2012 TBLG Pride Month POTUS Proclamation

Presidential Proclamation: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month, 2012

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month, 2012

 By The President Of The United States Of America

 A Proclamation

From generation to generation, ordinary Americans have led a proud and inexorable march toward freedom, fairness, and full equality under the law ‑‑ not just for some, but for all. Ours is a heritage forged by those who organized, agitated, and advocated for change; who wielded love stronger than hate and hope more powerful than insult or injury; who fought to build for themselves and their families a Nation where no one is a second-class citizen, no one is denied basic rights, and all of us are free to live and love as we see fit.

The lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community has written a proud chapter in this fundamentally American story. From brave men and women who came out and spoke out, to union and faith leaders who rallied for equality, to activists and advocates who challenged unjust laws and marched on Washington, LGBT Americans and allies have achieved what once seemed inconceivable. This month, we reflect on their enduring legacy, celebrate the movement that has made progress possible, and recommit to securing the fullest blessings of freedom for all Americans.

Since I took office, my Administration has worked to broaden opportunity, advance equality, and level the playing field for LGBT people and communities. We have fought to secure justice for all under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act, and we have taken action to end housing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. We expanded hospital visitation rights for LGBT patients and their loved ones, and under the Affordable Care Act, we ensured that insurance
companies will no longer be able to deny coverage to someone just because they are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. Because we understand that LGBT rights are human rights, we continue to engage with the international community in promoting and protecting the rights of LGBT persons around the world. Because we repealed "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," gay, lesbian, and bisexual Americans can serve their country openly, honestly, and without fear of losing their jobs because of whom they love. And because we must treat others the way we want to be treated, I personally believe in marriage equality for same-sex couples.

More remains to be done to ensure every single American is treated equally, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. Moving forward, my Administration will continue its work to advance the rights of LGBT Americans. This month, as we reflect on how far we have come and how far we have yet to go, let us recall that the progress we have made is built on the words and deeds of ordinary Americans. Let us pay tribute to those who came before us, and those who continue their work today; and let us rededicate ourselves to a task that is unending ‑‑ the pursuit of a Nation where all are equal, and all have the full and unfettered opportunity to pursue happiness and live openly and freely.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2012 as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month. I call upon the people of the United States to eliminate prejudice everywhere it exists, and to celebrate the great diversity of the American people.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of June, in the year of our Lord two thousand twelve, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.
                                                                                                                   BARACK OBAMA

Barack Obama is NOT The First Gay President

Guest Post from Renee of Womanist Musings

Check out this week's cover of Newsweek.

Last week, Barack Obama became the first sitting U.S. president to state unequivocal belief of same sex marriage.  This is an absolutely historic thing for Barack Obama to do however, it simply places him on the right side of history.  I don't believe in giving people accolades for doing what is morally right.  There has been the suggestion that because he did this during an election year that he has risked the possibility of a second term in office.  Despite the loud screaming from republican troll Mitt Romney and the like, the truth is that majority of Americans are in favor of same sex marriage, and this number continues to increase. Being in favor of something when it is politically expedient to do so, should not be cast as a great risk.

I normally don't comment on U.S. politics, though I stay up to date on all the issues, but the above image really irritated me.  What Barack Obama did does not make him the gay president, anymore than Bill Clinton was the first Black president.  You don't take on the identity of a marginalized person simply be attempting to be an ally.  Now, to be clear, I'm not pulling a no homo here, I am talking about the appropriation of a marginalized identity in order to give the appearance of being liberal, inclusive and tolerant. A straight man, cannot by definition be the gay president.  He can advocate for GLBT rights and in fact should do so, but I reject this appropriation.

I have never seen Obama as a true leftist, despite the way that the American right tries to paint him as the second coming of Karl Marx.  He only appears to be left, because the right is so far out of touch with reality.  The left right continuum in the U.S. is well and truly fucked, and I believe as an outsider, it's really easy to see. 

What are your thoughts on the Newsweek Cover?

Osama Bin Laden Gone-President Obama Political Promise Kept

Today is the one year anniversary of the SEAL Team Six mission in Pakistan that resulted in the death of al Qaeda leader and 9-11 attack mastermind Osama bin Laden.

