This article is adapted from today’s Morning Wire Afternoon Update. To listen to the podcast version, click <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/trial-begins-three-men-accused-pressuring-expats-return-china-rcna87266" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chinese Conspiracy Trial Starts</a>
One American and two Chinese nationals faced a jury Wednesday in the first trial stemming from U.S. claims of a Chinese government conspiracy. Officials say that China’s government has tried to harass and intimidate dissidents and others abroad into returning home. The three men are charged with conspiracy to hound a former Chinese city official, his wife, and their adult daughter to get him to go back to his homeland, where the government alleges he took bribes.
<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-politics-and-policy/latvian-parliament-elects-first-openly-gay-president-baltic-nation-rcna87077" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World&#8217;s First Openly Gay President Elected In Latvia</a>
The world’s first openly gay president has been elected in Latvia by the country’s parliament. He received 52 votes — or just one more than necessary to win — in a close contest. Gay marriage is currently illegal in Latvia.
<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/31/ftc-sues-amazon-over-ring-doorbell-privacy-violations.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amazon To Pay $30 Million Over Privacy Violations Suit</a>
Amazon has settled a lawsuit with the Federal Trade Commission over allegations that its voice assistant Alexa and doorbell camera Ring violated privacy protections. The FTC claimed in one lawsuit that the tech company kept recordings of children&#8217;s conversations in Alexa. The federal agency also alleged that Amazon employees illegally monitored customers without consent via Ring. Now, Amazon will pay over $30 million to settle the accusations.
<a href="https://cbsaustin.com/newsletter-daily/gov-abbott-appoints-former-tx-secretary-of-state-as-interim-attorney-general-ken-paxton-texas-attorney-general-for-civil-litigation-impeachment-tx-house-lege-senate-trial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Greg Abbott Appoints Paxton Replacement</a>
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has now appointed a temporary replacement for impeached Attorney General Ken Paxton — and Democrats aren’t happy about it. Abbott named former Secretary of State John Scott as the interim Attorney General this week, as Paxton awaits his impeachment trial in the Texas Senate. Some Democrats have pushed back on the appointment of Scott because he worked with former President Trump during his attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Pennsylvania.
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<a href="https://people.com/ill-man-who-joked-he-regretted-marrying-wife-convicted-of-murdering-her-7506988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Family Feud Contestant Who Joked About Regretting Marrying His Wife Convicted Of Murdering Wife</a>
A former “Family Feud” contestant who joked on the show about regretting marrying his wife has now been convicted of murdering his wife. 40-year-old Timothy Bliefnick appeared on the show in 2020.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="&#039;Family Feud&#039; contestant who joked about regretting marriage now on trial for wife&#039;s murder" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/K_lChiRhSRk?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Bliefnick has now been found guilty of killing his estranged wife, Becky Bliefnick, in February. The court found that he broke into her home in Quincy, Illinois, with a crowbar and shot her 14 times. The pair was in the process of a divorce and Becky had previously text her sister, “If something ever happens to me, make sure the number one person of interest is Tim.” His sentencing is scheduled for August 11.
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Friday

Friday Afternoon Update: World’s First Openly Gay President Elected In Latvia, Amazon To Pay $30 Million Over Privacy Violations Suit

Friday Afternoon Update: World's First Openly Gay President Elected In Latvia, Amazon To Pay $30 Million Over Privacy Violations Suit

Amazon

China

Entertainment

Europe

Gay Rights

General

Greg Abbott

Morning Wire

Podcast

Texas

What is with this guy? President Joe Biden has a particular penchant, some might say a pathological need, to tell obvious lies at the weirdest times.
The latest example of this is Biden&#8217;s claim that he had a great awakening on gay marriage — while a senior in high school — way back around 1960 &#8211; 1961. Biden&#8217;s voting record and personal statements show that this can&#8217;t possibly be true.
Interviewer Kal Penn asked the president a straightforward question: &#8220;My question for you, Mr. President, is you codified support for same-sex marriages &#8230; I&#8217;m curious what your evolution was like on marriage equality, and what the federal government might be able to do to protect LGBTQ Americans, especially trans kids who are dealing with all these regressive state laws that are popping up right now?&#8221;
The real answer is that Biden supported the Defense of Marriage Act in the 1990s and asserted that marriage is between one man and one woman until a 2012 &#8220;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/13/politics/white-house-same-sex-marriage-signing-ceremony/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Meet the Press</a>&#8221; interview that was deemed shocking at the time.
Yet here&#8217;s what Biden said this week: &#8220;I can remember exactly when my epiphany was,&#8221; Biden said, which earned a chuckle from Penn.
&#8220;I hadn&#8217;t thought much about it, to tell you the truth,&#8221; he claimed. &#8220;I was a senior in high school, and my dad was dropping me off. I remember I was about to get out of the car, and I look to my right, two well-dressed men in suits kissed each other. They gave each other a kiss.&#8221;
&#8220;And I&#8217;ll never forget it, I looked at my dad, and he said, &#8216;Joey, it&#8217;s simple. They love each other. It&#8217;s simple,&#8217; — now I&#8217;m not joking &#8230;&#8221; he said, which is typically the &#8220;tell&#8221; that Biden is just pulling stuff out of his keister, to put it mildly.
He continued, &#8220;And it&#8217;s never been, it&#8217;s never been &#8230; It&#8217;s just that simple,&#8221; he explained. &#8220;It doesn&#8217;t matter whether it&#8217;s same-sex or a heterosexual couple. They should be married. What is the problem?&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Biden: “I can remember exactly when my epiphany [on supporting gay marriage] was &#8230; I was a senior in high school. And my dad was dropping me off and I remember I was about to get out of the car and I looked to my right and two well-dressed men in suits kissed each other.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/0aHlUQ7ghJ">pic.twitter.com/0aHlUQ7ghJ</a>
&mdash; Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) <a href="https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1635603660917948416?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Perhaps the best part of the entire answer is the interviewer&#8217;s face as he nods along and smiles. Had it been a real interview, Penn would have called out Biden.
For example, in 2006, Biden had a very different answer on the matter:
&#8220;We already have a law, the Defense of Marriage Act,&#8221; he said on &#8220;Meet The Press&#8221; while a potential constitutional amendment protecting the sanctity of marriage was being floated.
&#8220;We&#8217;ve all voted &#8230; or I&#8217;ve voted, and I&#8217;ve said look, &#8216;Marriage is between a man and a woman and states must respect that.&#8217; Nobody&#8217;s violated that law,&#8221; he added. There&#8217;s been no challenge in that law? Why do we need a constitutional amendment? Marriage is between a man and a woman. What&#8217;s the game going on here?
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Flashback: Joe Biden Against Gay Marriage: &#039;Marriage Is Between A Man And A Woman&#039;" width="500" height="375" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cxnDcTmXK0s?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>
In a 2008 vice presidential debate, Biden also point-blank said, &#8220;No&#8221; when asked if he supports gay marriage.
So, Biden wants the American people to believe that not only did he see two grown men kissing each other in broad daylight 60 years ago, but that his Roman Catholic dad born in 1915 had progressive 21st century views on the topic, causing him to have a Eureka moment on the issue despite decades of evidence disproving that?
Give me a break.
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RELATED: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-is-the-most-polish-jewish-black-puerto-rican-greek-irish-catholic-president-we-have-ever-had" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Biden Is The Most Polish-Jewish-Black-Puerto Rican-Greek-Irish-Catholic President We Have Ever Had</a>
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WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 17: U.S. President Joe Biden blows a kiss to the audience before signing the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law in the East Room of the White House on June 17, 2021 in Washington, DC.

