I Didn't Say It ....

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DNC Voices

So, after a day full of GOP stupidity, I needed to end with something more positive, intelligent, and uplifting.....

President Barack Obama:

‎"We don’t want handouts for people who refuse to help themselves, and we don’t want bailouts for banks that break the rules. We don’t think government can solve all our problems. But we don’t think that government is the source of all our problems – any more than are welfare recipients, or corporations, or unions, or immigrants, or gays, or any other group we’re told to blame for our troubles."

Sandra Fluke:

"Your new president could be a man who stands by when a public figure tries to silence a private citizen with hateful slurs. Who won't stand up to the slurs, or to any of the extreme, bigoted voices in his own party. Our president, when he hears a young woman has been verbally attacked, thinks of his daughters -- not his delegates or donors -- and stands with all women. And strangers come together, reach out and lift her up. And then, instead of trying to silence her, you invite me here -- and give me a microphone -- to amplify our voice. That's the difference."

Congressman Emanuel Cleaver: 

"Look, if being liberal and progressive means that I care for children and whether they go hungry, color me! Color me a Democrat! If being a Democrat means I'm concerned about our seniors in the sunset of their life, color me Democrat! Color me liberal! After all, we are the ones who protected Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, who fought for fair wages and who ended 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.' We are Democrats! And don't you ever forget it!"

Zach Wahls:

"Governor Romney says he's against same-sex marriage because every child deserves a mother and a father. I think every child deserves a family as loving and committed as mine. Because the sense of family comes from the commitment we make to each other to work through the hard times so we can enjoy the good ones. It comes from the love that binds us; that's what makes a family. Mr. Romney, my family is just as real as yours. President Obama understands that. He supports my moms' marriage. President Obama put his political future on the line to do what was right. Without his leadership, we wouldn't be here. President Obama is fighting for our families… all of our families. He has our backs. We have his."

Former President Bill Clinton:

"So — so President Obama and the Democrats didn’t weaken Medicare; they strengthened Medicare. Now, when Congressman Ryan looked into that TV camera and attacked President Obama’s Medicare savings as, quote, the biggest, coldest power play, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry — because that $716 billion is exactly, to the dollar, the same amount of Medicare savings that he has in his own budget. You got to get one thing — it takes some brass to attack a guy for doing what you did."

Vice President Joe Biden:

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I’m here to tell you, bravery resides in the heart of Barack Obama.  And time and time again, I witnessed him summon it. This man has courage in his soul, compassion in his heart, and steel in his spine. And because of all the actions he took, because of the calls he made–and because of the grit and determination of American workers–and the unparalled bravery of our special forces–we can now proudly say—Osama Bin Laden is dead, and General Motors is alive."

Representative Tammy Baldwin:

"Our president has made historic progress toward equality. He repealed "don't ask, don't tell" so that no American ever again has to lie about who they are in order to serve the country we love. Republicans want to write discrimination into our Constitution. But the Wisconsin I know believes that with each passing year and each generation, our country must become more equal, not less."

Eva Longoria:

"Mitt Romney would raise taxes on middle-class families to cut his own — and mine. And that’s not who we are as a nation, and let me tell you why: because the Eva Longoria who worked at Wendy’s flipping burgers — she needed a tax break. But the Eva Longoria who works on movie sets does not....And just like our president and first lady, I took out loans to pay for school. I changed oil in a mechanic shop, I flipped burgers at Wendy’s, I taught aerobics and I worked on campus to pay them back."

Senator John Kerry:

"...after more than 10 years without justice for thousands of Americans murdered on 9/11, after Mitt Romney said it would be naive to go into Pakistan to pursue the terrorists, it took President Obama, against the advice of many, to give that order and finally rid this earth of Osama bin Laden....Ask Osama bin Laden is he is better off now than he was four years ago."

Former Florida Governor, and Republican, Charlie Crist:

"That's the leader Florida needs. That's the leader America needs. And that's the reason I'm here tonight, not as a Republican, not as a Democrat, but as an optimistic American who understands that we must come together behind the one man who can lead the way forward in these challenging times: my president, our president, Barack Obama!"

Tammy Duckworth, veteran:

"President Obama pushed for fairness in the military, listening to commanders as we ended Don't Ask Don't Tell, and on how to allow women to officially serve in more combat jobs. Because America's daughters are just as capable of defending liberty as her sons!"

