The legal team for former <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/kentucky" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kentucky</a> clerk Kim Davis say they are fighting back following a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/kentucky-clerk-who-refused-to-issue-licenses-following-scotus-gay-marriage-ruling-must-pay-over-260k-in-fees-judge-rules" target="_blank" rel="noopener">controversial ruling</a> against Davis, and even suggested the case could end up undoing the U.S. Supreme Court&#8217;s landmark decision on gay marriage in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/it-would-be-more-than-a-little-chaotic-ted-cruz-explains-why-supreme-court-is-unlikely-to-overturn-gay-marriage-decision" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Obergefell v. Hodges</a>.
Davis in 2015 refused to hand out a marriage license to David Ermold and David Moore after the pair walked into the Rowan County Courthouse alongside journalists and protesters seeking the license. Last week, Davis was ordered to pay $260,104 in attorneys fees to the couple&#8217;s lawyers, on top of the $100,000 she was already ordered to pay to the couple directly.
&#8220;The plaintiffs in this case are part of a larger agenda that are intent on punishing people of faith who hold the values that marriage is the union of a man and a woman,&#8221; Liberty Counsel founder and chairman Mat Staver <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/kim-davis-case-overturn-supreme-court-same-sex-marriage-ruling-legal-counsel?dicbo=v2-DlzGkzQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Fox News. The organization is representing David.
&#8220;While it appears at this stage that they have been able to succeed, this case now is set up that it could possibly be the undoing of the very case that started this whole matter and that&#8217;s Obergefell v. Hodges from 2015 that has no basis in the Constitution,&#8221; Staver added.
The legal team will argue in an appeal that Davis &#8220;could not bring herself to violate her deeply held Christian beliefs,&#8221; and was entitled to a religious accommodation under the First Amendment, Fox noted.
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&#8220;Clerks in Kentucky (were) &#8230; provided conscience opt-outs for hunting and fishing licenses,&#8221; Staver said. &#8220;Kim Davis wanted a conscience opt-out for the same-sex marriage licenses.&#8221;
At the time, then-Governor Andy Beshear, a Democrat, doled out an exemption for his attorney general, who said he could not defend the state&#8217;s marriage amendment. Davis was not awarded one, however, and spent days in jail.
Currently, clerks in the state are allowed to opt-op from such participation.
Despite the legal team&#8217;s outlook, some conservatives do not believe Obergefell v. Hodges will be overturned. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz (R), for example, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/it-would-be-more-than-a-little-chaotic-ted-cruz-explains-why-supreme-court-is-unlikely-to-overturn-gay-marriage-decision" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in 2022 that the 2015 decision was “clearly wrong,” but he does not believe the high court has any “appetite” to review the case. He added that it would be “chaotic” to disrupt such unions that occurred in accordance with the law.
“Obergefell, like Roe v. Wade, ignored two centuries of our nation’s history,” Cruz said at the time. “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.”
&#8220;In [Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision,] what the Supreme Court said is Roe is different because it’s the only one of the cases that involve the taking of a human life and that’s qualitatively different” than Obergefell, Cruz said.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/kentucky-clerk-who-refused-to-issue-licenses-following-scotus-gay-marriage-ruling-must-pay-over-260k-in-fees-judge-rules" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kentucky Clerk Who Refused To Issue Licenses Following SCOTUS Gay Marriage Ruling Must Pay Over $260K In Fees, Judge Rules</a>

owan County Clerk of Courts Kim Davis waves to a crowd of her supporters at a rally in front of the Carter County Detention Center on September 8, 2015 in Grayson, Kentucky.

Kim Davis Fighting Back After Ordered To Pay $100,000 To Gay Couple, Could End Up At SCOTUS, Legal Team Says

Kim Davis Is fighting Back After Being Ordered To Pay $100,000 To Gay Couple, Could End Up At SCOTUS, Legal Team Says

Courts

Kentucky

LGBTQ

Same-Sex Marriage

U.S.

Kim Davis, the former <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/kentucky" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kentucky</a> clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses after the Supreme Court&#8217;s landmark decision in 2015 on gay marriage, must pay $260,104 in fees to attorneys who represented a couple, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.
Despite Davis’ attorneys arguing that the fee request by the same-sex couple’s lawyers was excessive, U.S. District Judge David L. Bunning said that the former clerk’s lawyers exaggerated and “belie[d] logic,” the Lexington Herald-Leader <a href="https://www.kentucky.com/news/state/kentucky/article283727788.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. The $260,104 in attorneys fees is in addition to $100,000 in damages a jury ordered Davis to pay David Ermold and David Moore, a couple who won a lawsuit against her last September. Davis’ attorneys are expected to appeal Bunning’s ruling.
“They sought to vindicate their fundamental right to marry and obtain marriage licenses, and they did so,” Bunning said of the couple.
The ruling is the latest in a more than eight-year legal struggle for Davis, an evangelical Christian who was the county clerk in Rowan County, Kentucky, in 2015, shortly after the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which ruled that same-sex couples are guaranteed a right to marry under the U.S. Constitution. Davis made headlines after the decision when Ermold and Moore walked into the Rowan County Courthouse followed by journalists and protesters, seeking to obtain a marriage license.
To avoid issuing any marriage licenses to gay couples, which Davis said was against her religious convictions, she refused to hand out marriage licenses to any couple. After entering the courthouse in September of 2015, Ermold asked Davis “under whose authority” she refused to issue a marriage license, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/02/us/same-sex-marriage-kentucky-kim-davis.html?smid=pl-share" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to The New York Times.
“Under God’s authority,” she responded.
Davis was then jailed for five days for contempt of court, and the gay couple’s marriage license was issued by a deputy clerk after Davis’ name was removed from the form while she was behind bars. The former county clerk was also sued by another gay couple whose license she denied, but a separate jury didn’t award them any damages, WKYT <a href="https://www.wkyt.com/2024/01/02/judge-kim-davis-owes-250k-attorneys-fees/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
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Davis lost her re-election bid in 2018 to Democrat Elwood Caudill Jr. by eight percentage points, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/judge-rules-former-clerk-refused-issue-same-sex-marriage-licenses-pay-260000-legal-expenses" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. Ermold, one of the men to whom Davis refused to issue a marriage license, also ran in the primary against Caudill Jr. in 2018, but came up short. After his primary loss, Ermold said he would prefer Davis win the election over Caudill Jr.
&#8220;I just want him to lose. I would rather Kim Davis win,&#8221; Ermold said. &#8220;At least Kim Davis has the integrity to stand up for what she believes in. Elwood Caudill is a liar.&#8221;

