U.S. Politics

[Rick Plant]

NYC LGBTQ rights activists, local politicians protest Fla. Gov. Ron DeSantis event at Chelsea Piers: ‘Get the hell out of my city!’

NEW YORK — Ron, be gone!

That was the message Sunday from dozens of LGBTQ rights activists and local elected officials outraged over Chelsea Piers’ decision to host a conservative conference featuring Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Amid chants of “Shame!” and calls for a boycott they voiced their fury over Chelsea Piers’ refusal to cancel the event and denounced DeSantis for his support of the so-called “don’t say gay” bill in his home state.

“It is unacceptable that Chelsea Piers has not canceled a speech by the most anti-LGBTQ public official in America,” said state Sen. Brad Hoylman, a Dem who represents the area. “This is a disgrace given the history of the Piers, the proximity to the birthplace of the LGBTQ human rights movement and the fact that we’re in the middle of Pride.”

DeSantis was scheduled to speak at the conference, hosted by the conservative Jewish organization the Tikvah Foundation, on Sunday afternoon.

He’s come under fire from LGBTQ groups and many Democrats since signing the law banning instruction about gender identity and sexual orientation from kindergarten through third grade — “or in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards” — in March.

Chelsea Piers and Pier Sixty, the West Side gala space hosting the conference, have gone on the defensive since news of the DeSantis event surfaced earlier this month. But they rejected calls to cancel it.

“We could not disagree more strongly with many of Ron DeSantis’ actions in office,” Chelsea Piers said in a Friday statement, promising that Pier Sixty would donate the payment it receives from the Tikvah Foundation to pro-LGBTQ groups.

That wasn’t good enough for protesters who stood behind police barricades amid drizzling rain near the Pier Sixty entrance.

“It’s insulting,” Mike Dunn, a 31-year-old social worker, said of Pier Sixty’s donation plans. “I hope everybody here makes them regret this for years. We are not going away tomorrow.”

“Ron DeSantis is a feckless coward, [a] bootlicker who is actively hurting some of the most vulnerable people in this country,” Dunn added.

Protesters said the “don’t say gay” law has nationwide ramifications.

“This kind of behavior is about violence,” said Assemblywoman Yuh-Line Niou, a Manhattan Democrat. “It is about hurting us. It is about making it so our communities are harmed.”

The campaign for DeSantis, a Republican, did not immediately answer a request for comment. Neither did the Tikvah Foundation.

VIP conference attendees like DeSantis and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo appeared to avoid the protesters by being driven in black cars to Pier Sixty’s garage.

“I’m furious about what is happening here,” said Joseph Alexiou, 38, a freelance journalist.

DeSantis is “like the worse person for gay people right now in this country and they’re hosting him here,” he added. “Get the hell out of my city.”

© New York Daily News

[Rick Plant]

Hatemongers like Ron DeSantis who pushes hate against LGBT groups has made it possible for white supremacists groups like this to coordinate a planned attack against them. This is GOP fascism. 

Members of white nationalist group charged with planning riot at Idaho pride event



(Reuters) - Police in northwest Idaho arrested more than two dozen members of a white nationalist group on Saturday and charged them with planning to stage a riot near a LGBTQ pride event, authorities said.

Lee White, police chief in the city of Coeur D'Alene, told reporters 31 members of Patriot Front face misdemeanor charges of conspiracy to riot and additional charges could come later.

A local resident spotted the men, wearing white masks and carrying shields, getting into a U-Haul truck and called police, telling the emergency dispatcher it "looked like a little army," according to White. Police pulled the truck over about 10 minutes after the call.

Video taken at the scene of the arrest and posted online showed about 20 men kneeling next to the truck with their hands bound, wearing similar khaki pants, blue shirts, white masks and baseball caps.

Police recovered at least one smoke grenade and documents that included an "operations plan" from the truck, as well as shields and shin guards, all of which made their intentions clear, White said.

