighty strange weather. It was one of those muggy afternoons where we got thundershowers, even when the sun was out. Now, those mental defectives who habitually partake in the Republican War On Science might ordinarily say such weird weather is a message from their diabolically judgmental pissed off God, especially when it occurs on a Sunday! But, today, when I saw this picture (in HUFPO) of a beautiful rainbow over the brand new World Trade Center tower, I realized that such people might not like God's Sunday message. I was reminded of how Pat Robertson and fellow nutball Republican Jerry Falwell were among the first Republicans to exploit the horrors of 9/11 for their sick agenda when they claimed we deserved the attacks because of the ACLU, People For The American Way, and especially those bad, bad, bad gays and lesbians. They might not have topped Rove, Cheney, and Dubya in their exploitation, but Robertson and Falwell on 9/13/01 was special.



Did Robertson listen? No way. He only listens to the voices in his head, mistaking them for the big guy. Robertson will go on to his fetid grave weezing out his hateful spew. Say hello to Falwell when you get to Hell, Pat.

Could Marijuana Finally Be Legalized-- Even Without Ron Paul And Barney Frank?

The next bipartisan tag team to end the war on drugs?

Perhaps you remember a couple weeks ago, right-wing culture warrior and religionist charlatan Pat Robertson advocating marijuana legalization. He broached the subject on The 700 Club and followed up with the media: “I really believe we should treat marijuana the way we treat beverage alcohol. I’ve never used marijuana and I don’t intend to, but it’s just one of those things that I think: this war on drugs just hasn’t succeeded.” Sounds sensible-- especially coming from a conservative Republican. Colorado and Washington state both have pot referendums on the ballot in November. (California doesn't.)

But with the two most prominent advocates of marijuana legalization nationally-- Barney Frank (D-MA) and Ron Paul (R-TX)-- leaving Congress, it's been looking gloomy for their longtime cause. But not totally gloomy. Morgan Griffith (R-VA) is a conservative who was swept into power in 2010's Blue Dog Apocalypse when he defeated 14-term conservative Democrat Rick Boucher in the wilds of southwest Virginia (VA-9) 51-47%. Griffith has been a reliable vote for his party's toxic, anti-working family agenda. He was one of the Cantor/Ryan "Young Guns" and he pretty much sticks with Eric Cantor on everything. Except pot. Griffith is no hippie, though-- quite contrary. Before beating Boucher he was the Majority Leader of the Virginia House of Delegates, the first Republican to hold that position in the state's history. Although he's moved drastically right since entering Congress he was a mainstream conservative in state politics. He used to be moderate-- for a Republican-- on abortion. Now he;s as insane as the rest of his party. And now he advocates raising the retirement age and ending Medicare. But he says he wants to legalize medical marijuana. “Here’s the problem: Everybody hears medical marijuana and they think California-- ‘Hey, if it makes you feel good, do it,’” Griffith said. “I don’t believe in that.” Doofus... well, sure; but he's a savvy politician.

In Virginia, the medical marijuana law restricts its use to cancer and glaucoma patients, but doctors, due to fear of the Drug Enforcement Administration and a lack of marijuana dispensaries, rarely prescribe it.

“In my hometown, there was a young man who was dying, had a small child, wanted to stay alive as long as he could and spend as much time as he could with his child,” Griffith said. “The doctors actually gave an order in the local hospital that nobody would go in the room from 11 to 12. His friends would show up and smuggle marijuana [in] and then they’d show up with his lunch because he couldn’t eat without it-- that’s crazy.

“When you have doctors putting orders down-- saying don’t go into a hospital room because this patient needs something that I can’t give him-- we’re messed up and the federal government is actually standing in the way.”

Griffith said the reason he hesitates to introduce federal legislation on the matter is because he’s not on the right committee.

“At this point, for me to introduce it as a first-term congressman who doesn’t sit on the right committee, it’s not going anywhere,” Griffith said. “I would prefer to lend an assist, but I have to weigh that out because I think it’s the right policy for the country. … There is no way that anybody will ever be able to convince me that we shouldn’t allow our respected medical community to use marijuana just as they use opiates and barbiturates.”

With Miss McConnell still screeching that marijuana leads to death, most conservative politicians are wary of the issues... and, let's face it, most politcians are conservative, regardless of political party. The Christian Science Monitor a long time leader of the jihad against ending the War on Drugs, is as shrill as Miss McConnell, accusing President Obama of not denouncing the efforts in Colorado and Washington strongly enough. But polls show that most Americans now oppose the War of Drugs and support legalization.

A majority of Americans support legalizing marijuana, according to a new poll from Angus Reid Public Opinion. The online survey of a representative sample of 1,003 American adults found that 55% supported legalizing marijuana, while 40% opposed it.

Majority support for legalization crossed all age lines, with young people (18-34) at 53%, middle aged people (35-54) at 57%, and seniors (55+) at 54%. Legalization also won majority support among Democrats (63%) and independents (61%), but not among Republicans (41%).