Lilly Ledbetter, equal pay activist:

"Maybe 23 cents doesn't sound like a lot to someone with a Swiss bank account, Cayman Island Investments and an IRA worth tens of millions of dollars. But Governor Romney, when we lose 23 cents every hour, every day, every paycheck, every job, over our entire lives, what we lose can't just be measured in dollars."

Michelle Obama:

"When you've worked hard, and done well, and walked through that doorway of opportunity…you do not slam it shut behind you…you reach back, and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed."

I Didn't Say It........

Steven Andrew, "pastor", on how God controls the US economy: "Christians are called to unite the GOP with Rick Santorum. This is because the Bible says that Mitt Romney opposes Jesus Christ and Christians. Romney is against everything the USA was founded upon. God promises to fix the economy if we vote for mature Christians. God says that the economy declined for taking God out of government, 53-plus million abortions and homosexual sins. Christians understand God controls the economy because He says so in 2Chronicles 7:13-14. Do you believe God? He sends prosperity for obedience and famine for sins"

Now, I'm not a Bible scholar, not by a long shot, but I don't think either Mitt Romney or Rick Santorum, appear by name in that book.
And I don't remember the part where God says she'll fix the US economy if we vote for "mature" Christians.
I do, however, believe there is a hidden, Eleventh Commandment, Thou Shall Not Be A Delusional Asshat Using The Name Of God To Promote Your Idiocy, and I believe Steven Andrew has broken that one.


Walter Mondale, former U.S. Vice President, on Minnesota's proposed Constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage:
"Our constitution is a hard-earned gift from those who preceded us, and an enduring promise to those who will follow us. It should be used to protect individual liberty, not to take it away."


You cannot call all men equal and then deny them rights.
Doesn't work that way, even in Minnesota.


Mitch McConnell, Republican Senator from Kentucky, says he's filibustering 17 judicial nominees because Harry Reid is making Republicans look bad:
"This is just a very transparent attempt to try to slam dunk the minority and make them look like they are obstructing things they aren’t obstructing. We object to that. We don’t think that meets the standard of civility that should be expected in the Senate. And, so, any effort to make the minority look bad or attempt to slam dunk them that is sort of manufactured as this is is gonna, of course, be greeted with resistance."


Hey Mitch?
Put on your big boy pants and do the job for which you were elected: represent the people of this country.
Failing that, unzip, whip it out, measure it, and declare a winner, because this is all just typical GOPIsm, posturing and posing and accomplishing nothing.

Bishop Thomas Tobin, on same-sex marriage:
"God created two different genders for a reason--so that males and females could come together, complement one another, procreate, and continue the species. And be very clear about this--same-sex marriage isn’t about procuring civil rights for beleaguered homosexual persons. The recently adopted civil-unions legislation, as ill-advised as it was, it provided the legal protections activists have been lobbying for, but the opportunity has been widely ignored. Same-sex marriage legislation is about distorting a venerable institution – not about civil rights. Please be assured, dear readers, that if the debate over same-sex marriage finds its way to the State House once again, the Diocese of Providence, joined by its allies in our community, will be fully engaged in the battle. We will work hard and pray hard for the defeat of this immoral, misguided proposal that erodes the foundation of our society and offends the moral values we cherish."


Playing the ruination of civilization will come because Adam and Steve can get married card?
Not gonna fly, "Bishop". It's hate, it's bigotry, it's intolerance, it's Catholic.
It's wrong.


Bill Keller, "evangelist", on who's really responsible for Tyler Clementi's death:
"Anderson Cooper, Rachel Maddow, Ellen DeGeneres, the media, and gutless pastors are guilty for the death of Rutgers student Tyler Clementi, not Dharun Ravi! It is those in the media who glamorize and promote this choice as normal and acceptable, along with gutless pastors too afraid to speak out against this sin, and faux churches that glorify this deviant, unnatural, and unhealthy choice of sexual activity, who are the real guilty parties in Clementi's death. While those in the media want to blame people like myself who take a Biblical stand on this issue, the fact is, they are the ones most responsible!"


Hmmm, I didn't see Elene videotaping a private encounter between two consenting adults and then sharing it with the world.
Didn't see Anderson or Rachel do it either.
Sounds to me like Bill Keller wishes he'd gotten his hands on that video so he could watch it over and over again in the privacy of his in-home confessional, with a box of tissues and some hand cream.


Tammy Baldwin, on her Wisconsin Senate run and whether her sexuality might be a factor:
"This November, people in Wisconsin will be so focused on getting by. They’ve made serious adjustments to deal with this economy — whether it’s the recession or the decline of the middle class before then. I feel so strongly that that’s what’s going to be on people’s minds."


