House Debate and Final Vote on Trump Impeachment: LIVE VIDEO
The U.S. House of Representatives will engage in a debate and final vote on the impeachment of President Donald J. Trump starting at 9 am ET.
Late on Tuesday, Trump sent a wildly unhinged 6-page letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (you can read it here) accusing the House of an “illegal, partisan attempted coup” among other things.
Terrorists Who Sent Bomb with Unsuspecting Gay Brother in Foiled Plot to Blow Up Airliner Jailed for at Least 27 Years
Mahmoud and Khaled Khayat
Khaled Khayat, 52, and Mahmoud Khayat, 34, who were found guilty of attempting to blow up an Etihad airlines flight from Sydney to Abu Dhabi in 2017 have been jailed for at least 27 years.
The Guardian reports: “The plot – which included their older brother Tarek Khayat who fought for Islamic State in Syria – involved blowing up the plane and carrying out a lethal poisonous gas attack. A bomb hidden in a meat grinder was to be put into the luggage of their unsuspecting brother, Amer Khayat, who was flying to Abu Dhabi. But the plan was abandoned when the luggage was found to be overweight at Sydney airport.”
Part of the reason their brother Amer was involved was because he is gay and the brothers felt he brought dishonor to the family.
Said Justice Christine Adamson said on Tuesday: “While no one was physically injured or killed as a consequence of the offense, the offenders nonetheless achieved their aim of creating terror in the minds of members of the public. … Neither offender was particularly close to Amer, although each said he loved him as a brother and spoke to him when he saw him. They disapproved of him because he drank, went clubbing, gambled and was gay which they regarded as bringing shame on the family. … If the plots had gone according to plan, no one in the aircraft carrying the bomb and no one exposed to the poisonous gas would have survived and no one would have had time to say goodbye. The scale of the intended impact adds significantly to the gravity of the offense.”
Stephen Colbert Ridicules Hallmark, One Million Moms for Gay Wedding Ad Debacle: WATCH
Stephen Colbert mocked Hallmark’s immediate cave to One Million Moms last week over a Zola gay wedding ad in which two brides kiss. Hallmark announced this week that they would reinstate the ad.
One Million Moms complained that Hallmark strayed from entertainment that the whole family could watch, and Colbert responded: “Let’s be honest. Your whole family isn’t getting together to watch Hallmark Christmas movies. Real moms watch them alone at night while trying to assemble a Fisher-Price kitchen, and drinking out of a wine glass that says, When Caleb Whines, Mommy Wines.”
Colbert also ripped Hallmark for its excuse that it doesn’t want to create controversy: “We know. We’ve seen your movies. Hallmark doesn’t generate controversy, character growth, dramatic tension, or leading roles for black people.”
And he aired footage of William Shatner, who had slammed Hallmark for the move, talking to one of the One Million Moms.
Concluded Colbert: “Well just like in the Hallmark classic, A Shoe Addict’s Christmas, there’s a happy ending. … Hallmark announced that they will reinstate the commercials. … There was drama, they broke up, they got back together, a wedding was involved, and everyone was white. Wow. They do have just one plotline.”
Construction Begins on US Navy Ship Named for Gay Rights Icon Harvey Milk: WATCH
Construction has begun on a Navy ship named for gay civil rights icon Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to political office in California. Milk served in the Navy during the Korean war and came from a family with a history of serving in the Navy. Milk and Mayor George Moscone were assassinated by former Supervisor Dan White at City Hall in 1978.
The Washington Post reports: “In a move that signaled an about-face on the issue of gay rights, the Navy on Friday began to construct the USNS Harvey Milk, a fleet oiler that will provide fuel to ships and aircraft. The Navy announced in 2016 that Milk’s name would appear on a ship, along with other civil rights leaders, including abolitionist Sojourner Truth and suffragist Lucy Stone.”
Whoopi Goldberg Smacks Down ‘View’ Co-Host Meghan McCain: ‘Girl, Please Stop Talking Right Now’ — WATCH
Whoopi Goldberg finally grew fed up with Meghan McCain talking over everyone else on the show and delivered a smackdown to her View co-host following a discussion of Republican hypocrisy over impeachment.