Like Miss McConnell, Mormon fanatic Buck McKeon (R-CA) is hysterically opposed to legalization. But he's in an L.A. district where even Republicans are more relaxed about it. And he has an opponent-- a prominent physician and renowned surgeon, Dr. Lee Rogers-- who's on the campaign trail denouncing the tragic wastefulness of the War of Drugs. He's calling for the U.S. to "replace the 'War On Drugs' with a 'War On Addiction'.”

The tragic death of singer Whitney Houston has publicized again the difficulties that some face with drug addiction. Addiction is a complex brain disease that results in a compulsive behavior of seeking and using drugs. In many cases, the addict knows that the substance has deleterious effects on their health, but the nature of addiction leads them continue the behavior. Addiction is not as simple as a choice to use or not to use.

Addiction comes in many forms other than illegal substances, like nicotine, alcohol, foods, shopping, gambling, video games, and sex. Even though a similar physiologic process occurs with all addictions, only with drugs does society think that incarcerating the addict is acceptable.

Here are some statistics from the National Institute on Drug Abuse:

Alcohol: 30 million people drove under the influence of alcohol at least once in the past year

Tobacco: Rates have declined in 12- to 17-year-olds to 9%, but in young adults 18 to 25 years old, the rates are 36% in 2009.

Marijuana: Most measures of marijuana use increased in high school aged children and young adults. Twenty-one percent of high school seniors reportedly used marijuana in the past 30 days.

Cocaine: Current cocaine or crack use has declined in all age groups from 2.3 million users in 2003 to 1.6 million users in 2009.

Methamphetamines: Use of methamphetamines declined from 6.5% in 1999 to 2.2% in 2010.

Prescription Drugs: Nonmedical use of narcotics remained relatively stable, as did the use of Adderall.

With all these people suffering from this disease, one would expect a national outcry for action. One would expect government funding of treatment programs aimed at managing addictions and preventing relapse. Not even close. We have reactionary laws and overloaded court systems. America has the highest incarceration rate in the world. Of the 2.3 million inmates in U.S. prisons, 25% are due to drug offenses at a cost of $70 billion per year. Some states have mandatory sentencing and three-strikes-and-you’re-out laws for drug crimes which can result in life imprisonment. Additionally, penalties vary based on the type of drug. In some states, possession of crack cocaine is treated much harsher than powder cocaine. This leads to a racial disparity in penalty enforcement since minorities more frequently use cheaper crack cocaine.

Prescription drug abuse is treated differently by society, but may be a larger problem. In 2005, an estimated 4.4 million teenagers misused prescription pain relievers, 2.3 million took a prescription stimulant, and 2.2 million abused over-the-counter drugs such as cough syrup. Prescription drug overdose was responsible for 22,400 deaths in 2005, causing more deaths than illicit drugs. Recent deaths from prescription drug abuse and misuse have plagues the entertainment industry, with Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Heath Ledger, and Brittany Murphy all falling victims. While prescription drug abuse and diversion is a crime, abusers are rarely prosecuted, but they also rarely get resources to help them quit. Society doesn’t view it as serious as illicit drug abuse and friends or family may not intervene. Rehabilitative centers are expensive and drug abuse is frequently omitted from health insurance coverage.

My Congressional district in California is typical for American suburbia. We have seen an increase in heroin use, school expulsions, and related deaths. In order to reverse this troubling trend, we need to attack it head on. Prevention is the best policy for drug addiction. Identifying those at risk, providing education, and targeting and prosecuting sources. When addiction does occur, recognizing that it is a brain disease and engaging a team of medical and social experts to treat it and prevent recidivism.

The War On Drugs has been a failed policy and resulted in enormous expense, an increase in violence, and violations of civil rights. How could one consider it successful? Today, drug use is rampant and more extreme violence occurs than before the “war.” Because of criminalization of drug use, convicts fall into a circular trap, which prevents them from effective rehabilitation and entering society. Drug offenses create a permanent underclass of people who have limited educational or job opportunities.

I have heard the argument that our War On Drugs is responsible for the instability in our Southern neighbors, especially Mexico. The illegal drug industry in Mexico is fueled by American demand and creates wealthy cartels who corrupt the government and wreak havoc on cities. But American policy does little to reduce “customers” for the Mexican traffickers. In fact, it makes the cartels richer by artificially inflating the price of the drug since it is prohibited. Remember the crime surrounding the alcohol industry in the U.S. during prohibition.

It’s time to reevaluate our drug policies in the U.S. A better group of policies would be a War On Addiction with appropriately-aimed resources. We could save some of the $70 billion a year from incarcerating non-violent drug offenders and some of the $15 billion a year the US spends on the War On Drugs and dedicate it to programs to treat addicts and prevent relapses. We could spend that money on programs to educate students and young people. So instead of paternalistically telling them to say “no” to drugs, we provide them with evidence on the dangers of illicit drug use which helps them to arrive at their own decision. We can take steps to remove the stigma of drug addiction so those who need help are not dissuaded from seeking it. Furthermore, we can work to make drug abuse and addiction a cobered benefit in insurance plans.