Biden: I Had An ‘Epiphany’ And Began Supporting Gay Marriage In High School

Biden: I Had An 'Epiphany' And Began Supporting Gay Marriage In High School

Executive

History

Joe Biden

LGBTQ

Same-Sex Marriage

Social Issues

U.S.

President Joe Biden wants everyone in America to know he supports the LGBTQ community.
And that&#8217;s fine. Don&#8217;t agree with him, don&#8217;t vote for him.
But why is Biden pushing that same agenda on nations around the world?
The U.S. government recently announced it would be sending its envoy for LGBTQ rights to Indonesia.
Jessica Stern, Washington’s special envoy to advance the rights of LGBTQ people, was scheduled to visit Indonesia on December 7, following stops in Vietnam and the Philippines, the State Department had said on November 28.
But the top clerical body in the world’s largest Muslim-majority country denounced the scheduled visit by the LGBTQ rights envoy, saying it would not welcome a visitor &#8220;whose intention is to undermine our nation’s cultural and religious values.&#8221;
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The Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) Deputy Chairman Anwar Abbas said the organization &#8220;categorically rejects the visit by the special envoy,&#8221; Benar News <a href="https://www.benarnews.org/english/news/indonesian/indonesia-us-lgbt-envoy-visit-12012022125233.html">reported</a>.
The MUI &#8220;cannot welcome a guest whose purpose in coming here is to damage and undermine the noble religious and cultural values ​​of our nation,&#8221; Anwar said. &#8220;If this behavior is tolerated, it will lead to humanity’s extinction, because if men marry men and women marry women, they will not reproduce.&#8221;
Let&#8217;s pause here. Americans are, by and large, accepting of homosexuality. Some 72% of Americans say so, according to a 2020 <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2020/06/25/global-divide-on-homosexuality-persists/">poll</a> by Pew Research.
But America is not the world. That same poll found only 9% of Indonesians agree homosexuality &#8220;should be accepted by society.&#8221;
So why should we fly into their country and push LGBTQ rights? Why should Biden send officials to other countries &#8212; officials who represent America &#8212; and try to be divisive over the issue?
Earlier this week, the U.S. government canceled Stern&#8217;s trip to Indonesia.
“[A]fter discussions with our counterparts in the Indonesian government, we have decided to cancel Special Envoy Stern’s visit to Indonesia,” Ambassador Sung Kim said in a statement on Friday.
“Knowing that around the world LGBTQI+ persons experience disproportionate levels of violence and discrimination, it is important to continue the dialogue and ensure mutual respect for one another, rather than pretending that the issues do not exist,” he said.
Sure, for Indonesians. That&#8217;s their dialogue to have, not ours.
For instance, Indonesia on Tuesday approved a new criminal code to prohibit anyone in the country from having sex outside marriage. The law takes effect in 2025 and will apply to residents and foreigners residing in Indonesia, along with tourists visiting destinations such as Bali.
Under the new code, extramarital sex will carry a jail term of up to a year, unmarried couples living together could be jailed for up to six months, and adultery will also be a jailable offense.
That has prompted widespread protests across the country. And that&#8217;s fine &#8212; but it&#8217;s none of our business. Imagine if Indonesia sent an envoy to the U.S. to preach jail time for people who have sex outside of marriage.
We do a lot of things right in America, but plenty of things wrong, too. But either way, we ought not to be proselytizing in foreign countries, pushing them to accept homosexuality. That&#8217;s their business.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
Joseph Curl has covered politics for 35 years, including 12 years as White House correspondent for a national newspaper. He was also the a.m. editor of the Drudge Report for four years. Send tips to josephcurl@dailywire.com and follow him on Twitter @josephcurl.

Sam Brinton

Why Is Biden Pushing A Gay Agenda On Foreign Nations?

 Why Is President Joe Biden Pushing A Gay Agenda On Foreign Nations? 

