TexasTowelie
TexasTowelie's JournalGOP Blocks Confirmation of Gay Connecticut Supreme Court Chief Justice Candidate
Connecticut Senate Republicans blocked the confirmation of gay Judge Andrew J McDonald as Chief Justice of the state Supreme Court in a 19-16 vote.
The Hartford Courant reports:
…Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, a close friend and political ally of McDonald’s for the past 25 years, charged that part of the reason that Republicans are opposed to McDonald is that he is gay. But Republicans have repeatedly and heatedly denied that allegation, saying they have never mentioned McDonald’s sexuality during the weeks that his nomination has become highly controversial.
Said Malloy: “Let there be no doubt that Andrew was treated differently than any other person nominated and quite frankly the only difference is that he was openly gay.”
The Connecticut Mirror adds:
“So forgive my skepticism that this has nothing to do with Justice McDonald being gay,” Bye said.
Read more: http://www.towleroad.com/2018/03/andrew-j-mcdonald/
Mike Pence's Hometown Throwing Gay Pride Festival So Everyone Knows They Don't Share His Views
The hometown of Vice President Mike Pence is set to hold its first ever gay pride celebration, in a move intended to show the U.S. that not everyone from Columbus, Indiana, is anti-gay.
Organized by high school senior Erin Bailey, the Columbus Pride Festival draws a clear line between the views of those involved in the festival, and Pence’s dubious record on LGBT rights.
“I am organizing Columbus Pride Festival because I feel it is important for members of the LGBTQ community to know that Columbus is a welcoming and diverse community,” Bailey told the Huffington Post.
“Even though Mike Pence is openly anti-gay, that doesn’t mean that all of us in his hometown are,” she added.
Read more: http://www.newsweek.com/mike-pences-hometown-throwing-gay-pride-festival-so-everyone-knows-they-dont-864086
Girl Scouts Cookie Sales 'Promote Promiscuous Sex and Abortion' Says Kim Davis' Lawyer
The founder of a conservative Christian ministry and legal counsel which represented Kim Davis has urged his followers to stop buying cookies from the Girl Scouts, claiming it "promotes abortion and sexual promiscuity to innocent girls."
Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) was founded over a century ago in Savannah, Georgia, and was chartered by Congress in 1950. A member of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (Wagggs), the organization currently has over 2.6 million members, including around 800,000 adults working primarily as volunteers.
According to the GSUSA website, the organization aims to empower young girls and women, and is currently working to increase participation in Stem subjects, boost health by increasing access to outdoor activities, teaching members how to reduce bullying, and fostering healthy relationship skills.
However, Liberty Counsel founder and chairman Mat Staver, who represented former Kentucky clerk Kim Davis who was jailed for blocking same-sex marriages, said: "The once great Girl Scouts USA took a tragic fall when it became a political advocacy group that promotes abortion and sexual promiscuity to innocent girls."
Read more: http://www.newsweek.com/girl-scouts-cookies-promote-promiscuous-sex-and-abortion-says-kim-davis-860144
Man had girlfriend rape 11-year-old autistic son because he thought the boy was gay
An Alabama man and his girlfriend were convicted this week for the rape of his 11-year-old autistic son.
Sean Cole was convicted for the rape of his 11-year-old autistic son.
The boy's father, 29-year-old Sean Cole, got his girlfriend to rape, sodomize and abuse the child because he thought his son was gay, according to the prosecutor.
On Tuesday, a Madison County jury convicted Cole and his girlfriend, Khadeijah Moore, of rape, sodomy and sexual abuse of a child younger than 12. Each faces up to life in prison. Sentencing is May 24 at 11 a.m.
The crimes happened during the week of Thanksgiving 2016 when the boy was in Huntsville to visit his father, said Tim Douthit, the Madison County assistant district attorney who prosecuted the case. The trial began Monday and wrapped up with the guilty verdicts Tuesday afternoon.
Read more: http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2018/03/man_had_girlfriend_rape_11-yea.html
Liberal group runs tax-law ads defending Democratic senators
A group aligned with the Democratic Party is running new digital ads in a pair of potential Senate battlegrounds, criticizing the GOP-approved tax law as “rigged for the wealthy.”
The new ads in Pennsylvania and Michigan follows existing digital campaigns in Ohio, North Dakota, Florida, Nevada, Arizona, Montana, Indiana, Wisconsin, West Virginia, and Missouri — part of an effort from the nonprofit group Majority Forward to push back on tax-law spending from Republican-aligned groups, including those backed by the political network of Charles and David Koch.
All of those states, with the exception of Nevada and Arizona, feature a Democratic incumbent up for re-election this fall, most in states Donald Trump won in 2016. Nevada and Arizona are considered the strongest pickup opportunities for Democrats this year.