If you'd like to replace hopeless reactionary Buck McKeon and replace him with Lee Rogers, who's a 34 year old father of two and lives in the same world that the rest of us live in, please consider a contribution to his campaign at the Blue America ActBlue page.

A Final Thought About Xmas

Xmas is, after all, the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. The head of the Roman Catholic Church-- one of the wealthiest institutions in the world, and with a history of exploitation of the masses that is unrivaled-- decried "materialism," but his operation is built on it. He may feel very uncomfortable about how obviously it betrays the essence of God's will ("It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God" -- Matthew 19:24), but the realpolitik that has long ruled the Roman Church chose sides long ago, and it wasn't Jesus's.


In fact, for Jesus's teachings to be accepted by the rich and powerful, the Church had to find ways to tone down all the stuff that Jesus says to make them feel bad about exploiting the poor. It was never hard to find false prophets to explain away his words and make up nonsense about what he really meant to say. Much of America's peculiar brand of Christianity is based almost entirely on these false prophets, clearly servants of Satan-- if you believe that kind of stuff-- or, less abstractly, servants of self. American fundamentalism is based on fleecing the flock. They're working for the other side. That's why they're so cozy with the 1%, Satan's people, and why they're part of the backbone of Satan's political party, the GOP.

Christmas found Pat Robertson delivering a message of hatred, bigotry and Republican Party politics. Remember, he once even ran for the Republican presidential nomination, the Michele Bachmann of his day.

On The 700 Club, the Christian Broadcasting Network's flagship news program, Robertson also made a point of re-iterating his view of LGBT people not being "born this way," noting: "Normally speaking, a person who has acquired this can un-acquire it. We've had many people who have indeed left the homosexual lifestyle and gone into a heterosexual relationship and have been very, very happy. But all I can say is love the son, love the son, and show him what you consider a better way."

Earlier this month, Robertson sounded off on the Obama administration's pledge to use U.S. foreign aid to promote LGBT rights abroad, noting, "This country cannot continue to violate God's principles and to make a mockery of His laws and think we're gonna get away with it."

More serious theologians had other concerns around Jesus's birthday. Saturday I was tweeting about the inspiring message of Christ being delivered by the Archbishop of York:

We all have a duty to support and care for others, through good times and bad. We also have a duty to strive for a better society that is fairer and more equal.

Let us work hard to be part of the transformation in our society, fighting injustice wherever it arises. Our personal misfortunes ought to spur us on to help change the unfairness around us.

Despite the bleakness and uncertainty, we should not give up trying to be a force for good.

The British are renowned as a nation of battlers, people who stand up for what they believe in and will never give up in the face of adversity. We should remember our history and unite in troubled times, and not crumble under the strain that economic and social pressures put us under.

When we look at an overcast sky, we should not forget that the sun is still there shining with full strength. It is simply temporarily hidden by the clouds. As people of goodwill, we may not be able to stop rain clouds from forming, but we can help by providing cover for people who are most exposed: the young, and older people.

...Can it be right that public sector workers, and those who work in British industry, face losing their jobs when those high earners in the banking sector who helped cause the economic crisis not only keep their jobs but rake in massive bonuses?
Also, how can we have a situation where someone will suffer the devastation of unemployment while others in our society remain so overworked?

It’s not just a problem restricted to the job market. Look at the housing situation. Homelessness grows while estimates suggest that around a million homes are empty because they remain unlet or unsold – and this is without taking into account people who have second homes they rarely live in.

Young people and those on low incomes are effectively priced out of the housing market, and in many cases have no option but to pay high rents in the private sector because of a shortage of affordable housing.

We have created a situation where many people live in relative poverty, while others have far more than they can ever hope to spend. In fact, the divide between the wages of the rich and the poor is growing in nearly all of the world’s leading economies.

It doesn’t have to be this way. Surveys show that people do not feel that consumerism is necessarily a good thing, but they do it, knowing that it reduces time for more valuable things like time for friends, family and community. Let us not be a society that knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. Let us value the contribution that every individual can make, not only in the workplace, but also at home and in the public square.

While we hope and pray for change, it seems that in the meantime we must have hope and courage that a number of years with little or no economic growth can be turned into a time when we think creatively about how we could move towards a different kind of society.

I recently sponsored a Fairness Commission in York that looked at the importance of prioritising essential services to protect the most vulnerable at a time of cuts locally and nationally.

While there is no doubt that we need more sharing within our society, it is also clear that we need a more sustainable steady economy in which the emphasis is placed on greater equality, where all participate for the wellbeing of all.

Difficult choices have to be made, but people and justice must be at the centre of all decision-making in our country. When we forget the importance and worth of every single member of society, we have forgotten what it means to be human.

And in his Christmas Day sermon the more senior Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, had a similar message-- as far from what you'll hear from phony-baloney American "Christian"-conservative (Satanic) preachers of the rich as you can possibly get. He spoke of "broken bonds and abused trust" and "mutual obligation."

Speaking of this year's Austerity riots in the U.K., the archbishop said, "Whether it is an urban rioter mindlessly burning down a small shop that serves his community, or a speculator turning his back on the question of who bears the ultimate cost for his acquisitive adventures in the virtual reality of today's financial world, the picture is of atoms spinning apart in the dark."

