I Didn't Say It ...

Jeff Flake, Arizona’s retiring GOP Senator, on the GOP and _____:

“Never has a party abandoned and fled its principles and deeply held beliefs so quickly as my party did in the face of the nativist juggernaut. If we are going to cloister ourselves in the alternative truth of an erratic leader, if we are going to refuse to live in the world that everyone else lives in and reckon with the daily reality that they face, including the very real anxiety that they feel, then my party might not deserve to lead. As we are discovering and as we will discover for years to come, there is no damage like the damage a president can do.”

I like that Flake is taking on the GOP and _____ by speaking out, but howsabout putting your money where your mouth is and leaving the GOP and taking them on as an independent or a Democrat?

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Francesco Mangiacapra, a “marchettaro,” a male prostitute servicing gay men, on why he exposed 40 gay and sexually active priests:

“I released this dossier because I wanted to expose the ‘bad apples,’ not to throw mud at the Catholic Church but to help her get rid of the rot that contaminates the healthy part. The behavior of these priests is, in many cases, the fruit of bad leadership in which priests are allowed to do the opposite of what they preach. This kind of ‘schizophrenic’ morality is typical of the hierarchy. The paradox of my relationship with the clergy is that there is a role reversal in which I am a sinner denouncing the priests who are the supposedly moral leaders but are committing sin. Those priests throw stones from their glass houses and the bishops make sure that all those stone-throwers are never exposed! In my book, and now with this dossier, I demonstrate that there is a real lobby of gay priests, a freemasonry, an underground.”

Every time you expose a religious hypocrite, an angel gets its wings.

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Cory Michael Smith, Edward Nygma AKA The Riddler on Gotham, coming out as gay and starring in 1985, a new film that takes place during the first years of the AIDS crisis:

“I’m from Middle America. I’m from Ohio. I’ve been living [in New York] for a while, and there are stretches when I don’t see my family often. Going home and that whole charade is very familiar. The first family dinner after a while. Coming out to a family, the fear of that.  I don’t ever want to insinuate or push that the queer experience is hindered with shame or darkness and depression … But I do think it is important to look at the gay experience in the early ’80s and know that it was overwhelmed by disease. It’s a film that is going back to a moment and telling a very personal story about the pain and suffering that certain people went through. Sometimes I think it’s OK to have a moment of silence and consider what that experience was.”

Lord, I have such a crush on Cory Michael Smith—I loves me some Riddler—and now to know that he’s a big old ‘mo?

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Adam Schiff, on the GOP standing by _____:

“I think one of the really sad realizations over the last year is not what kind of a president Donald _____ turns out to be — I think it was all too predictable — but rather, how many members of Congress would be unwilling to stand up to him, and more than that, would be completely willing to carry water for him … I thought there would be more Jeff Flakes, more John McCains, more Bob Corkers — people who would defend our system of checks and balances, would speak out for decency, who would defend the First Amendment.”

It’s the Tribal Hypocrisy Syndrome; some in the GOP, a lot in the GOP, are so happy that the Black Man is out of office, they’ll do anything to keep a racist, misogynistic, lunatic in power.

That’s why we vote them out!

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Charles Djou, former GOP Congressman, on leaving the party over _____:

“I can no longer stand with a Republican Party that is led by a man I firmly believe is taking the party of Lincoln in a direction I fundamentally disagree with, and a party that is unwilling to stand up to him. It disturbs me that the Republican Party under President Donald _____ is now defined as a party hostile to immigration.”

Hostile immigration; racism; criminal behavior; treason …the list is long.

But again, why leave? Stay and fight. Stand up for something for God’s sake.

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Melania _____, wife of a TwitBully, and campaign bully, and presidential bully, acknowledging criticism of her stance against cyberbullying:

“I’m well aware that people are skeptical of me discussing this topic. I have been criticized for my commitment to tackling this issue and I know that will continue.”

Maybe try something new, and something you’re also familiar with: start a campaign to help wives married to men who sleep with porn stars … or who are Pussy Grabbers?

Better yet, Mel, take a seat and keep quiet.

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John McCain, Ariznoa GOP Senator, on _____’s congratulatory phone call to Putin after his election “win”:

“An American president does not lead the Free World by congratulating dictators on winning sham elections. And by doing so with Vladimir Putin, President _____ insulted every Russian citizen who was denied the right to vote in a free and fair election.”

But he had to congratulate Putin because Putin got him elected here.

He’s Putin’s bitch.