Sunny Hostin was denouncing Republicans who had the gall not to impeach Trump for bribing a foreign nation to attack our democracy, when many of them voted to impeach Bill Clinton for perjury.
Said McCain over Hostin, complaining that her “conservative perspective” fails to get out: “Let me talk. I let you talk, let me finish. “
.@TheView Please fire that lying, disrespectful, rude, ignorant loud gasbag #MeghanMcCain. Joy, Sunny & Whoopi should all get combat pay for working w/ that horrid woman. Fire that lying, boring milquetoast Abby Huntsman while you’re at it, too. #TheViewpic.twitter.com/PaVyhMHDss
Ryan O’Connell’s ‘Special’ Renewed for Season 2 at Netflix
Ryan O’Connell’s groundbreaking comedy series Special, about a gay man with cerebral palsy, has been renewed for a second season at Netflix, with eight episodes on order.
“Warner Horizon Scripted Television will join Warner Bros. Digital Networks’ Stage 13 and That’s Wonderful Productions as producers of the series for season 2,” according to Deadline. “Jessica Hecht and Punam Patel will return as series regulars for the second season.”
The Season 1 plotline: “Special is a distinctive and uplifting new series about a gay man, Ryan with mild cerebral palsy who decides to rewrite his identity and finally go after the life he wants. After years of dead-end internships, working in his pajamas as a blogger and communicating mostly via text, Ryan eventually figured out how to take his life from bleak to chic and began limping towards adulthood. “
Marvel’s First Openly Gay Superhero (in ‘The Eternals’) Won’t Be Played by Richard Madden, But By This Actor…
[SPOILERS] Much has been discussed and rumored in recent months about Marvel’s upcoming film The Eternals, where it will debut the MCU’s first gay superhero. There have been varying reports on who that might be, and most rumors have pegged Richard Madden’s character Ikaris as the one.
But that appears not to be the case. Reports are emerging that Eternals footage screened at at CCXP 2019 reveals Brian Tyree Henry’s character Phastos to be gay, and in the clip holding hands with a male partner and two kids.
We Got This Covered writes: “A user on Box Office Theory says they were in attendance and writes of a brief clip featured in the trailer exclusive to the convention which revealed Phastos, as played by Brian Tyree Henry, holding hands with a male partner, with the pair accompanied by two kids. We’ve been told to expect Eternals’ gay character to have a husband and children in the movie, too, so if we can trust this info, it seems to solve the mystery of who it is. The rest of the description shared by the forum user matches up with everything else that’s been said about the footage from others who saw it as well. However, this is the only time we’ve heard about the revelation concerning Phastos. It was previously believed that Ikaris was the married character, though this is definitely not the case, as the CCXP footage confirmed that Richard Madden’s hero was in a relationship with Sersi (Gemma Chan).”
The Department of Justice reported: “According to court documents filed in connection with their guilty pleas, both Henry and Ceniceros-Deleon admitted Grindr was used, a social media dating platform primarily used by gay men, to lure gay men to a vacant apartment and other areas in and around Dallas for robbery, carjacking, kidnapping, and hate crimes. Henry admitted that he and others held the victims against their will in the vacant apartment. Ceniceros-Deleon admitted that he and others traveled to local ATMs to withdraw cash from the victims’ accounts. Both Henry and Ceniceros-Deleon admitted that while the victims were being held captive they were subjected to taunts based upon the co-conspirators’ perception of the men’s sexual orientation. In addition, Ceniceros-Deleon admitted to being the gunman in a Dec. 7, 2017, carjacking where he and others used Grindr to lure a man to a location and then forced the man, at gunpoint, to drive the conspirators to local ATMs to withdraw cash from the man’s account.”
According to the indictment, “the conspirators used Grindr to lure nine victims to an apartment complex in Dallas from Dec. 6, 2017, through Dec. 11, 2017. On Dec. 11, 2017, the conspirators held five victims against their will in an apartment at the complex. Four of the victims were physically assaulted, three were sexually assaulted, and some victims were called gay slurs. A conspirator also urinated and wiped human feces on at least one victim.”
Two other men were involved in the criminal acts, Towleroad previously reported. Michael Atkinson pleaded guilty to conspiracy and kidnapping charges in connection with this case and his sentencing is set for February. Atkinson will be sentenced in February of 2020. A fourth man, Daniel Jenkins, is awaiting trial.