Kim Davis

Kentucky Clerk Who Refused To Issue Licenses Following SCOTUS Gay Marriage Ruling Must Pay Over $260K In Fees, Judge Rules

Judge

Supreme Court

Pope Francis clarified this week that Catholic priests can bless individuals in same-sex couples but cautioned that such a blessing does not sanction the union and cannot resemble a marriage ceremony.
Couples in &#8220;irregular situations,&#8221; including same-sex relationships, can receive blessings that do not &#8220;sanction or legitimize&#8221; their unions, the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, which exists to defend Catholic doctrine, clarified in a <a href="https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2023/12/18/0901/01963.html#en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">document</a> published Monday.
The document, called &#8220;Fiducia Supplicans,&#8221; was signed by Pope Francis as well as the Dicastery’s new prefect, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández.
Priests can give people in same-sex couples a &#8220;spontaneous blessing,&#8221; but the blessing cannot be a &#8220;liturgical&#8221; act or resemble the sacrament of marriage, the document says.
A blessing on people in same-sex couples cannot be given in connection with a civil union, and no &#8220;clothing, gestures, or words that are proper to a wedding&#8221; can be included in order &#8220;to avoid any form of confusion or scandal,&#8221; the document says.
&#8220;Rites and prayers that could create confusion between what constitutes marriage — which is the &#8216;exclusive, stable, and indissoluble union between a man and a woman, naturally open to the generation of children&#8217; — and what contradicts it are inadmissible,&#8221; the document warns.
Instead, the Vatican said that a priest can give a blessing in other contexts, such as a visit to a shrine, a meeting with a priest, a group prayer, or during a pilgrimage.
In the blessing, the priest can pray for the individuals to have &#8220;peace, health, a spirit of patience, dialogue, and mutual assistance — but also God’s light and strength to be able to fulfill his will completely,&#8221; the document states.
&#8220;There is no intention to legitimize anything, but rather to open one’s life to God, to ask for his help to live better, and also to invoke the Holy Spirit so that the values of the Gospel may be lived with greater faithfulness,&#8221; the document adds.
The Catholic Church does not sanction same-sex marriage, and that official position remains unchanged, the document emphasized.
&#8220;The Church’s doctrine on this point remains firm,&#8221; the document says.
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&#8220;At the same time, one should not prevent or prohibit the Church’s closeness to people in every situation in which they might seek God’s help through a simple blessing,&#8221; the document adds.
In recent years, there has been much speculation around whether Pope Francis would change the Catholic Church’s approach to people in same-sex relationships.
On Monday, media outlets and commentators <a href="https://twitter.com/JamesMartinSJ/status/1736752055362936938" target="_blank" rel="noopener">presented</a> the Vatican&#8217;s document as a major shift for the Catholic Church.
However, the Catholic Church <a href="https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/does-doctrine-change" target="_blank" rel="noopener">never changes</a> its official doctrine, although it often clarifies particular points.

Vatican Hosts World Meeting Of Families

Pope Says Blessings For Individuals In Same-Sex Relationships Cannot Resemble Marriage