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Christine Quinn, openly gay former NYC Council Speaker, on openly gay Cynthia Nixon—who supported Quinn’s opponent, Mayor Bill De Blasio for mayor—running for governor of New York:

“It’s a flight of fancy on her part. Cynthia Nixon was opposed to having a qualified lesbian become mayor of New York City. Now she wants to be an unqualified lesbian to be the governor of New York. You have to be qualified and have experience. She isn’t qualified to be the governor.”

Quinn later apologized for palying the lesbian card:

“My point was never to say her sexual orientation — or anybodys — is a negative when they’re running for office."

To me it just seemed like sour grapes for Quinn, since Nixon didpn’t support her; just politics, eh?

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Lt. Col. Ralph Peters, on why he’s leaving his post at Fox News:

“Four decades ago, I took an oath as a newly commissioned officer. I swore to ‘support and defend the Constitution,’ and that oath did not expire when I took off my uniform. Today, I feel that Fox News is assaulting our constitutional order and the rule of law, while fostering corrosive and unjustified paranoia among viewers. Over my decade with Fox, I long was proud of the association. Now I am ashamed. In my view, Fox has degenerated from providing a legitimate and much-needed outlet for conservative voices to a mere propaganda machine for a destructive and ethically ruinous administration. When prime-time hosts—who have never served our country in any capacity—dismiss facts and empirical reality to launch profoundly dishonest assaults on the FBI, the Justice Department, the courts, the intelligence community (in which I served), and, not least, a model public servant and genuine war hero such as Robert Mueller—all the while scaremongering with lurid warnings of ‘deep-state’ machinations—I cannot be part of the same organization, even at a remove. To me, Fox News is now wittingly harming our system of government for profit.”

Clearly, Fox News isn’t news. It’s just another arm of the _____ White House; it’s Kellyanne without the hideous make-up; it’s The Mooch without the pinkie ring;it's Sean Spicer without the angry spitting red face it’s Sarah Huckabee Sanders without the shapeshifting face.

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I Didn't Say It ....

Archbishop Desmond Tutu, on Uganda's Kill the Gays legislation:

“My brothers and sisters, you stood with people who were oppressed because of their skin color. If you are going to be true to the Lord you worship, you are also going to be there for the people who are being oppressed for something they can do nothing about: their sexual orientation."

When people say that oppression of The Gays is not at all like oppression of African Americans, I believe I’ll just point them toward this quote.

Marco Rubio, on his faith that homosexuality is a sin, but how he isn't passing judgment:

"Well, I can tell you what faith teaches and faith teaches that it is. And that’s what the Bible teaches and that’s what faith teaches. But it also teaches that there are a bunch of other sins that are no less. For example, it teaches that lying is a sin. It teaches that disrespecting your parents is a sin. It teaches that stealing is a sin. It teaches that coveting your neighbor and what your neighbor has is a sin. So there isn’t a person in this room that isn’t guilty of sin. So, I don’t go around pointing fingers in that regard. I’m responsible for my salvation and I’m responsible for my family’s, and for inculcating in my family what our faith teaches, and they’ll become adults and decide how they want to apply that in life. As a policy maker, I could just tell you that I’m informed by my faith. And my faith informs me in who I am as a person — but not as a way to pass judgment on people."

Too bad his deeds don’t match those words—words he’s using to try and get himself a shot at the White House in 2016.

Marco Rubio's is "passing judgment" by his opposition to allowing same-sex couples in Florida to adopt children. He is "passing judgment” by his opposition to the repeal of DADT; he is “passing judgment” when he says it’s just fine for someone to fire an employee simply for being gay.

Plus, and this is big, he was “passing judgment” when he recorded a robocall for the National Organization for Marriage [NOM] last month.

Maureen Dowd, on the decline of the GOP:

"Instead of smallpox, plagues, drought and Conquistadors, the Republican decline will be traced to a stubborn refusal to adapt to a world where poor people and sick people and black people and brown people and female people and gay people count."

And now they’re scrambling, trying to change their image.

Well, it’ll take longer than four years for people to forget what the GOP said about women and the poor and the immigrant and The Gay.

Mary Matalin, the cousin of one of my closest friends, and a Republican political strategist who once defended "traditional" marriage, falling back on being anti-equality:

"There are important constitutional, biological, theological, ontological questions relative to homosexual marriage. People who live in the real world, say, the greater threat to the civil order are the heterosexuals who don’t get married and are making babies. That’s an epidemic in crisis proportions. That is irrefutably more problematic for our culture than homosexuals getting married. I find this important dancing on the head of a pin argument, but in real life, looking down 30 years from now, real people understand the consequences of so many babies being born out of wedlock to the economy and to the morality of the country"

So, now the right will go after unwed mothers.