Daniel Jenkins and Michael Atkinison.
Said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division: “Kidnappings, carjackings, thefts, sexual assaults, and armed, violent attacks against innocent people are heinous crimes, and when perpetrators commit those crimes against victims because of their sexual orientation, the U.S. Department of Justice will continue zealously to seek justice for the victims and to punish the perpetrators to the full extent of the law. Prosecuting those who commit such monstrous acts because of victims’ sexual orientation is a priority of the Department of Justice, and we will continue to bring to justice anyone who commits such hateful, violent crimes.”
Added U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox for the Northern District of Texas: “These defendants used Grindr to single out their victim based on sexual orientation – something the Northern District of Texas simply will not tolerate. Unfortunately, this is not the first time a dating app user has fallen victim to a violent crime. I’m urging the public to be vigilant about the dangers lurking online.”
Hallmark Pulls Gay Wedding Ad After Pressure from ‘One Million Moms’
Hallmark has pulled four ads from the wedding planning website Zola featuring a lesbian wedding, with brides kissing after pressure from the American Family Association subgroup One Million Moms. Towleroad reported on the campaign by the conservative group earlier this week.
The NYT reports: “Asked to explain why the ads had been rejected, an employee of Hallmark’s parent company said the channel did not accept ads ‘that are deemed controversial,’ according to an email exchange shared with The New York Times. A spokesman for Hallmark said the women’s “public displays of affection” violated the channel’s policies, but he declined to comment on why a nearly identical ad featuring a bride and groom kissing was not rejected.”
The “controversial” aspect of the ad was the kissing, according to the Hallmark spokesman.
But that doesn’t apparently apply to heterosexual PDA. The NYT adds: “In one of the two ads that were permitted to continue to air, a bride and groom kiss passionately at the altar.”
Wrote One Million Moms on its website: “The Hallmark Channel has always been known for its family friendly movies. Even its commercials are usually safe for family viewing. But unfortunately, that is not the case anymore. Recently, One Million Moms received concerns about Hallmark airing a commercial from Zola.com in which two lesbians are shown kissing at the end of their wedding ceremony. … Conservative viewers will be disappointed to learn that Hallmark has ideas of moving beyond airing only commercials with LGBT content and is open to producing LGBT movies in the future.”
“Shame on Hallmark for airing commercials with same-sex couples and even considering movies with LGBT content and lead characters,” they continue. “Now, parents can no longer trust Hallmark because Hallmark is no longer allowing parents to be the primary educators when it comes to sex and sexual morality.”
OMM told Hallmark in a petition letter on their site: “Please reconsider airing commercials with same-sex couples, and please do not add LGBT movies to the Hallmark Channel. Such content goes against Christian and conservative values that are important to your primary audience. You will lose viewers if you cave to the LBGT agenda.”
Pete Buttigieg Bothered to Be in Trump’s Dreams: ‘I Want Absolutely Nothing to Do With Them’ — WATCH
Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg sat down for a Washington Post Live event on Friday during which he was asked about the impeachment vote by the House Judiciary Committee and how he would deal with Trump’s attacks.
Said Buttigieg: “I’m not that worried [about Trump’s attacks and hostility] First of all, I’m gay and I grew up in Indiana so that kind of schoolyard talk doesn’t bother me. I’ve also seen a lot worse incoming than a tweet full of typos.”
“You can tell by the way that this president hasn’t figured out what to do or say about me,” Buttigieg added. “Although I will admit that it did bother me when he said that he dreams about me because I don’t know what exactly goes on in this president’s dreams, but I am certain that I want absolutely nothing to do with them.”
This morning, the House Judiciary Committee passed two articles of impeachment against President Trump. Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg shares his thoughts on the historic vote. t.co/vudp4TapE9#postlivepic.twitter.com/jJsj0icSj4
At his rally in Pennsylvania this week, Trump had said he dreams about Mayor Pete.
Said Trump: “I mean, you have Alfred E. Neuman who’s running, who’s like this guy? This guy Buttigieg. Can you believe he’s doing well? He’s like the leading fundraiser. I dream about him. It’s true.”