Indonesia

World

A gay rights organization was deplatformed by PayPal and its subsidiary Venmo, only to discover on Thursday that pro-pedophile organization Prostasia continues to be on good business terms with the multinational financial technology company.
<a href="https://twitter.com/againstgrmrs/">Gays Against Groomers</a>, an organization comprised entirely of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and even transgender people, launched in 2022 and has had meteoric success at attracting followers to their cause exposing the harms done to children by some radicals hiding behind the LGBTQ banner. Gays Against Groomers <a href="https://twitter.com/againstgrmrs/status/1572115130242179073?s=20&amp;t=3CgBakE_IGeTkYHxoLBLXA">wrote early</a> on Tuesday that PayPal and Venmo had dropped them for “violating” their user agreement.
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JUST IN: While we’re not allowed to conduct business on PayPal, guess who is… an organization that offers a support group for “MAPs”<a href="https://twitter.com/PayPal?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PayPal</a> banned us for being against pedophilia, but allow actual pedophile groups to use their services unabated.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BoycottPayPal?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BoycottPayPal</a> <a href="https://t.co/b6csNR73cv">pic.twitter.com/b6csNR73cv</a>
&mdash; Gays Against Gr██mers (@againstgrmrs) <a href="https://twitter.com/againstgrmrs/status/1573067519132372998?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 22, 2022</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;The fact that an organization comprised solely of gay people, with trans contributors as well, is being banned from the largest payment processors in the country for opposing the sexualization and mutilation of children is shocking, to say the least,&#8221; said Jaimee Michell, the Gays Against Groomers founder.
&#8220;On top of that, we discovered tonight that while we have been banned, an organization that literally runs a support group for pedophiles is able to use PayPal’s services. It tells you all you need to know about the state of our society right now,&#8221; Michell added.
The gay rights advocacy group is the latest to be targeted by PayPal for challenging dominant leftist narratives surrounding sex and gender. Evolutionary biologist <a href="https://quillette.com/2022/06/23/i-got-thrown-off-etsy-and-paypal-for-expressing-my-belief-in-biological-reality/">Colin Wright</a>, writer <a href="https://thepostmillennial.com/paypal-permanently-bans-journalist-ian-miles-cheongs-account">Ian Miles Cheong</a>, and recently the Free Speech Union and the Daily Sceptic, run by conservative editor <a href="https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/why-has-paypal-cancelled-me-">Toby Young</a>, have all had their accounts permanently closed by PayPal without notice.
Ironically, PayPal sported a banner that said “Open For All&#8221; on Twitter during Pride month in June, which their <a href="https://twitter.com/PayPalUK">U.K. account</a> still displays. While critics of leftist ideology are denied the ability to conduct commerce, PayPal remains open for business with the openly pedophilic advocacy group Prostasia. Prostasia accepts donations through their website by credit card, check, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, as well as PayPal and Venmo.
Of particular concern is a forum hosted by Prostasia called the <a href="https://prostasia.org/blog/an-introduction-to-map-support-club/">MAP Support Club (MSC)</a>, which is described as a “chat-based peer-support network for teenagers and adults who self-identify as being attracted to younger minors.” MAP Support Club invites “minor attracted people” aged <a href="https://mapsupport.club/">13 years old</a> and up to participate in online chats about “minor attraction.”
“It is intended as a community where MAPs can connect with one another, offer and receive support in difficult times, and overall just enjoy a relaxed atmosphere where one can have fun and not be judged,” reads the MAP Support Club <a href="https://mapsupport.club/">website</a>.
Additionally, on Tuesday, Gays Against Groomers <a href="https://twitter.com/againstgrmrs/status/1572432474965409793?s=20&amp;t=3CgBakE_IGeTkYHxoLBLXA">announced that Google</a> had also disabled their account, which included the use of their Gmail email address, for “violating” their policies. Gays Against Groomers has also been suspended from Twitter numerous times, purportedly for their use of the recently-banned word “groomer.” Twitter was pressured to ban use of the word as a targeted insult after Reddit and other platforms recently banned the word, claiming that it is an &#8220;anti-LGBT slur.&#8221;
While “groomer” is sometimes used to describe the process of adults initiating a sexual or predatory relationship with minors, the word can also be used to describe a process of indoctrinating naive children into cultish ideologies. On Twitter, the word had been increasingly used in the latter sense to describe those indoctrinating children into gender ideology, which is a belief system based on the falsehood that whether someone is a man, boy, woman, or girl has nothing to do with one’s biology, but is instead determined by one’s subjective and undefinable &#8220;gender identity.&#8221;
Attracting even more drama, PayPal last week threatened to <a href="https://www.mauinews.com/uncategorized/2022/09/pressure-mounts-for-total-sarver-ban-as-paypal-makes-ultimatum/">pull their sponsorship</a> of the Phoenix Suns NBA basketball team if owner Robert Sarver remained part of the franchise at the end of his suspension.
In a statement, PayPal President and CEO Dan Schulman pointed to his company&#8217;s &#8220;strong record of combatting racism, sexism and all forms of discrimination,&#8221; and said Sarver&#8217;s conduct is &#8220;unacceptable and in conflict with our values.&#8221;
“In light of the findings of the NBA’s investigation, we will not renew our sponsorship should Robert Sarver remain involved with the Suns organization, after serving his suspension,” Schulman said.
There has been a notable increase in user bannings after PayPal partnered with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) in 2021 to &#8220;fight extremism and protect marginalized communities.&#8221; According to their <a href="https://www.adl.org/news/press-releases/paypal-partners-with-adl-to-fight-extremism-and-protect-marginalized">press release</a>, the ADL said the collaboration &#8220;launched a research effort to address the urgent need to understand how extremist and hate movements throughout the U.S. are attempting to leverage financial platforms to fund criminal activity.&#8221;
PayPal did not respond to The Daily Wire&#8217;s request for comment in time for publication.

Rainbow flag waving in the wind against blue sky

Gay Rights Organization Gets Deplatformed By PayPal While Pro-Pedophile Group Remains