Sorry Laura, but your cousin has lost her mind.

Why does the GOP need a target? Why don’t they offer solutions to situations—like that of unwed mothers—instead of making them feel as though they’re evil, and responsible for all the ills of this country?

Tony Perkins, FRC Hound of Hell, on boycotting UPS for its denouncing of the Boy Scouts homophobic policies:

"In this busy shipping season, UPS will have at least one less customer to worry about: FRC. After 11 years as our official carrier, FRC is suspending its contract with UPS for openly discriminating against the Boy Scouts of America. FRC tried to resolve the matter behind the scenes, even contacting Chairman and CEO Scott Davis with a letter of protest -- to which UPS promptly replied. Unfortunately, the company only reiterated its position that until the BSA puts a greater priority on the political agenda of LGBT activists than the protection of Scouts, they are not entitled to the same equality UPS claims to endorse. Apparently, the company isn't interested in true diversity but in strong-arming anyone who disagrees with their extreme agenda -- including a century-old youth development program, whose only crime is instilling character into millions of American boys. As for their longstanding policy on homosexuality, the Boy Scouts are doing what every parent would want them to: putting children's safety first."

Spend your money on FedEx, Tony. Or the USPS. But realize that whatever money you don’t spend on UPS is probably a pittance compared to their former monetary support of a hate group like the BSA.

Kasim Reed, Democratic Atlanta Mayor, announcing his support for marriage equality:

“Today marks an important day as I announce my support for marriage equality. It is well known that I have gone through a good bit of reflection on this issue, but listening to the stories of so many people that I know and care about has strengthened my belief that marriage is a fundamental right for everyone. Loving couples, regardless of their sexual orientation, should have the right to marry whomever they want. "By signing this resolution, I pledge my support to marriage equality for same-sex couples, consistent with equal protection under the law provided under the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution."

I can understand that it takes time to change minds, but minds are changing every day, and pretty soon the only minds that won’t be changed are the ones that are closed, have always been closed, and always will be closed.

Christine Quinn, NYC City Council Speaker, on Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's comparison of murder and homosexuality:

"The Justice should apologize...It's offensive. Sexual orientation is who we are as people. It's how we're created if we're LGBT. And to compare that even in a way you want to say was some philosophical exercise to a heinous horrible crime of murder. It's just wrong. He can say it's a slip of the tongue. Just apologize. But don't compare me to a murderer because I'm a lesbian. Just don't do it. It's wrong. [You] should treat other human beings even if you disagree with them, even if you dislike who they are, in a respectful way. The justice was disrespectful to me and my family. And that doesn't further my understanding him better, or him understanding me better."

Word.

And worse, is having a bigot on the US Supreme Court.

Lindsey Graham, South Carolina senator and closeted homosexual, um, ALLEGEDLY, on the right of gay people to marry:

“Can — can I suggest this? Slavery was outlawed by a Constitutional amendment. Go watch “Lincoln,” a great movie. The people decided. The question for us is who should decide these things? Should it be a handful of judges or should it be the people themselves? And I come out on the side of the people themselves. Different people will look at it differently. But slavery was outlawed by a Constitutional amendment. If you want to propose a Constitutional amendment legalizing same-sex marriage and it passes, that’s the law of the land.”

Oh Lindsay, you self-loathing types infuriate me.

You.Do.Not.Let.The.Majority.Vote.On.The.Rights.Of.The.Minority.

We didn’t let White Americans vote on the rights of Black Americans, so we shouldn’t let Straight America vote on the rights of LGBT America.

I do, however, like the idea of people voting your gay ass out of office. The sooner the better.

Good News Friday: Christine Quinn Is Getting Married

This weekend, Christine Quinn, the speaker of the New York City Council and longtime advocate for marriage equality, will marry her girlfriend, Kim Catullo. While the wedding is a personal event in Quinn and Catullo's lives, some folks believe it is a political event, since Christine Quinn is expected to ask New Yorkers to elect her as their mayor.

Quinn disagrees: “There’s really not a political implication to this for me as it relates to electoral politics. We’re trying to make it really a day, a night that’s about friends and family and us.”

But, nost observers of the New York political scene say the wedding could benefit Quinn, as it would give her an early chance to share her story with voters and to underline the historic nature of her candidacy: if elected she would be the first woman, and the first openly gay person, to lead the nation’s largest city. But Quinn also has to be cautious about not appearing to use a personal moment for political gain.

