Author: DNC Press

In celebration of Pride Month, we’re highlighting the wins that President Biden and Vice President Harris have secured for LGBTQ+ Americans – including expanding coverage and guaranteeing protections from discrimination in health care. Meanwhile, Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are trying to rip away their hard-won freedoms and rights.  

DNC Director of Outreach Communications Tracy King released the following statement: 

“President Biden and Vice President Harris are standing up to MAGA Republicans’ endless assault on LGBTQ+ Americans’ access to basic health care. Since Day One, President Biden has been fighting to eliminate health care discrimination against LGBTQ+ Americans, bolster the Affordable Care Act, and protect access to zero-premium health insurance. Meanwhile, MAGA Republicans across the country are attacking LGBTQ+ Americans’ rights and threatening to rip away their insurance coverage. This November, the choice is clear: President Biden is the only candidate working to strengthen health care protections so LGBTQ+ Americans can live healthy and authentic lives.”

President Biden is strengthening and protecting the Affordable Care Act,  which cut the uninsured rate in the LGBTQ+ community by more than half when it was first implemented. 

KFF News: “During the early years of ACA implementation, the rate of uninsurance among LGB individuals fell by almost half (from 19% in 2013 to 10% in 2016), representing an estimated 369,000 fewer uninsured LGB individuals in 2016 compared to 2013.”

Center for American Progress: “The ACA has been instrumental in making health insurance more affordable by expanding low-income households’ eligibility for no- or low-cost public health insurance coverage through Medicaid and by directly subsidizing private coverage purchased by low- and middle-income individuals through the health insurance marketplaces. The high prevalence of poverty among LGBTQ communities—particularly transgender people and LGBTQ people of color due to transphobia and systemic racism—make both pathways to coverage essential to support the health and well-being of LGBTQ people.

“In 2013, before the ACA went into effect, 34 percent of LGBTQ individuals making less than $45,000 a year were uninsured. However, this number has dropped steadily each year in the wake of the ACA’s coverage expansions, decreasing to 26 percent in 2014, 22 percent in 2017, and, based on nationally representative survey data collected by CAP, 16 percent as of June 2020—indicating that the rate of uninsured LGBTQ people making less than $45,000 per year has halved since the ACA went into effect.”

Expanded subsidies included in President Biden’s American Rescue Plan and extended in the Inflation Reduction Act gave an estimated 200,000+ more LGBTQ+ Americans access to zero-premium health care plans. 

Assistant Secretary For Planning and Evaluation: “In addition to the ACA improving rates of healthcare coverage for the LGBTQ+ community, the ARP extends and expands Marketplace subsidies, which will enable many Americans including LGBTQ+ individuals to access more affordable coverage.” 

“Based on the survey estimates above, if that same share (79 percent) of LGB+ enrollees in Marketplace coverage have a zero‐premium option under the ARP, this would total roughly 210,000† LGB+ Marketplace enrollees having access to a zero‐premium plan.”

President Biden expanded the ACA’s protections for people with preexisting conditions like HIV/AIDS and is fighting to keep IVF and surrogacy accessible.

Reuters: “The Biden administration on Monday finalized a deal to preserve the federal mandate requiring U.S. health insurers to cover preventive care like cancer screenings and HIV-preventing medication at no extra cost to patients while a legal challenge continues.”

Vox: “To put it simply, the ACA was a ‘watershed moment in the [HIV] epidemic’s history,’ as the Kaiser Family Foundation’s director of global health and HIV policy, Jennifer Kates, told me in 2017. The law was designed to get more people access to health care, including those who were traditionally denied coverage because of ‘preexisting conditions’ like HIV, or who were driven out of the marketplace because their health care was unaffordable. And so under the law, the disease was no longer a barrier to health insurance.” 

HIV.gov: “Under the Affordable Care Act, PrEP is free under almost all health insurance plans. PrEP is a preventive service and should be covered without charging you a co-payment or co-insurance. This is true even if you haven’t met your yearly deductible. That means you can’t be charged for your PrEP medication, the clinic visits to see your health care provider, and lab tests you need to get and maintain your prescription. There are no out-of-pocket costs for you.”

HIV.gov: “The ACA also authorized an optional Medicaid State Plan benefit for states to establish Health Homes to coordinate care for Medicaid beneficiaries with certain chronic health conditions. HIV/AIDS is one of the chronic health conditions that states may request approval to cover.”

Pink News: “Biden slams ‘outrageous’ Alabama court ruling that frozen embryos are ‘children’”

“Now, president Biden has denounced the ‘outrageous’ ruling that puts access to ‘some fertility treatments for families who are desperately trying to get pregnant’ at risk.”

“IVF and other fertility treatments have been used by LGBTQ+ couples and single parents to expand their families. 

“For LGBTQ+ couples, the path to parenthood can be long and difficult, given that they face entrenched inequality in how the care is provided by health insurers and employers. Additionally, the costs of conceiving via fertility treatments can be high for LGBTQ+ couples.” 

The Biden-Harris administration is fighting back against Trump and the MAGA Republicans who want to roll back protections for LGBTQ+ people in health care.

CNN: “The Biden administration announced a new rule Friday expanding safeguards against potential discrimination of gay and transgender Americans seeking medical care, in a reversal of Trump-era limitations that nixed federal health protections for members of the LGBTQ+ community.

“In a set of expansive new rules unveiled by the Department of Health and Human Services, the department moved to advance civil rights protections for patients by barring health providers and insurers receiving federal funding from discriminating against those seeking care on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation. The HHS rule restores Obama-era protections for transgender patients that the Trump administration rolled back in 2020 — a move that was condemned by LGBTQ+ advocacy and human rights organizations.”

New York Times: “The Biden administration announced expansive new protections on Friday for gay and transgender medical patients, prohibiting federally funded health providers and insurers from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

“The rule overhauls federal policy in an area that has become a political flashpoint, with more than 20 Republican-led states banning or restricting gender-affirming care for minors in recent years.”

The Trump administration successfully ripped away health care protections from LGBTQ+ patients.

Politico: “Trump finalizes rollback of LGBTQ patient protections”

Politico: “The Trump administration today proposed to scrap an Obama-era policy that prohibited health care providers from discriminating against transgender patients, in its latest rollback of federal protections for transgender people.

“The health department’s proposed rule, a rewrite of an Obamacare regulation that bars health care discrimination based on sex, would also strike down protections for LGBTQ patients.”

Trump gave insurance companies the greenlight to make Americans pay higher out-of-pocket costs for care. 

Center for American Progress: “The Trump administration has meddled with marketplace premiums in less transparent ways as well. Since 2019, insurance plans have been able to raise their premiums up to 15 percent each year without explanation because the Trump administration lifted the ACA’s threshold for federal rate review from its previous 10 percent.

