THEGAYUK

Tag: US Politics

All the latest breaking news on politics in the United States Browse THEGAYUK’s complete collection of news, articles and commentary on politics in the United States.

  • Here are the US states with the most anti-LGBT+ laws…

    Here are the US states with the most anti-LGBT+ laws…

    t’s important to note that attitudes towards the LGBTQ+ community can vary widely within individual states, and it’s not accurate to label an entire state as “anti-LGBTQ+.” However, some states have passed laws or have political climates that are perceived as being less supportive of LGBTQ+ rights.

    That being said, there is no definitive list of the “most anti-LGBTQ+” states in the US. However, some states have been criticized for passing laws or taking actions that are perceived as discriminatory towards the LGBTQ+ community. For example, in recent years, some states have passed laws that allow businesses to refuse service to LGBTQ+ individuals on the basis of religious objections, or have attempted to restrict access to gender-affirming healthcare for transgender individuals.

    Some states that have been criticized for passing laws or taking actions that are perceived as discriminatory towards the LGBTQ+ community include:

    • Texas 49 bills
    • Oklahoma 35 bills
    • Missouri 34 bills
    • Iowa 29 bills
    • Tennessee 26 bills
    • Mississippi 24 bills
    • Indiana 18 bills
    • South Dakota 18 bills
    • North Dakota 17 bills
    • Kansas 12 bills

    It’s worth noting that attitudes towards the LGBTQ+ community can change over time, and some states that were once perceived as less supportive of LGBTQ+ rights have since passed more inclusive laws or become more accepting. Additionally, there are many individuals and organizations within these states that actively work to promote LGBTQ+ rights and acceptance.

  • Texas rules that employee’s insurance does not need to cover PrEP, because, of course, Religion

    The judge ruled that providing the anti-HIV drugs via the healthcare system was unlawful after siding with Conservative lawyers who challenged the measure on religious grounds.

    The legal challenge was mounted in 2020 by eight Texan individuals and two Texan businesses. It was argued that the free PrEP requirement, as well as free coverage requirements for contraceptives and the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, requires business owners to pay for services that “encourage homosexual behavior, prostitution, sexual promiscuity and intravenous drug use” despite their religious beliefs.

    Perry N. Halkitis, Dean of the Rutgers School of Public Health, slammed the Texas ruling that the U.S. Affordable Care Act’s requirement that private insurance plans cover HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) at no cost to patients as unconstitutional as “egregious lack of separation between church and state.”

    Speaking about the ruling, Dr Halkitis said,

    “The use of antivirals in the form of pre-exposure prophylaxis, which has been approved since 2012, has been a game changer in our fight against HIV and AIDS as the application of PrEP allows individuals to have one more tool to prevent them from acquiring HIV. The result has been dramatic decreases in the HIV infection rate in the United States.

    By decreasing the incidence of HIV, the number of people who require lifelong treatment also goes down, which puts less of a burden on our society economically and in terms of the health of populations. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor is extremely shortsighted. It is reminiscent of decisions in the 1990s to prevent the distribution of condoms in schools.

    Without covering PrEP, highly at-risk populations — mostly gay and bisexual men and Black women — will continue to become infected with HIV, perpetuating this ongoing epidemic in our society. The decision of the judge is ultimately one that will spread further disease and cause harm to the people of Texas. In the end, this will lead to an increase in the number of infections in people living with HIV in Texas and across the United States, creating a larger number of individuals who require lifelong treatment and creating burdens on their lives and creating burdens on our economy.

    This misinformed or misguided decision based solely on the individual’s religious beliefs is another example of the egregious lack of separation between church and state which is undermining the health of all of us.”

  • Anderson Cooper just called Trump “an obese turtle”

    Anderson Cooper just called Trump “an obese turtle”

    CNN anchor Anderson Cooper said that Donald Trump was like “an obese turtle on its back flailing in the hot Sun” after the 45th President of the US threatened legal action over the hotly contested Presidential election.

    The comment came after the 45th held a press conference at the White House to claim that the Democrats were stealing the election with voter fraud, a claim that has not been proved.

    Embed from Getty Images

    As it currently stands the Democrats and former Vice President, Joe Biden are ahead, with 264 electoral college votes, while Trump has 214. The next President of the US must have 270 votes to claim overall victory.