During the fight to legalize marriage equality in New York, Quinn repeatedly talked about her relationship with Catullo as an example of what was at stake: they wanted to be able to get married, Quinn would say, while their fathers were still alive and could attend the wedding.

And they will. When Christine and Kim walk down the aisle they will be accompanied by their fathers, Larry Quinn and Anthony Catullo.

When marriage equality passed last year, Christine Quinn wept as she said how excited she would be to go to a family gathering the next day and, for the first time, discuss her own wedding plans, including what dress Kim Catullo’s grandniece might wear as a flower girl.

“I really can’t really describe what this feels like,but it is one of the best feelings I have ever had in my life.”--Christine Quinn

Best wishes to the happy couple. And, I for one, hope, someday, that every gay and lesbian couple that chooses to do so, will experience the joy of marriage.

from left:
Anthony Catullo, Kim Catullo, Larry Quinn and Christine Quinn

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I Didn't Say It.....Marriage Equality Edition

New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, on marriage equality:

“When I was a little girl, I dreamed I would one day get married. I never imagined that it would take tonight’s Senate action to make that dream come true. Tonight’s historic Senate vote is a great moment for all New Yorkers. New York state’s recognition of marriage equality for same sex couples is an extraordinary step towards full equality for LGBT people. Tonight’s sweet victory in Albany will be felt all across America. At long last, the change we have fought for will be seen in the lives of families throughout our great state, including my own.”

And think of all the other young gay boys and girls, gay men and women, who woke up the day after that vote, realizing they could marry the love of their lives, and suddenly seeing themselves as equal.

Tony Perkins, of the Family Research Council, on the New York vote:

"Despite all of the disappointment, God is on the move. Regardless of how things appear, never doubt that He is at work behind the scenes. Rainbow colors may cut through the New York night, but shadows are where you and I are called to shine. The world takes advantage of the darkness, but only the church can set it ablaze. "Arise... for your light has come... See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and His glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn." (Isaiah 60:1-3)"

God is love.
Asshat.
But, you are right about one thing, you and your ilk do hide in the shadows and plot in the shadows and spread fear and hate from the shadows.

NYC Mayor Bloomberg, on the passage of marriage equality:

“Today’s passage in the New York State Senate of legislation recognizing the right of couples to marry regardless of their gender is a historic triumph for equality and freedom. New York has always been a leader in movements to extend freedom and equality to people who had been denied full membership in the American family. By welcoming all people — no matter where they are from, what faith or philosophy they follow, or whom they love — New York became the strongest, most dynamic city in the world. And today, we are even stronger than we were yesterday.”

And, hopefully that strength, that momentum, will carry on, into Maryland, Maine, New Jersey, and out to California.

Conservative columnist David Frum, announcing a change of heart on marriage equality:

"I find myself strangely untroubled by New York state's vote to authorize same-sex marriage--a vote that probably signals that most of the 'blue' states will follow within the next 10 years. I don't think I'm alone in my reaction either. Most conservatives have reacted with calm--if not outright approval--to New York's dramatic decision. Why? The short answer is that the case against same-sex marriage has been tested against reality. The case has not passed its test. Since 1997, same-sex marriage has evolved from talk to fact. If people like me had been right, we should have seen the American family become radically more unstable over the subsequent decade and a half. Instead -- while American family stability has continued to deteriorate -- it has deteriorated much more slowly than it did in the 1970s and 1980s before same-sex marriage was ever seriously thought of."

Indeed.
Where the states have allowed gay couples the same freedoms as straight couples, there has been no problem, no issues, no tornadoes, no locusts.
Only love.

New York State Senator James Alesi, the first Republican to announce his support for marriage equality:

"We have to make this an opportunity for America to be what America was designed to be and that is the freest land in the world....."I understand that constitutionally the president is right, because it's a states' rights issue, otherwise New York wouldn't have been able to pass this. But there's nothing wrong with the most powerful person in the world espousing a viewpoint."

Freedom.
And doing what's right.
And coming from a Republican, at that.
This shows us all that people can change, that they can understand it's not about tearing down an institution, it's about building it up.
Thank you, Senator Alesi, for seeing that, and voting that.

Pat Robertson, on New York's historic vote:

"In history, there has never been a civilization that has embraced homosexuality and turned away from traditional fidelity, traditional marriage, traditional child-rearing and has survived. There isn't one single civilization that has survived...So you say, 'what’s going to happen to America?' If history is any guide, the same thing is going to happen to us."