Smart people don't really care if someone is gay or not, especially when it comes to running for office.
They want someone who will work for them, to, oh I dunno, lower taxes, fix the economy, make life easier.
Or maybe that's just me.


Jimmy Carter, in his new book, about homosexuality, the Bible, and marriage equality:
"Homosexuality was well known in the ancient world, well before Christ was born and Jesus never said a word about homosexuality. In all of his teachings about multiple things -– he never said that gay people should be condemned. I personally think it is very fine for gay people to be married in civil ceremonies. I draw the line, maybe arbitrarily, in requiring by law that churches must marry people. I’m a Baptist, and I believe that each congregation is autonomous and can govern its own affairs. So if a local Baptist church wants to accept gay members on an equal basis, which my church does by the way, then that is fine. If a church decides not to, then government laws shouldn’t require them to."


Amen, Jimmy, Amen.


Rick Santorum, on what he'd say to Dan Savage if they ever met:
"I would tell him that I'm praying for him. He obviously has some serious issues. You look at someone like that who can say and do the things that he's doing and you just pray for him and hopefully he can find peace."


Oh, he's found peace, Frothy.
He's simply trying to save it from people like you who would seek to shove him back in a closet somewhere.


Dan Savage, on Santorum's plan to pray for him:
"Rick Santorum thinks that women who have been raped should be compelled—by force of law—to carry the babies of their rapists to term, he thinks birth control should be illegal, he wants to prosecute pornographers, etc., etc., basically the guy wants to be president so that he can micromanage the sex lives of all Americans...and I'm the one with issues? Because I made a dirty joke at his expense eight or nine years ago and it stuck? I'm the one with issues? Okaaaaaaaaaaaaaay. Rick can pray for me. I'll gay for him. And we can call it even."

Rick doesn't have "issues" he has whole "subscriptions."
But, let's all Gay For Santorum.
I think he could use it.


Howard Schultz, Starbucks CEO, responding to NOM's complaint about his company's support for marriage equality:
"Any decision of this type or magnitude has be made with great thoughtfulness and I would assure you that a senior team at Starbucks discussed this. To be very candid with you, this was not something that was a difficult decision for us and we did share this with the board as well. [snip] We made that decision, in our view, through the lens of humanity and being the kind of company that embraces diversity."

Smack.Down.
Now, go to Starbucks and order one of those crazy sounding drinks with the weird sizes.

Tammy Baldwin, again, on Obama's "evolution" on marriage equality:
"Look, he is moving in the right direction on this issue. He’s been crucial in equality efforts like the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and signing the Matthew Shepard hate crimes prevention act. I have no idea what goes on in another person’s mind. As a legislator, I need to be good at persuading people, counting votes and getting to 50 percent plus one. I don’t go back and say, 'Why did this person get to the right position?' It’s only 'Are you yes or are you no?'"


The more this woman speaks the more I feel we need to get her elected.
Common sense makes a comeback!

Filed Under: Please Let It Come To Be

It looks like openly gay Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin, the Democrat from Wisconsin, will very likely run for the US Senate seat now occupied by Senator Herb Kohl, who has said he will not seek reelection in 2012. 

If Baldwin runs and wins, she would become the nation’s first openly LGBT member of the US senate. Seriously? The first? How is this 2011 and we have no openly gay senators in this country?

Chuck Wolfe, president and CEO of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund:
“This would obviously be a top priority for us. Tammy Baldwin has been an outstanding congresswoman, and she’d be an outstanding senator. This would be a remarkable milestone for LGBT Americans. Congresswoman Baldwin is one of the most admired public officials I know. She would have the strong support of those who want to see our economy work for all Americans, and who believe that all voices deserve a place at the table.”

Yes, all voices deserve to be heard.

source

I Didn't Say It

Sinead O'Connor, on the Pope and the epidemic of Catholic clergy sexual abuse scandals:
"There should be a full criminal investigation of the Catholic hierarchy of any country in which this has been an issue. There should be a full criminal investigation of the Vatican. There should be a full criminal investigation of the pope. The pope should stand down for the fact that he did not act in a Christian fashion to protect children, and for the fact that his organization acted to preserve their business interests decade after decade rather than be concerned about the interests of children, and for showing so much disrespect for Christ, God, the victims, the rest of us, their own clergy. . . . The Vatican and the pope need to get on their knees and confess the full truth in the same language they make us use in Mass. . . . They need to get on their knees, open everything up, be transparent, tell the truth, ask the people for forgiveness and prayers."

