NV Sen. Pat Spearman Kicks Ass and Takes Names for LGBT People at DNC Convention: WATCH

Out Nevada Senator Pat Spearman made a big splash at the Democratic National Convention on Monday night, ripping Donald Trump and Mike Pence for discriminating against LGBT Americans.

Said Spearman:

“We have heard Donald Trump say that he would protect the LGBTQ community. But he is against marriage equality and has said he is all for overturning it. Donald Trump says that anyone can use any bathroom in Trump Tower but he still supports heinous bathroom bills and he would strip away the rights of transgender Americans. But his worst attack on us was his vice presidential pick, Indiana Governor Mike Pence.”

Added Spearman, prompting boos from the audience:

“Governor Pence signed a law that allows individuals and businesses to deny services to LGBTQ Americans, and he used religion as a weapon to discriminate. As a lesbian, that hurts me. As a person of faith, that offends me. And as a legislator working hard to create jobs, that baffles me.

Watch:

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Gay NBA Player Jason Collins: I Came Out to the Clintons Before I Came Out Publicly

NBA player Jason Collins appeared with his twin brother Jarron at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia on Monday evening, and told the crowd that he came out as gay to the Clintons before coming out publicly.

Said Jason:

“My dream was to play in the NBA and to live my authentic life as a proud gay man at the same time. I was able to accomplish both of those goals because of the people who have supported me throughout my life. Before I came out to the world on the cover of Sports Illustrated, I came out privately to the Clinton family. I’ve known their family for almost 20 years. I knew that they would accept me for who I was and that they would help pave a path for others to do the same. I am forever grateful for their words of wisdom back then and for their unconditional support. They knew that my sexual orientation made no difference in my ability to play basketball. Just as someone’s gender makes no difference in his or HER ability to lead our nation.”

Added Collins:

“Hillary has defended the LGBT community for years…from co-sponsoring the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act to helping pass the first-ever UN resolution on LGBT human rights to making sure transgender individual’s passports can reflect their true gender…this November we must elect Hillary Clinton.”

Watch:

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Demi Lovato Says She’s Living with Mental Illness, Gets DNC to Feet with ‘Confident’

Demi Lovato turned up the star power as primetime coverage of the Democratic National Convention opened with a rousing performance of her hit single “Confident” after telling the convention hall that she lives with mental illness and stressing the importance of getting treatment.

“Like millions of Americans, I’m living with mental illness. But I’m lucky. I have the resources and support to get treatment at a top facility. Unfortunately, too many Americans from all walks of life don’t get help. Either because they fear the stigma, or cannot afford treatment.”

“We can do better,” Lovato added. “I urge every politician to support laws that will provide better access to healthcare and support for everyone.”

Watch:

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Watch a Pulse Survivor Struggle to Move On (Video)

MTV’s True Life series follows four individuals who survived the shooting of a gay nightclub in Orlando.

www.advocate.com/television/2016/7/25/watch-pulse-survivor-struggle-move-video

Who Hacked the DNC? The Links Point to Russia.

The FBI has just announced an investigation into the hack of the Democratic National Committee emails that have overshadowed the just-opened Democratic convention.

But one journalist, Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai, has already started his own investigation. And the evidence he’s found points to the Russian government as the likely culprits behind the leak.

“There’s no smoking gun,’’ says Franceschi-Bicchierai. “But everything that’s come out so far points to Russia.”

He cites evidence from CrowdStrike, a security company that found the attackers used the same malware that the Russian government has used.

But after Crowdstrike announced it believed Russia to be behind the hack, something unexpected happened: A group named Guccifer 2.0 claimed responsibility. Guccifer 2.0 claims to be from Romania and acted alone.

Franceschi-Bicchierai is one of the few journalists to have chatted with an individual or individuals claiming to be behind Guccifer 2.0: via Twitter. After their conversations, Franceschi-Bicchierai is all the more convinced that the Russian government is behind the hack. And that Guccifer 2.0 is a persona made up by Russian spies to try to deflect blame and confuse the public.