"They came to riot downtown," he said.

The men come from at least 11 states, White said, including Texas, Colorado and Virginia.

Patriot Front formed in the aftermath of the 2017 white nationalist "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, when it broke off from another extremist organization, Vanguard America, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups.

Reuters


31 Patriot Front members arrested near Idaho pride event

Authorities arrested 31 members of the white supremacist group Patriot Front near an Idaho pride event Saturday after they were found packed into the back of a U-Haul truck with riot gear.

The men were standing inside the truck wearing khakis, navy blue shirts and beige hats with white balaclavas covering their faces when Coeur d’Alene police stopped the U-Haul and began arresting them on the side of the road.

“They came to riot downtown,” Coeur d’Alene Police Chief Lee White said at a news conference.

All 31 were charged with conspiracy to riot, a misdemeanor, White said. The men were going through the booking process Saturday afternoon and are scheduled to be arraigned on Monday, he said.

Based on evidence collected and documents, authorities found that the group was planning to riot in several areas of downtown, not just the park, White said.

Police found riot gear, one smoke grenade, shin guards and shields inside the van, White said. They wore arm patches and logos on their hats that identified them as members of Patriot Front, he said.

Police learned about the U-Haul from a tipster, who reported that “it looked like a little army was loading up into the vehicle” in the parking lot of a hotel, White said. Officials spotted the truck soon after and pulled it over, he said.

Videos of the arrest posted on social media show the men kneeling on the grass with their hands zip-tied behind their backs.

“Reclaim America” was written on the back of one shirt.

Police led the men, one by one, to the front of patrol cars, took off their masks and then brought them to a police van.

Those arrested came from at least 11 states, including Washington, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Colorado, South Dakota, Illinois, Wyoming, Virginia, and Arkansas, White said.

Only one was from Idaho, he said.

The truck was stopped near where the North Idaho Pride Alliance was holding the Coeur d’Alene Pride in the Park event. Police had stepped up their presence in the area during the event.

“It appears these people did not come here to engage in peaceful events,” Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris told a Coeur d’Alene Press reporter.

Patriot Front is described by the Southern Poverty Law Center as “a white nationalist hate group” that formed after the deadly “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017.

“Patriot Front focuses on theatrical rhetoric and activism that can be easily distributed as propaganda for its chapters across the country,” the Southern Poverty Law Center said of the group.

The group’s manifesto calls for the formation of a white ethnostate in the United States, the Southern Poverty Law Center said.

Bellisle reported from Seattle.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/31-patriot-front-members-arrested-near-idaho-pride-event


Idaho sheriff releases addresses of 'Patriot Front' members accused of planning riot



An Idaho sheriff has released the names and addresses of 31 purported members of a right-wing group that has been accused of planning a riot at a Pride event.

At a press conference on Saturday, Coeur d’Alene Police Chief Lee White said that the 31 men came from at least 11 states. He named Washington, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Colorado, South Dakota, Illinois, Wyoming, Virginia and Arkansas.

Videos of the Saturday arrests suggest men in masks were traveling in a rented truck to the LGBTQ+ event.

On Sunday, Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris released a list of names and addresses of the men who were charged.

The 31 men are facing charges of criminal conspiracy. Bond was set at $300 for each.

Patriot Front founder Thomas Rousseau was listed among the charged suspects.

Watch video: https://twitter.com/i/status/1535732251308150784

[Rick Plant]

Democratic Senator Chris Murphy from Connecticut has a Twiter announcement!   

Chris Murphy @ChrisMurphyCT

NEWS: We have a deal. Today a bipartisan group of 20 Senators (10 D and 10 R) is announcing a breakthrough agreement on gun violence - the first in 30 years - that will save lives.

I think you’ll be surprised at the scope of our framework.

1/ Here’s what it includes:

2/ Major funding to help states pass and implement crisis intervention orders (red flag laws) that will allow law enforcement to temporarily take dangerous weapons away from people who pose a danger to others or themselves.