Discrimination

Money

Pedophilia

Hours after an LGBT rights group called Equality Virginia began <a href="https://bluevirginia.us/2022/09/equality-virginia-launches-school-board-policy-tracker">pressuring</a> school districts who have not yet adopted a transgender policy created in 2020 by Democrats, noting that &#8220;All local school boards were required to adopt the policy as a baseline,&#8221; the administration of Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin swapped out the policy referred to by the law with a new one based on parents&#8217; rights.
In 2020, shortly after Democrats took control of the state legislature, they passed a law requiring that school districts adopt policies consistent with a state document called <a href="https://doe.virginia.gov/support/gender-diversity/transgender-student-model-policies.docx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Model Policies for the Treatment of Transgender Students in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools</a>. The administration of then-Gov. Ralph Northam created that document. Now, the law itself remains in effect, but the policies it refers to have been replaced by very different ones.
“The 2021 Model Policies promoted a specific viewpoint aimed at achieving cultural and social transformation in schools. The 2021 Model Policies also disregarded the rights of parents and ignored other legal and constitutional principles that significantly impact how schools educate students, including transgender students. With the publication of the <a href="https://doe.virginia.gov/support/gender-diversity/2022-model-policies-on-the-privacy-dignity-and-respect-for-all-students-town-hall.pdf">2022 Model Policies</a>, the Department hereby withdraws the 2021 Model Policies, which shall have no further force and effect,” officials said in the new policy.
Youngkin sailed to victory in 2021 amidst a furor over the state of Virginia’s schools, including The Daily Wire’s revelation that Loudoun County authorities had made false statements about a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/judge-throws-soros-backed-prosecutor-off-of-case-against-loudoun-rape-victims-father" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rape in a school bathroom</a> by a boy wearing a skirt and tried to put the rape victim’s father in jail.
The old model policy said schools should &#8220;eliminate gender-based practices&#8221; to avoid leaving out transgender students. The policy cited father-daughter dances and homecoming kings and queens as examples. It spelled out how school districts should create gay clubs, allow for transgender students to share bunks with children of the opposite biological sex during sleepaway events, and ordered teachers to be trained to be “LGBT+ affirming.”
“Nonbinary students, as well as transgender students, may use gendered pronouns like she/her/hers or he/him/his, use gender-neutral pronouns such as they/them/their or ze/hir/hirs&#8230; School divisions should accept a student’s assertion of their gender identity without requiring any particular substantiating evidence,” it said. “A school employee’s intentional and persistent refusal to respect a student’s name and pronoun is considered discriminatory.&#8221;
It described how to hide the gender transitioning of children from their parents, saying “a plan may include addressing the student at school with their name and pronoun consistent with their gender identity while using the legal name and pronoun associated with the sex assigned at birth when communicating with parents.”
Other references to parents appeared to refer to using taxpayer money to try to change the social beliefs of adults. It called for “Strategies to engage parents and other stakeholders regarding an inclusive school community that affirms LGBTQ+ students” and promoting “LGBTQ+-affirming resources for students and families.”
The law requires that the model policies be “evidence-based best practices.” The original policy cited that “a recent study found that socially transitioned transgender children who are supported in their gender identity have no elevations in depression and only minimal elevations in anxiety relative to population averages.”
The new draft policy — which will go into effect at the end of October — is far different, citing the U.S. Constitution as evidence. “The First Amendment forbids government actors to require individuals to adhere to or adopt any particular ideological beliefs,” it said. “The U.S. Constitution, the Virginia Constitution, federal law, state law, and relevant case law place beyond debate the rights of parents to be informed about their children and the limitations of government to usurp parents’ rightful role. Additionally, decades of research conducted worldwide has consistently concluded that parental involvement in a child’s education and development is paramount.”
It said a student can only change his or her name with the permission of a parent, and that the “phrase ‘transgender student’ shall mean a public school student whose parent has requested in writing, due to their child’s persistent and sincere belief that his or her gender differs from his or her sex, that their child be identified while at school.”
“[School Division] personnel shall refer to each student using only (i) the name that appears in the student’s official record, or (ii) if the student prefers, using any nickname commonly associated with the name that appears in the student’s official record,” it said.
It bans teachers from using pronouns or names which are not in the student&#8217;s official record, and teachers and other students cannot be <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/judge-reinstates-va-teacher-suspended-for-refusing-to-affirm-trans-identity-for-kids-calls-school-response-vindictive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">compelled</a> to “address or refer to students in any manner that would violate their constitutionally protected rights.” And “No policy, guidance, training, or other written material issued by the [School Division] may encourage or instruct teachers to conceal material information about a student from the student’s parent.”
“Overnight travel accommodations, locker rooms, and other intimate spaces used for school-related activities and events shall be based on sex,” the policy said. “For any athletic program or activity that is separated by sex, the appropriate participation of students shall be determined by sex.”
By law, school districts are required to adopt policies similar to the state model policy, but in the past, some school districts in Democrat-leaning northern Virginia have simply <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-fairfax-schools-suspend-kids-call-police-as-system-defies-virginia-governor-on-masks">refused</a> to follow the Republican governor&#8217;s orders. Even when under the prior governor, they cited state obligations as justification for policies like school closures.
The new document was created under Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow and Assistant Superintendent <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-virginias-youngkin-appointing-anti-crt-firebrand-to-key-education-role" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Elizabeth Schultz</a>, a Republican who was on the Fairfax County School Board in northern Virginia.

Glenn Youngkin Campaigns Ahead Of Next Week’s Gubernatorial Election

Virginia Replaces Democrats’ Mandatory Transgender Policy With Parents’ Rights Manifesto

Virginia Dept. Of Education Throws Out Democrats' Transgender Policy, Replaces It With Parents' Rights Manifesto

Education

Glenn Youngkin

Transgender

Virginia

More than 400 current and former establishment <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/republican-party">GOP</a> officials have signed a <a href="https://act.freedomforallamericans.org/a/marriage-act-support">letter</a> calling on U.S. lawmakers to enshrine the same-sex marriage bill working its way through the Senate into law.
Ken Mehlman, the former Republican National Committee chairman and Bush re-election campaign manager, led the effort to gain support for the bill and partnered with a new nonprofit group called Centerline Action, per <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/09/12/prominent-republicans-push-gop-senators-support-same-sex-marriage-bill/">The Washington Post</a>.
“We call on the U.S. Senate to pass the Respect for Marriage Act and reaffirm that marriage for gay and lesbian couples is settled law,” the letter reads.
The letter states that passing the Respect for Marriage Act would “remove any uncertainty for the more than one million Americans who are building families, taking on the responsibilities and commitment associated with marriage, and caring for the one they love.”
“As Republicans and conservatives, we believe strong families and lasting relationships strengthen communities, and civil marriage is a fundamental freedom central to individual liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” the letter reads.
The letter comes a week after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) vowed to hold a vote to codify same-sex marriage ahead of the midterm elections in November.
The Respect for Marriage Act that the House of Representatives passed, 267-157, last month, with 47 House Republicans voting in favor of the bill.
Now, Senate Democrats are working to garner ten GOP votes — enough to clear the 60-vote filibuster threshold — to move it out off the Senate floor and onto President Joe Biden’s desk. Biden has signaled he would sign the legislation.
So far, three Senate Republicans, including Susan Collins (R-ME), Rob Portman (R-OH), and Thom Tillis (R-NC), have told reporters they would likely vote yes on the bill. Nine have marked themselves as potential backers, according to <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/3638918-baldwin-pushes-back-on-gop-arguments-against-same-sex-marriage-legislation/">The Hill</a>.
Collins has teamed up with Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) to sway enough votes from across the aisle but has received pushback from Senate Republicans, citing religious liberty and conscience protection concerns.
The Daily Wire reported Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said he would vote against the bill with concerns about religious liberties. He said that it would create more chaos for the court to disrupt same-sex marriages, adding that without protection for such freedoms, it could have massive consequences in several institutions across the nation.
Cruz further noted that GOP members are pushing for an amendment to the bill that would ensure such protections.
According to the nonprofit, more than 71 percent of Americans and most registered Republicans support same-sex marriages.
Georgia Log Cabin, a pro-LGBT Republican organization, said in a tweet it believes in “strong families &amp; lasting relationships strengthen communities while reducing dependence on government.”
Pennsylvania Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz said in a <a href="https://twitter.com/DrOz/status/1569378179462189060">tweet</a> that he is “proud to join this effort.”
“I believe that same-sex couples should have the same freedom to get married as straight couples,” Oz said.
U.S. News <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2022-09-12/gop-leaders-past-and-present-call-on-senate-to-safeguard-same-sex-marriage">reports</a> other GOP officials who have penned their names on the letter include Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker and Colorado Senate nominee Joe O’Dea.
Former White House officials under President Donald Trump like Alyssa Farah Griffin, the former White House director of strategic communications David Urban, former senior adviser Mike Dubke, and former White House communications director Toby Fabrizio have also signed their support for the bill.
A full list of names will be released to the public on Wednesday.

