Chicago’s Lesbian Mayor Unloads on Ivanka Trump: ‘No Decency’

After Trump tweeted misleading information about violence in Chicago, Mayor Lori Lightfoot understandably responded with a vengeance.

www.advocate.com/politics/2019/8/06/chicagos-lesbian-mayor-unloads-ivanka-trump-no-decency

An Intimate Interview with Israel’s Lifelong LGBTQ Activist Uzi Even

Uzi Even, the first openly gay person to serve in Israel’s parliament, says he is slowly being forgotten. 

www.advocate.com/politics/2019/8/06/intimate-interview-israels-lifelong-lgbtq-activist-uzi-even

Mike Pence Advises Antigay Group to ‘Spend More Time on Your Knees’

The vice president turned to prayer after his wife was criticized for teaching at an anti-LGBTQ school.

www.advocate.com/politics/2019/8/06/mike-pence-advises-antigay-group-spend-more-time-your-knees

Mayor Pete slams Trump over gun violence: “How about some action?”

Democratic Presidential candidate Mayor Pete Buttigieg has lashed out at Donald Trump following a trifecta of shootings over the weekend.

While appearing on CNN August 6, the South Bend, IN Mayor criticized Trump for his violent rhetoric, and for stirring up white nationalist hatred during his presidency. When asked whether Buttigieg would accept a visit from the President if the shooting had been in South Bend, the mayor gave an unequivocal no. Trump has been uninvited to El Paso, Texas–a site of one of the shootings–by the local mayor.

Related: Mayor Pete boasts huge second quarter fundraising total, further proving that gays do it better

“Ordinarily… [a mayor] would automatically welcome a visit from a President of either party,” Buttigieg said, “because you know that he would be there to help you…to help bring people together, to help those who are hurting, and to help keep people safe. The problem is, right now, we’ve got a President right now who is part of the problem and incapable of bringing people together. This morning, he was on Twitter doing the exact opposite. The whole idea of the symbolic role of the presidency–which is just as important as the policy role–is that it is an office that can bring people together.” “Sadly,” Buttigieg added, “we are lacking that critical function of the Presidency. When [Trump] shows up, you know the politics and the divisiveness will be part of what he brings to the town.”

When asked what Trump should do, Buttigieg didn’t mince words. “It’s too late for him not to be a white nationalist, and to not bear some responsibility for what’s happened here,” he said. “What he could do is refrain from divisive and politicizing rhetoric, and focus on making something happen. How about some action? I remember his inaugural speech where he said American carnage stops right now. I remember back when he said he was going to actually do something about guns before the NRA [National Rifle Association] put him in his place and reminded him that he’s not allowed to say that.”

Buttigieg also unveiled his own plan for gun control.

“Anyone can have a slingshot, nobody can have a nuclear weapon,” says Mayor Buttigieg about his plan to have stricter gun laws. “We have decided all along that there’s a line to be drawn somewhere. Clearly we need to draw that line tighter.”t.co/hmzJ6fguwO pic.twitter.com/i7ZqwRKruK

— New Day (@NewDay) August 6, 2019

www.queerty.com/mayor-pete-slams-trump-gun-violence-action-20190806?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

‘Andi Mack’ Star Joshua Rush Comes Out as Bisexual

Joshua Rush, the 17-year-old star of the just-wrapped groundbreaking Disney Channel series Andi Mack, has come out as bisexual on Twitter.

Tweeted Rush: “first to respond to this tweet is bi lol. first! i win! it’s me. i’m bi. And now that I’ve said that, I have a few things to rant about. There are more important things to talk about than me liking a whole bunch of genders, but I do want to share a few things with you guys. I saw so many of you watch Cyrus come out and said ‘Hey! I can be me!’ How ironic, isn’t it, that me, playing that character, never had mustered up that courage? Instead of feeling the courage to tell you today that I am an out and proud bisexual man because of the character I played for four years, I feel that courage thinking of all of you, who felt emboldened by Cyrus to come out.”