He backs a "Robin Hood tax" on banking transactions. See how many "Christian" conservatives in this country you can find who would ever in a million years go along with that. As many, no doubt, as the camels passing through eyes of needles on their way to God's Kingdom.

Inspiration-- Norman Lear Talks About The Spiritual Inspiration That We All Crave

Earlier today we looked at a kind of political inspiration I was lucky enough to experience at a People For the American Way anniversary celebration last week. It was the opening "act." The evening closed with the organization's founder-- a hero of mine-- Norman Lear. Norman offered a different kind of inspiration, inspiration for the soul and it was probably the best speech I ever heard him give. I was stunned and I hope it comes through for you in the video above. And, believe me, it was far more than just a critique of the right's bumper sticker religiosity. Let me quote a couple of paragraphs:

I can't  believe it has been 30 years since I was startled by the proliferation of TV evangelicals across radio and television--  Jerry Falwell, Jimmy Swaggart, James Robison and Pat Robertson, among others, mixing politics and religion-- and reminding me when I was 9 or 10 years-- of listening to Father Coughlin on the radio-- ranting against Franklin Roosevelt, liberals, the New Deal and, in his case, Jews.
 
I decided to take them all on with a film and started writing one I called Religion-- hoping to savage these TV ministries much in the way Paddy Chayevsky savaged the Networks.
 
And then, one morning I'm watching the Reverend Jimmy Swaggart-- and I see him ask his viewers-- his TV congregation-- to pray for the "removal" of a Justice of the Supreme Court... and it scared the hell out of me.
 
I couldn't wait the 2 or more years it would take to write and make my film, so I made that TV spot you saw a bit of earlier-- the blue collar worker.
 
I paid to run it on a local TV station in DC and it caused so much talk that all three networks--there were only three at the time-ran it on their 7 o'clock news and, like an act of spontaneous combustion-- People For The American Way was born.
 
From that day to this, I haven't gotten up and read my newspapers when I didn't thank God that People For  was there.
 
I take great comfort knowing we have active members and supporters in 50 states - activists who wish for everyone the freedom to read any book or movie of their choice-- create or appreciate even the most challenging art-- who believe the government has no business telling us who or how to love-- members and supporters who truly believe in equal justice and equal opportunity under the law-- who appreciate to their toes the blessings of an independent judiciary...

 
Our government, no matter the party in power, it aches me to say, was of no help in this regard. Often quite the contrary.
 
For example, 30 years ago we had something called the Fairness Doctrine.
 
The Fairness Doctrine, enforced by the FCC, held that the media provide balance and objectivity in its news and discussion shows.
 
So, for example, when People for the American Way saw Pat Robertson espousing only one point of view on a political matter-- and on a religious broadcast at that-- we notified the FCC  and that ministry, often the entire Christian Broadcasting Network, was forced to provide us with equal time to respond. That sounds right, doesn't it? Fair and balanced news reporting?  Where have we heard that before?
 
People For used the Fairness Doctrine so effectively until it was repealed in 1987.
 
On May 13, 1982 I received this letter from the Reverend Pat Robertson, President of the Christian Broadcasting Network:

Dear Norman,

Last week, your organization challenged our program on KTLA in Los Angeles, and yesterday, the sales manager of KTLA called our headquarters and said, "If you discuss anything political on your program, next week we will take it off the air."
 
Norman, you are not merely trying to silence a member of the press, you are trying to silence a prophet of God. I warn you with all solemnity-- Norman, 'Your arms are too short to box with God.' The suppression of the voice of God's servant is a terrible thing!  God himself will fight for me against you-- and he will win. I remain, sincerely yours, Pat Robertson."

 
Unfortunately, too many of us to the left of center tend to laugh at such as this.
 
I am chilled by it.
 
With good reason.
 
On October 1, 1981, hundreds of thousands of people belonging to the Moral Majority received these words  in a newsletter from Jerry Falwell. "Dear friends, I am about to name the man that some people believe to be the greatest threat to the American family in our generation: Norman Lear!"
 
He went on to talk about the filth and sexual perversion that my shows brought into America's living room-- but calling me "the greatest threat to the American family" earned me some hate mail-- and death threats-- one so threatening that my family and partners insisted I secure protection.
 
This religiously stoked hatred threatens humanity everywhere across the globe today-- and it is very alive in our America as well-- and most threatening when it comes with a partisan political tinge. People For has stood as a bulwark against that-- in the press, in the media, and by example.
 
When we produced a two-hour special, I Love Liberty, years ago, our co-chairs were Gerald Ford and Lady Bird Johnson.
 
On the same stage we had Barry Goldwater, John Wayne and Jane Fonda, all contributing to the idea that, fight as we may over policy and ideology, we stand united when it comes to basic American principles.
 
We continue to work toward that end today. 6 weeks ago-- my People for the American way credentials quite in tact--  I accepted an invitation to accompany Nancy Reagan to the Republican debate at the Reagan Library.
 
Her husband, with whom I had a friendly, however  contentious, relationship would have been happy to see me there, I know.
 