Kasey Mullins raises a flag of a rally in support of the civil-unions bill before it was heard by the House Judiciary Committee, at the state Capitol in Denver, CO, Wed., March 31, 2011. Senate Bill 172 would give same-sex couples many of the rights and r

GOP Establishment Leaders Call On Senate To Enshrine Same-Sex Marriage

Dr. Oz

U.S. Senate

The first active <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/nfl">NFL</a> player to come out as <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/homosexuality">gay</a> said he agonized over the decision last year, but finally told the world “for the kids.”
Defensive end Carl Nassib, who was most recently a Las Vegas Raider but is now a free agent, told “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/good-morning-america">Good Morning America</a>” host and former NFL star Michael Strahan Tuesday he had to get up the nerve to <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CQZXu_8nyy_/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;ig_rid=7c0a539f-8c4e-473e-bc2d-ac43ddd43f9c">announce</a> on a video posted to Instagram he is gay.
“I stared at the phone for, like, an hour just looking at it, trying to hype myself up,” Nassib told Strahan, who also played defensive end. “The last thing I said was like, &#8216;You know what — for the kids.&#8217; And pressed post.&#8221;
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A year later, NFL free agent Carl Nassib says he agonized over his decision to come out publicly:<a href="https://t.co/D7MHVxbzmC">https://t.co/D7MHVxbzmC</a>
&mdash; Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) <a href="https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/1549458352010321929?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 19, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Nassib, who played at Penn State and was a third-round draft pick by the Cleveland Browns in 2016, said his teammates supported him when he came out. The 29-year-old lineman, whose brother Ryan was an NFL backup quarterback, said he believes most people support gay people coming out of the closet.
&#8220;We are making strides in a positive direction,&#8221; the 6-foot, 7-inch athlete said. &#8220;It won&#8217;t be a perfect road, and we just have to continue the course and make sure that we do it from a place of love and not from a place of animosity.&#8221;
In March, the Raiders <a href="https://www.raiders.com/news/raiders-support-carl-nassib-the-trevor-project-with-100-000-donation">donated</a> $100,000 to The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention charity for LGBTQ+ youth. The donation <a href="https://www.nfl.com/news/carl-nassib-announces-partnership-with-the-trevor-project-will-match-donations">matched</a> the contribution Nassib made at the time of his announcement.
Nassib has played two years each for the Browns, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Raiders. In his time in Las Vegas, he started five of 27 games and had four combined sacks and an interception. For his career, he has 113 tackles and 22 sacks – half a sack less than Strahan tallied in his record-breaking 2001 season.
Nassib said he hopes to catch on with another team before the upcoming season.
&#8220;The best scenario for me is, like, the best opportunity to show what I got,” he said. “Got a lot in the tank.&#8221;

Denver Broncos v Las Vegas Raiders

First Active NFL Player To Come Out As Gay Tells Why He Did It

Football

Good Morning America

Senator <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ted-cruz">Ted Cruz</a> (R-TX) recently said that the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/supreme-court">United States Supreme Court</a>&#8216;s landmark decision which legalized same-sex marriage across America was &#8220;clearly wrong&#8221; but stressed that he did not believe the high court had any &#8220;appetite&#8221; to review the case and that it would be &#8220;chaotic&#8221; to disrupt such unions that occurred in accordance with the law.
On the Friday episode of his podcast &#8220;The Verdict,&#8221; Cruz and co-host Liz Wheeler discussed Obergefell v. Hodges — the 2015 case that ruled states were prohibited from banning same-sex marriage — as it compared to Roe v. Wade. Wheeler asked Cruz to pretend he was an advocate of the Court and explain the vulnerability of Obergefell and what it would take to overturn that precedent.
&#8220;Obergefell, like Roe v. Wade, ignored two centuries of our nation&#8217;s history,&#8221; Cruz told Wheeler. &#8220;Marriage was always an issue that was left to the states. We saw states before Obergefell, some states were moving to allow gay marriage, and other states were moving to allow civil partnerships. There were different standards that the states were adopting.&#8221;
In Obergefell, the Court <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/2014/14-556">ruled</a> 5-4 that state laws banning same-sex marriage were unconstitutional under the due process and equal protection clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment.
&#8220;And had the Court not ruled in Obergefell, the democratic process would have continued to operate; if you believed gay marriage was a good idea, the way the Constitution set up for you to advance that position is to convince your fellow citizens,&#8221; Cruz explained. &#8220;And if you succeeded in convincing your fellow citizens, then your state would change the laws to reflect those views. In Obergefell, the Court said, &#8216;No, we know better than you guys do and now every state &#8230; must sanction and permit gay marriage.'&#8221;
The former presidential candidate added that he believed that the Court was &#8220;overreaching&#8221; in that decision, but that it was a &#8220;fundamentally&#8221; different question than abortion.
&#8220;I think that decision was clearly wrong when it was decided,&#8221; Cruz added of same-sex marriage. &#8220;It was the court overreaching.&#8221;
In June, the SCOTUS emphasized in its Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, which led to the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/united-states-supreme-court-overturns-roe-v-wade-leaves-abortion-restrictions-to-states">overturning</a> of Roe, that the abortion issue was not the same as marriage.
&#8220;&#8230; so in Dobbs, what the Supreme Court said is Roe is different because it&#8217;s the only one of the cases that involve the taking of a human life and that&#8217;s qualitatively different&#8221; than Obergefell, he explained.
&#8220;I agree with that proposition,&#8221; Cruz added.
In reaction to an edited clip of his answer, some leftists like Ron Filipkowski claimed that Cruz was calling on the Supreme Court to overturn Obergefell completely. As Cruz&#8217;s senior communications advisor Steve Guest pointed out, the full context of Cruz&#8217;s remarks proves otherwise.
Guest quipped, &#8220;Noticed you only clipped 18 seconds,&#8221; while linking to a longer version of Cruz&#8217;s response.
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Noticed you only clipped 18 seconds.
Here&#39;s Sen. Cruz&#39;s full comments: &quot;You&#39;ve got a ton of people who have entered into gay marriages &amp; it would be more than a little chaotic for the court to do something that somehow disrupted those marriages&#8230;&quot; <a href="https://t.co/O0IbB8ztPr">https://t.co/O0IbB8ztPr</a> <a href="https://t.co/c0khF0N4hW">pic.twitter.com/c0khF0N4hW</a>
&mdash; Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) <a href="https://twitter.com/SteveGuest/status/1548464766095540225?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 17, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Cruz went on to clarify, &#8220;When a court is deciding, is considering, whether to overturn a precedent, one of the factors that the court looks to is reliance interests — have people relied on the previous precedent and acted accordingly.&#8221;
&#8220;And in the context of marriage, you&#8217;ve got a ton of people who have entered into gay marriages and it would be more than a little chaotic for the Court to do something that somehow disrupted those marriages that have been entered into in accordance with the law,&#8221; he explained. &#8220;I think that would be a factor that would &#8230; counsel restraint, that the Court would be concerned about.&#8221;
Cruz also told Wheeler that while Justice Clarence Thomas might have noted the Court should review certain cases, including Obergefell, he didn&#8217;t believe the Court actually would.
&#8220;But to be honest, I don&#8217;t think this Court has any appetite for overturning any of these decisions,&#8221; he added.