The Republicans are trying to obfuscate and ignore the irrefutable fact that it was the African-American commander in chief who gave the order for that ultimately successful mission while the previous White House occupant failed to do so and much less was disinclined to go after him.

And yeah, may I remind y'all (snicker, snicker) during the 2008 campaign about that October 7, 2008 debate in Nashville, TN with Sen John McCain (R-AZ) in which then Sen. Obama spelled out what would happen in his administration if he got the chance to get Osama Bin Laden.

A certain Willard M. Romney called him 'naive' for doing so
.
***

MR. BROKAW: Senator McCain, thank you very much.

Next question for Senator Obama. It comes from the F Section, and it's from Katie Hamm. Katie?

Q Should the United States respect Pakistani sovereignty and not pursue al-Qaida terrorists who maintain bases there, or should we ignore their borders and pursue our enemies, like we did in Cambodia during the Vietnam War?

SEN. OBAMA: Well, Katie, it's a terrific question.

And we have a difficult situation in Pakistan. I believe that part of the reason we have a difficult situation is because we made a bad judgment going into Iraq in the first place when we hadn't finished the job of hunting down bin Laden and crushing al-Qaida. 

So what happened was we got distracted, we diverted resources, and ultimately bin Laden escaped, set up base camps in the mountains of Pakistan in the northwest provinces there.

They are now raiding our troops in Afghanistan, destabilizing the situation. They're stronger now than at any time since 2001. And that's why I think it's so important for us to reverse course because that's the central front on terrorism. They are plotting to kill Americans right now. As Secretary Gates, the Defense secretary, said, the war against terrorism began in that region, and that's where it will end.

So part of the reason I think it's so important for us to end the war in Iraq is to be able to get more troops into Afghanistan, put more pressure on the Afghan government to do what it needs to do, eliminate some of the drug trafficking that's funding terrorism.

But I do believe that we have to change our policies with Pakistan. We can't coddle, as we did, a dictator, give him billions of dollars, and then he's making peace treaties with the Taliban and militants. What I have said is we're going encourage democracy in Pakistan, expand our non-military aid to Pakistan so that they have more of a stake in working with us, but insisting that they go after these militants.

And if we have Osama bin Laden in our sights and the Pakistani government is unable or unwilling to take them out, then I think that we have to act, and we will take them out.

We will kill bin Laden. We will crush al-Qaida. That has to be our biggest national security priority.

***

Read it and weep conservafools.  This mission was REALLY accomplished and y'all hate the fact that Osama bin Laden is resting at an undisclosed location near the bottom of the Arabian Sea.

You think this White House isn't going to point out this major success in this so called by you vanillacentric fools 'failed presidency' on the campaign trail?    You damned skippy he needs to pop his collar on this one.  It's deliciously ironic that the Black Democratic POTUS succeeded in his first term mind you where you conservafool chicken hawks miserably failed over seven years.




If this is a 'failed presidency' I want four more years of this kind of 'failure'.

As Vice President Biden recently stated, Osama is dead and the American auto industry is alive.

Is November 6 here yet?   

2012 White House Correspondents Dinner

While I was attending our local Unity Dinner, in 'Hollywood For Ugly People' AKA Washington DC  the annual White house Correspondents Dinner was taking place.    I got to see it after I came home, but for those of you who missed it, here's the POTUS poking fun at himself and various people inside the bltway and the media who cover them.

The Road We've Travelled

Here it is, the documentary about the first term of the Obama presidency that the conservafoools love to hate on.



Is it November 6 yet?

The 2012 Presidential Debate Schedule

While we're still waiting for the Republifools to sort out who their presidential nominee will be in their knockdown dragged our primary fight, thanks to the  Commission on Presidential Debates we already know the dates of the 2012 Presidential and Vice Presidential debates and where they will take place.
 
The first will happen on October 3 in Denver, CO. President Obama will take on the GOP presidential nominee on the University of Denver campus.

On October 11 in Danville, KY Vice President Joe Biden will take on the GOP vice presidental nominee in the only vice presidential debate on the beautiful campus of Centre College.

October 16 will see the second presidential debate happen on the campus of Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY between the POTUS and his GOP opponent.

The final presidential debate will occur on October 22 between President Obama and his Republican opponent on the campus of Lynn University in Boca Raton, FL.

The formats, moderators and times are still to be determined. 