Catholic

Catholic Church

Catholicism

Pope Francis

Religion

The Vatican

Vatican

World

A Christian social worker in the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/united-kingdom">U.K.</a> is taking legal action after his job offer was rescinded for his Christian views of sexuality and marriage.
Felix Ngole was offered his “dream job” as a mental health support worker at Touchstone Support Leeds, a charity <a href="https://www.nhs.uk/services/service-directory/touchstone/N10499434">partnered</a> with the U.K.’s National Health Service (NHS), but weeks later, the company <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12278659/Christian-job-offer-rescinded-company-learns-victory-free-speech-case.html">rescinded</a> the offer when it found out about his Christian beliefs and past victory in a religious liberty case.
Several weeks after receiving his acceptance letter, he received an email from Touchstone Deputy CEO Kathryn Hart, saying he was not fit for the position because the company had “identified some significant areas and concerns” that did not “align with Touchstone Leeds’ ethos and values.” 
“In particular, we can see that you have very strong views against homosexuality and same-sex marriage, which completely go against the views of Touchstone, an organisation committed to actively promoting and supporting LGBTQ+ rights,” Hart continued.
She said that she would reconsider if he would embrace Touchstone’s values, including “the promotion of homosexual rights.”
The father of three was then invited to a meeting with Hart and the company’s operations director, Dave Pickard, who questioned him intensely about his beliefs.
Ngole, who fled persecution in Cameroon, compared the questioning to interrogations he experienced in his home country. “They called it a discussion but it felt like I was being interrogated back in Cameroon,” he said. “Every question had an LGBT slant. … I think they were concerned that employing me could risk their Stonewall ranking.”
&#8220;What I cannot do, and you cannot reasonably expect me to do without yourselves being discriminatory, is make my participation in the &#8216;promotion of homosexual rights&#8217; a condition of my employment,&#8221; Ngole responded in the meeting, assuring them he would not discriminate against anyone. 
A week after the meeting, he received an email from the company officially rescinding his job offer, stating that his beliefs would be “upsetting and offensive” to their patients and would “exacerbate … [their] anxiety and depression.”
Touchstone Support <a href="https://touchstonesupport.org.uk/about-us/senior-leadership-team/">boasts</a> its “Top 100 LGBTQ+ Inclusive Employer” ranking and “Gold” award from the controversial organization <a href="https://www.stonewall.org.uk/">Stonewall</a>, which <a href="https://www.stonewall.org.uk/join-diversity-champions-programme">promotes</a> left-wing LGBTQ agenda items in workplaces. The company’s logo even dons the Pride and transgender flags’ colors.
Ngole is now pursuing legal action against the organization under the U.K. Equality Act, which forbids discrimination on the basis of religion. 
Andrea Williams, of the Christian Legal Centre, which is representing Ngole, said, “Telling an employee they must &#8217;embrace and promote&#8217; homosexuality as a condition of employment sets a dark and troubling precedent. If left unchallenged it would see Christians who manifest their beliefs barred from working in the NHS.”
The Centre <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/christian-social-worker-takes-legal-action-job-withdrawn-told-embrace-promote-lgbt-rights">said</a> that he was “the best performing candidate in interview, gaining the highest marks of any candidate on an equality and diversity assessment.”
Religious discrimination is not new for Ngole, as he won a case against the University of Sheffield, which had expelled him for his Christian beliefs. In 2016, the university expelled him for quoting Bible verses about homosexuality in a Facebook discussion and told him not to express his views, even in church, according to <a href="https://www2.cbn.com/news/world/british-court-upholds-right-christians-freely-express-their-faith">CBN News</a>. 
The U.K. Court of Appeal rebuked the university in a landmark free speech victory, saying, “The mere expression of religious views about sin does not necessarily connote discrimination.&#8221; The Court of Appeal also found that Ngole would “never discriminate against anyone” because of his religious views. His victory in the case played a role in the offer being rescinded, according to The Daily Mail.
This type of discrimination is on the rise in the U.K., <a href="https://www2.cbn.com/news/world/christian-social-worker-uk-denied-job-refusing-pledge-allegiance-lgbt-flag">according</a> to Williams. &#8220;What we see here is the confident totalitarianism of an organization that has been captured by Stonewall and will do anything to keep their Stonewall ranking as high as possible,&#8221; she said. &#8220;Viewpoint discrimination is escalating in the UK at an alarming rate &#8230; Anyone who does not comply and celebrate LGBT ideology must become a &#8216;non-person.'&#8221;
Viewpoint discrimination is a rising concern for British politicians. As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-k-bank-refuses-to-open-account-for-conservative-parent-group-report">reported</a>, U.K. banks backed by the Stonewall group have denied or shut individuals’ accounts for their political views or positions. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12258933/Rishi-Sunak-issues-warning-banks-blacklisting-customers-controversial-views.html">vowed</a> to investigate such discrimination.

Felix Ngole court case

Christian Social Worker Sues After Losing Job Offer, Told He Must ‘Embrace And Promote Homosexual Rights’

Christian Social Worker Sues After Losing Job Offer, Told He Must 'Embrace And Promote Homosexual Rights'