James Cameron on Glenn Beck:
"Glenn Beck is a fucking asshole. I've met him. He called me the anti-Christ and not about 'Avatar.' He hadn't even seen 'Avatar' yet. I don't know if he has seen it...I think, you know what, he may or may not be an asshole, but he certainly is dangerous, and I'd love to have a dialogue with him...He's dangerous because his ideas are poisonous. I couldn't believe when he was on CNN. I thought, what happened to CNN? Who is this guy? Who is this madman? And then of course he wound up on Fox News, which is where he belongs, I guess...[The right wing are] just people ranting away, lost in their little bubbles of reality, steeped in their own hatred, their own fear and hatred. That's where it all comes from. Let's just call it out. Let's have a public discussion. That's what movies are supposed to do, you know, you can have a mindless entertainment film that doesn't affect anybody. I wasn't interested in that...Anybody that is a global-warming denier at this point in time has got their head so deeply up their ass I'm not sure they could hear me."

Barney Frank on the anti-gay slurs used by Teabaggers during the health care debate:
"There was a great deal of shouting, you know, waving of fists and signs, and sort of people getting very close and yelling. And a number of the comments were homophobic.... What occurs to me is, there are kids all over the country watching this, not as a game but as real life. And watching so-called respectable politicians cheering them on. And that was just discouraging, that at this point in our history, we couldn't have a rational debate with these kind of thug tactics that were being used.''

Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin on DADT and ENDA:
"Certainly there are members of Congress who are nervous because of the economy, the rate of joblessness. Across the country, people are agitated. On the other hand, my constituents want to see bolder and quicker change, and so I actually see positive signs to follow through [on DADT and ENDA]."






Carmen Electra, on her breast implants:
"I had breast surgery over 10 years ago…which took a bit of time to get used to. I didn't want to go as big as that. It's nice that I don't have to wear a push-up bra any more, but I could have left myself alone."









Magician James Randi, known as 'The Amazing Randi', coming out of the closet:
"Well, here goes. I really resent the term, but I use it because it’s recognized and accepted. I’m gay. From some seventy years of personal experience, I can tell you that there’s not much “gay” about being homosexual. For the first twenty years of my life, I had to live in the shadows, in a culture that was--at least outwardly--totally hostile to any hint of that variation of life-style....Gradually, the general attitude that I’d perceived around me began to change, and presently I find that there has emerged a distinctly healthy acceptance of different social styles of living--except, of course, in cultures that live in constant and abject fear of divine retribution for infractions found in the various Holy Books...In another two decades, I’m confident that young people will find themselves in a vastly improved atmosphere of acceptance....I'm in excellent company: Barney Frank, Oscar Wilde, Stephen Fry, Ellen DeGeneres, Rachel Maddow, are just a few of those who were in my thoughts as I pressed the key that placed this on Swift and before the whole world…"


Drag Queen Joan Collins on real men in Hollywood:
"There's a big difference between the male stars of bygone years and today's slightly metrosexual-looking actors. Johnny Depp, Leonardo Di Caprio and Sean Penn are all wonderful actors, but they are chameleon-like when it comes to their place on the masculinity meter. As for today's TV stars, to me they seem just like ordinary, faceless men cut from the same male cookie-cutter. I don't recognise most of them, and in any case their star doesn't burn brightly for very long on TV nowadays. Viewers are fickle and shows are cast off the networks faster than old bait."

Former Australian High Court Justice, and out gay man, Michael Kirby, from a book of essays about justice issues:
"Openness about sexuality helps to destroy the foundation for prejudice and discrimination. One day there will be a big parliamentary apology to gay people for the oppression that was forced on them and the inequalities that were maintained in the law well beyond their use-by date. Just like the delayed 2008 apology to the Aboriginal people of our country.
"I also do not doubt that, in a comparatively short time, Australia will move towards same-sex civil unions and gay marriage. No one has satisfactorily explained how my 40-year loving relationship with my partner Johan in any way affects (still less undermines) heterosexual marriage. If Australians are now more homophobic than racist, as some recent public opinion polls suggest, this is because Australians have lacked good leadership on this issue."