“Due to changes in the ACA subsidy formula that the Trump administration enacted through administrative law in 2019, marketplace enrollees who receive financial assistance will owe 2.8 percent more toward their premiums in 2021… 

“The tweaks to the index for the ACA’s annual updates will also increase some patients’ out-of-pocket costs. The out-of-pocket maximum rose faster over the past couple years than it would have absent the Trump administration’s changes.” 

Even though the ACA helped those living with HIV gain better access to affordable care, Trump has tripled down on terminating the ACA if he retakes power.

Daily Beast: “Trump Revives Plan to Dismantle Obamacare if Elected in 2024”

Vox: “Trump will have to stop sabotaging Obamacare if he wants to end HIV”

“To put it simply, the ACA was a ‘watershed moment in the [HIV] epidemic’s history,’ as the Kaiser Family Foundation’s director of global health and HIV policy, Jennifer Kates, told me in 2017. The law was designed to get more people access to health care, including those who were traditionally denied coverage because of ‘preexisting conditions’ like HIV, or who were driven out of the marketplace because their health care was unaffordable. And so under the law, the disease was no longer a barrier to health insurance.

“The law also expanded access to Medicaid, the government health insurance plan for low-income Americans. And remember: More than half of people living with HIV in the US are low-income.”

Trump’s administration rolled back Obama-era health care protections for transgender Americans. 

CNN: “The Trump administration announced Friday it is eliminating an Obama-era regulation prohibiting discrimination in health care against patients who are transgender.

The move – coming during Pride Month, an annual celebration of the LGBTQ community that takes place throughout the month of June, and on the four-year anniversary of the deadly Pulse nightclub shooting, in which 49 people were killed at a popular LGBTQ venue in Orlando – was swiftly denounced by LGBTQ groups, which see the action as discriminatory…

“A rule enacted in 2016 interpreted the ban on sex discrimination to include discrimination on the basis of gender identity, building on similar interpretations in other federal civil rights laws and court rulings, and termination of pregnancy.

“But the US Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement Friday that it was eliminating ‘certain provisions of the 2016 Rule that exceeded the scope of the authority delegated by Congress in Section 1557. HHS will enforce Section 1557 by returning to the government’s interpretation of sex discrimination according to the plain meaning of the word ‘sex’ as male or female and as determined by biology.’ …

“The American Civil Liberties Union said the move could cost lives, and the National Center for Transgender Equality called the move ‘heartless’ and said the administration is ‘encouraging discrimination’ with the rule change.”

The post President Biden and Vice President Harris Are Standing Up for LGBTQ+ Americans’ Health Care While Trump Tries to Rip it Away appeared first on Democrats.

DNC National Press Secretary Emilia Rowland released the following statement: 

“President Biden and Democrats know that our schools and communities are facing a devastating gun violence epidemic, but MAGA Republicans who have the power to make a difference are trying to roll back gun safety measures, blocking commonsense gun safety legislation, and blaming the loss of lives on everything but lax gun laws. Meanwhile, President Biden established the first White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention and signed into law the most impactful federal gun safety legislation in decades, investing $13 billion in public safety and mental health programs, strengthening background checks for young buyers, and supporting implementation of red flag laws. The contrast couldn’t be clearer: While Donald Trump told Americans to ‘get over’ school shootings, there’s only one ticket this November that has fought to keep Americans safe from gun violence, and that’s President Biden and Vice President Harris.”

Donald Trump has boasted that his administration “did nothing” on gun control legislation and told Americans to “get over” school shootings.

Daily Beast: “Former President Donald Trump boasted to a gathering of National Rifle Association members Friday in Pennsylvania that his administration ‘did nothing’ about guns.”

“‘During my four years, nothing happened!’ he bellowed. ‘And there was great pressure on me having to do with guns. We did nothing. We didn’t yield.’”

NBC News: “Trump tells supporters ‘we have to get over it’ after Iowa school shooting”

MAGA Republicans in Congress and around the country are trying to roll back gun safety laws and have blocked the chance to even debate commonsense gun safety legislation.

Associated Press: “Senate GOP blocks domestic terrorism bill, gun policy debate” 

The Guardian: “Democrats rush to push gun safety laws after mass shootings as Republicans stall” 

Associated Press: “House Republicans passed a resolution that would repeal a Biden administration rule tightening federal regulations on stabilizing braces for firearms, an accessory that has been used in several mass shootings in the U.S. over the last decade.”

The Hill: “Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked efforts by Senate Democrats to pass an assault weapons ban and universal background checks legislation after the United States over the weekend broke the record for the most mass shootings in a single year.”

Roll Call: “A Congressional Review Act joint resolution of disapproval introduced Wednesday in the Senate by John Cornyn, R-Texas, could force the chamber to vote on overturning a rule from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that would expand the number of gun sellers who would be required to run background checks.

“Cornyn had negotiated the 2022 gun violence prevention law that the administration relied on for the ATF rule. Now he has 41 Senate Republicans who back his joint resolution to stop that rule.”

MAGA Mike Johnson blamed school shootings on abortion.

New York Magazine: “Before Mike Johnson Was Speaker, He Was Blaming Abortion for School Shootings”

Johnson: “Many women use abortion as a form of birth control… When you break up the nuclear family, when you tell a generation of people that life has no value, no meaning, that it’s expendable, then you do wind up with school shooters.”

Johnson: “Nearly 45 million babies have been sacrificed in the name of ‘personal choice.’ … And we wouldn’t have this ‘culture of death,’ where euthanasia has become all the rage, where ‘kids shoot other kids because they’ve learned that life has no real value.’”

Congressional Republicans have blamed everything except loose gun laws for mass shootings. 

NBC News: “Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., on Tuesday doubled down on his comments that Congress is ‘not gonna fix’ the problem of school shootings, saying that the country needed a ‘real revival’ rather than gun control legislation…

“‘If you want to legislate evil, it’s just not going to happen,’ Burchett said. ‘We need a real revival in this country. Let’s call on our Christian ministers and our people of faith.’”

Newsweek: “A day after a gunman opened fire on a school with a military-style rifle, Senator Mike Lee suggested that fatherlessness and family breakdown is the root cause of mass shootings and not lax gun control laws.”

Business Insider: “GOP lawmaker Marjorie Taylor Greene made her anti-gun control stance clear in a tweet following a horrific mass shooting at an elementary school in Texas on Tuesday.

“‘We don’t need more gun control,’ Greene wrote. ‘We need to return to God.’” 

Post And Courier: “During a press conference at the MUSC Children’s Hospital, [Sen. Tim Scott] said new legislation won’t be enough to prevent more violence, such as the recent massacre of children and school employees at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. ‘The short-term fixes will only make us feel better, but won’t make us any safer,’ he said. ‘I’m very hesitant to jump to conclusions just because everyone wants one.’” 