Discrimination

LGBT

Religious Freedom

Social Issues

United Kingdom

In a landmark victory for free speech, the Supreme Court on Friday struck down a Colorado law that would have punished a Christian graphic designer who declined to design a website for a same-sex wedding that violated her religious beliefs.
In a 6-3 decision in the case of <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/22pdf/21-476_c185.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">303 Creative LLC v. Elenis</a>, the high court cited the First Amendment in ruling that Lorie Smith could not be forced by state civil rights law to design websites that run counter to her sincerely-held religious beliefs. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the majority, which included Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett, saying &#8220;no public accommodations law is immune from the demands of the Constitution.&#8221;
&#8220;The First Amendment prohibits Colorado from forcing a website designer to create expressive designs speaking messages with which the designer disagrees,&#8221; Gorsuch <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/22pdf/21-476_c185.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>.
Smith said she is willing to work with anyone regardless of their sexual orientation, but objected to being forced to build wedding websites for same-sex couples because same-sex marriage goes against her deeply held beliefs.
“There are some messages I can’t create no matter who requests them,” Smith <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/05/politics/supreme-court-same-sex-couples-lorie-smith/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in December.
Smith said she delayed expanding her business to start designing wedding websites because she was worried her beliefs would bump up against a Colorado public accommodations law. Colorado argued that Smith simply wanted to discriminate against same-sex couples and said the public accommodations law governs the conduct, not the speech of a person running a Colorado business.
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&#8220;Under Colorado’s logic, the government may compel anyone who speaks for pay on a given topic to accept all commissions on that same topic — no matter the message — if the topic somehow implicates a customer’s statutorily protected trait,&#8221; Gorsuch wrote for the majority.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, calling the ruling “profoundly wrong” and arguing that the Constitution “contains no right to refuse service to a disfavored group.”
“Today is a sad day in American constitutional law and in the lives of LGBT people. The Supreme Court of the United States declares that a particular kind of business, though open to the public, has a constitutional right to refuse to serve members of a protected class. The Court does so for the first time in its history,” Sotomayor wrote.
&#8220;The immediate, symbolic effect of the decision is to mark gays and lesbians for second-class status,&#8221; she added.
Gorsuch spent some of his majority opinion heavily criticizing Sotomayor&#8217;s dissent.
&#8220;It is difficult to read the dissent and conclude we are looking at the same case,&#8221; Gorsuch wrote.
The question at hand is, &#8220;Can a State force someone who provides her own expressive services to abandon her conscience and speak its preferred message instead?&#8221; Gorsuch said. &#8220;When the dissent finally gets around to that question— more than halfway into its opinion—it reimagines the facts of this case from top to bottom,&#8221; he wrote.
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&#8220;In some places, the dissent gets so turned around about the facts that it opens fire on its own position,&#8221; Gorsuch said.
The case is the most recent similar case coming out of Colorado.
In 2018, the Supreme Court ruled narrowly in favor of a Colorado baker who refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple. In that case, the court reversed the Colorado Civil Rights Commission&#8217;s decision against Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, saying the state had failed to be neutral on religion.
The narrow ruling in 2018 avoided addressing the larger issue of anti-discrimination laws potentially clashing with freedom of religion and speech, eventually leading to the 303 Creative case coming before the court.
&#8220;This will go down as one of the most important free speech cases in the history of the court,&#8221; legal scholar Jonathan Turley <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/web-designer-victory-supreme-court-free-speech-win-all" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> on Fox News in response to Friday&#8217;s ruling.
&#8220;Many of us have argued that these cases should not be religion clause cases but free speech cases,&#8221; Turley said. &#8220;What happened here is that the court could have considered both issues but refused the religion clause claim and said that they were only going to look at free speech. And this is why, because Gorsuch is saying that we&#8217;ve always been clear — you can&#8217;t coerce people to say things.&#8221;
Turley also clarified that the court&#8217;s decision does not give businesses a license to discriminate against customers.
&#8220;These cases, Masterpiece Cakeshop as well as 303 Creative, do not change the public accommodation laws. You cannot be refused to go into stores and buy items that are pre-made, for example, based on your race or your status,&#8221; Turley said. &#8220;What the court is saying here is that with these types of creative products, it is speech.&#8221;
</div>
</div>
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This is a breaking news story and will be updated.

Supreme Court of the United States 303 Creative v Elenis

Supreme Court Sides With Christian Graphic Designer, Says State Can’t Force Her To Violate Her Religious Beliefs

Supreme Court Sides With Christian Graphic Designer, Says State Can't Force Her To Violate Her Religious Beliefs

Politics

SCOTUS

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>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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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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

Gay Rights

History

Joe Biden

The Church of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/england" target="_blank" rel="noopener">England</a> said it will allow blessings for same-sex couples who marry, but will not allow its priests to officiate same-sex marriages in its churches and has decided not to redefine Holy Matrimony.
The Wednesday announcement comes after five years of heated debate “expected to be outlined in a report” ahead of the church&#8217;s General Synod that meets next month in London, per the Associated Press.
“This response reflects the diversity of views in the Church of England on questions of sexuality, relationships and marriage. I rejoice in that diversity and I welcome this way of reflecting it in the life of our church,” Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the spiritual leader of the Anglican Church, said in a <a href="https://apnews.com/article/anglicanism-england-wales-marriage-religion-5086b3376929156e5f41461193a67aa5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>.
The Archbishop of York, the Most Rev&#8217;d Stephen Cottrell, also <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-64313367" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> BBC Radio 4&#8217;s &#8220;Today&#8221; that &#8220;it&#8217;s not same-sex marriage,&#8221; but marked a &#8220;real step forward&#8221; for the church.
&#8220;What I want to emphasise is that with these proposals, people who have entered into a same-sex marriage or who are in a civil partnership will be welcomed into the Church at a service of dedication and acknowledgment of that relationship,&#8221; Cottrell added. &#8220;That is a change from where we are at the moment.&#8221;
The church&#8217;s compromise <a href="https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/bishops-propose-prayers-thanksgiving-dedication-and-gods-blessing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">position</a> will hold that &#8220;same-sex couples would still not be able to get married in a Church of England church, but could have a service in which there would be prayers of dedication, thanksgiving or for God’s blessing on the couple in church following a civil marriage or partnership.&#8221;
As part of the new announcement, the Bishops of the Church of England intend to issue an apology later this week to LGBTQ people over the &#8220;rejection, exclusion, and hostility&#8221; they have faced in churches.
The Church of England will urge all congregations in its care to welcome same-sex couples “unreservedly and joyfully,&#8221; according to its update.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in the U.K. since 2013, but the church&#8217;s teaching has remained unchanged. The new position by the Church of England will also stand at odds with the Church of Scotland, which already allows same-sex weddings.
LGBT activists have argued that the church&#8217;s announcement is insufficient.
“The discrimination embedded into these proposals is what concerns me. It’s very clear that there is a clear distinction in their minds between holy matrimony and civil marriage and that distinction is what causes so many young LGBT people to feel second class,&#8221; Jayne Ozanne, a prominent LGBT campaigner, said, according to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/01/18/church-of-england-gay-marriage-ban/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Washington Post</a>.
British evangelical leader Ian Paul took the opposing view. He argued that the decision will retain the traditional definition of marriage, but will cause problems as the church is calling leaders to &#8220;bless&#8221; a marriage that opposes church teachings.
“There is going to be no change to the doctrine of marriage. That’s very clear. But the waters have been muddied in quite an unhelpful way. Saying that the doctrine is not going to change and in the same breath saying we want to bless same-sex relationships is entirely incoherent, entirely contradictory,&#8221; he <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/18/church-of-england-bishops-refuse-to-back-gay-marriage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stated</a>.