Ted Cruz

‘It Would Be More Than A Little Chaotic’: Ted Cruz Explains Why Supreme Court Is Unlikely To Overturn Gay Marriage Decision

Ted Cruz Explains Why Supreme Court Is Unlikely To Overturn Same-Sex Marriage Decision

SCOTUS

Verdict with Ted Cruz

Melissa and Aaron Klein, the Christian bakers who faced $135,000 in penalties that were later dropped for refusing to make a wedding cake for a lesbian couple, are working on relaunching a new business.
Following the shutdown of their Oregon-based Sweet Cakes, the Kleins are raising funds to start a new business while their case is potentially headed toward the Supreme Court.
“Over the last several years we have been strong as a family and strong as part of our church body. With life’s stresses comes a void that can sometimes be overwhelming. That void for me was my loss of love for baking and the joy that came with that. I’m here to say it never went away but it was a struggle to fall in love with it again,” Melissa wrote in her fundraising description.
“Almost 2yrs ago we moved to Montana. I had said I was never going to open a bakery again, but God has seemed to change my heart with this. It’s been 10 years since having my shop in Oregon and I greatly miss it along with all my sweet customers, she added.
The Kleins are seeking $50,000 to fund the downpayment of a new location in Montana. More than $17,000 has already been donated toward the goal.
“Showing resilience and faith that God is the rock we stand on and His love will conquer all fears,” Melissa wrote in thanking supporters for their help.
The Kleins faced a government mandate from the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) over refusing to bake a cake for a same-sex wedding in 2013, claiming doing so would violate their religious beliefs.
In January, the BOLI reversed a previous attempt to stop the fine.
“We adhere to our prior decision upholding BOLI’s determinations that Aaron unlawfully discriminated against the Bowman-Cryers based on sexual orientation,” <a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/christian-bakers-punished-for-not-baking-gay-wedding-cake-to-relaunch-business.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a> Circuit Judge Erin Lagesen, the author of the panel opinion. “We reach a different conclusion with respect to our prior affirmance of BOLI’s noneconomic damages award,” ruled Lagesen.
Earlier this year, however, an Oregon Court of Appeals upheld its original finding and threw out the fine over a claim of subtle bias against the religious beliefs of the Kleins.
“The court was right five years ago and is still right today,” attorney Jennifer Pizer, who represented the lesbian couple, said in a <a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.opb.org/article/2022/01/26/oregon-appeals-court-sweet-cakes-bakery-same-sex-discrimination-ruling/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>. “The Kleins’ faith does not give them a pass to ignore Oregon’s Public Accommodation Law.”
“The court adhered to the position that the Oregon courts had previously taken that nondiscrimination laws can be taken to protect same sex couples, regardless of religious beliefs,” Jim Oleske, a law professor at Lewis &amp; Clark, <a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://twitter.com/JimOleske/status/1486376826754592776" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> on Twitter. 
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7/ The Court then concludes that the hostility potentially evidenced by the prosecutor&#39;s statement may have influenced the agency&#39;s decision to award damages: <a href="https://t.co/vNtlUtnPMB">pic.twitter.com/vNtlUtnPMB</a>
&mdash; Jim Oleske (@JimOleske) <a href="https://twitter.com/JimOleske/status/1486388815472173057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Oleske noted that the court’s conclusion in the ruling emphasized “that the hostility potentially evidenced by the prosecutor’s statement may have influenced the agency’s decision to award damages.”