RealClearPolitics: “Mullin blamed ‘Hollywood elites’ and video games for playing a role in the senseless ‘horrific’ tragedy, saying: ‘What we always talk about is gun control, but we don’t talk about what we expose our kids to.’

“‘The number one seller of video games is Call of Duty, for the last nine years in a row,’ he lamented. ‘if you’ve ever watched that, you can see how much violence that exposes them to. You combine that with someone who has a touch of mental illness –or is mentally ill– what do you expect is going to happen?’”

President Biden and congressional Democrats worked across the aisle to pass the most impactful federal gun violence prevention legislation in decades.

Associated Press: “The legislation will toughen background checks for the youngest gun buyers, keep firearms from more domestic violence offenders and help states put in place red flag laws that make it easier for authorities to take weapons from people adjudged to be dangerous…

“Most of its $13 billion cost will help bolster mental health programs and aid schools, which have been targeted in Newtown, Connecticut, and Parkland, Florida, and elsewhere in mass shootings.”

The majority of American voters want more gun control.

Forbes: “Nearly 60% of registered voters think it’s at least somewhat important for lawmakers to pass stricter gun laws, a new Morning Consult/Politico poll found after a mass shooting in Buffalo, New York—even before another shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on Tuesday further ramped up calls for Congress to pass gun control legislation.”

Gallup Polling: “Majority in U.S. Continues to Favor Stricter Gun Laws”

“Fifty-six percent of U.S. adults say gun laws should be stricter, while 31% believe they should be kept as they are now and 12% favor less strict gun laws.”

Pew Research Center: “Americans increasingly say that gun violence is a major problem. Six-in-ten U.S. adults say gun violence is a very big problem in the country today, up 9 percentage points from spring 2022.”

The post President Biden and Democrats Fight for Gun Safety While Trump and MAGA Republicans in Congress Fail to Address Gun Violence appeared first on Democrats.

Former U.S. Capitol police officers Harry Dunn and Aquilino Gonell hit the campaign trail this week on behalf of President Biden to remind voters of the threat Trump poses to our democracy and our country. Dunn and Gonell delivered a clear, concise message to voters about the MAGA mob violence they experienced on January 6: Donald Trump incited this assault on our democracy, and Americans can’t afford to have him in office ever again.

• In Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Capital-Star: Former Capitol police officers attacked on Jan. 6 campaign for Biden in Pittsburgh
• In Pennsylvania: TribLive: Jan. 6 cops stump for Biden in Pittsburgh, warn that Trump is ‘threat to democracy’
• In Pennsylvania: LehighValleyNews: ‘It’s not just Democrats stuck on January 6’: Capitol police officers campaign in Valley for Biden-Harris
• In Pennsylvania: Erie News Now: Jan 6 Capitol Police Officers Visit Harrisburg for Biden Campaign

First Lady Dr. Jill Biden also traveled to Pennsylvania to kick off Pride Month and celebrate the LGBTQ+ community at the Pittsburgh Pride Festival. The First Lady uplifted local members of the LGBTQ+ community in a joyful celebration of authenticity and love and highlighted the President’s consistent record of protecting LGBTQ+ Americans.

• In Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Capital-Star: Jill Biden tells audience at Pittsburgh Pride event ‘your president loves you’
• In Pennsylvania: 90.5 WESA: First Lady Jill Biden appears at Pittsburgh Pride event, tells crowd ‘Your president loves you.’
• In Pennsylvania: TribLive: First lady Jill Biden assures Pittsburgh Pride revelers that president stands with them
• In Pennsylvania: WTAE: First Lady Jill Biden visits Pittsburgh Pride festival
• In Pennsylvania: KDKA News: Jill Biden stops by Pittsburgh for Pride festivities

On Monday, the DNC hosted a press call highlighting the dark realities too many American women face thanks to Trump and his MAGA extremists’ abortion bans. Texas mother Lauren Miller bravely shared her story of being denied life-saving reproductive care in her home state due to the extreme abortion ban Trump made possible in Texas.

• In Texas: Salon: “I wasn’t dead enough for an abortion”: Texas mom blames Trump for almost losing her life
• In Texas: Fox 7 Austin: Abortion is key issue heading into 2024 election, politicians say
• In Texas: CBS Austin: Texas Democrats are campaigning on abortion access. Will it work?

Trump and his MAGA minions across red states continue to strip women of their fundamental reproductive freedoms, and doctors are terrified of the punishments they could face for saving patients’ lives. MAGA Republicans’ extreme agenda on abortion is  forcing doctors to flee states with radical abortion bans.

• In Missouri: Missouri Independent: After Missouri banned abortion, the state saw 25% drop in OB-GYN residency applicants
• In Idaho: Idaho Statesman: ‘I can’t practice like this.’ Another OBGYN leaves Idaho over state’s strict abortion laws
• In Utah: Salt Lake Tribune: Doctors are avoiding work in Utah, and researchers think this controversial policy is driving the trend
• In Louisiana: NOLA: Is Louisiana’s abortion ban costing the state future doctors? New data shed light.

The Biden-Harris administration continued to invest historic levels of resources in building a better and brighter America for the future.

• In California: Fox 5: San Diego airport’s new Terminal 1 gets additional $23.5M in federal funds
• In Idaho: Idaho Capital Sun: Federal ARPA funds to transform Ada County horse racetrack into urban park
• In New Hampshire: Seacoastonline: Biden adviser in Portsmouth touts infrastructure, takes shots at Trump
• In North Carolina: WCCB: Biden Administration Visits Corridors Of Opportunity To Champion Charlotte’s Affordable Housing Efforts
• In Utah: Salt Lake Tribune: Drought-prone southern Utah county lands $20.5 million grant to help build water-reuse system
• In Virginia: The Gazette-Virginian: Millions in federal funds flow for VIR water project

The post IN THE STATES: Americans Unite Behind the Biden-Harris Agenda, Reject MAGA GOP’s Extreme Agenda  appeared first on Democrats.

In response to Texas Republicans finally releasing their official party platform, which opens the door to the death penalty for women seeking abortion care and criminalizing in vitro fertilization, after nearly two weeks of delay, DNC spokesperson Maddy Mundy released the following statement:

“Trump’s extreme MAGA agenda has culminated in the Texas Republican party’s signed, sealed, and delivered official party platform that opens the door to the death penalty for women seeking health care. The Texas GOP copied and pasted Trump’s MAGA playbook into their own; leaving Texas women to suffer. What’s even more damaging than this platform is the harm that hundreds of millions of women will endure in Texas and across the country if Trump passes his national abortion ban. Fundamental freedoms are on the line in November. Texans and Americans across the country are fed up with Trump and MAGA Republicans’ dangerous, anti-freedom agenda and they will reject them at the ballot box this November.”

Texas Republicans just officially approved a dangerous, anti-reproductive freedom party platform, deeming abortion “homicide” and opening the door to the death penalty for women seeking abortion and criminalizing IVF treatment. 