Rush added: “I had a close friend of mine come out to me in fifth grade. FIFTH GRADE! That was well before I had any clue of my own identity and orientation. I suffered with some level of my own internalized homophobia even while playing the first openly gay character on Disney Channel. I stuffed the existential crisis of talking about my sexual orientation into a box in my mind for years. Today, I release it into the world. Being bi isn’t all of my identity, nor is it the most important part of my identity. Bi erasure and issues like it are important, but trans women of color still have a life expectancy of THIRTY FIVE YEARS and that is absolutely unacceptable.”

Rush then encouraged followers to donate to GLAAD and the Trevor Project and read GLAAD’s page on bisexuality.

Rush concluded by saying, “Thank you to you for giving me the courage to know who I am and tell you this today. Happy 20biteen”

The post ‘Andi Mack’ Star Joshua Rush Comes Out as Bisexual appeared first on Towleroad Gay News.

‘Andi Mack’ Star Joshua Rush Comes Out as Bisexual

Hillary Clinton Meets ‘Queen’ Mariah Carey at Barbra Streisand Concert

And Twitter is exploding.

www.advocate.com/people/2019/8/06/hillary-clinton-meets-queen-mariah-carey-barbra-streisand-concert

Ex-Gov thinks it’s ridiculous the gay man he discriminated against was just awarded $1.5 million

Former Republican Gov. Terry Branstad of Iowa and Donald Trump’s Ambassador to China thinks it’s absolutely absurd that a former government employee he once discriminated against for being gay has been awarded $1.5 million.

Last month, a jury found Branstad guilty of discriminating against Christopher Godfrey, the former Iowa Workers’ Compensation Commissioner, because Godfrey is gay. Now, Branstad wants the ruling thrown out. Because, he says, it’s just not fair!

Quick backstory: Godfrey was originally appointed to a six-year term by Branstad’s predecessor, Democrat Chet Culver. After Branstad took office in 2010, he asked Godfrey to resign so he could appoint someone else to his job.

When Godfrey refused, citing a law intended to prevent partisan politics by declaring holdouts can retain their positions between administrations, Branstad responded by slashing his salary almost $40,000, from from $112,070 to $73,250, effectively driving Godfrey out.

But here’s the thing: Other Culver appointees who refused to resign did not have their salaries cut. The only difference between Godfrey and them was that they were all straight.

And here’s the other thing: Branstad has a history of opposing LGBTQ equality. Not only has he gone on record to say he believes marriage is “the union of one man and one woman,” but he supported an amendment blocking same-sex marriage.

Eight years later, in July 2019, a jury finally declared Branstad had, indeed, discriminated against Godfrey because of his sexual orientation.

“I have always treated everyone, gay or straight, with respect and dignity,” Branstad, who claimed he didn’t even know Godfrey was gay until he threatened to sue, insisted at trial. “That’s the way I have always operated.”

But the jury, unconvinced of this, awarded Godfrey $800,000 for emotional distress and $200,000 for future distress after having his constitutional due process rights violated plus another $400,000 for his discrimination and retaliation claims and $100,000 for emotional damage.

In response, Branstad’s team just filed an appeal on the verdict, calling the whole case a “charade” and “a political circus” and saying the $1.5 million award is “excessive.”

“Defendants can only pray that the trial phase of the Godfrey saga will be viewed by history as the low point in a dangerous era of Iowa jurisprudence,” his lawyers argued this week. “All citizens of this state should hope that the Godfrey trial will not be remembered as a harbinger of the end of the American democratic experiment.”

“This jury decided that former Gov. Terry Branstad discriminated against Chris Godfrey because he was gay and then retaliated against him after he refused to resign,” Conlin said. “That is the fact that was decided by the jury and that cannot be overturned.”

www.queerty.com/ex-gov-thinks-ridiculous-gay-man-discriminated-just-awarded-1-5-million-20190806?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

Here She Goes Again: Cher Recording Second Album of ABBA Tracks

Cher has revealed that she is working on a second set of tracks for a new ABBA album, and has four completed already.

She later revealed a bit more of what might be on the way.

The post Here She Goes Again: Cher Recording Second Album of ABBA Tracks appeared first on Towleroad Gay News.

Here She Goes Again: Cher Recording Second Album of ABBA Tracks