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President Obama was a guest on 40 Minutes for Health, a faith-based initiative tackling the healthcare issue in the United States. If you can sit through all the opening prayer and religious babble, you might like what you hear (or maybe not!)

I was a bit disappointed that most of the questions I have about healthcare reform were unanswered, but I might have expected too much from this broadcast.

I know I’ll piss off a whole lot of liberals with this comment, but I’ll say it anyway: this broadcast sounded more like a public service announcement designed to support the Obama administration’s healthcare plan. I didn’t hear anything tangible that would help me decide if Obama’s healthcare plan will be the best thing for America.

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About a dozen people carrying guns, including one with a military-style rifle, milled among protesters outside the convention center where President Barack Obama was giving a speech Monday — the latest incident in which protesters have openly displayed firearms near the president.

Gun-rights advocates say they’re exercising their constitutional right to bear arms and protest, while those who argue for more gun control say it could be a disaster waiting to happen.

Phoenix police said the gun-toters at Monday’s event, including the man carrying an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle slung over his shoulder, didn’t need permits. No crimes were committed, and no one was arrested. [source]

Who wants to bet if someone brought a gun anywhere near a white Republican president, these anti-Obama Arizonians would call the gun-toter unpatriotic and demand he was arrested for threatening the president’s life.

Several Tweeters have suggested that if a Black man had shown up at a presidential protest with a gun, the media would be all over that shit – calling it a Black-on-Black hate crime. I’m willing to bet he’d probably be in jail, too.

Update: 4:15pm

I just found some great commentary on this issue:

Arlington, Va.: While I support gun ownership rights (within the legal framework), I see protesters “exercising their right” to carry a firearm at town hall protests as a form of intimidation. The reason for this is that I doubt (yes, I don’t have the facts) that they carry their firearms everywhere (home, work, supermarket, church, etc.). If they don’t, then they’re doing it to make a point, and that point seems to be the threat of violence.

I’d like to get feedback from you and others, in particular those with differing opinions, on this.

Rick Perlstein: Carrying a gun to a political meeting is an obscenity. Anyone who does it, even if they are within their legal rights, should be ashamed. Our founders fought a revolution (and, yes, took up arms) to build a society where political disputes are not settled through force or intimidation–and that’s the only purpose of bringing a weapon to a political discussion: to intimidate.

It is utterly unacceptable, and every politician should have the guts to say so. What worries me is that the people bringing weapons are hoping to have their weapons taken away, forcing a confrontation that will escalate; many of them, after all, quite frankly proclaim them “revolutionaries.”

I agree. The intent there was indeed intimidation. Unless he’s carrying his military style assault weapon with him to church, the grocery store and to pick up his kids from school, he was just being a bully when he carried that very weapon to an Obama protest.

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What’s interesting to note here is that Obama used the word “changed” instead of “repealed,” although he recently called on Congress to repeal both DADT and the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

I don’t know about anybody else, but I’d like to beat Bill and Hillary Clinton with a nail-spiked baseball bat. The Clinton administration left a mess for Obama to clean up.

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At a press conference designed to appease Obama critics in the LGBT community, President Obama said “I’ve called on Congress to repeal the so-called Defense of Marriage Act to help end discrimination to help end discrimination against same-sex couples in this country.”

I’ve called on Congress to repeal the so-called Defense of Marriage Act to help end discrimination — to help end discrimination against same-sex couples in this country. Now, I want to add we have a duty to uphold existing law, but I believe we must do so in a way that does not exacerbate old divides. And fulfilling this duty in upholding the law in no way lessens my commitment to reversing this law. I’ve made that clear.

I’m also urging Congress to pass the Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act, which will guarantee the full range of benefits, including health care, to LGBT couples and their children. My administration is also working hard to pass an employee non-discrimination bill and hate crimes bill, and we’re making progress on both fronts. Judy and Dennis Shepard, as well as their son Logan, are here today. I met with Judy in the Oval Office in May — and I assured her and I assured all of you that we are going to pass an inclusive hate crimes bill into law, a bill named for their son Matthew.

. . .

And finally, I want to say a word about “don’t ask, don’t tell.” As I said before — I’ll say it again — I believe “don’t ask, don’t tell” doesn’t contribute to our national security. In fact, I believe preventing patriotic Americans from serving their country weakens our national security.

During the press conference, Obama also called out anti-gay Black Americans – a move I’m sure will make those upper-class white male homosexuals over at HRC very, very happy:

Now, even as we take these steps, we must recognize that real progress depends not only on the laws we change but, as I said before, on the hearts we open. For if we’re honest with ourselves, we’ll acknowledge that there are good and decent people in this country who don’t yet fully embrace their gay brothers and sisters — not yet.

That’s why I’ve spoken about these issues not just in front of you, but in front of unlikely audiences — in front of African American church members, in front of other audiences that have traditionally resisted these changes. And that’s what I’ll continue to do so. That’s how we’ll shift attitudes. That’s how we’ll honor the legacy of leaders like Frank and many others who have refused to accept anything less than full and equal citizenship.

The LGBT community has heard Obama promise to repeal DADT and DOMA for quite some time now. WHEN will we actually see some action?

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After Obama’s Justice Department filed a legal brief against same sex marriage in which it compared gay unions to incestuous ones and that of an underage girl, his administration (compliments of Sec of State Hillary Clinton) turns around and releases a memorandum that outlines federal benefits for same-sex partners of federal employees in the civil service and the foreign service.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 17, 2009

Fact Sheet: Presidential Memorandum on Federal Benefits and Non-Discrimination

In an Oval Office event later today, President Barack Obama will sign a Presidential Memorandum on Federal Benefits and Non-Discrimination. The Memorandum follows a review by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management ant the Secretary of State regarding what benefits may be extended to the same-sex partners of federal employees in the civil service and the foreign service within the confines of existing federal laws and statutes.