Salon: “‘I wasn’t dead enough for an abortion’: Texas mom blames Trump for almost losing her life”

“Texas Republicans imposed a near-total ban on abortion following the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision, a move that has been followed by complaints, from pregnant people and their doctors, that the prohibition is unclear on when a pregnancy can be terminated to protect a life.

“Last week, the state’s all-Republican Supreme Court rejected a legal challenge from women who said their lives were endangered as a result of complicated pregnancies that their doctors were hesitant to properly treat; the court said abortions could go ahead based on the ‘good faith judgment’ of a medical professional that an individual would be ‘unlikely to survive.’

“But what if a doctor performs an abortion that a court later decides wasn’t absolutely necessary? Under current state law, that could mean a sentence of life in prison. Some Republicans want to go even further than that.”

HuffPost: “The Republican Party of Texas is considering a platform that appears to endorse the death penalty for abortion providers and patients.” … 

“The GOP platform calls for an “equal protection of the laws to all preborn children from the moment of fertilization,” and later states that “abortion is not healthcare, it is homicide.” The phrase “equal protection of the law” is used in the anti-choice movement to define abortion as homicide, and criminalizes abortion physicians and patients as murderers.”

Houston Chronicle: “The GOP platform also calls for the state to ban abortion medication and enforce criminal penalties against companies selling them online. And it supports prohibitions on government funding and transportation for women to leave the state to get abortions.” 

Austin American Statesman: “Here’s what the Texas party’s platform says: “We urge lawmakers to enact legislation to abolish abortion by immediately securing the right to life and equal protection of the laws to all preborn children from the moment of fertilization, because abortion violates the United States Constitution by denying such persons the equal protection of the law. 

“Another section declares, ’Abortion is not healthcare, it is homicide.’

Texas Public Radio: “Calls for even stricter abortion laws in first Texas GOP convention since Roe’s overturn”

The new state party platform comes on the heels of the Texas Supreme Court doing Donald Trump’s bidding in denying medical exceptions to the state’s draconian abortion ban. 

Texas Tribune: “Texas Supreme Court rejects challenge to abortion laws”

Salon: “‘Gut punch’: Texas Supreme Court says “life-saving exception” is clear enough. Plaintiffs disagree”

Teen Vogue: “Texas Supreme Court Rules Against Women Denied Abortions Despite Pregnancy Complications”

Associated Press: “‘I am outraged on behalf of my fellow plaintiffs who the Court deemed not sick enough,’ [Amanda] Zurawski said. ‘We all deserve bodily autonomy. Every day, people in Texas are being told that they have no options. It’s sickening and wrong.’”

Salon: “‘The fact that this platform could even be brought up for a vote is disturbing,’ Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, told reporters on Monday. ‘But it should remind us how extreme and out of touch Donald Trump’s MAGA Republican Party has become. If we allow Trump to get to the White House, he will subject all women across this country to his agenda of revenge and retribution.’”

CBS Austin: “‘The issue of abortion will be on the ballot, there’s no question about it,’ Gilberto Hinojosa, Chair of the Texas Democratic Party, said in a press call with reporters on Monday. ‘Every single time this issue has come up, every one of those people has taken the lead from whatever Greg Abbott and the MAGA Republicans tell him to do.’”

The new state party platform also comes after Donald Trump admitted he’s  “looking into” restricting access to contraceptives and Plan B, as he works closely with his MAGA allies who are actively plotting to attack birth control if Trump returns to the White House.

Interviewer: “Do you support any restrictions on a person’s right to contraception?

Trump: “We’re looking at that, and I’m going to have a policy on that very shortly and I think it’s something that you’ll find interesting.”

Interviewer: “That suggests that you may want to support some restrictions? Like the morning after pill?

Trump: “You know, things really do have a lot to do with the states. And some states are going to have different policies than others.”

Rolling Stone: “Inside the MAGA Plan to Attack Birth Control, Surveil Women and Ban the Abortion Pill”

“The attacks on mifepristone and resurrection of Comstock stand out as particularly harmful proposals, but they are only two of the dozens of ways the Republicans behind Project 2025 envision restricting access to abortion and contraception if they win the White House next year. Elsewhere in the document, there are proposals to eliminate the morning-after pill from the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive mandate under the rationale that it is a ‘potential abortifacient.’”

The post BREAKING: Texas GOP (Still) Appears to Endorse the Death Penalty for Women Seeking Abortions and IVF  appeared first on Democrats.

In response to Nevada Independent reporting that the Nevada GOP said it quietly waived its own bylaws barring it from supporting Donald Trump, DNC spokesperson Stephanie Justice released the following statement: 

“After attacking Nevada voters’ rights – from spreading dangerous election lies to undermining Nevadans’ votes in frivolous suits – the Nevada GOP continues to prove that nothing will stop them from supporting Donald Trump, not even their own rules that forbid them from supporting a convicted felon. Now, the NV GOP is making the embarrassing admission that they knew all along Trump would be convicted and ripped out the ‘convicted felon’ clause of their platform to make an exception for him, showing Nevada voters that there’s no end to their corruption. Nevadans are watching as the Nevada GOP digs itself deeper and deeper into a hole of extremism.  If Nevada Republicans knew any better, they’d distance themselves from Trump now – instead, they’ll continue to do his bidding and drown in their own chaos.”

According to “Article 16: Support of Certain Candidates” in the Nevada GOP’s bylaws, their state committee is barred from supporting convicted felons, like Donald Trump, without an explicit waiver.

Nevada GOP: “ARTICLE 16: SUPPORT OF CERTAIN CANDIDATES

“1. The Nevada Republican Party shall neither recognize nor support any candidate for public office who has been convicted of a felony or, while serving in a public office was impeached and convicted or removed from office for any reason, unless the NRCC or NVGOP State Convention shall waive this rule by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the members or delegates present.”

Donald Trump has always thought he was above the law, but last week he learned he was wrong the hard way after being convicted of 34 felonies.

New York Times: “Trump Guilty on All Counts in Hush-Money Case 

“Donald J. Trump, the former president and presumptive 2024 Republican nominee, was convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in a case stemming from a payment that silenced a porn star.” 

Reuters: “Donald Trump becomes first US president convicted of a crime”

CNN: “Donald Trump found guilty of all 34 charges in hush money trial”

CBS: “Trump guilty in ‘hush money’ trial as jury hands down verdict on felony charges”

“Former President Donald Trump was found guilty of 34 felonies by the jury in his “hush money” trial in New York on Thursday, making him the first former president in U.S. history to be convicted of a crime.”

NBC: “Donald Trump found guilty in historic New York hush money case”

“A New York jury on Thursday found Donald Trump guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records — the first time a former U.S. president has been convicted of a crime.”

NPR: “Former President Donald Trump has been found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records to influence the outcome of the 2016 presidential election, a historic verdict as Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, campaigns again for the White House.