One jarring inconsistency: Guccifer 2.0 did not really seem to speak Romanian, Franceschi-Bicchierai says. When he asked him questions in Romanian, the hacker responded more slowly and often with poor grammar. Also, at first the English wasn’t very good, but then seemed to improve markedly. It was as if, Franceschi-Bicchierai says, a different group of people took over the account. And, in the original blost post, Guccifer 2.0 used emoticons that are most often used by Russians.

Of course, these are only “breadcrumbs,” says Franceschi-Bicchierai. But they are suggestive.

Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager said Sunday that Russian hackers might be releasing these emails in order to weaken the Democratic National Committee and help Trump win the election.

Franceschi-Bicchierai does not quite buy that. The timeline does not make sense, because it seems like the first hack could have happened maybe even a full year ago.

But it does seem like, he says, somebody is trying to confuse people.

“In a way, if this is really Russia, they have won, at least for now,” says Franceschi-Bicchierai.

While the Kremlin denies being responsible for the leak, there are well-established financial ties between Trump and Russia.

“[Trump] was here in Moscow to hold a Miss Universe competition and made quite a bit of money off of that, in fact, using Russian sponsors to pony up the money. He’s repeatedly tried to open businesses here, a Trump Tower for Moscow. It never quite worked out for him, but he seems to be pursuing that as well,” says Charles Maynes, a journalist based in Moscow.

And not only does Trump have financial ties to Moscow, but perhaps personal ones as well. Back in December, Vladimir Putin called Trump a “colorful person,” but Trump interpreted the phrase to be he’s so bright that he’s a “genius.”

“He called him a yarki chelovek, which means a colorful person. It means that he’s a guy that you take notice of, but not a lot more than that necessarily. I think Trump ran with this as a genuine compliment,” Mayes explains.

While the Russian president has not yet actually outwardly complimented the Republican nominee, Trump’s questioning of defending NATO allies struck a chord.

“From the Russian side, at least from the Kremlin political side, they’re very against NATO expansion. They’re interested in encouraging NATO’s disintegration in whatever means that they can,” Maynes says.

“In the same way that the Russians don’t overtly promote Brexit, there was a sense of celebration that a splintering in the Western alliance is a good thing for Russia. I think in that same way that if Mr. Trump did come to the White House, this sort of splintering of the NATO allies would be a good thing for Russia as well.”

In many ways, Maynes says “Russians look at this and it looks very familiar to them.”

“There’s a person on the political scene here for many years, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, who is a nationalist and a member of the Duma — part of the so called official opposition, which isn’t really an opposition at all — he embodies some of these same traits: A combination of a circus entertainer and politician and scandalist all at once and invoking a little bit of nationalism as well.

“I think, for Russians, they look at Mr. Trump more as a version of Zhirinovsky, just one who actually has a chance at the White House.”

This article first appeared on PRI’s The World.

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Justin Vivian Bond Looks for the American Dream: DNC Kick-Off Report

Day 1 MxVivDNC #DNCinPHL

Woke up this morning in my West Philly Show Biz Safe House , “The Beardquarters”, so named because it’s home to several bearded ladies. After I checked my news feed and discovered the allegations that Putin of all people had leaked the DNC files which caused the downfall of Debbie Wasserman Schultz I got in the shower and started thinking about the “old days” when everything that went wrong in this country was a “pinko, communist plot” used to scare people to the right and make them vote for nut-jobs like Eugene McCarthy, Richard Nixon and Pat Buchanan who were going to sweep all the corrupt democrats out of office for daring to create programs like social security and Medicaid–you know, the things they blame for having destroyed the fabric of this country. Time to tear up the social contract and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!

After Trump’s speech last week slamming NATO no one should need to question why Putin would want to disrupt the Democratic Convention. If Trump wins Putin will basically get a pass to take the Baltics or anyplace else he’d like. Who’s gonna stop him?

We’re no longer keeping old promises if they cost us money. With Trump as president, Brexit architect Boris Johnson as the new British Foreign Secretary, and ol’ Vladimir Putin calling the shots it would be the blonde leading the blonde all in lockstep to a new world order of casinos, oil wells and very tall buildings glued together with LAW AND ORDER. Bang! Bang!

Then I stepped out of the shower.

After some coffee I put on my lipstick and headed to City Hall to see what the Bernie people had to say about it. Mostly saw nice people carrying signs about legalizing weed, the one percent, Bernie or Bust, not much really–but all in good spirit!