    There are still five states yet to declare.

    “Sad and it is truly pathetic”

    After the press conference, Cooper said, “I don’t think we’ve ever seen anything like this from the president of the United States and I think, as Jake [Tapper] said, it’s sad and it is truly pathetic and, of course, it’ll go through the courts, but you’ll notice the president did not have any evidence presented at all, nothing, no real actual evidence of any kind of fraud”.

    “That is the president of the United States, that is the most powerful person in the world and we see him like an obese turtle on his back flailing in the hot Sun realising his time is over.

    “But he just hasn’t accepted it and he wants to take everyone down with him, including this country.”

  • Porn star Beaux Banks has a cheeky way for asking his fans if they’re registered to vote

    With the elections looming in the US, one porn star, Beaux Banks has found the PERTY way to ask his fans whether they’re registered to vote.

    There are so many ways to encourage people to register to vote, and sometimes you just have to use your given talents to persuade people.

    We’ve gotta say that Beaux’s way is very appealing.

    In a cheeky picture, wearing a very sexy pair of Andrew Christian jocks, posted on social media, he wrote, “May I ASSk you a question….Are You Registered To Vote? If not head to vote.gov and get registered today!”

    Now if this perky pic doesn’t get you to register we don’t know what will, well that and obviously exercising your democratic rights.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CFcxQm4AnUG/

    Fans thanked the star for using his platform to get people to register. One user commented “You are so awesome” while another added, “Well played sir, well played!”.

    Are you persuaded?

    Main picture from Hothouse.com. Get your subscription here (NSFW).

  • Joe Biden makes a promise to LGBT+ people that can’t be ignored

    Joe Biden makes a promise to LGBT+ people that can’t be ignored

    As the Trump administration dials back LGBT+ protections and rights, Presidential hopeful, Joe Biden makes a solemn promise to LGBT+ people in the US as Pride Month draws to a close.

    Taking to social media on the last day of Pride Month, Joe Biden wrote how, if he is elected president in the forthcoming elections, he will be the “most pro-equality president” in the nation’s history.

    “LGBTQ+ rights are human rights”

    Embed from Getty Images

    He affirmed his stance on LGBT+ rights by adding, “LGBTQ+ rights are human rights, and we can’t rest until everyone is treated with dignity and respect under the law.”

    His statement is in stark contrast to the actions of President Trump’s administration, which has, from his first week, removed support and visibility for LGBT+ people in the United States.

    In his most recent actions against LGBT+ people, his administration removed healthcare protections for LGBT+ people that prohibit discrimination based on gender identity, which announced on the anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub massacre, which killed 49 LGBT+ people in 2016.

  • US Supreme Court rules that it is not lawful for employers to discriminate against LGBT+ people

    US Supreme Court rules that it is not lawful for employers to discriminate against LGBT+ people

    In a landmark ruling, decided by a 6-3 vote, the US Supreme Court ruled overwhelmingly that discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity is a form of sex discrimination and therefore prohibited by the Civil Rights Act.

    Voting in favour were Justices Gorsuch Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, and Chief Justice John Roberts.

    This is a critical case for the USA, where more than half the states do not have explicit protection against discrimination for LGBT+ people.

    The ruling comes at a time when the Trump administration has rolled back numerous advances in the protection of particularly trans people, including the Department of Health removing protection from discrimination for trans people in healthcare on Friday, 12 June 2020.

    washington dc, court house, architecture
    Photo by retzer_c / Stockpack / Pixabay

    The Justice Department argued that Title VII doesn’t cover discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

    Embed from Getty Images

    Executive Director of OutRight Action International, Jessica Stern, comments, “The Supreme Court stating explicitly that under the Civil Rights Act discrimination based on sex includes discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity is a tremendous victory.

    “The decision comes at a time when the Trump administration has been viciously attacking the rights of LGBTIQ people, in particular trans people. It will protect millions of Americans from discrimination in the workplace, and sends a powerful message – that political power-play can not erase basic human rights. This judgment will have implications for LGBTIQ people everywhere – governments and movements are inspired by each other, and landmark judgments are quoted by courts across the world. OutRight welcomes, and celebrates this ruling!”

