To be honest, even using that title made me queasy, but on January 20 it will indeed be part of American history and our reality. I believe you have done nothing to earn it and have only increasingly demonstrated a dangerous and un-American set of principles, values and intentions.
I am not a gambler, but I imagine I am feeling what someone in one of your failed casinos felt when rolling the dice or watching the roulette wheel spin — uncertainty, fear, bracing for loss because in your gut you believe the house always wins.
Cathy Renna — File photo
Since the election you and your surrogates have continued to demonstrate that a vote for you was not dissimilar to a hate crime. My relatives on my father’s side in Italy were stunned and fearful when the results came in. “Should have learned from our mistake electing Berlusconi,” they joked. But there is another Italian leader you are much more similar to, and we should heed the history lesson of their past. My father grew up in Italy when Mussolini was in power. As we know, he ruled the country constitutionally as Prime Minister from 1922 to 1925, then dropped all pretense of democracy and set up a legal dictatorship. Now, I wouldn’t compare you to Hitler. Yet. So if the shoe fits, it would be a Dolce and Gabbana. Because when people talk about a potential constitutional crisis, this is what I believe they are alluding to.
But this is something you will never achieve. Because I believe in the core values of America and our constitution and we, as a nation, would never let this happen. Like Congressman John Lewis, the civil rights hero and icon you dismissively berated when he called your presidency illegitimate, we will march. We will resist. We will stand up and say no, not in our America.
My daughter is about the same age as Barron. What kind of world will she grow up in? Will it be one that considers her “less than” your child? Not if I can help it.
In his second inaugural speech, Barack Obama said, “We, the people, declare today that the most evident of truths, that all of us are created equal, is the star that guides us still, just as it guided our forbearers to Seneca Falls and Selma and Stonewall.” I am not alone in being guided by that star that our great President of the last eight years alluded to, a star that will get us through this next period of American history like no other, one that will test us but also one we will face undaunted.
The opinions expressed in these letters are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of their organizations and this magazine, its staff and contributors.
A transgender athlete in California won two golds and a silver medal at the CIF State Track & Field Championships last weekend, but officially "tied" with other athletes due to a specialized scoring system instituted just ahead of the state meet.
AB Hernandez, a transgender girl who is a junior at Jurupa Valley High School in Riverside, California, placed first in the girls' high jump and triple jump competitions, and second in the girls' long jump competition.
Hernandez's participation sparked controversy and staunch opposition from some parents and bystanders, especially after President Donald Trump threatened to permanently withhold federal money from California if transgender athletes -- specifically Hernandez, although he did not refer to her by name -- were allowed to compete in female events.
The New York City chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans -- the nation’s largest LGBTQ conservative group -- will host a Pride Month event at Trump Tower later this month, despite former President Donald Trump’s refusal to officially recognize June as Pride Month during his administration.
The "Pride Right" party promises a night of "patriotism and Pride," with a list of yet-to-be-announced guest speakers.
Scheduled for Saturday, June 28, from 6 to 8:30 p.m., the soirée will feature an open bar, hors d’oeuvres, and a chance to socialize or network with other LGBTQ conservatives. Tickets cost $175 per person, or $150 for "dues-paying members" of the group.
The U.S. Senate parliamentarian blocked several provisions in President Donald Trump's proposed tax and budget bill, including a transgender health care ban that would have prohibited federal funds from covering gender-affirming care.
The provision seeks to block transgender people of all ages -- including adults -- from accessing transition-related care by banning Medicaid, ACA marketplace plans, and the Children's Health Insurance Program from covering the cost.
But Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, who is tasked offering nonpartisan advice to federal lawmakers on Senate rules, declared that the proposed transgender health care ban violates the Byrd Rule, which requires reconciliation bills -- those cobbled together to resolve differences between House and Senate versions -- to only contain provisions that impact the budget or spending, and not any "extraneous" matters.
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