Justin Welby

Church Of England Allows Blessings For Same-Sex Civil Marriages

England

Marriage

Christian music star <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/i-forgot-lyrics-amy-grant-talks-recovering-from-major-bike-accident-in-july/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amy Grant</a> drew a firestorm of commentary — some supportive and some critical — when reports began circulating that she planned to host a same-sex wedding for her niece.
<a href="https://dailywire.com/news/everything-shes-been-going-through-vince-gill-updates-fans-on-wife-amy-grants-condition-after-major-accident/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Grant</a> spoke with The Washington Post for a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2022/11/29/amy-grant-kennedy-center-honors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent profile</a> ahead of her appearance at the Kennedy Center Honors — she was the first contemporary Christian artist to receive that award — and she told the outlet that her niece&#8217;s wedding would be the first &#8220;bride and bride&#8221; arrangement for her family.
&#8220;Honestly, from a faith perspective, I do always say, &#8216;Jesus, you just narrowed it down to two things: love God and love each other.&#8217; I mean, hey — that’s pretty simple,&#8221; Grant said.
Some cheered Grant&#8217;s announcement, sharing their thoughts on Twitter.
&#8220;For so many of us gay church boys of a specific era, Amy Grant was our first kind of crush/pop star, so seeing her host her niece’s same-sex wedding is amazing,&#8221; actor Emerson Collins tweeted.
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For so many of us gay church boys of a specific era, Amy Grant was our first kind of crush/pop star, so seeing her host her niece’s same-sex wedding is amazing. <a href="https://t.co/HXwMGe9NaR">https://t.co/HXwMGe9NaR</a>
&mdash; Emerson Collins (@ActuallyEmerson) <a href="https://twitter.com/ActuallyEmerson/status/1603117981726257152?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 14, 2022</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Amy Grant getting soft-canceled for defying conservative evangelical expectations …the 90s are back!&#8221; Ruth Graham <a href="https://twitter.com/publicroad/status/1604856583812440065" target="_blank" rel="noopener">commented</a>.
Not all of the responses were positive, however.
&#8220;Amy Grant announced she and her husband Vince Gill are going to host a same-sex wedding on their farm for her niece. Amy is quoted as saying, &#8216;Jesus, you just narrowed it down to two things: love God &amp; love each other.&#8217; This isn’t love, it’s compromise,&#8221; Terri Green <a href="https://twitter.com/TerriGreenUSA/status/1604948256886333440" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
The Rev. Franklin Graham was also among those who criticized the singer&#8217;s position, tweeting, &#8220;Yes, we are to love God &amp; love each other. But if we love God, we will seek to obey His Word. Jesus told us, &#8216;If you love Me, keep My commandments&#8217; (John 14:15). God defines what is sin, not us; &amp; His Word is clear that homosexuality is a sin.&#8221;
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For me, loving others also means caring about their souls &amp; where they will spend eternity. It means loving people enough to tell them the truth from the Word of God. The authority of God’s Word is something we can never compromise on.
&mdash; Franklin Graham (@Franklin_Graham) <a href="https://twitter.com/Franklin_Graham/status/1604635091015286784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 19, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Graham went on to say that loving people did not always mean simply accepting everything they did, noting that sometimes caring about their souls and their relationship with God was loving them as well.
&#8220;It means loving people enough to tell them the truth from the Word of God. The authority of God&#8217;s Word is something we can never compromise on,&#8221; he added.
Grant is <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2022/11/29/amy-grant-kennedy-center-honors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">no stranger to controversy</a> — she took backlash over the cover photo of her sophomore album, in which she was pictured wearing a button-down shirt with the top three buttons undone. She was later accused of &#8220;selling out&#8221; when she released the video for her hit song &#8220;Baby, Baby&#8221; — because the video featured her dancing with a man who was not her husband.
In 1999, she divorced her then-husband Gary Chapman — and married country music star Vince Gill a year later. And despite the fact that both insisted they had only been friends when they were married to other people, the scandal grew legs, and several Christian music stations stopped playing her music.
Gill had nothing but praise for the way his wife stood tall through all the criticism: &#8220;The beauty is [the criticism] doesn’t seem to faze her and sure as hell doesn’t change her.&#8221;

President Biden Hosts Kennedy Center Honorees Reception

Twitter Blows Up Over Christian Music Star Hosting Same-Sex Wedding For Her Niece

Twitter Blows Up Over Christian Music Star Amy Grant Hosting Same-Sex Wedding For Her Niece