Melissa Klein

Christian Bakers Who Faced $135K In Penalties For Refusing To Make Wedding Cake For Lesbian Couple Plan To Relaunch Business

Lawsuit

Lesbian

Oregon

Much to the disappointment of LGBTQ+ activists amid Pride Month, a Japanese court ruled this week that Japan’s same-sex marriage ban didn’t violate its constitution.
Judge Doi Fumi of the Osaka District Court determined on Monday that Article 24 of <a href="https://japan.kantei.go.jp/constitution_and_government_of_japan/constitution_e.html">Japan’s Constitution</a> didn’t confer protections on gay marriage. The plaintiffs were three same-sex couples, two male and one female, who filed for 1 million yen in damages per couple, or about $7,400; they plan to appeal the ruling to the Osaka High Court.
The district court <a href="https://news.yahoo.co.jp/byline/matsuokasoshi/20220621-00301866">agreed</a> with the government’s argument that the purpose of marriage was reproduction, according to translations of Yahoo! Japan. The court added that the system of marriage served a greater “pragmatic purpose” of “protecting men and women to bear children and raise them.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
1. Osaka district court sided with the argument from the country of Japan which said that the &quot;purpose of marriage was reproduction&quot; &amp; agreed with the definition that &quot;marriage is a relationship between a man &amp; a woman to bear children and raise them together in cohabitation.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/7FN0dJ0Cx3">pic.twitter.com/7FN0dJ0Cx3</a>
&mdash; 箕島 綺譚(they/them) 💖 Support Black Trans Liberation (@MishimaKitan) <a href="https://twitter.com/MishimaKitan/status/1539047509162885120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 21, 2022</a></blockquote>
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“Marriage shall be based only on the mutual consent of both sexes and it shall be maintained through mutual cooperation with the equal rights of husband and wife as a basis,” reads the Constitution of Japan.
One of the plaintiffs, Machi Sakata, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/japan-court-rules-barring-same-sex-marriage-not-unconstitutional-lgbtq-rights-2022-06-20/">told</a> Reuters that she doubted that the legal system was working. It appears that Sakata and her partner, a U.S. citizen, were relying on the ruling ahead of the birth of one of their children.
“I think there’s a possibility this ruling may really corner us,” said Sakata.
According to a translation <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-61670667">provided</a> by BBC, the district court opinion did speculate in its ruling that individual dignity may necessitate marriage benefits for same-sex couples.
“From the perspective of individual dignity, it can be said that it is necessary to realise the benefits of same-sex couples being publicly recognised through official recognition,” read the ruling.
This latest ruling follows similar lawsuits filed in Sapporo, Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka by multiple same-sex couples in 2019. The Sapporo District Court <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/japan-court-ban-on-same-sex-marriage-is-unconstitutional">ruled</a> last March that the same-sex marriage ban was unconstitutional, citing Article 14 of the Constitution of Japan requiring equal laws for all Japanese citizens.
“All of the people are equal under the law and there shall be no discrimination in political, economic or social relations because of race, creed, sex, social status or family origin. Peers and peerage shall not be recognized,” reads the article.
Although Japan bans same-sex marriage, local governments have been recognizing same-sex partnerships for years. The city in which the district court lies, Osaka, offers that recognition. It was also first in the country to <a href="https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/04/06/national/social-issues/osaka-becomes-first-japanese-city-recognize-sex-couple-foster-parents/%23.WOXRdFN95E6">recognize</a> two gay men as foster parents in 2017.
Last week, the government of Japan’s capital, Tokyo, adopted legislation to grant recognition certificates to same-sex couples starting in November. Out of Japan’s 47 prefectures, nine now recognize same-sex partnerships. About a quarter of Tokyo’s 62 municipalities were already granting those certificates.
Certificate acknowledgement ensures that same-sex couples enjoy certain marital benefits like hospital visitation rights. However, perks like joint tax filing and spousal inheritance are reserved for married couples.
In addition to the U.S., 30 other countries have legalized gay marriage: Chile, Switzerland, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Taiwan, Austria, Australia, Malta, Germany, Colombia, Greenland, Ireland, Finland, Luxembourg, Scotland, England and Wales, Brazil, France, New Zealand, Uruguay, Denmark, Argentina, Portugal, Iceland, Sweden, Mexico, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Canada, Belgium, and Netherlands.
The latest country to legalize gay marriage was Chile, through legislation signed into law last December. Netherlands was the first to legalize gay marriage in 2001.
Last year, the Census Bureau <a href="https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2021/same-sex-couple-households.html%23:~:text=Census%2520Bureau%2520Releases%2520Report%2520on%2520Same-Sex%2520Couple%2520Households,-February%252024,%25202021&amp;text=About%252058%2525%2520of%2520couples%2520in,female%2520than%2520male%2520couple%2520households.">estimated</a> that about 58 percent of same-sex households were married. The number of same-sex couples weren’t distributed evenly by sex or state. A majority of those couples were female, and 11 states along with Washington, D.C. had a higher percentage of same-sex couple households. The latter, D.C., had the highest percent of same-sex households at about 7 percent, well above the 1.5 percent average.
Areas in the U.S. with the highest percentages of same-sex couple households were some of the most liberal destinations: the San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkley in California; Portland, Vancouver, and Hillsboro along the Oregon and Washington border; and Seattle, Tacoma, and Bellevue in Washington.

JAPAN-SOCIETY-LGBT-PARADE

Japan Court Rules Gay Marriage Not Protected By Constitution, Says Marriage Is For Bearing And Raising Children