“This is the first time a former or sitting U.S. president has been convicted of criminal charges.”

The Nevada GOP is led by Michael McDonald, who wanted to steal the election for Donald Trump (who later praised him for his efforts).

New York Times: “Donald Trump’s Man in Nevada”

New York Times: “The chairman of the Nevada Republican Party has been indicted.”

Politico: “In Nevada, six Republicans, including state GOP chair Michael McDonald, signed fake certificates on Dec. 14, 2020, falsely declaring themselves to be the state’s duly appointed Electoral College representatives. Trump and his allies then invoked that slate of false electors, as well as similar slates in six other states, as they tried to block Congress’ certification of the election results on Jan. 6, 2021.”

The Hill:  ‘A tremendous man, tremendous guy, gets treated so unfairly, and he loves this country, and he loves this state: Nevada GOP Chairman Michael McDonald,’ Trump said at the rally, adding, ‘He’s a fantastic man. Thank you. Thank you, Michael.’”

The post BREAKING: Nevada GOP Says They’re Changing Bylaws Barring Support for Convicted Felons After Trump Found Guilty of Committing 34 Felonies appeared first on Democrats.

On National Gun Violence Awareness Day, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement: 

“When the most significant bipartisan gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years came before Congress, Donald Trump’s VP contenders caved to the gun lobby instead of putting the American people first – now they’re standing with Trump as he doubles down on a dangerous MAGA agenda. Trump and his potential running mates have sold out to the NRA at every turn, shamelessly neglecting the safety of our communities after the murder rate skyrocketed on Trump’s watch. While President Biden and Vice President Harris pursue commonsense gun safety measures, Trump and his MAGA minions are pushing an extreme agenda of making it easier for criminals to carry guns.”

Donald Trump’s VP contenders in Congress caved to the gun lobby by voting against the most significant bipartisan gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years that President Biden and Vice President Harris worked across the aisle to deliver.

Associated Press: “Biden signs landmark gun measure, says ‘lives will be saved’”

“President Joe Biden on Saturday signed the most sweeping gun violence bill in decades, a bipartisan compromise… The legislation will toughen background checks for the youngest gun buyers, keep firearms from more domestic violence offenders and help states put in place red flag laws that make it easier for authorities to take weapons from people adjudged to be dangerous.”

Voting against in the Senate: Tim Scott, Marco Rubio, Tom Cotton, Marsha Blackburn, Bill Hagerty, and Mike Lee.

Voting against in the House: Byron Donalds and Elise Stefanik.

Trump’s potential running mates share yearslong records of opposing commonsense gun safety measures.

JD Vance: ‘The background check system is not the problem… the idea that expanded background checks is going to solve that problem is unfortunately not true.”

Washington Post: “Rubio, the two-term Republican incumbent, said days after the mass shooting in Parkland, Fla. — at an event with student survivors — that he would support such age restrictions as well as expanded background checks on gun purchases. But at his first and only debate with Democratic challenger Demings, the senator said the law ‘doesn’t work’ and also said background checks would not have stopped the litany of shootings.

“And he criticized the gun-control legislation that Congress passed this year with some Republican support, calling it ‘crazy’ and suggesting it would allow guns to be seized in too many situations.”

KFYR: “Gov. Doug Burgum, R-N.D., has signed a proclamation designating North Dakota as a Second Amendment Sanctuary State. Gun rights were a hot topic this legislative session and Gov. Burgum has signed at least ten gun related bills into law, most notably a bill that removes liability from someone who’s defending themselves.”

Southwest Times Record: “Rep.-Elect Tom Cotton, R-Dardanelle, said Wednesday that Congress should focus on the mental health system in response to the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School. He is opposed to any new gun regulations, saying that there are ‘enough already on the books.’”

WPDE: “South Carolina Senator Tim Scott was among the 33 Senators that voted against the [Bipartisan Safer Communities Act].” 

Daily Republic: “Rep. Kristi Noem, R-S.D., isn’t interested in expanding federal background checks for gun-buyers. Background checks would not have stopped recent violent, public gun deaths, she said.”

Florida’s Voice: “U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Florida, said Tuesday he voted against the bipartisan gun legislation because it supported funding for red flag laws, which he called a ‘poison pill.’”

1819 News: “Republican U.S. Senate candidate Katie Boyd Britt said she opposed the bill and does not support additional gun laws. ‘Gun grabbers use so-called ‘red flag laws’ as a gateway to push their disarming agenda,’ Britt told 1819 News.”

The News TN: “Blackburn voted against passage of the ‘Bipartisan Safer Communities Act,’ a piece of gun control legislation that incentivizes for states to pass ‘red flag’ laws, closes of the long-controversial ‘boyfriend loophole’ that allows some domestic abusers to purchase firearms, pours resources into federal mental health efforts and strengthens background checks for those under the age of 21 purchasing firearms, among other essential steps.”

KHOU: “Gov. Greg Abbott signed the open carry and campus carry bills into law Saturday.”

Trump is running on a dangerous MAGA agenda and is railing against commonsense reforms like expanded background checks.

Politico: “Donald Trump told National Rifle Association members on Friday that ‘no one will lay a finger on your firearms’ if he wins the presidency, vowing to roll back Biden-era gun restrictions.

“The former president specifically said he would roll back the Biden administration’s ‘Zero-Tolerance’ policy that revokes federal licenses from firearm dealers that violate gun laws. And he said he would undo regulations on pistol braces, or stabilization devices that have also been used in gun massacres.”

Trump:  “I will sign concealed carry reciprocity. Your Second Amendment does not end at the state line.”

CNN: “Trump suggests arming teachers as a solution to increase school safety”

Reuters: “[Trump] also called for eliminating gun-free school zones, adding that such zones leave victims with no means to defend themselves in case of an attack by an armed person.”

Trump won’t stop pandering to the NRA — which has spent tens of millions of dollars to support his campaigns — and earlier this year told school shooting victims to “get over it.”

New York Times: “In the face of N.R.A. opposition, [Trump] has also retreated from his earlier openness to expanded background checks and a renewal of the expired ban on assault weapons.”

New York Magazine: “President Trump met with survivors of the Parkland school shooting and attempted to convey a sincere intention to act. … What happened next was predictable. Trump met with the head of the NRA. He stopped talking about the issue he was going to solve.”

Rolling Stone: “Trump on Iowa School Shooting: ‘Get Over It’”

“A day after a gunman killed a sixth grade student and wounded five other people at Perry High School northwest of Des Moines, Donald Trump returned to the state at a campaign event and told residents that they ‘have to get over it.’”

Trump: “There’s no bigger fan of the NRA [than me].”