  • Trump called Bette Midler “washed up” and Twitter came for him

    Trump called Bette Midler “washed up” and Twitter came for him

    After apologising for posting an incorrect quote often attributed to President Trump, Bette Midler was attacked by the 45th and called “washed up”.

    Bette Midler
    CREDIT: S Buckley | Depositphotos.com

    A few days ago award-winning actor, singer, activist and all-round gay icon, Bette Midler, posted a meme quote of Donald Trump. The quote on the tweet said, “If I were to run, I’d run as a Republican. They are the dumbest group of voters in the country. They believe anything on Fox News. I could lie and they’d still eat it up. I bet my numbers would be terrific.”

    However Donald Trump never actually said those words. Numerous fact-finding websites, including Snopes.com, have proved the quote to be misattributed.

    Bette apologised, saying, “I apologize; this quote turns out to be a fake from way back in ‘15-16. Don’t know how I missed it, but it sounds SO much like him that I believed it was true! ”

    https://twitter.com/BetteMidler/status/1135590981921837056

     

    But her apology did not sit well with Donald who took a swipe at the “Wind Beneath My Wings” singer branding her a “psycho” and “washed up” before adding that she was a “sick scammer”.

    It did not go down to well and attracted over 30,000 comments with just a few hours.

    Donald Trump tweeted, “Washed up psycho was forced to apologize for a statement she attributed to me that turned out to be totally fabricated by her in order to make “your great president” look really bad. She got caught, just like the Fake News Media gets caught. A sick scammer!”

    CREDIT: andykatz / bigstock

    One commentor tore into the president, saying “She’s got more class in her little finger than you have in your whole body, now fck off home n play with your mates in the KKK” while another added, “Don’t you have a job to do, you childish fckwit? Oh, since you’re so quick to judge others on their physical appearance, you looked ridiculous in your tuxedo at the palace – like Mr Creosote in The Meaning of Life. Look it up. Don’t worry. It’s not a book. It’s a movie”.

    Donald Trump is currently in the UK on an official state visit.

  • Donald Trump says calling Tim Cook, “Tim Apple” was all about time-saving

    You may have heard that President Donald Trump called Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple – well now the President has said that it was entirely intentional.

    via GIPHY

    The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has taken time out of his busy schedule to assure his electorate that him calling Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple Inc, “Tim Apple” was entirely intentional, explaining that it was all about time-saving.

    Not him losing his marbles.

    CREDIT: By Michael Vadon [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia CommonsTaking to Twitter (of course) he wrote, “At a recent round table meeting of business executives, & long after formally introducing Tim Cook of Apple, I quickly referred to Tim + Apple as Tim/Apple as an easy way to save time & words”.

    As you see, doing this saved literally two words. “Cook” and “From” – a time saving of around a second. But say, if you were say it over and over – like a demented cuckoo on speed, you can see how these seconds would all add up.

    Bravo.

    He then hit out at news organisation that reported that he had referred to Cook as Apple – calling them “Fake News” saying “The Fake News was disparagingly all over this, & it became yet another bad Trump story!”

    There you go people. If you want to save time and prove yourself as a time-saving lord, just refer to people as Firstname followed by the company they work for.

  • Arkansas House Candidate Calls Gay People ‘Disgusting’

    A Libertarian candidate running for a state representative seat in Arkansas responded to a Facebook debate about gay people donating blood by saying “f-gs are disgusting.” Justin Jones, who is challenging incumbent Republican Representative Robin Lundstrum for the northwest Arkansas state House seat, railed against gay people in response to a friend’s comment on Facebook. (more…)

  • Trump Imposes New Transgender Military Ban

    President Donald Trump signed a memorandum on Friday that bans some transgender individuals from serving in the U.S. military, but gives the armed forces latitude in implementing policies. The memorandum said transgender individuals with a history of gender dysphoria, defined as “those who may require substantial medical treatment, including through medical drugs or surgery,” are disqualified from military service “except under certain limited circumstances.” (more…)

  • Cynthia Nixon announces run for New York governor

    Sex And The City star Cynthia Nixon is running for NY Governor

    Cynthia Nixon, the US actor who shot to international stardom as tough-talking lawyer Miranda on “Sex and the City,” announced Monday that she is running to become the governor of New York state … (more…)