Japan Court Rules Gay Marriage Not Protected by Constitution

Japan

Marriage

The United States Embassy in the Holy See took some heat on Wednesday for marking the beginning of Pride Month by flying the rainbow flag.
&#8220;Today is the start of #Pride Month,&#8221; the tweet from @USinHolySee read. &#8220;The United States respects and promotes the equality and human dignity of all people including the LGBTQIA+ community. #PrideMonth #AllInclusive #Pride2022.&#8221;
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Today is the start of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pride?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pride</a> Month. The United States respects and promotes the equality and human dignity of all people including the LGBTQIA+ community. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PrideMonth?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PrideMonth</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AllInclusive?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AllInclusive</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pride2022?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pride2022</a> <a href="https://t.co/6VgN9R8c3J">pic.twitter.com/6VgN9R8c3J</a>
&mdash; U.S. in Holy See (@USinHolySee) <a href="https://twitter.com/USinHolySee/status/1531947017450176515?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 1, 2022</a></blockquote>
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A number of critics were quick to point out that the State Department was not advertising the pride flag in countries where key aspects of pride month such as homosexuality can be punishable by death.
&#8220;.@StateDept Do the Muslim nations. Then we’ll know you’re serious about your commitment to pride,&#8221; Monica Mathews <a href="https://twitter.com/monicaonairtalk/status/1531980886115332096">tweeted</a> in response.
&#8220;Now do your embassy in Saudi Arabia. I dare you,&#8221; Hadi Nasrallah <a href="https://twitter.com/HadiNasrallah/status/1532026325682343942">added</a>.
Others slammed the move as a blatant attack on Catholicism and Christianity.
&#8220;Cool, thanks for trolling the catholic church for no f***ing reason other than promoting your petulant form of shallow liberalism,&#8221; <a href="https://twitter.com/thefactualprep/status/1531979625353601025">tweeted</a> @thefactualprep.
&#8220;Back in the day if you wanted to colonize some other country and foist your cultural values upon it, you’d go behead that land’s king and parade through the streets with his head on a spike. Now the strategy is to fly a rainbow flag and wait for demoralization to set in,&#8221; William Wheelwright (@ploughmansfolly) <a href="https://twitter.com/ploughmansfolly/status/1532030761683107842">added</a>.
Andrew T. Walker tweeted, &#8220;U.S. foreign policy under @JoeBiden places this flag in the Vatican.&#8221;
&#8220;Amb. Joe Donnelly, an alleged Roman Catholic, should be ashamed of this horses**t. You can support LGBTQ rights without rubbing a host nation&#8217;s nose in it, you coven of virtue signaling jacka**es at State,&#8221; @Gormogons <a href="https://twitter.com/Gormogons/status/1532005117582524416">tweeted</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/Gormogons/status/1532005282301325313">adding</a>, &#8220;Repeat after me: &#8216;The only flag a US embassy or consulate should ever fly is the United States flag.'&#8221;
The Daily Wire editor emeritus Ben Shapiro laid out his thoughts in a short tweet as well, <a href="https://twitter.com/benshapiro/status/1531970863624511488">saying</a>, &#8220;Let&#8217;s be clear: the Biden administration would never do this in an Islamic country. This is anti-Catholic bigotry.&#8221;
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Let&#39;s be clear: the Biden administration would never do this in an Islamic country. This is anti-Catholic bigotry. <a href="https://t.co/jyTQbT80gW">https://t.co/jyTQbT80gW</a>
&mdash; Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) <a href="https://twitter.com/benshapiro/status/1531970863624511488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 1, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Shapiro followed that with a tweet mocking the Biden administration&#8217;s foreign policy overall, suggesting that they were more focused on things like celebrating Pride Month than taking actions to protect those who were actually at risk.
&#8220;This angle was obviously extremely effective in catalyzing resistance to Taliban incursions. And then the US&#8217;s pullout definitely helped support the &#8216;civil rights of minorities.&#8217; Well done all the way around, Joseph R. Biden,&#8221; he tweeted.
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This angle was obviously extremely effective in catalyzing resistance to Taliban incursions. And then the US&#39;s pullout definitely helped support the &quot;civil rights of minorities.&quot; Well done all the way around, Joseph R. Biden. <a href="https://t.co/L9edI6acxR">https://t.co/L9edI6acxR</a>
&mdash; Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) <a href="https://twitter.com/benshapiro/status/1532001186768998407?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 1, 2022</a></blockquote>
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People Holding Large Colorful Flag While Walking On City Street

‘Do The Muslim Nations’: US Embassy Mocked For Flying Pride Flag Over The Vatican

US Embassy Mocked For Flying Pride Flag Over The Vatican

Pride

Pride Flag

Pride Month

The Vatican

Professional United Kingdom footballer Jake Daniels has become the first active player in the league to &#8220;come out&#8221; as gay and admitted he&#8217;s been &#8220;hiding the real me&#8221; for his whole life.
The Blackpool Football Club&#8217;s forward posted a lengthy message on the <a href="https://www.blackpoolfc.co.uk/news/2022/may/16/a-message-from-jake-daniels/">team&#8217;s website</a> revealing that he&#8217;s known his &#8220;whole life&#8221; that he&#8217;s gay and said he&#8217;s finally ready to &#8220;come out and be myself&#8221; as he shares that he&#8217;s &#8220;been thinking for a long time about how I want to do it,&#8221; <a href="https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/12614531/jake-daniels-blackpool-forward-becomes-uks-first-active-male-professional-footballer-to-come-out-publicly-as-gay">reported</a> SkySports.com.
&#8220;This season has been a fantastic one for me on the pitch,&#8221; Daniels wrote. &#8220;I&#8217;ve made my first-team debut, scored 30 goals for the youth team, signed my first professional contract and shared success with my team-mates, going on a great run in the FA Youth Cup and lifting the Lancashire FA Pro-Youth Cup.&#8221;
&#8220;But off the pitch I&#8217;ve been hiding the real me and who I really am,&#8221; he added. &#8220;I&#8217;ve known my whole life that I&#8217;m gay, and I now feel that I&#8217;m ready to come out and be myself. It&#8217;s a step into the unknown being one of the first footballers in this country to reveal my sexuality, but I&#8217;ve been inspired by Josh Cavallo, Matt Morton and athletes from other sports, like Tom Daley, to have the courage and determination to drive change.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
A message from Jake Daniels. <a href="https://t.co/R2wEsniXKV">https://t.co/R2wEsniXKV</a> <a href="https://t.co/dcznYKtSaD">pic.twitter.com/dcznYKtSaD</a>
&mdash; Blackpool FC (@BlackpoolFC) <a href="https://twitter.com/BlackpoolFC/status/1526232455002345473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 16, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;In reaching this point, I&#8217;ve had some of the best support and advice from my family, my Club, my agent and Stonewall, who have all been incredibly pro-active in putting my interests and welfare first,&#8221; Daniels continued. &#8220;I have also confided in my team-mates in the youth team here at Blackpool, and they too have embraced the news and supported my decision to open up and tell people. I&#8217;ve hated lying my whole life and feeling the need to change to fit in. I want to be a role model myself by doing this.&#8221;
The professional soccer player closed out his post by sharing how he knows there are &#8220;people out there in the same space&#8221; like him and may not yet feel &#8220;comfortable revealing their sexuality.&#8221; He said he just wanted them to know that they &#8220;don’t have to change&#8221; who they are to fit in, and to be you and be happy is what &#8220;matters most.&#8221;
The outlet noted that Jake is the first professional footballer in the country to come out as gay in the last 30 years. <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-norfolk-54617759">Justin Fashanu</a> shared his sexuality in 1990, later on in his career.

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Professional U.K. Footballer Says He’s ‘Been Hiding The Real Me,’ Becomes League’s First Active Player To ‘Come Out’ As Gay

Professional UK Footballer Says He’s ‘Been Hiding The Real Me,’ Becomes League's First Active Player To ‘Come Out’ As Gay

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