Lt. Dan Choi on his arrest for chaining himself to a White House fence:
"There was no freer moment than being in that prison. It was freeing for me, and I thought of all of the other people that were still trapped - that were still handcuffed and fettered in their hearts. And we might have been caged up physically, but the message was very clear to all of the people who think that equality can be purchased with a donation, or with a cocktail party, or with tokens, that are serving in a public role. We are worth more than tokens. We have absolute value. And when the person who is oppressed by his own country wants to find out how to get that dignity back - being chained up and being arrested - that's how you get your dignity conferred back upon you. And so I think that by actions, my call is to every leader - not just talking gay leaders - I'm talking any leader who believes in America, and the promises of America can be manifest. We're gonna do it again. And we're going to keep doing it until the promises are manifest. And we will not stop. This is a very clear message to President Obama and any other leader who supposes to talk for the American promise and the American people. We will not go away."

Huffington Post blogger and military veteran Rob Smith, on Dan Choi's protest:
"Dan Choi will always be that rock star activist that handcuffed himself to the gates of The White House. Of course Dan Choi jumped the shark, and he did it in his military uniform for all the cameras to see. You know what, though? I think what we needed was to see something like this to light a fire under each and every one of us that cares as deeply as he does about Don't Ask, Don't Tell repeal, and about full equality in general. This movement needs him as much as it needs me, or Jarrod Chlapowski, or Lt. Col Victor Fehrenbach, or any of the other gay veterans who share our past of silent service knowing that it reflects the present of thousands of gay soldiers currently serving. Maybe it's time to act up all over again. Maybe the rumblings of this being a part of a more coordinated activist effort are true. Maybe it is time to Get Equal."People keep wondering who's going to be the Martin Luther King of the gay rights movement, and that I still don't know, but I think yesterday's actions may have put us one step closer to finding our Malcolm X."

Count Us In

Gay US representatives Tammy Baldwin, Barney Frank and Jared Polis, along with 48 other congressional members, recently sent a letter to Office of Management and Budget director Peter Orszag asking that the 2010 Census count same-sex married couples rather than altering their status.

See, last year, the Bush regime--citing the Defense of Marriage Act, which prohibits the federal government from recognizing same-sex unions--declared that lawfully married same-sex couples who marked “married” on their census forms would have their status changed to “unmarried partners” in the final count.

Now, congressional members are calling on Orszag to reverse course.

The U.S. Census Bureau conducts its survey every 10 years, and during the last census, no state had legalized same-sex marriages. Now, however, we have the great states of Iowa, Vermont and Massachusetts; meanwhile, Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire have approved marriage-equality laws that will be in effect by the time of the count. And let's not forget that there are some 18,000 same-sex marriages currently in question in California that are reportedly unlikely to be annulled by the state supreme court even if Prop H8 is upheld.

The thing about the census: if you don't count us, we don't count.

A Moment In History To Be Recognized

Yesterday Democratic Representatives Jerrold Nadler of New York, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Barney Frank of Massachusetts, and Jared Polis of Colorado introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives to recognize the 40th anniversary of Stonewall.

Stonewall is our Montgomery Bus Boycott. It is the LGBT community's rallying cry that enough is enough....enough was enough. And it should continue to be our rallying cry today in the on-going, decades long struggle for equality for all Americans.

On June 28, 1969, during a climate of fear and terror against the LGBT community in New York City and nationally, the New York Police Department conducted a raid of the Stonewall Inn, a bar in New York’s Greenwich Village frequented by the LGBT community. Bruised, shocked, angry and fed up, patrons of the bar organized spontaneous demonstrations outside the bar and onto the streets of New York City. Protests continued during the next few days. This watershed moment is the symbolic genesis of the gay rights movement in the U.S.

Jerrold Nadler: “The events at Stonewall 40 years ago had a profound effect on how LGBT Americans came to see their struggle for equality. Stonewall catalyzed gay Americans--and those who support their rights--into putting gay rights on the forefront, out in the open, unafraid and unapologetic. We have come very far in the battle for LGBT rights and acceptance since Stonewall, but we still have a ways to go. Together, we will keep fighting.”

Tammy Baldwin: “Stonewall was a moment in time that sparked a movement. We honor all those who stood their ground at Stonewall as we carry on their quest for full and equal rights for all Americans.”

Barney Frank: “As we move ahead in the movement for legal equality, it is important to remember those who had the courage to fight hard when things were much tougher."

Jared Polis: "With President Obama, the Democratic Congress, and the nation at our side, we are facing an incredible, historic opportunity for change for the LGBT community. But we cannot go forward without being mindful of where we’ve been. Stonewall brought the gay rights movement to the forefront of American culture and gave rise to the vibrant and politically active LGBT community that we have today. Our job now is to pick up where they left off and to provide equal rights for all Americans.”