Celebrities

Christianity

Music Industry

Twitter

&#8220;The View&#8221; co-host Whoopi Goldberg suggested that all of the Republicans who <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/breaking-dem-controlled-senate-passes-same-sex-marriage-bill-12-republicans-support/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voted in favor</a> of the so-called <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dem-controlled-house-passes-same-sex-marriage-bill-39-republicans-support/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Respect for Marriage Act</a> may have done so at the stern behest of a friend — or &#8220;perhaps a lover.&#8221;
During Wednesday&#8217;s broadcast of the long-running ABC midday talk show, Goldberg and her co-hosts discussed the legislation — which President Joe Biden signed into law on Tuesday in a <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/biden-signs-same-sex-marriage-bill-drag-queens-invited-to-lavish-wh-ceremony/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lavish ceremony</a> that included drag queens, among others.
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Damned if you do, damned if you don&#39;<a href="https://t.co/CXBiiovtrY">https://t.co/CXBiiovtrY</a> Behar suggests Congressional Republicans opposed to the Respect for Marriage Act are also against interracial marriage. Whoopi suggests Republicans who did vote for it did so at the behest of a secret gay lover. <a href="https://t.co/gcWhSPC499">pic.twitter.com/gcWhSPC499</a>
&mdash; Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickFondacaro/status/1603060942991933441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 14, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Co-host <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/that-really-makes-me-nuts-joy-behar-ties-colorado-springs-shooting-to-lauren-boeberts-2021-christmas-photo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joy Behar</a> was first to address the topic, and she complained about the Republicans who had not voted to federally codify same-sex marriage. She asked whether those same people have also been opposed to interracial marriage, which was also federally protected under the new law.
&#8220;Does that mean that these Republicans who are against the gay marriage bill are also against interracial marriage?&#8221; she asked, and her co-hosts all began talking at once.
&#8220;No, it&#8217;s not that,&#8221; Republican co-host <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/thats-not-fairsuch-a-cheap-shot-the-view-blows-up-as-alyssa-farah-griffin-and-kellyanne-conway-clash/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alyssa Farah Griffin</a> cut in, adding in exaggerated tones. &#8220;It&#8217;s the fear of like polyamory or, like, you&#8217;re going to marry a relative &#8230; I mean, I think.&#8221;
&#8220;That must be the slippery slope. Bestiality? Is that what they&#8217;re thinking?&#8221; co-host Sunny Hostin asked, prompting loud laughter from the audience.
Griffin went on to argue that straight couples were more likely to damage traditional marriage than same-sex couples were, and Goldberg promptly agreed: &#8220;That&#8217;s the biggest threat.&#8221;
&#8220;Anytime somebody decides that they want to get married, celebrate them,&#8221; <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/let-me-explain-something-exasperated-whoopi-lectures-joni-ernst-says-iowa-is-too-white-to-lead-primaries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Goldberg</a> insisted, going on to claim that putting rules on marriage was like &#8220;giving the finger&#8221; to same-sex couples who were already married.
&#8220;And I suspect many of these folks voted the way they did because somebody they know said, &#8216;If you don&#8217;t vote this way, I&#8217;ll never speak to you again,'&#8221; Goldberg concluded, apparently suggesting that some Republicans may have only voted in favor of the measure under duress. &#8220;Perhaps a lover? Maybe a friend.&#8221;
Across both legislative chambers, a total of 51 Republicans voted to pass the Respect for Marriage Act — 39 of them in the House of Representatives and 12 in the Senate.

“I Got Somethin’ To Tell You” Screening And Q+A With Director Whoopi Goldberg Exclusively For American Express Cardmembers

‘Perhaps A Lover?’: Whoopi Goldberg Hints Republicans Who Voted For Marriage Bill Were Threatened To Do So

Whoopi Goldberg Hints Republicans Who Voted For Marriage Bill Were Threatened To Do So

Media

Respect for Marriage Act

The View

Whoopi Goldberg

President <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/biden-administration" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joe Biden</a> invited <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/drag-queen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">drag queen</a> Marti G. Cummings to attend the signing of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/respect-for-marriage-act" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Respect for Marriage Act</a> at the <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/white-house" target="_blank" rel="noopener">White House</a>.
Both the House of Representatives and the Senate have greenlit the legislation, which <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dem-controlled-house-passes-same-sex-marriage-bill-39-republicans-support" target="_blank" rel="noopener">enshrines same-sex marriage</a> protections into federal law in accordance with the Supreme Court’s opinion in Obergefell v. Hodges. Democratic lawmakers recruited 39 Republicans in the lower chamber and 10 in the upper chamber to support the bill, which is expected to be signed into law on Tuesday.
Cummings shared a screenshot of the White House invitation on social media and expressed thankfulness toward the Biden administration.
“To be a non-binary drag artist invited to the White House is something I never imagined would happen,” the drag queen <a href="https://twitter.com/MartiGCummings/status/1602335170706669575" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. “Grateful doesn’t begin to express the emotions I feel.”
Cummings recently mounted an <a href="https://twitter.com/MartiGCummings/status/1411337557653307392" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unsuccessful campaign</a> for the New York City Council, remarking in the magazine Out that he <a href="https://www.out.com/out-exclusives/2019/9/05/meet-drag-queen-running-new-york-city-council" target="_blank" rel="noopener">desires</a> to “not only be a drag queen who&#8217;s funny, silly, and entertaining, but somebody who took that platform and used it for something bigger.”
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) remarked in a <a href="https://twitter.com/SenMikeLee/status/1593000633954865153?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1593000633954865153%7Ctwgr%5E25353db1d07f622a0ebb595d228af91f6e7c8813%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailywire.com%2Fnews%2Fsenate-advances-same-sex-marriage-bill-with-some-gop-support" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a> that he voted against a motion to advance the bill because its “religious liberty protections” were “severely anemic and largely illusory.” The lawmaker had expressed concern that religious individuals and organizations could be exposed to litigation and the loss of nonprofit status under the new law.
Biden nevertheless <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/12/08/statement-by-president-joe-biden-on-bipartisan-house-passage-of-the-respect-for-marriage-act/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">praised</a> the final passage of the Respect for Marriage Act, saying that “millions of marriages and families” have been put at ease following the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade and other previous opinions purporting a constitutional right to abortion.
“On this day, Jill and I are thinking of the courageous couples and fiercely committed advocates who have fought for decades to secure nationwide marriage equality at the Supreme Court and in Congress,” he said. “While we are one step closer on our long journey to build a more perfect union, we must never stop fighting for full equality for LGBTQI+ Americans and all Americans.”
Cummings also conducts activism on behalf of the “queer youth population” in New York City, according to Out. “I also think we need young people at the table. We need new, fresh voices,” Cummings continued. “We have a lot of queer elected officials now, but we need really, really progressive queer candidates. We need candidates who are going to take us to that next level. New York politics for a long time has been dynasty politics, and we should bring some new people to the table because politics should be open to everybody.”
Biden recently made waves by inviting Dylan Mulvaney, a biological man who identifies as a transgender woman, to the White House to discuss transgender issues.