NBC News: “Trump says mass shootings are not ‘a gun problem’ as 2024 GOP hopefuls pledge loyalty to the NRA”

New York Magazine: “After Taunting Republicans for Being Afraid of NRA, Trump Gives In to NRA”

Washington Post: “After latest shooting, Trump pushes Facebook ads ‘straight from the NRA playbook’”

Politico: “Former President Donald Trump on Friday addressed the National Rifle Association’s annual conference in Houston … just three days after a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at a Texas elementary school.”

CNN: “A slew of 2024 GOP presidential hopefuls courted gun rights activists Friday at a National Rifle Association convention in Indianapolis that took place in the wake of mass shootings in Kentucky and Tennessee in recent days. Former President Donald Trump … attended the gathering.”

Yahoo News: “The gun-rights group spent $54 million during the 2016 election cycle, including $30 million to help Donald Trump get elected president.”

Fortune: “For instance, in 2020, the NRA alone spent over $12 million campaigning against Biden and another $4.5 million in favor of Donald Trump.”

Trump made the gun violence epidemic WORSE as president, making it easier for criminals to carry guns by standing in the way of commonsense gun reform — all while the murder rate skyrocketed.

New York Times: “Conceding to N.R.A., Trump Abandons Brief Gun Control Promise”

“President Trump on Monday abandoned his promise to work for gun control measures opposed by the National Rifle Association, bowing to the gun group and embracing its agenda of armed teachers and incremental improvements to the background check system.”

The Hill: “The [Trump] White House on Monday issued a statement warning that President Trump would veto proposed legislation to enhance background checks for gun purchases if it passes the House and Senate.”

Politico: “Trump quietly used regulations to expand gun access”

“In addition, the Trump Justice Department narrowed the definition of “fugitive,” excluding people from being added to the national database and barred from buying a gun.”

Associated Press: “FBI: 2020 homicides up nearly 30%, largest 1-year jump ever”

Philadelphia Inquirer: “The Council on Criminal Justice, a D.C.-based research group, found that homicides in 21 American cities were up 32% between March and October compared with 2019. And some analysts believe 2020 could record the largest-ever single-year increase in murders in the United States.”

The post Trump’s MAGA Veepstakes: VP Contenders Side with the Gun Lobby Over Bipartisan Commonsense Gun Safety Solutions appeared first on Democrats.

Here’s what Donald Trump’s VP contenders had to say to celebrate today’s blockbuster jobs report that shows hundreds of thousands of new jobs created as the unemployment rate has been at or below 4% for the longest stretch in more than 50 years:

The post WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: Donald Trump’s VP Contenders Weigh In On Blockbuster Jobs Report appeared first on Democrats.

On National Gun Violence Prevention Day, the choice in this election couldn’t be more clear: while President Biden and Vice President Harris have supported the AANHPI community through some of their darkest moments, Donald Trump fanned the flames of anti-Asian hate and continues to bow to the gun lobby — and AANHPI voters will once again be the margin of victory that leads to his defeat in November. In the wake of several mass shootings that have devastated families and stoked fear driven by waves of hate crimes and xenophobic rhetoric, AANHPI voters demand action on gun violence now more than ever.

As AANHPI communities across the country deal with the horrors of gun violence, President Biden and Vice President Harris have mourned alongside them and have taken historic action to curb the epidemic. 

Politico: “Biden mourns with families of California shooting victims and moves to close gun loophole”

“A solemn President Joe Biden signed an executive order to close gun registration loopholes as he delivered what amounted to a eulogy for 11 people shot to death as they celebrated the Lunar New Year in a Southern California suburb.

Washington Post: “Biden and Harris visit Atlanta after shooting rampage, vowing to stand against racism and xenophobia”

Politico: “Biden to announce first-ever federal office of gun violence prevention”

CNN: “President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law the first major federal gun safety legislation passed in decades, marking a significant bipartisan breakthrough on one of the most contentious policy issues in Washington.”

During the pandemic, Trump fanned the flames of anti-Asian hate, which was followed by an uptick in violent attacks against the community including the 2021 Atlanta spa shooting — where six of the eight victims were Asian American. 

ABC News: “Trump’s ‘Chinese Virus’ tweet helped lead to rise in racist anti-Asian Twitter content: Study”

“The Asian American community has experienced a striking rise in incidents of hate since the onset of COVID-19, according to officials and advocates, and critics say the former president’s repeated use of ‘China Virus’ and other terms helped fuel an environment of hatred.”

[…]

“Researchers also found that the timing of the former president’s tweet was significant. The first time he used ‘ChineseVirus’ was March 16, 2020, and the following week saw an increase in anti-Asian hashtags and a rise in hate crimes. ”

New York Times: “Trump Defends Using ‘Chinese Virus’ Label, Ignoring Growing Criticism”

NBC News: “Trump can’t claim ‘Kung Flu’ doesn’t affect Asian Americans in this climate, experts say”

Addressing gun violence has been a top issue for AANHPI voters when they head to the ballot box.

NBC News: “Early polling first shared with NBC News shows that gun violence is a top issue for Asian American and Pacific Islander voters in Virginia ahead of the state’s November elections, in which parties will spar for legislative control. 

“Nationally, health care, the economy and education have long ranked among the most critical issues for AAPI to decide their votes. The community’s high focus on gun violence — ranking second as an issue in the poll — is significant, potentially aligning with a larger shift across the U.S.”

APIA Vote: “Asian American respondents ranked health care (88%), jobs and the economy (86%), crime (85%), education (82%), gun control (73%) and the environment (75%) as ‘extremely important’ or ‘very important’ issues for deciding their votes in November.”

Giffords Law Center: “Furthermore, 57% of Asian parents are concerned about their children being killed by gun violence, just behind Black parents (58%) and in stark contrast to 33% of white parents.”

Trump is the self-proclaimed biggest fan of the NRA — and continues to cozy up to the gun lobby, with promises to double down on NRA-friendly policies in a second term.

Trump: “There’s no bigger fan of the NRA [than me].”

Rolling Stone: “Trump on Iowa School Shooting: ‘Get Over It’”

NBC News: “Trump says mass shootings are not ‘a gun problem’ as 2024 GOP hopefuls pledge loyalty to the NRA”

The Hill: “The White House on Monday issued a statement warning that President Trump would veto proposed legislation to enhance background checks for gun purchases if it passes the House and Senate.”

New York Times: “In the face of N.R.A. opposition, [Trump] has also retreated from his earlier openness to expanded background checks and a renewal of the expired ban on assault weapons.”

Politico: “Donald Trump told National Rifle Association members on Friday that ‘no one will lay a finger on your firearms’ if he wins the presidency, vowing to roll back Biden-era gun restrictions.

Beyond the horrific mass shootings in Georgia and California, the AANHPI community is reeling from an uptick in gun violence. 

Giffords Law Center: “In fact, gun violence is up among API communities, and firearm suicides are taking an ever-increasing toll as the compounding effects of COVID-19 and race-based discrimination have exacerbated mental health concerns.