That civility is so unlike anything we hear from the Republican candidates as they battle each other. Newt Gingrich, like the others, cloaks everything he says today in a kind of bumper sticker religiosity.
 
We on the left have ceded the God and values talk to the Right and I think it's been a big mistake. The "What's it all about, Alfie?" questions make for the best conversation going. I consider myself as much a believer-- as religious if you will, as the next guy-- but it's MY belief system. I have thanked whatever and whoever is responsible for my being alive with every wake up. Virtually every time I've bitten into a ripe peach or looked into my children's eyes or enjoyed a great laugh in a group, I've been grateful, often to the point of tears.
 
I once asked a great theologian and friend in Vermont to give me the shortest definition he could of "worship." He gave it to me in one word-- "gratitude."
 
You don't agree with that, no problem-- so long as you don't decry it. If worship for you means going to a church or a synagogue or a mosque, reading from a specific sacred text, wonderful. Or if you choose not to believe altogether... I offered my life in a war for you to believe whatever way you do.
 
But it is also my view that we humans and our faith systems are so gloriously complex that you can take any amount of people sitting in the same pews, knee to knee, every Sunday of their lives, reading and praying from the same sacred text-- and like no two snow flakes, no two thumb prints-- no two compacts with the Almighty will be the same.
 
The way we think and feel and relate to the deity is unique to each of us.
 
Our founders clearly intended that there be a level of separation between church and state.
 
I was just trying to build a wall of understanding, of common sense-- to go along with the notion that it's a poor idea to mix politics and religion-- and a good idea-- to back that caution with laws that make that clear.
 
For 30 years, I've brought my perspective to People For the American Way and linked arms and minds and spirits with people of all faiths and experiences who have brought their unique perspective to the work of the organization.
 
What unites us are the promises and guarantees of our founding documents, and the precise language with which they are expressed.
 
The majesty of words and phrases like "Endowed by their creator with the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." The constitutional guarantee of Equal Justice under the law and the promise of Equal opportunity for all.
 
Then there are the last words of the Declaration of Independence where the founders pledge  their "lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor."
 
"Sacred honor." Feels  antique, doesn't it?
 
We don't sense much of that today, do we? The last time I came across Sacred Honor was watching The Godfather.
 
I want to suggest we lefties start laying claim to what we see as "sacred"-- and serve it up proudly to the Religious Right-- to the James Dobson, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Karl Rove hate-mongers, sheathed in sanctity-- and to the Koch Brother types that fund them-- and use them so effectively for their own political power-grabbing purposes!
 
Over the past several decades, the power-grabbing right has built a powerful infrastructure of radio and TV networks.
 
They've built think tanks, colleges and law schools.
 
And funded political groups that prepped the way for the Supreme Court, in Citizen's United-- to grant Corporations the right to provide any amount of financial backing to a candidate or a cause just like any other average citizen.
 
And all of it carried off with an air of holier-than-thou sanctity-- no less apparent than Pat Robertson's when he told me my arms were too short to box with God.
 
And now, as frightening as it is, where do we find that holier-than-thou sanctity most apparent in politics today?
 
Among the seven candidates attempting to prove in every debate we have seen that they are the right kind of Christian to be the Republican candidate for the Presidency of the United States.
 
In light of the circumstances we liberals and progressives have succumbed to, it is hard to remember that we-- not the right-- WE are the spiritual heirs to those Americans who struggled to end slavery and segregation-- to end child labor and win safe conditions and a living wage for workers.

 And WE are the spiritual heirs to those who conceived of and fought for just about every bit of social legislation in the last century, legislation that everyone, left and right, now take for granted-- and that resulted-- until not that many years ago-- in the most flourishing, hopeful and empowered middle class in the history of nations.
 
And yet, despite being the spiritual heirs to all of that, it is the Right that presumes ownership of everything that pertains to God and to the Flag. 
 
Looking to the future, I will rely on People for the American Way and its sons and daughters in Young People For and Young Elected Officials to continue to fight for that wall of separation between government and religion.
 
I will rely on them  to insure that equal protection of the law covers all Americans no matter their race, religion or sexual orientation.
 
And I will rely on them to claim their share of God and the flag-- by acknowledging  that the God for all believers on the right is the same God  for all believers on the left as well-- and that no one side can lay sole claim to the family values, patriotism and all the other good stuff that stems from that source.

Norman's worry that the left has ceded the field to the bigots and hate-mongers has more than a few exceptions. More and more Christians who have put Jesus and his message of love first have come to politics as part of the battle for human dignity. One, Colorado state Rep. Joe Miklosi, has been endorsed by Blue America in his run for Tom Tancredo's old congressional seat in the Denver suburbs. His progressive political vision is bound up with a spiritual view very similar to Norman's.

"This theme has motivated me to pursue public policy that is more fair and just for every person. It clarifies, for example, my stance to repeal the unjust ‘Don’t Ask, Don't Tell’ law because all people should be able to serve in the United States military regardless of how they were born. The aspiration toward these goals helped to inspire my sponsorship of the DREAM Act. The DREAM Act beneficiaries are good kids, who play by the rules, earn good grades point averages and want to contribute to our society. By creating educational and workforce development opportunities for students we can energize and empower individuals and families and grow our economy for all Americans.

