RandySF
RandySF's Journal3 Florida Radio Stations to Run Trump Speeches Hourly
A media company that operates multiple radio stations in Florida has vowed to broadcast portions of President Trump’s speeches every hour of every day until the 2020 election.
Gulf Coast Media Inc., the owner of the stations "Classic Rock WRBA-FM 95.9," "Country WKNK-FM 'Hank FM'” and "Adult Hits WASJ-FM 'BOB FM,'” announced in a press release that it would air Trump's speeches for the next 18 months.
Samuel Rogatinsky, the owner of the radio station operator based in Bay County, Fla., told The Orlando Sentinel that the stations would broadcast two-minute snippets of Trump's speeches every hour of every day.
“We ran it by a bunch of listeners and people in the area, and nobody’s upset about it. It’s Republican territory,” Rogatinsky said, adding that the stations may sometimes run Trump's speeches twice an hour. “Nobody’s offended by it. It’s not an issue.”
Rogatinsky did not immediately respond to a request for further comment from The Hill.
Gulf Coast Media acknowledged in the news release that continually airing Trump's speeches did not conform to "conventional commercial FM radio." But the organization said that the move was made to "show the community’s sincere appreciation for President Donald Trump’s work in Panama City and Bay County."
https://thehill.com/homenews/media/443732-florida-radio-stations-to-broadcast-trump-speeches-every-hour-until-2020
Focus group: Trump supporters like liberal proposals but still love Trump
Some of President Trump's supporters in Sioux City, Iowa love liberal populist proposals. They just don't love the 2020 Democrats as the messengers.
Between the lines: A focus group of swing voters — all of whom voted for Trump in 2016 — strongly supported a student loan debt plan that would cancel up to $50,000 in student debt for people whose families make less than $100,000 per year. (That's Elizabeth Warren's proposal, though her name wasn't mentioned in the question.)
They also want to tax American corporations, specifically big banks, to pay for Trump's infrastructure plans.
This was the main takeaway from the Engagious/FPG focus group of swing voters I watched last week, which included 11 voters who supported Barack Obama and then Trump. All but one said they would re-elect Trump if it were him versus Hillary Clinton again.
Why it matters: These voters aren't familiar with the two main liberal proposals (Medicare for All and the Green New Deal), and they aren't excited by any Democrats running for president. This could give Trump an opportunity to tailor his economic message in Iowa for voters who want more focus on student loan debt and infrastructure.
But it also suggests that Warren's own policies are more popular with these voters than she is, given that the voters were skeptical of the entire Democratic field.
https://www.axios.com/focus-group-trump-supporters-like-liberal-proposals-but-still-love-trump-66518863-c821-49ea-bab5-226c0b013de1.html
What Joe Biden Is Teaching Democrats About Democrats
The prevailing mood toward a Biden candidacy has been a combination of anger that he has the temerity to lead a party that has left him behind and sympathy that he’s too addled to grasp his predicament. A genre of op-ed has developed out of liberals pleading with Biden, with such headlines as “Why Joe Biden Shouldn’t Run for President” (The Week, The Guardian); “I Like Joe Biden. I Urge Him Not to Run” (the New York Times); “I Really Like Joe Biden, but He Shouldn’t Run for President” (USA Today); and, as exasperation has sunk in, “Again, Joe Biden, for the Love of God: Do Not Run for President” (The Stranger).
The poor guy has disregarded all the advice and decided to run anyway. And initial polling has revealed that a large number of Democrats have not left Biden behind at all. He begins the race leading his closest competitors, including early front-runner Bernie Sanders, by as much as 30 points. Perhaps it was the party’s intelligentsia, not Biden, that was out of touch with the modern Democratic electorate.
The conclusion that Biden could not lead the post-Obama Democratic Party is the product of misplaced assumptions about the speed of its transformation. Yes, the party has moved left, but not nearly as far or as fast as everybody seemed to believe. Counterintuitively, House Democrats’ triumph in the midterms may have pushed their center of gravity to the right: The 40 seats Democrats gained were overwhelmingly located in moderate or Republican-leaning districts.