It’s hot as hell and last week I received a press release about an “American Dream” ice sculpture that was supposed to be going up in Liberty Park. ART! I like art and ice so I made my way past all the huge color posters of aborted fetuses to hopefully cool off and enjoy the poetic melting of the American Dream during a heat wave.

They announced the sculpture would be up at 1pm.  I’ve been sitting in The Independence Visitors Center for over an hour and all I see is a platform with a bunch of cold water on it. I hope that’s not what we see at the convention tonight.

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Prince Harry, Wikileaks, Bernie Sanders, Olympic Village, Knife Attack, Al Gore: NEWS

PRINCE HARRY. The royal says he regrets not speaking about the death of his mother, Princess Diana, earlier.

TAYLOR SWIFT. Instagram has apparently made it easier for the singer-songwriter to mass delete hateful comments on her posts, and has also blocked the snake emoji from being posted in her comments. 

MALE MODEL MONDAY. Austin Victoria. 

WIKILEAKS. The story of Donald Trump’s ties to Russia, who is allegedly behind the dump of DNC emails damaging to the party and Debbie Wasserman Schultz. The ‘hacktivist’ organization also warned MSNBC host Joy Reid about trying to make any connection between them and Russia.

@JoyAnnReid You are pushing a discredited conspiracy theory. There is no affinity, whatsoever. Our lawyers will monitor your program.

— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) July 24, 2016

STOP THE BOOS. Bernie Sanders sends texts message to supporters asking them not to protest on the floor of the Democratic convention. In related news, Captain Tony Nelson texted Jeanie to get back in the bottle.

DONNA BRAZILE. Interim DNC chair issues apology to Bernie Sanders and supporters over DNC emails: “’On behalf of everyone at the DNC, we want to offer a deep and sincere apology to Senator Sanders, his supporters, and the entire Democratic party for inexcusable remarks made over email,’ the statement reads. ‘The DNC does not — and will not — tolerate disrespectful language exhibited toward our candidates.’”

CASTING. Sia will be one of the voices in the My Little Pony movie.

CURIOS. Cristiano Ronald has opened his own museum and hotel.

RIO PROBLEMS. The Australian Olympic committee says the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Village is uninhabitable: “Last night (Saturday), we decided to do a “stress test” where taps and toilets were simultaneously turned on in apartments on several floors to see if the system could cope once the athletes are in-house. The system failed. Water came down walls, there was a strong smell of gas in some apartments and there was “shorting” in the electrical wiring.”

JAPAN. At least 15 are dead after a man attacked people at a facility for the disabled outside of Tokyo: “A knife-wielding man apparently went on a rampage at the facility in Sagamihara, west of Tokyo. Citing police, the Kyodo news agency said 19 people were dead, while public broadcaster NHK said 15 were killed.  As many as several dozen people were injured, the reports said. A man in his 20s has been arrested, NHK reported, but there was little information about him or his motive.”

BLACK LIVES MATTER. Michael Jordan speaks out on police-related shootings:  “I know this country is better than that, and I can no longer stay silent.”

DEMS IN PHILLY. Al Gore won’t be at the convention but he did endorse Hillary Clinton.

I am not able to attend this year’s Democratic convention, but I will be voting for Hillary Clinton. (1/3)

— Al Gore (@algore) July 25, 2016

MONDAY MAN. Duncan 007.

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Monday: DNC Kicks off with a Host of Pro-Equality Speakers

The Democratic National Convention opens tonight with a lineup of pro-equality speakers including Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, and former NBA player Jason Collins, who made history by coming out while still an active professional basketball player.

First Lady Michelle Obama, who shares Hillary Clinton’s commitment to LGBTQ equality, is the featured speaker tonight. She has long been an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ people, most recently urging Jackson State University graduates in Mississippi to stand against discrimination – including their state’s new anti-LGBTQ law, HB1523. “We’ve got to stand side by side with all our neighbors — straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender; Muslim, Jew, Christian, Hindu immigrant, Native American — because the march for civil rights isn’t just about African Americans, it’s about all Americans,” she said.