"In regard to Wall Street and economic reform, I respect those that take peaceful action to advocate for an economy that rewards hard work, encourages innovation and investment in education, retools Americans, and produces livable wages.
 
"We can not allow Wall Street elitists to break the rules, change the rules, and keep moving the goalpost, away from hard working families. Because of Wall Street greed and arrogance in 2008, millions of families were robbed of the dreams they worked and saved for, our nation was hobbled, and the Wall Street crowd sauntered into Washington to rewrite the rules again-- to give themselves a bailout. That’s not thrift, it’s theft.

"It is amazing to see so many inspired people-- from and for various points of view-- advocating for change and a fair financial system."

After he watched the video of Norman's speech he had a response that flows from the same spirit: "All across America, progressives and conservatives worship together. Our faith should be a source of strength and inspiration, not a foundation for conflict. In a pluralistic American society, it is important that the government celebrate the diversity of all viewpoints. The American public square is large enough for the Christian, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, the Agnostic, the Atheist, other belief systems to coexist. 
 
"One of my favorite verses in the Bible is from Micah: seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God. The Sermon on the Mount and the blessings are another powerful set of teachings that inspire. These transcend politics and political viewpoints and certainly, no one political party can lay claim to owning them. 

"In the end, be motivated by hope and love-- not fear-- especially not fear of others who hold different religious viewpoints. The former leads to a more fulfilled life. The road-map of fear leads to anger, which leads to hate, which leads to suffering. Rather, faith and hope and love teach patience and forgiveness and yes, even acceptance."  
Norman isn't running for office; Joe is-- and you can contribute to his campaign here at the Blue America Act Blue page. There's a reason his campaign slogan is "Not Your Ordinary Joe."

Tom Tomorrow asks: Can you spot the difference between Parallel Earth's Pat Robertson and ours?

With Supreme Court ruling non-update below

(Don't forget to click on the cartoon to enlarge it.)

by Ken

Sure, I could explain for you the true significance of the Massachusetts Senate election, and once and for all analyze its impact on the prospects for health care reform [note from DWT copy desk: Were there any prospects for actual health care reform?] and the rest of the Obama legislative program [note from DWT copy desk: Is there an Obama legislative program? Has anybody heard about this?] and the carry-over to the 2010 and 2012 elections. But frankly, I'm sick of the whole thing, and am only too happy to leave that clean-up operation to Howie. (Have we not been screaming for months that the Obama administration's policies were heading us for just such a revolting development?)

The part that might have interested me is Sen.-elect Scott Brown's now-second-biggest life accomplishment: his appearance stark nekkid in Cosmo. For the benefit of art connoisseurs Howie in his last post thoughtfully provided the pint-size reproduction of the single magzine spread which which seems to be all that exists of this great event online, and as an art lover, I have to say it really isn't that impressive. (Am I the only one who finds it erotically underwhelming, even though the guy was certainly decent-looking? Am I reading too much in to suggest that what's really "revealed" here is a deep-rooted drabness of character?) So no, I don't want to get into our Scott -- unless of course there are other, better pictures.

I actually avoided listening to any news Tuesday night, expecting pretty much what happened, and by luck when I heard some news on the radio Wednesday morning, the Massachusetts results had been crowded out of the top spot by -- wham! -- God dumping some more on those poor Haitians. Which brings us back to the universe as it existed pre-Massachusetts, namely in the form of this Tom Tomorrow cartoon, which offers us our Pat Robertson and the Pat Robertson on Parallel Earth, with the ever-so-subtle difference between them.

As for Massachusetts, you remember the episode of Boston Legal in which Alan and Denny had to try a murder case in Los Angeles before impossibly letter-of-the-law, East Coast-hating Judge Harvey Cooper, played so wickedly by Anthony Heald? (And did it so wonderfully that the producers had no choice but to drag the poor fellow to, of all places, Boston for more guest appearnaces.) You remember how Judge Cooper managed to make the word "Massachusetts" sound like Sodom and Gomorrah, and every other den of iniquity back to the Fall, rolled into one? This is what I'm thinking.

POSTSCRIPT: I ALSO DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE
(EXPECTED BUT) DISASTROUS SUPREME COURT RULING

Ah, the legacy of the Bush regime lives on. It is, of course, a personal disgrace for Anthony Kennedy to be writing the majority opinion, but of course it's also no accident. Face it, he's not a hell of a lot better than the Court's four declared fascists, and they know how to use the dolt to cover their butts when they're tearing at the fabric of our democracy.

Welcome to America, where we have government of the rich and privileged, by the rich and privileged, for the rich and privileged. And the legions of brain-scoured right-wing shitheads have been hornswoggled into cheering.