State Of The Union 2012

Now that GOP Amateur Hour  (last night's latest GOP debate) is over, the adult comes into the room to lay out his vision of what needs to be done in this country in the 2K12 and beyond in the State Of The Union speech later tonight.

Hopefully we won't have any displays of conservafool disrespect of President Obama as he does so, but with this being an election year don't put anything past the Grand Old Party Bigots.

These are some of the talking points President Obama wants to highlight in tonight's speech entitled An America Built to Last

-- In his State of the Union Address, the President will lay out a blueprint for an economy that's built to last -- an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy, skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values.

-- The President believes this is a make or break moment for the middle class and those trying to reach it. What's at stake is the very survival of the basic American promise that if you work hard, you can do well enough to raise a family, own a home, and put a little away for retirement.

-- The defining issue of our time is how to keep that promise alive. No challenge is more urgent; no debate is more important. We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well, while more Americans barely get by. Or we can build a nation where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules.

-- The fact is, the economic security of the middle class has eroded for decades. Long before the recession, good jobs and manufacturing began leaving our shores. Hard work stopped paying off for too many Americans. Those at the top saw their incomes rise like never before, but the vast majority of Americans struggled with costs that were growing and paychecks that weren't.

-- In 2008, the house of cards collapsed. Mortgages were sold to people who couldn't afford or understand them. Banks made huge bets and bonuses made with other people's money. It was a crisis that cost us more than eight million jobs and plunged our economy and the world into a crisis from which we are still fighting to recover.

-- The President has been clear that we need to do more to create jobs and help economic growth. But under his leadership and thanks to action taken by this President, the economy is growing again. The economy has added a total of 3.2 million private sector jobs over the last 22 months.

-- American manufacturing is creating jobs for the first time since the late 1990s. The American auto industry is coming back. Today, American oil production is the highest that it's been in eight years. Together, we've agreed to cut the deficit by more than 2 trillion. And the President signed into law new rules to hold Wall Street accountable. He stands on a solid record and tonight will lay out a blueprint that will ensure an economy built to last over the long term.

-- For the first time in nine years, there are no Americans fighting in Iraq. We've decimated al Qaeda's leadership, delivered justice to Osama bin Laden, and put that terrorist network on the path to defeat. We've made important progress in Afghanistan, and begun a transition so Afghans can assume more responsibility. We joined with allies and partners to protect the Libyan people as they ended the regime of Muammar Qaddafi.

-- We cannot go back to an economy based on outsourcing, bad debt, and phony financial profits. The President intends to keep moving forward and rebuild an economy where hard work pays off and responsibility is rewarded -- an economy built to last.

The POTUS Has Talent!

Those of us who have been paying attention the last three years already know this, but dayum, didn't know President Obama can sing a little bit, too.

Check him out with his bad self singing a few bars of Al Green's classic 'Let's Stay Together' while at an event that recently happened at New York's legendary Apollo Theater.

Happy Birthday To The FLOTUS!

I could not let today pass without giving a shoutout to First Lady Michelle Obama on her 48th birthday.

You know I think she's all that and four bags of Jay's potato chips and hope she's being spoiled rotten by the POTUS and the First Daughters today.

Happy birthday Madame First Lady!   Hope you had a great one today and will continue to be celebrating them at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue through 2017.   

Remembering November 4, 2008

I had to work that magical election night at my post which was at a downtown Louisville high rise apartment building.  I will never forget the spectacle of people dancing in the lobby of that building with tears in theirs and my eyes the moment Sen. Barack Obama passed the 270 electoral vote mark and we witnessed the historic election of an African American as the 44th president of the United States.

Thinking about that night still makes me cry and it's three years later.

But deep down we knew that this election, as improbable as we believed it was and thought would never see happen in our lifetimes, would be easy compared to the upcoming 2012 one.

This time the Forces of Intolerance, the conservafool movement, the Tea Klux Klan, wishy-washy progressive white voters and naked racism and bigotry are part of the forces deployed in opposition to President Obama getting a second term and this campaign will be much tougher for him to win.

But it will be so much sweeter if he does so on November 6, 2012

To remind you of what that night three years ago felt like, let's climb into Moni's wayback machine to the night of November 4, 2008 and remind you that Yes We Can do this again.