Over the past several months, the Director of the Office of Personnel Management and the Secretary of State have conducted internal reviews to determine whether the benefits they administer may be extended to the same-sex partners of federal employees within the confines of existing laws and statutes. Both identified a number of such benefits.

For civil service employees, domestic partners of federal employees can be added to the long-term care insurance program; supervisors can also be required to allow employees to use their sick leave to take care of domestic partners and non-biological, non-adopted children. For foreign service employees, a number of benefits were identified, including the use of medical facilities at posts abroad, medical evacuation from posts abroad, and inclusion in family size for housing allocations.

The Presidential Memorandum to be signed today will request that the Director of OPM and the Secretary of State act to extend to same-sex partners of federal employees the benefits they have identified. The Memorandum will also request the heads of all other executive branch departments and agencies to conduct internal reviews to determine whether other benefits they administer might be similarly extended, and to report the results of those reviews to the Director of OPM.

The Memorandum will also direct OPM to issue guidance within 90 days to all executive departments and agencies regarding compliance with, and implementation of, the civil service laws, which make it unlawful to discriminate against federal employees or applicants for federal employment on the basis of factors not related to job performance.

Is anyone else confused? If I didn’t know any better, I’d say Hillary Clinton is trying to prop herself up as the gay community’s savior – even though she helped Barr write the very anti-gay DOMA. Her timing couldn’t have been any better. She waits until Obama’s DOJ files a very offensive brief defending her precious DOMA, then she steps in with great news for same-sex partners of federal employees? Coincidence? I think not.

If I were Obama, I’d fire that Bush-era holdover who recently filed the brief defending DOMA and I’d fire Hillary Clinton’s shadey ass. Between the two of them, he has way too many enemies on his team.

Michelle Obama’s new job ought to be keepin’ an eye on Hillary Clinton. I think Mrs. Obama can handle that wicked witch just fine.

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Forty years ago, patrons and supporters of the Stonewall Inn in New York City resisted police harassment that had become all too common for members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. Out of this resistance, the LGBT rights movement in America was born. During LGBT Pride Month, we commemorate the events of June 1969 and commit to achieving equal justice under law for LGBT Americans.

LGBT Americans have made, and continue to make, great and lasting contributions that continue to strengthen the fabric of American society. There are many well-respected LGBT leaders in all professional fields, including the arts and business communities. LGBT Americans also mobilized the Nation to respond to the domestic HIV/AIDS epidemic and have played a vital role in broadening this country’s response to the HIV pandemic.

It’s nice to see Obama claims he respects the contributions the gay community makes to society. He can prove it by repealing Clinton’s DADT and DOMA.

Read the rest of the statement.

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Walgreens has pulled a Barack Obama version of the Chia Pet from its stores, and the decision leaves about 200,000 of the pottery plant kits in a West Side Chicago warehouse.

The Deerfield-headquartered drugstore chain made the move Friday after getting a few complaints about the item since the product’s April 1 launch, a spokeswoman said.

The article doesn’t state any specific complaints. I’d love to know what the problem was.

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Don’t expect any change soon to the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy about gays in the military.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates says both he and President Barack Obama have “a lot on our plates right now.” As Gates puts it, “let’s push that one down the road a little bit.”

The White House has said Obama has begun consulting with Gates and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on how to lift the ban. Gates says that dialogue has not really progressed very far at this point in the administration.

Over 1000 retired military officers are encouraging Obama to maintain the law that bars homosexuals from serving openly in the military.

Personally, I’m thinking if the Clintons hadn’t fucked over gays to begin with, we wouldn’t even have this issue.

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“No way should he be involved with a discriminatory group. That would be the best thing that could happen if he said, ‘You discriminate too much for me. I can’t be your honorary president.’ I think that might begin to change a few things.”

Obama was meeting with a delegation of the Boy Scouts in the Oval Office on Tuesday afternoon, at which time he was to accept the group’s 2008 Report to the Nation.

A Boy Scouts spokesman said Obama has indicated he will accept the title of honorary president.

I did a little digging to see if Bill Clinton was ever asked to reject the same honor. I found this interesting:

All other Americans can become members of the Boy Scouts of America providing they subscribe to their beliefs. Former President Bill Clinton, in 1996, said, “To discriminate against an American is un-American.” Scouting For All asks, “Would we as a society tolerate the BSA discriminating against people of color?

What?

Bill Clinton said what?

Is this the same Bill Clinton who signed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in 1996? Isn’t DOMA considered blatant discrimination against gay people? It seems to me that it’s ok for Bill Clinton to discriminate against gay people, but it’s not ok for the Boy Scouts to do it.

I’m not the POTUS, so I can snub the Boy Scouts. I decided years ago that I would not support them. I don’t ever donate to their fundraisers and I refused to allow my boys to join the organization. But, I don’t agree with Obama turning his nose up at the Boy Scouts anymore than I agreed with George W. Bush snubbing the NAACP in 2004.

Some members of the LGBT community haven’t figured out that asking Obama to snub anti-gay groups will encourage like or similar behavior from other communities. Pretty soon, pro-choice organizations will be asking Obama to ignore anyone who isn’t pro-choice. Religious groups will be asking Obama to ignore anyone who isn’t a Christian American. Black organizations will be asking Obama to ignore anyone who doesn’t donate to the NAACP on a regular basis. This fuck-you-since-I-don’t-agree-with-you mentality will never end if the president of the United States establishes this as the standard for how we deal with people we don’t agree with.

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