The digital programs in Pennsylvania and Michigan are each backed a five-figure buy, according to a spokesman for the group. Majority Forward plans to spend six-figures on the dozen states combined. The ads themselves accuse the Kochs of reaping billions from the new law while leaving the nation in debt.
Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/article207010064.html
Washington State lawmakers taken aback by claim of Russian spying
WASHINGTON -- The Trump administration’s sudden closure of the Russian consulate in Seattle out of concerns about espionage at a nearby naval base appears to have caught much of the state’s congressional delegation off guard.
The White House surprised Russia and much of Congress early Monday by announcing the sudden expulsion of 60 Russian diplomats and the elimination of the consulate less than a week after President Donald Trump called Russian President Vladimir Putin to congratulate him on his controversial re-election.
The consulate closure was described as part of a coordinated response to the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Great Britain earlier this month. But U.S. officials also indicated that espionage concerns at Naval Base Kitsap, the third largest in the United States, and against defense contractor Boeing Corp., played a role.
It’s unclear if there was a specific concern or incident that provoked the inclusion of Kitsap, which is just outside Seattle, in Monday’s announcement. But past and current lawmakers said they had not been told of any particular incident or ongoing concern of espionage beyond the everyday threats.
Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/article207061819.html
Ku Klux Klan sends video to activist group's president
Although members of the NAACP and Mississippi Rising Coalition are concerned about a recent video released by the Ku Klux Klan, they want to make it clear they are not intimidated.
According to WLOX and multiple sources, the 10-minute video, which was emailed to coalition president Lea Campbell, was posted Sunday on Youtube by the United White Dixie Knights. It was removed Wednesday morning. The video includes a series of still photos, one of which shows six men in hoods and robes standing in front of a burning cross.
A man speaking in the video identified himself as "Reverend Smith" and stated his message was not a physical threat.
"Y'all aren't going to take down our flag. We gonna fight," Smith said. "This ain't no threat, nothing physical but we gonna fight through the court system. We gonna fight through the legal way, the proper way."
Read more: https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2018/03/28/ku-klux-klan-sends-video-activist-groups-president/467565002/
Church leaves denomination, says United Methodists not 'accepting the authority of the scripture'
A Mississippi church has chosen to leave the United Methodist Church over conflicting views on homosexuality, abortion and the teaching of Islam.
The First United Methodist Church of Louisville decided to leave the denomination Sunday morning during a "membership affirmation," said the Rev. Mike Childs. The vote was 175-6 with one member abstaining.
Going forward, the church will be known as First Methodist Church of Louisville.
"While our church will no longer be a member of the United Methodist denomination, it will continue to be a Christ-centered church that is faithful to the Scriptures and the theology of (Methodism founder) John Wesley," Childs said. "It will forever be a Methodist church but not a United Methodist church."
Read more: https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/local/2018/03/28/church-leaves-methodist-denomination-over-homosexuality-abortion-islam/465556002/
US judge extends temporary block on 15-week abortion ban
JACKSON — A federal judge in Mississippi has extended his temporary block on the most restrictive abortion law in the United States.
The Mississippi law bans abortion after 15 weeks. Republican Gov. Phil Bryant signed it March 19. The law took effect immediately, but the state's only abortion clinic sued the state.
U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves issued a temporary restraining order March 20 to block the law for 10 days.
Reeves on Wednesday extended the block until April 13, giving attorneys for the clinic and the state more time to work on legal arguments.
Read more: https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/politics/2018/03/28/us-judge-extends-temporary-block-15-week-abortion-ban/467613002/
Seattle man arrested and accused of sending 11 suspicious packages to D.C.-area federal facilities
A 43-year-old man was arrested Monday outside Seattle and charged with sending 11 packages containing explosive black powder to federal addresses in the D.C. area, including the White House and several military installations.
Investigators said they do not have a clear motive in the case. They said each package contained a glass vial or small bottle filled with powder, a fuse and a global positioning device. The packages also had typewritten letters that the FBI described in a criminal complaint as containing “ramblings about neuropsychology, mind control and other subjects including terrorism.”
Authorities identified the suspect as Thanh Cong Phan, who lives in Everett, Wash. He was arrested at his trailer by Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies and federally charged with interstate shipping of explosive materials.
Many of the packages were intercepted at screening facilities on the receiving end. None exploded, and no one was harmed. But federal authorities said buildings were evacuated and law enforcement scrambled at each location, such as on Monday at the National Defense University on the grounds of Fort McNair in Southwest Washington.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/man-arrested-in-seattle-for-allegedly-sending-suspicious-packages-to-dc-area-government-facilities/2018/03/27/22a3ff1a-31cd-11e8-8bdd-cdb33a5eef83_story.html
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Gender: MaleHometown: South Texas. most of my life I lived in Austin and Dallas
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Current location: Bryan, Texas
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