3/ Billions in new funding for mental health and school safety, including money for the national build out of community mental health clinics.

4/ Close the “boyfriend loophole”, so that no domestic abuser - a spouse OR a serious dating partner - can buy a gun if they are convicted of abuse against their partner.

5/ First ever federal law against gun trafficking and straw purchasing. This will be a difference making tool to stop the flow of illegal guns into cities.

6/ Enhanced background check for under 21 gun buyers and a short pause to conduct the check. Young buyers can get the gun only after the enhanced check is completed.

7/ Clarification of the laws regarding who needs to register as a licensed gun dealer, to make sure all truly commercial sellers are doing background checks.

8/ Will this bill do everything we need to end our nation’s gun violence epidemic? No. But it’s real, meaningful progress. And it breaks a 30 year log jam, demonstrating that Democrats and Republicans can work together in a way that truly saves lives.

9/ So grateful to @JohnCornyn @kyrstensinema @SenThomTillis @SenToomey @Sen_JoeManchin @SenBlumenthal
 
@SenatorCollins @LindseyGrahamSC @ChrisCoons @TeamHeinrich @BillCassidy and others for their amazing work to get us this far.

Drafting this law and passing it through both chambers will not be easy. We have a long way before this gets to the President’s desk. But with your help and activism, we can get this done. This time, failure cannot be an option.

https://twitter.com/ChrisMurphyCT/status/1536013616843046912

[Rick Plant]

Mitch McConnell adviser slams GOPers attempting to undercut the Jan 6th hearings



During a panel discussion on CNN's "State of the Union," conservative political consultant Scott Jennings -- a key adviser to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) -- railed at Republicans who have tried to undercut the televised Jan 6th hearings.

Speaking with host Dana Bash, the conservative appeared visibly upset about what he saw during Thursday night's multi-media presentation that was viewed by over 20 million Americans.

"It's very difficult to watch all this footage and not feel your blood boiling all over again. I mean, the thing about this issue is it all happened live on television. It didn't happen behind closed doors. We all watched it," he began.

"There are a lot of Republicans who say don't believe your lying eyes," CNN's Bash interjected.

"I don't know how you watch these videos, how you watch the testimony of Officer [Carolyn] Edwards who was completely compelling and what she went through was horrific," he continued. "How do you not come to the conclusion this was a terrible day, somebody caused it and something has to come from this?"

"In the short-term, there's nothing anyone can do about Donald Trump," he continued. "But in the long-term Republicans have to decide are we going to look to the future in 2024 or relitigate the 2020 election and the chaos again? I would submit it's better for the party to look to the future and put this behind us by acknowledging what happened."

Watch below:

[Rick Plant]

Photo emerges of Texas Governor Greg Abbott and one of the high ranking Proud Boys who orchestrated and participated in the Jan. 6 insurrection.

[Rick Plant]

President Biden @POTUS

One of the key ways to fight inflation is by lowering the cost of moving goods through supply chains.
 
That’s why I’ve been focused on ports — like the one I visited yesterday in Los Angeles.



Last fall, ports around the world were congested due to disruptions caused by the pandemic. So we brought together operators, shipping companies, and labor to ease bottlenecks.
 
As a result, over the holidays about 97% of packages were delivered on time or with minimal delays.

Today, there are about 40% fewer containers clogging the docks for long periods than last November.
 
And we’ll continue expanding the capacity of our ports thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

One of the reasons prices have gone up is because a handful of companies who control the market have raised shipping prices by as much as 1,000%. It’s outrageous — and I’m calling on Congress to crack down on them.

Watch: https://twitter.com/i/status/1534919703864528899

https://twitter.com/POTUS/status/1535704049194045442

[Rick Plant]

US senators reach bipartisan gun control deal after recent mass shootings

Proposal does not ban assault weapons or raise age required to buy them to 21, but if enacted it would come after years of stalemate

Joe Biden has urged US lawmakers to get a deal on gun reforms to his desk quickly as a group of senators announced a limited bipartisan framework Sunday responding to last month’s mass shootings.