Biden’s apparent resurrection from relic to runaway front-runner has illustrated a chasm between perception and reality. The triumph of the left is somewhere between a movement ahead of its time and a bubble that has just popped.
http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/05/what-joe-biden-is-teaching-democrats-about-democrats.html
CNN compares Kamala Harris to GoT's Daenerys Targaryen
From the first time people heard of them, they saw the potential. And to date, both have lived up to the hype. But there are lingering concerns -- and fears -- about whether they represent too much change for a staid world.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/12/politics/game-of-thrones-2020-democrats/index.html
Texas legislative freshmen block anti-LGBTQ legislation
Texas House Bill 3172, one of several “religious refusal” bills introduced in the 86th Texas Legislation, now underway in Austin, was stymied today thanks to members of the LGBT Caucus, who “executed parliamentary tactics to stop” it, according to a press release issued shortly after 7 p.m. tonight (Thursday, May 9) by Progress Texas.
State Rep. Julie Johnson, the Addison lesbian elected last November, stood on the floor of the House to read the Caucus’ technical objection to the bill, which would have given government officials, licensed professionals, businesses, and others the right to discriminate against LGBTQIA+ individuals by claiming “sincerely-held religious beliefs” as their reason for doing so. It was introduced by Fort Worth Rep. Matt Krause.
Erin Zweiner, the bisexual lawmaker from Driftwood who was also elected last November, said: “It’s time for Texas legislators of all stripes to quit using our community as a political wedge, move past hate, and focus on the real issues. I want this to be the last time that the Texas House brings a bill like this to the floor, a bill that was written to diminish the humanity of LGBTQIA+.”
Progress Texas Advocacy Director Sam Robles added, “This discriminatory religious refusal bill was a blatant attack on LGBTQIA+ Texans. We’re proud of our Texas progressives and the LGBTQ Caucus for standing up for all Texans.”
https://www.dallasvoice.com/breaking-dangerous-hb-3172-stopped-through-parliamentary-move/
What we fought for in 2018. Governor says she'll sign Maine 'conversion therapy' ban
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Maine's governor said Thursday that she would sign a bill to ban so-called gay conversion therapy for minors that advanced in Maine's House and Senate this week.
If the bill becomes law, Maine would join 16 states that have banned the practice, which aims to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity.
The Maine Senate on Thursday gave initial approval to the bill, which received a 91-46 vote in the House on Wednesday. The bill faces more votes in both chambers before it can head to Democratic Gov. Janet Mills' desk.
Maine's former Republican governor vetoed a similar measure last year, but the bill has gained momentum this year under a Democratic-led Legislature.
"I look forward to signing it!" Mills tweeted Thursday. "It is time for all LGBTQ people in Maine to know they are valued and respected."
Supporters decry the practice as a harmful and note it has been medically discredited; the American Psychological Association opposes the therapy.
https://www.readingeagle.com/ap/article/governor-says-shell-sign-maine-conversion-therapy-ban
Happy Mother's Day, DU
This goes out to all you moms out there, including those of you who adopt your children's friends along the way. You are all gems.
House approves $15 minimum wage for Connecticut after marathon debate
"It will help. Like to raise it higher," says Richard Benham, of Wallingford, a legislative political coordinator for the Connecticut AFL-CIO, about the prospects of raising the minimum wage to $15 in the state.
After an epic, marathon 14-hour debate that lasted all night, the state House of Representatives voted Thursday to raise Connecticut’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2023.
The sharply partisan debate began at 10 p.m. Wednesday and wrapped up with a 85-59 vote shortly after noon. Much of the time was taken up by Republicans who spoke to a sometimes-empty House chamber about how increasing the minimum wage would stifle the state’s already lackluster economic growth.
https://www.courant.com/politics/hc-pol-minimum-wage-house-20190509-djpw2nwwxva6tihllxukcepwam-story.html
25 MILLION PEOPLE live in a state with a November state election this year.
Did you know that 25 million people live in a state with a state house election this November? And if you live in Virginia, Louisiana, Mississippi, or New Jersey, you’re one of them!
Trump has made it crystal clear that winning these states is crucial for his path back to the White House in 2020. He’s already sent Mike Pence down to Virginia to court wealthy right-wing donors, with this message: “Tell them we think Virginia is in play and that I’m going to be there.”
That means Democrats don’t just need to hold on to blue seats in states like Virginia — to resist Trump’s 2020 intentions, we’ve got to make all our state legislatures bluer by expanding Democrats’ target map in 2019 to include traditionally red areas and fighting like hell to support the Democratic candidates who run in them.
https://medium.com/TheDLCC/why-2019s-state-elections-matter-for-2020-and-how-we-ll-win-c945b1659eb8
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Gender: MaleHometown: Detroit Area, MI
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Current location: San Francisco, CA
Member since: Wed Oct 29, 2008, 02:53 PM
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