“From 2018 to 2022, the Asian American gun death rate, the gun homicide rate, and the gun suicide rate rose similarly (9.5%, 11.8%, and 10.8%, respectively). For Pacific Islanders, the total gun death rate rose 11.0% and gun homicide rate increased by 6.6%. Contrastingly, the national gun death rate rose 19.0% during the same period, but the increase was driven mostly by a 38% rise in gun homicides. Firearm suicides rose only 8.6% nationally.”

The post President Biden and Vice President Harris Stand with the AANHPI Community Against Gun Violence and Hate appeared first on Democrats.

As Republicans threaten the right to contraception, DNC National Press Secretary Emilia Rowland released the following statement:

“This week, Senate Republicans showed where they stand on birth control by voting against protecting access to essential contraceptive care. Today, on the 59th anniversary of the Griswold v. Connecticut Supreme Court decision, Americans have fewer reproductive freedoms than their mothers and grandmothers had decades ago — all because of Donald Trump and his MAGA minions.Democrats continue to fight to protect access to contraception against extreme attacks on our freedoms that are only made possible because Trump proudly overturned Roe v. Wade. Trump and Republicans are determined to attack Americans’ fundamental right to safe and accessible reproductive care, but their anti-freedom agenda will be rejected once more in November, and President Biden and Vice President Harris will finish the job of defending and restoring reproductive freedom for every American.”

Senate and House Democrats continue to push back against extreme MAGA Republicans’ relentless attacks on reproductive freedoms.

Politico: “Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said his chamber will vote Wednesday on legislation aimed at ensuring a women’s right to obtain birth control…

“‘Democrats will never relent until we reverse the immense damage MAGA Republicans and the Supreme Court have inflicted,’ Schumer wrote, ‘and we remain absolutely committed to doing everything we can to protect women, families, and reproductive freedom.’”

The Hill: “​​The Democratic leader began the process for the Senate to consider the Right to Contraception Act sponsored by Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.).

“The bill would guarantee the legal right for individuals to get and use contraception and for health care providers to provide contraception, information, referrals and services related to contraception.

“It would also prohibit the federal government and any state from administering or enforcing any law, rule or regulation to prohibit or restrict the sale or use of contraception.

“And it would allow the Justice Department, providers and individuals harmed by restrictions on contraception to go to court to enforce those rights.”

19th News: “Democrats in Congress run full-court press on reproductive rights ahead of Dobbs anniversary” 

Axios: “Scoop: Senate Democrats plot reproductive-rights blitz”

New York Times: “House Democrats on Tuesday went on the offensive on reproductive rights, announcing they will seek to force a vote on legislation to codify the right to birth control access nationwide.”

Ms. Magazine.: “In the wake of growing Republican restrictions on reproductive rights, Democrats in many states are introducing bills to protect access to contraception. In response, Republicans are blocking these bills, going on record as opposed to contraception.”

Trump left the door open to restricting access to contraceptives like Plan B in a recent interview, threatening to double down on his record of undermining access to contraception.

Interviewer: “Do you support any restrictions on a person’s right to contraception?

Trump: “Well we’re looking at that, and I’m going to have a policy on that very shortly and I think it’s something that you’ll find interesting.”

Interviewer: “That suggests that you may want to support some restrictions? Like the morning after pill or something?

Trump: “We are also– You know, things really do have a lot to do with the states. And some states are going to have different policies than others.”

Politico: “As president, Trump enacted several policies that made it more difficult for people, particularly the working class and the poor, to obtain contraception — from allowing more employers to opt out of birth control coverage in their workers’ health insurance to imposing restrictions on the Title X family planning program that triggered a mass exodus of clinics.

“Conservative allies want to reimpose those policies and go further if he wins in November. Their ‘Project 2025’ blueprint includes proposals to require coverage of natural family planning methods and remove requirements that insurance cover certain emergency contraception.

“Taken together, the policies highlight the many ways a second Trump administration could hamper access to contraception, short of a blanket ban. The impact would also be much greater now that roughly one-third of states prohibit nearly all abortions…

“As part of their 2025 wish list, conservatives want to overhaul which forms of birth control insurance companies must cover for patients at no cost under the Affordable Care Act. For instance, they have drafted plans to allow insurers to drop coverage of emergency contraception, such as Plan B pills, which some on the right believe are abortifacients because they make it harder for fertilized eggs to implant in the uterus…”

MAGA Republicans have left contraception access in jeopardy by voting down legislation aimed to codify the right to contraception. 

NBC News: “Senate Republicans blocked legislation Wednesday that would enshrine a federal right to access contraception, sinking the Democratic-led measure.

“The vote on the Right To Contraception Act was 51-39, falling short of the 60 votes needed to defeat a filibuster and move the bill forward. Republicans said it was unnecessary because the use of birth control is already protected under Supreme Court precedent.”

TIME: “So far, congressional Republicans have indeed declined to protect contraception access. Despite polling showing that 80% of Americans say protecting this access is ‘deeply important’ to them, nearly every Republican in the House voted against a 2022 bill to protect it. And 126 House Republicans are cosponsors of the Life Begins at Conception Act, which would imbue a fertilized egg with full “personhood” rights even before implantation, which means before a pregnancy has actually begun. Critics say such a law could outlaw in vitro fertilization – and, if some in the anti-abortion movement succeed in redefining some forms of contraception as abortion, several forms of contraception, too.”

Associated Press: “Earlier this month, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, vetoed bills from the Democratic-controlled Legislature that would have protected the right to contraception.”

Associated Press: “In Wisconsin, Democrats introduced a bill that was intended to protect contraception access last year, but it never got so much as a hearing in either the GOP-controlled state Assembly or state Senate before the two-year session ended in March. Senate Democrats tried to pull the bill from committee in February and force a floor vote, but all the chamber’s 22 Republicans voted against the move.”

Threats to reproductive health care don’t stop at contraception – Trump and MAGA Republicans want a national abortion ban.

Associated Press: “Trump says he will support national ban on abortions around 15 weeks of pregnancy”

Rolling Stone: “Trump Wants to Ban Abortion Nationwide: Report”

New York Times: “Trump Privately Expresses Support for a 16-Week Abortion Ban”

Rolling Stone: “Trump Floats National Abortion Ban After Claiming He’s ‘On the Side of Women’”

Trump: “There of course remains a vital role for the federal government in protecting unborn life. And it’s very important.” 

Trump on if he would sign a six-week national abortion ban: “I’m looking at all options.”

Trump: “We’ll pick something that’s going to be very, very good for pro-life … I’m going to be in there pushing.”

The post On the Anniversary of Griswold v. Connecticut, Access to Contraception Is on the Line appeared first on Democrats.