#

Robert McDonnell (R-VA)-- Living Up To Buy Bull "School" Expectations

Pat & Bob- Master and Servant

We've all made mistakes when we were teenagers that we regret now. When I was in high school I won a scholarship from the UN by writing a paper favoring the death penalty without understanding the absolute inability of judges and juries to be able to guarantee the accuracy of their assessments of guilt. In theory I still favor the death penalty; in practice I oppose it and I'm embarrassed that I wrote that paper. I had just turned 16 at the time.

Today's Washington Post reports, at some length, on a Master's Thesis (here it is in all it's startlingly banal glory) by Robert McDonnell, The Republican Party's Vision For The Family: The Compelling Issue of The Decade. In it McDonnell described working woman and feminists as "detrimental" to the family and he advocated for a very totalitarian position-- beloved of both the Communist and Nazi regimes on the 1940s-- that government policy should favor married couples over "cohabitators, homosexuals or fornicators." He described as "illogical" a 1972 Supreme Court decision legalizing the use of contraception by unmarried couples.

He wasn't attending a real school at the time-- but a Buy Bull "college" run by Pat Robertson in Virginia Beach. One can't logically expect anything else from students of these institutions other than, at best, polished up propaganda, devoid of depth or any kind of critical thinking which is absolutely discouraged in these kinds of brainwashing centers. Today McDonnell, a vicious homophobe and far right extremist, is a candidate for governor of Virginia and he's whining that voters shouldn't judge him based on "a decades-old academic paper I wrote as a student." He wasn't 16 when he wrote it. Nor was he 26. He was 34, hardly a brash act by an intellectually unformed child. In fact, examining McDonnell's legislative record, it is clear that he has been attempting to implement the largely religionist ideas in his paper and force them on all Virginians. (The Buy Bull "college" where he went for his formal brainwashing, Regent, has as its motto: "Christian leadership to change the world.")

The 93-page document, which is publicly available at the Regent University library, culminates with a 15-point action plan that McDonnell said the Republican Party should follow to protect American families -- a vision that he started to put into action soon after he was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates.

During his 14 years in the General Assembly, McDonnell pursued at least 10 of the policy goals he laid out in that research paper, including abortion restrictions, covenant marriage, school vouchers and tax policies to favor his view of the traditional family. In 2001, he voted against a resolution in support of ending wage discrimination between men and women.

One of his thesis' points is the old right wing canard, pushed by Robertson and drummed into the heads of all Regent's students, that the Founding Fathers did not favor separation of Church and State. Another pushes a bizarre plan-- which he went on to push in the Virginia legislature-- to make it more difficult for couples to get divorced and he advocated for religionist indoctrination in public schools. And he make sit clear that he feels progressive taxation policy is "socialist" and should be abolished, something that would tend to wipe out the middle class and gradually bring back the kind of feudal society right-wing loons like McDonnell crave. He was successful in repealing Virginia's estate tax, one of the points he advocated in his paper.

During the campaign McDonnell has been frantic about covering up his extremism and posing as a moderate. Conservatives wink and nod and keep their collective fingers crossed that they can get a true believer into the governor's mansion.

Del. Robert G. Marshall (R-Prince William), who has shared most of McDonnell's conservative positions over the years, said there is no question that the candidate is playing down his conservatism today. Marshall said McDonnell risks alienating two groups of voters: moderates who might view him as hiding his true beliefs and conservatives who might think that he is no longer conservative enough.

"If you duck something, that tells your opponents that you think your position is a liability," said Marshall, who is backing McDonnell. "Why else wouldn't you acknowledge it? But I'll tell you, I've got precinct captains who are annoyed that he's not answering these questions. He doesn't have to bash people in the head with it. But he doesn't have to put it in the closet, either. There's a balance you can take."

EQUAL RIGHTS VOTED FOR ALMOST THE WHOLE GAY COMMUNITY-- SOME WILL STILL BE TREATED LIKE PARIAHS? HOW MANY MORE DEMOCRATS DO WE NEED TO ELECT?

Just one more step & Rudy loses full employment protection

Jesse Lee from Speaker Pelosi's office did some blogging about the Democrats' passage of ENDA yesterday. I was really excited when I read about it-- and proud of the Democrats, who I've had so many disagreements with lately. I started writing a post calling Pelosi and her team "brave and noble." Then I started reading more about the bill and going down the list of who voted for it and who voted against it. Almost all the Republicans voted no and almost all the Democrats voted yes. And the Democrats who voted with the Republicans were just the same old Bush-enabling, homophobic, neo-confederate reactionaries who vote with Bush on everything... Heath Shuler (NC), Dan Lipinski (TN IL), John Barrow (GA), Jim Marshall (GA), Gene Taylor (MS), Bud Cramer (AL), Bob McIntyre (NC), Lincoln Davis (TN), Charlie Melacon (LA), Nick Lampson (TX), Yvette Clarke (NY), Jerrold Nadler (NY)... um... wait one second, there. Back up please. Yvette Clarke? Jerrold Nadler? The same old Bush-enabling, homophobic, neo-confederate reactionaries who vote with Bush on everything? Uh... no. Something's wrong. I started making phone calls. Then I snapped to and remembered what the argument was around this bill-- not the argument between Democrats and Republicans (and their reactionary allies inside the Democratic caucus)-- but the argument between Democrats and Democrats. Nadler and Clarke have impeccable voting records. The argument was about the "T" in "LGBT," the transgendered.