Bernie Sanders
Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT) is an original cosponsor of the Equality Act, a bill that would finally offer explicit, clear, and permanent non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people at the federal level, and has been a reliable and steadfast ally to the LGBTQ community throughout his career. He is a cosponsor of the Student Non-Discrimination Act (SNDA), which would prohibit discrimination against students on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. He is also a cosponsor of the Safe Schools Improvement Act (SSIA), which would require schools to adopt codes of conduct against bullying and harassment.

Elizabeth Warren
Senator Warren (D-MA) has been a long-time supporter of marriage equality, endorsing it in  2011. Following the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling, Warren penned an op-ed highlighting how the U.S. Constitution guarantees marriage rights to same-sex couples. In a 2015 letter, Warren led a group of 38 Senators in calling out the Social Security Administration for their treatment of married same-sex couples.

Warren has also been a leader on non-discrimination. In addition to cosponsoring the Equality Act, Warren supports legislation in Massachusetts that would prohibit discrimination against transgender people in public spaces. The bill was signed into law on July 8. She’s also been an ardent opponent of the FDA’s discriminatory blood ban.

Cory Booker
Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) has been a strong pro-equality force since arriving in the  U.S. Senate in 2013. Like Sanders and Warren, he is an original cosponsor of the Equality Act, and also helped introduce the first Senate bill to prohibit the dangerous and fraudulent practice of ​“conversion therapy.”

And like Sanders and Warren, Booker is also a cosponsor of SNDA and SSIA. Booker spoke at HRC’s 2016 Spring Equality Convention. You can watch his remarks here.

Jason Collins
Jason Collins, who made history as the first openly gay active professional basketball player is also addressing the convention. By coming out and living openly, Collins courageously showed the world that one’s sexual orientation is no longer an impediment to achieving one’s goals, even at the highest levels of professional sports. Since coming out, he has been named one of TIME Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in the World,” and appointed to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition.

The combination of Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine make for the most pro-equality ticket in history.  Hillary Clinton has made LGBTQ equality a pillar of her campaign, including  calling  it her “highest priority” to pass and sign into law the Equality Act. In addition, she supports the military’s decision ending the ban on open transgender military service, is fighting to outlaw dangerous and debunked “conversion therapy” for minors and is calling for an end to the epidemic of transgender violence. Read more on Clinton’s strong LGBTQ platform and record here.

Running mate Tim Kaine also has a strong LGBTQ record. In addition to supporting marriage equality, Kaine is an original co-sponsor of the Equality Act. One of Kaine’s first actions as Virginia Governor in 2006 was to sign an executive order adding sexual orientation protections to the non-discrimination policy for state workers. Kaine also recently signed onto an amicus brief in the 2nd Circuit case, Christiansen v Omnicom Group Inc., arguing that sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination are prohibited under the Civil Rights Act of 1964. He has voted in favor of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) and the Student Non-Discrimination Act (SNDA).

Clinton-Kaine stand in stark contrast with the Republican ticket of Donald Trump and Mike Pence. Among his anti-equality positions, Trump has vowed to rescind marriage equality and pledged to appoint U.S. Supreme Court justices who would overturn last year’s historic Obergefell marriage equality ruling. He has pledged to sign the so-called First Amendment Defense Act, which could allow individuals, many businesses, and nonprofit organizations to circumvent critical federal protections and blatantly discriminate against LGBTQ families.

Pence, in a now notorious interview with ABC last year, refused to answer eight separate times when asked whether businesses should be able to discriminate against LGBTQ people. Pence became a national disgrace in 2015 for his “license to discriminate” bill — which threatened to allow businesses to deny service to LGBTQ people — and for subsequently defending the bill after an outcry from the business community and a majority of Hoosier voters.

Read more on how Trump and Pence would put LGBTQ equality at risk here on HRC’s new “Dump Trump” site.

www.hrc.org/blog/monday-dnc-kicks-of-with-a-host-of-pro-equality-speakers?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Will Michelle Obama Offer Clues About Her Future Tonight?

The first lady’s fans hope her speech at the Democratic convention will signal a continued high-profile role for her.

www.advocate.com/politics/2016/7/25/will-michelle-obama-offer-clues-about-her-future-tonight