See, now this is why I question the existence of God.
If there really was a god, you can bet she'd be sending a hurricane or a tornado or a flood, or just a strong piece of duct tape for his mouth, to Pat Robertson's house.

Newt Gingrich, serial adulterer, and habitual marrying man, on marriage equality in New York:

"I think the president should be, frankly, enforcing (DOMA), and I think we are drifting toward a terrible muddle which I think is going to be very, very difficult and painful to work our way out of."

The only pain in the foreseeable future, Newt, is your own pain at losing the presidential nomination to some other wingnut.
Oh, and the pain that the third Mrs. Gingrich will feel when she founds you schtupping the fourth Mrs. Gingrich.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, on marriage equality:

"I am not a fan of same-sex marriage. It’s not something that I support. I believe marriage should be between one man and one woman. That's my view and that'll be the view of our state because I wouldn't sign a bill like the one that was in New York."

Have another doughnut and shut up.
Of course, knowing how Christie operates, he'd probably use a police helicopter to fly his ass to Krispy Kreme and charge the taxpayers of New Jersey for it.
Douchenozzle.

Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz:

“It is impossible to overstate the momentous history we witnessed in Albany tonight with legislative approval of marriage equality for all New Yorkers. With his signature, Governor Cuomo will finally put an end to what can only be described as government-sanctioned discrimination against our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Whatever your religious convictions, love is love — and we need to do everything possible to foster relationships and families, not tear them down.”

Allowing all New Yorkers to marry, will strengthen marriage in the state, and strengthen the family, too. No matter what the family looks like.
Mom and dad? Good. One Mom? Fine. One Dad? That works. Two Dads or two Moms? As long as there is love and nurturing, who cares what it looks like.
 
Maggie Gallagher, NOM spokesbitch, on marriage equality:

"New York Republicans are responsible for passing gay marriage. The party will pay a grave price. Here is what we know. In state after state, Democrats who control a chamber in support of their base have prevented votes favorable to marriage: Iowa, West Virginia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania. When Democrats are in the minority, they’ve demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to their base — in Wisconsin and Indiana fleeing the state to prevent a vote. N.Y, Republicans did not have to bring gay marriage up for a vote: What does it mean that they passed gay marriage in N.Y.? Michael Long, the Conservative-party chairman, has vowed to withhold his endorsement. The National Organization for Marriage has committed $2 million to persuading Republicans: Voting for gay marriage has consequences. Sad that the N.Y. GOP has caved. Consequences to be continued."

Make your threats, Maggie.
And spend your money.
You'll lose that......too.

New York Senator Stephen Saland, a Poughkeepsie Republican and the 32nd vote:

“I know my vote is a vote of conscience. I am at peace with my vote. It was a struggle. It was an extraordinary deliberation.”

And i would guess that most New York citizens are at peace as well, because you've done the right thing.
They are at peace because you struggled and thought, and you struggled and fought, and came down on the side of making Americans,. all Americans, in New York State, fully equal.
Thank you, Senator Saland, for taking a stand for what's right, what's equal, what's fair.
Well done, sir.

Clinton County GOP legislator Sam Trombley, using fear as a weapon, on marriage equality:

"I'm surprised the health department has not come out against this because we are going to have an HIV epidemic if this passes. They (health department) are always complaining about tobacco and smoking, I'm surprised they didn't say anything about this. You don't see two male dogs sleeping in the same dog house together. It blows my mind to think of it."

Hey Sam?
Um, do a little research, hon.
HIV is already an epidemic, asshat.
And it isn't just the gay folks getting it.
Straight women of color are the ones most susceptible.
Come out of the 1980s asshat.

And, once again, because it bears repeating:
 
New York Senator Roy McDonald:

“You get to the point where you evolve in your life where everything isn’t black and white, good and bad, and you try to do the right thing. You might not like that. You might be very cynical about that. Well, fuck it, I don’t care what you think. I’m trying to do the right thing.”

"What I care about is that my life isn't any better today."

from Towleroad:
New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn broke down while delivering an emotional explanation of what she believed happened at the marriage vote on Wednesday:
"At the end of the day, people did the wrong thing. There may in fact be a lot of...political outside factors that made this vote very difficult for people. But I don't care. My father is 83-years-old. Kim's father is 83-years-old. Our mothers died when we were girls, coincidentally...so how a roomful of people who've never met me...don't think it's fair to raise the likelihood that her father and my father can see us dance at our wedding...Well, I don't really care about a coup. I don't care that people ganged up on Dede Scozzafava who's a courageous woman. What I care about is that my life isn't any better today."