The proposed deal is a modest breakthrough offering measured gun curbs while bolstering efforts to improve school safety and mental health programs.

It falls far short of tougher steps long sought by Biden, many Democrats, gun reform advocates and America citizens. For example, there is no proposal to ban assault weapons, as activists had wanted, or to increase from 18 to 21 the age required to buy them.

Even so, if the accord leads to the enactment of legislation, it would signal a turn from years of gun massacres that have yielded little but stalemate in Congress.

In a statement, Biden acknowledged the deal’s weaknesses but welcomed and urged quick action.

“It does not do everything that I think is needed, but it reflects important steps in the right direction, and would be the most significant gun safety legislation to pass Congress in decades,” he said.

The president added: “There are no excuses for delay, and no reason why it should not quickly move through the Senate and the House. Each day that passes, more children are killed in this country: the sooner it comes to my desk, the sooner I can sign it, and the sooner we can use these measures to save lives.”

Leaders hope to push any agreement into law quickly – they hope this month – before the political momentum fades that has been stirred by the recent mass shootings in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas.

Significantly, the “agreement in principle” appears to have the backing of at least 10 Republican senators, enough to reach a 60-vote threshold in the chamber and overcome the filibuster.

The deal aims to make the juvenile records of gun buyers under age 21 available when they undergo background checks. The suspects who killed 10 people at a grocery store in Buffalo and 19 students and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde were both 18, and many of the attackers who have committed mass shootings in recent years have been young.

The agreement would offer money to states to implement “red flag” laws that make it easier to temporarily take guns from people considered potentially violent, and to bolster school safety and mental health programs.

And it would take other steps, including requiring more people who sell guns obtain federal dealers’ licenses, which means they would have to conduct background checks of purchasers.

The agreement follows weeks of intense negotiations between the divided groups of senators, led by Chris Murphy of Connecticut on the Democratic side, and for the Republicans by John Cornyn of Texas.

In a statement, the bipartisan group of lawmakers said the measures provide “needed mental health resources, improves school safety and support for students, and helps ensure dangerous criminals and those who are adjudicated as mentally ill can’t purchase weapons”.

Senate majority whip Dick Durbin expressed his blessing on social media.

“Each of the elements in this bipartisan gun safety package has the potential to save lives,” he wrote in a series of tweets.

“I continue to believe military-style assault weapons that can shred the bodies of their victims have no place in civilian use – but we cannot let the perfect Congressional response be the enemy of the good.

“Though this agreement falls short in this and other respects, it can and will make our nation safer.”

Gun reform advocacy groups also welcomed the development. John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety, said in a statement: “If the framework announced today gets enacted into law, it will be the most significant piece of gun safety legislation to make it through Congress in 26 long and deadly years.

“We applaud this bipartisan coalition, led by senators Murphy and Cornyn, for leading this push to address our nation’s raging gun violence crisis, and we call on their colleagues to answer the call of history, and honor the victims and survivors of gun violence with long overdue action.”

Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action, said: “We’re breaking the logjam in Congress and proving that gun safety isn’t just good policy – it’s good politics.

“Our grassroots army has been demanding action from the Senate for nearly a decade and now we’ll fight like hell to get this historic deal over the finish line.”

The announcement came one day after thousands of people protested in numerous March for Our Lives events around the country on Saturday, calling for stronger gun laws.

David Hogg, a survivor of the 2018 deadly mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in Parkland, Florida, and co-founder of the movement, tweeted a photograph of himself celebrating with a giant milkshake.

"When senators reach a bipartisan deal on guns for the first time in 30 years – time to celebrate with the breakfast of champions,” he wrote.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jun/12/us-senators-bipartisan-gun-control-deal