And if you think you're hated, just try walking a mile in their shoes. No group is more despised or feared-- irrationally-- than the transgendered, at least not in our copiece-macho/sexually insecure society. No minority has ever been handed their civil rights on a silver platter. It's always a messy hysterical, often bloody, violent process. Transgendered men and women have been in the vanguard of the struggle for equal rights. As a gay man I reject the benefits of ENDA until the "T" is included.

Jerrold Nadler is a Blue-America-endorsed incumbent. We love him because of days like yesterday. Here's his statement about why he voted with the Republicans and the most reactionary homophobic Democrats today.

“I am committed to the passage of an ENDA that protects lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.  In America, we value fairness and equality, and our laws should reflect those values.  Every individual should be able to work and contribute to society without fear that she or he will be discriminated against because of their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.

“I have been a lead sponsor of proposals like ENDA every time they were introduced since I became a member of the New York State Assembly back in 1977.  Since coming to Congress, I have sponsored similar legislation every single session.  And I am a proud original co-sponsor of the original bill that protects the entire LGBT community.

“In recent weeks, there has been much discussion among ENDA’s supporters about how to reach our shared goal of passing the strongest possible bill.  Some believe that a bill that does not prohibit discrimination based on gender identity has a better chance of being adopted by the House. I know that those who argue for this route do so out of a sincere belief that this is the best strategy for passage at this time, not because of malice or indifference towards the transgender community.  

“I believe, however, that civil rights are best advanced by bringing forward a bill that adequately protects all members of the LGBT community.  While this may be risky, that is not reason to accept defeat before the fact, and leave behind members of the community who desperately need protections against employment discrimination.

“As we have seen in many states, the failure to include the transgender community in civil rights legislation from the beginning makes it more difficult to extend protections later.   In fact, my own state of New York, which has employment protections for lesbians and gays, has yet to extend these protections to the transgender community.

“The Senate has yet even to introduce its version of ENDA.  Indeed, even if Congress were to adopt a non-inclusive ENDA, the President has already pledged to veto this legislation.  However, we must look to the future when we have a President who will support equality.  I believe it is important we take a principled stand now, and speak with a strong and united voice for equal rights for all Americans, whether they are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender, in order to maximize the chance that, what we can enact an ENDA bill into law, it will be an inclusive bill that protects everyone’s rights.  And, we must better educate lawmakers and the public about the issues of gender identity and expression.

“While I may disagree with some of my colleagues on strategy, I assure you that we are united in support of the ultimate goal – protection from employment discrimination for the entire LGBT community. No one should underestimate the strength of that common commitment or our dedication to seeing it realized.  

“Transgender Americans – because of a lack of familiarity and understanding -- are more likely to face employment discrimination and, therefore, more in need of the protection from irrational discrimination that an inclusive ENDA would afford.

“And removing gender identity from ENDA may also leave lesbian and gay employees vulnerable to discrimination for failing to conform to gender stereotypes.  In other words, some employers and courts might take an overly restrictive view that an exclusive ENDA fails to protect lesbians who appear ‘too masculine’ or gay men who appear ‘too effeminate.’  That is not our intent – nor do we believe that it is an accurate reading of the bill – but Congressional intent does not always carry the day.  Splitting sexual orientation and gender identity disserves the entire LGBT community and invites the kind of legal mischief that has undermined other civil rights laws.

“The fundamental issue is this: there are still too many places where it is entirely legal to discriminate against lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender employees.  We must bring an end to this unfair, unacceptable and un-American situation.  ‘Liberty and justice for all’ must not just be words we say, they must be the values reflected in our laws.

“In the past weeks, I, like many of my colleagues in the House, have heard from my constituents and from various advocacy groups, urging the adoption of an inclusive ENDA.  Like these passionate individuals and groups, I believe that full equality is our goal.  I have never seen such unanimity from the civil rights and LGBT groups on this issue – more than 300 have voiced their support for an inclusive ENDA, and have all but a very few have explicitly rejected an exclusive ENDA.

“When the House considers ENDA today, I will support the amendment, introduced by Congresswoman Baldwin, to restore the protections from discrimination based on gender identity.  Should that amendment fail, regrettably, I will not be able to vote for the underlying bill because it fails to uphold the American values of fairness and equality.”

Nadler's straight. I'm not. But keep my ENDA rights on hold 'til you're ready to extend them to the whole community.

And no, Rudy Giuliani is not Transgender; he's a transvestite, a man who dresses like a woman. Pat Robertson would never endorse a Transgendered person. He's ok with transvestites though. And among the Republican closet queens in Congress, David Dreier (CA), Phil English (PA), and Jim McCrery (LA) were so afraid of being labeled hypocrites that they voted for ENDA. Patrick McHenry (NC) and Adrian Smith (NE) don't care that when they're eventually caught propositioning a plainclothes policeman in a public toilet this vote will be hauled out and thrown in their faces.