Ahead of Pride Month celebrations around the country this weekend, Donald Trump and his VP contenders are still pushing a dangerous, hateful anti-LGBTQ+ agenda. In response, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement: 

“As Americans across the country celebrate the LGBTQ+ community this Pride Month, Donald Trump and his VP contenders are still pushing an extreme, hateful MAGA agenda that is overwhelmingly unpopular with voters. While Trump looks for a running mate who is as out of touch and anti-freedom as he is, the American people are ready to soundly reject MAGA Republicans’ anti-LGBTQ+ platform at the ballot box this November.”

Donald Trump’s VP contenders have extreme records that include signing, sponsoring, and backing hateful anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.  

Washington Blade: “The Democratic National Committee will spotlight the anti-LGBTQ records of GOP candidates vying to join former President Donald Trump on the Republican ticket… the DNC will highlight instances in which the top picks for Trump’s vice president candidate have ‘signed, sponsored, and backed hateful anti-LGBTQ legislation.’”

NBC News: “North Dakota Republican Gov. Doug Burgum has signed a bill into law that allows public school teachers and state government employees to ignore the pronouns their transgender students and colleagues use, the governor’s office announced Monday. The new law also requires teachers to tell parents or legal guardians if students identify as transgender. It also prohibits transgender students from using the bathroom of their choice without prior approval from a parent or guardian.”

Politifact: “As speaker of the Florida House, Rubio did support Florida’s Amendment 2 in 2008, a measure banning same-sex marriage and civil unions in the Sunshine State.’”

Fox News: “Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., on Tuesday pushed a bill to ‘combat indoctrination in schools’ by cutting off federal funds from public elementary and middle schools whose staff addresses a student by a different pronoun or name without parental consent.”

Salt Lake Tribune: “Lee’s bill, titled the Child Welfare Provider Inclusion Act, would bar federal, state and local government agencies that receive federal adoption assistance funding from taking such action against a provider for adhering to policies that reflect their religious beliefs, according to a news release. He’s sponsoring the legislation with Sen. Tim Scott, R-S. C., and 21 other Republican lawmakers.”

Newsweek: “Thirty-six Republicans on Tuesday voted against the Respect for Marriage Act, a bill that would protect same-sex and interracial marriages in the United States.” 

Republicans who voted against the bill include: Marsha Blackburn and Tom Cotton.”

Fox 13: “A vote to codify same-sex marriage into federal law split House Republicans on Tuesday, with roughly a third of the GOP conference voting with Democrats in favor and the rest opposing.”

Republicans who voted against the bill include: Byron Donalds.

ABC News: “If signed into law, the four bills would walk back local ordinances that protect LGBTQ employees, legalize the controversial practice of ‘gay conversion therapy”’and imprison doctors for up to 15 years if they provide certain transition-related medical care to transgender youth…

“The bills — submitted late Monday by Rep. Anthony Sabatini, Sen. Dennis Baxley, Rep. Bob Rommel, Sen. Joe Gruters, Rep. Michael Grant, Sen. Keith Perry, and Rep. Byron Donalds — sparked outrage among many LGBTQ advocates and their allies.”

Marriage and Religious Freedom Act: “Prohibits the federal government from taking an adverse action against a person on the basis that such person acts in accordance with a religious belief that: (1) marriage is or should be recognized as the union of one man and one woman, or (2) sexual relations are properly reserved to such a marriage.”

Cosponsored by: Tom Cotton.

​​Associated Press: “Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed an education bill Wednesday that creates a new school voucher program, raises minimum teacher salaries and places restrictions on classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity… The legislation also prohibits classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation before fifth grade, similar to a Florida prohibition that critics have called the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law. It also puts into law an executive order Sanders signed in January on classroom instruction of critical race theory.”

Office of Sen. Marco Rubio: “U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and colleagues introduced the Protecting Conscience in Healthcare Act to prohibit federal or state government agencies and ‘covered entities,’ such as hospitals and health clinics, from requiring employees to participate in activities that promote radical gender ideology. … Senator Rubio was joined in his efforts by Senators Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and J.D. Vance (R-OH).”

Employment Non-Discrimination Act: “A bill to prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.”

Republicans who voted against the bill include: Tim Scott and Marco Rubio. 

Trump’s VP shortlist is full of MAGA extremists who have also spewed dangerous rhetoric about LGBTQ+ Americans while cozying up to homophobic groups.

Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: “In response to a question from the crowd, Cotton said he believes marriage should be between a man and a woman. ‘We have 5,000 years of recorded history on that, and untold years of unrecorded history,’ he said. ‘The best way to raise children is in a two-person, one man and one woman, stable family.’”

CNN: “Rep. Tulsi Gabbard in the early 2000s touted working for her father’s anti-gay organization, which mobilized to pass a measure against same-sex marriage in Hawaii and promoted controversial conversion therapy.”

Louisiana Illuminator: “Texas Republican Rep. Wesley Hunt said that instead of parents jumping to gender-affirming care when a child tells them they have gender dysphoria, meaning their gender identity differs from the sex they were assigned at birth, they should instead question ‘the root cause of that feeling.’ He compared that decision to his toddlers, whom if they could ‘have their way, they would have ice cream for breakfast, lunch and dinner and for every single meal in between. Oh, the wisdom of children.’”

Washington Examiner: “[Kristi Noem] said she had ‘never supported gay marriage’ and that ‘a lot of my faith has to do with that.’”

Newsmax: “Rubio at Faith & Freedom Summit: Marriage Is Between a Man and a Woman”

BuzzFeed News: “Rubio Headlines Fundraiser For Policy Group That Supports Conversion Therapy”

Washington Post: “This is the exotic view expressed by Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), who joined an amicus curiae brief from “Leaders of the 2012 Republican National Convention Committee on the Platform,” of which Blackburn was a co-chairman.

“The ‘Republican Party’s advocacy for traditional marriage is not about animus toward a particular subset of Americans based on sexual preferences,’ they wrote.  The party, rather, believes that undermining the traditional family means ‘encouraging the growth of government and removing a key bulwark against government, particularly tyrannical and totalitarian ones.’”

Newsweek: “[Tim Scott] supports ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’ opposes same-sex marriage, and considers homosexuality a morally wrong choice, like adultery. ‘We are by nature sinful,’ he said sadly. All these positions stem from what he calls ‘timeless principles.’”

Washington Examiner: “Vivek Ramaswamy says ‘LGBTQIA+ movement’ has become a ‘cult’: ‘It’s not about logic’”

While Trump and his MAGA allies push an extreme and hateful agenda, the overwhelming majority of Americans support marriage equality.

PRRI: “Two-thirds of Americans (67%) support allowing same-sex couples to marry legally, an increase of 13 percentage points from 2014.”

Gallup: “U.S. Same-Sex Marriage Support Holds at 71% High”

The post Super Graphic Ultra MAGA: Trump’s VP Contenders Are Pushing An Extreme, Hateful, and Unpopular Anti-LGBTQ+ Agenda appeared first on Democrats.