“Drag Kids” – NewFest Film Festival

Biden Invites Drag Queen To Attend Bill Signing At The White House

Biden Invites Drag Queen Marti G. Cummings To Attend White House Ceremony

Biden Administration

Drag Queens

White House

In March 2013, nearly a decade ago, I made a prediction.
“Within the next few months,” I wrote, “Justice Anthony Kennedy will likely rule that same-sex marriage is mandated by the Constitution of the United States … states will be forced to recognize same-sex marriages; same-sex marriage will enter the public school lexicon; religious institutions will be forced to recognize same-sex marriages or lose their tax-exempt status. Religious Americans will be forced into violating their beliefs or facing legal consequences by the government.”
Welp.
This month, the Congress is poised to pass a bill that would sanctify same-sex marriage; that same bill essentially argues that opposing same-sex marriage is akin to opposing interracial marriage, an act of bigotry. It provides no explicit bar on removal of tax-exempt status from religious institutions; it does not protect religious individuals in their daily lives.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court considers whether to force a religious web designer to make a website celebrating a same-sex marriage. Several of the more conservative justices seek to draw a line between anti-discrimination law — laws on the state and federal level preventing “discrimination” on the basis of “sexual orientation” — and religious freedom. They do so by creating distinctions on the basis of expressive behavior (say, artistic expression in making a website) versus simple services provision (say, running a restaurant); they do so by distinguishing between services that require a message (say, baking a wedding cake) and serving gay couples without any message attached.
All of this legal hairsplitting is being done in an attempt to craft a form of the so-called Utah Compromise. That compromise put in place an anti-discrimination law with specific religious exemptions. But the Utah Compromise creates two additional problems: first, it stigmatizes belief in traditional marriage as a sort of vestige of religious bigotry we allow out of an outdated sympathy for the antiquated Bible-believers; second, it does not extend the rights of religious people outside of religious institutions. And, as it turns out, most religious people spend most of their time outside of religious institutions.
None of this would be necessary had we not undergone a complete transformation of the Constitutional order over the past few decades. The Constitution of the United States provides zero power to the federal government to violate freedom of speech or association or religion. But, as Christopher Caldwell has pointed out in The Age of Entitlement, the Civil Rights Act created a “rival Constitution” dedicated to violating those freedoms in the name of anti-discrimination. One can agree that racial bigotry is evil while still recognizing that the intrusion of the CRA into private behavior — not merely in ending state-sponsored discrimination, which was necessary and appropriate — amounts of a massive expansion of federal power in violation of the Constitution.
The legal obliteration of the distinction between governmental and private activity was only one prong of the new societal remolding. The second was the philosophical obliteration of the distinction between immutable characteristics and behavior. The case can easily be made morally that people ought not be victims of discrimination based on their immutable characteristics, like race; rejecting moral disapproval of particular behavior, however, means destroying the basis for any moral system. Yet that is what the law does when it likens race to sexual orientation philosophically.
These twin attacks on traditional American society — vitiation of the distinction between private and public, and elimination of the distinction between innate characteristics and behavior — are predicates to tyranny. The new secular system sets up government as a new god, determining right and wrong and cramming it down on every subject. You will be forced to celebrate the behaviors of others; you will be treated as a bigot if you do not. The Supreme Court may hold back the legal ramifications of the new tyranny for now, but anyone who relies on the Court to do so forever will be sorely disappointed.

Ben Shapiro 2 (1)

You Will Be Made To Celebrate

Ben Shapiro

Readers Pass

This article is a companion piece to 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>.
Senate Codifies Same-Sex Marriage
The Senate <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-dem-controlled-senate-passes-same-sex-marriage-bill-12-republicans-support" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voted</a> Tuesday on legislation to protect same-sex and interracial marriages, moving Congress closer to passing the bill enshrining both into federal law. Twelve Republicans and 49 Democrats supported the bill, but opponents like Senator Mike Lee (R-UT), say the bill as currently written does not protect religious liberties.
U.S. House Passes Bill To Avoid Rail Strike
The U.S. House <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/house-passes-legislation-to-avoid-a-nationwide-rail-strike-bernie-sanders-intends-to-block-it" target="_blank" rel="noopener">passed an urgent bill today</a> in hopes of avoiding a nationwide rail strike. The bill would bind companies and workers to a proposed settlement that was reached in September but rejected by some of the 12 unions involved. The measure heads to the Senate, and if approved will head to President Joe Biden — who has urged the Senate to move quickly.
Disney Denies Politics
Disney CEO Bob Iger <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/new-disney-ceo-says-company-will-quiet-things-down-regrets-predecessor-battled-desantis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">remarked during a town hall event</a> with employees that he wants to advance social causes in a more subdued fashion. The comment comes after the entertainment giant faced public scrutiny earlier this year. Iger also denied that the company’s previous actions amounted to political activism.
&#8220;I think there’s a misperception here about what politics is, I think that some of the subjects that have proven to be controversial, as it relates to Disney, have been branded political and I don’t necessarily think they are,&#8221; Iger said. &#8220;I don’t think when you are telling stories and attempting to be a good citizen of the world that that&#8217;s political.”
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EXCLUSIVE: I have obtained video from returning Disney CEO Bob Iger&#39;s first town hall with employees, in which he signals that he will work to &quot;quiet things down&quot; politically and move toward neutrality in the culture war.<a href="https://t.co/ZBGdHhxFVS">https://t.co/ZBGdHhxFVS</a> <a href="https://t.co/ZbMCZN4MlG">pic.twitter.com/ZbMCZN4MlG</a>
&mdash; Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) <a href="https://twitter.com/realchrisrufo/status/1597683598496526338?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Disclosure: The Daily Wire has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/videos/introducing-dw-kids">announced plans</a> for kids entertainment content.
Lethal Robots In San Francisco
This week, San Francisco <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/remote-controlled-robots-with-deadly-explosives-approved-by-sf-board-of-supervisors" target="_blank" rel="noopener">granted</a> the city’s police department permission to deploy potentially lethal robots in emergency situations.
Police noted that the remotely-controlled machines will not have firearms, but could have explosive devices “to contact, incapacitate, or disorient violent, armed, or dangerous suspects&#8221; in life-threatening situations.
New Democratic Leadership
House Democrats <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-dems-elect-hard-left-rep-hakeem-jeffries-to-succeed-pelosi-as-house-leader" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voted</a> unanimously on Wednesday for hard-left Representative Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) to take over for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) as the new House Minority Leader. Jeffries ran unopposed. Pelosi announced she would not seek re-election to party leadership earlier this month.
Layoffs At CNN
CNN CEO Chris Licht <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/news/cnn-starts-laying-off-hundreds-of-employees-targeting-on-air-contributors-first/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> a wave of layoffs this week amid &#8220;a recalibrated reporting strategy.&#8221; The network will first notify contributors Wednesday, then full-time staff starting Thursday.
“It will be a difficult time for everyone,” Licht wrote in a memo to staff. The news network is reportedly attempting to change its editorial standards to be seen as more neutral.
Earlier this week, CNN anchor Don Lemon <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-don-lemon-offers-bizarre-rebuttal-when-colbert-says-new-cnn-boss-wont-let-anchors-be-liberal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pushed back</a> on the claim that the network had a liberal bias when asked about the changes by Stephen Colbert.
&#8220;The word on the street is that you guys aren’t allowed to be liberal anymore. Is that, is that the case?&#8221; Colbert asked.
“I don’t think we ever were liberal,” Lemon shot back.
“What?” Colbert said, appearing to be confused.
“Yes, I don’t think we ever were,” Lemon insisted.
Colbert pushed back, saying that it wasn’t really him saying that Licht wasn’t <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/that-is-bulls-cnn-head-honcho-says-hes-not-interested-in-being-centrist/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">allowing anchors</a> to be liberal: “That’s the people out there saying that he’s not letting you be liberal anymore.”
“Well, listen, I think that, I think what Chris is saying is that he wants Republicans, sensible Republicans,” Lemon explained, arguing that the new direction was more about keeping people “comfortable” than about choosing a side. “But also, by the nature of what we do, we have to hold people to account. And so that doesn’t necessarily mean that we’re going liberal or conservative or whatever. It just means that we are doing what we do. And that’s good journalism.”
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On <a href="https://twitter.com/colbertlateshow?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@colbertlateshow</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/donlemon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DonLemon</a> claims of CNN: “I don’t think we ever were liberal.” <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Colbert?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Colbert</a> <a href="https://t.co/eHj8LYg5xt">pic.twitter.com/eHj8LYg5xt</a>
&mdash; Brent Baker 🇺🇦 (@BrentHBaker) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrentHBaker/status/1597461526926999552?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Explosion At Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid, Spain
An <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/30/europe/madrid-ukraine-embassy-explosion-intl/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">explosion at the Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid, Spain</a>, early Wednesday reportedly injured one person. A Ukrainian spokesperson said an explosive device was “hidden” in an envelope that detonated inside the embassy. Local authorities are investigating the incident. No person or group has claimed responsibility.
Woman Sues Over Homemade Mac And Cheese
And a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/woman-sues-after-mac-and-cheese-takes-more-than-3-5-minutes-to-make" target="_blank" rel="noopener">woman is suing Kraft for $5 million</a> in a lawsuit alleging that the company’s macaroni and cheese product takes longer than the promised 3.5 minutes to make it.
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Wednesday Afternoon Update: CNN Layoffs, Disney Denies It’s Political, Killer Robots In San Francisco

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