Chris Johnson

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Barr Hints at Continuing Anti-LGBT Policies at Trump Justice Department

William Barr, President Trump’s pick to become the next attorney general, held his cards close to the vest on LGBT issues Tuesday during his confirmation hearing, but hinted upon confirmation he’d pursue the anti-LGBT policies of his predecessor Jeff Sessions. The answers from Barr suggest he’d continue to uphold the Justice Department’s view that LGBT people aren’t protected under Title VII of the Civil Rights of 1964, which bars sex discrimination in the workforce. Additionally, Barr suggested he’d uphold religious freedom even at the expense of anti-LGBT discrimination. In his opening statement before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Barr recognized the […]

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HIV/AIDS Council Set to Hold Meeting — but Trump Still Hasn’t Appointed Members

The Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS is set to hold a meeting in March, even though the council still has no members nearly a year after President Trump terminated its remaining advisers without explanation. According to an entry from Department of Health & Human Services set for publication in the Federal Register on Friday, PACHA “will be holding a meeting and will discuss recommendations regarding programs, policies, and research to promote effective prevention, treatment and cure of HIV disease and AIDS” on March 14-15, 2019. The meeting will be open to the public, the notice says, except the sessions will […]

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LGBT Issues Emerge as Key Factor in Challenge to Pelosi as Speaker

LGBT Issues are emerging as a key issue in the speaker’s race between House Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio). (Washington Blade photo of Pelosi by Michael Key; photo of Fudge by Tim Evanson via Wikimedia Commons) LGBT issues are emerging as a key factor in the challenge to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s bid for House Speaker, becoming a major source of distinction between the California Democrat and her prime competitor, Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio). After having once wielded the gavel under the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama and helping to […]

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Valdez rejects Anti-trans Bathroom Bill as ‘Fear-mongering’ in Texas Debate

Lesbian candidate for Texas governor Lupe Valdez rejected anti-transgender bathroom legislation — once a priority for anti-LGBT Gov. Greg Abbott — as “fear-mongering” in a debate Friday night with her opponent. During the debate at the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library in Austin, KSAT-TV anchor Steve Spriester asked Abbott whether he’d sign a bill barring transgender people from using the restroom consistent with their gender identity. Abbott, the Republican incumbent, initially dodged and talked about his priorities, including cutting property taxes, job creation and arresting gang members, eliminating gun violence in schools and taking care of Hurricane Harvey victims. “That […]

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83 House Lawmakers Urge VA to Cover Gender Reassignment Surgery

A group of House lawmakers is calling on the Department of Veterans to incorporate gender reassignment surgery as part of its coverage for U.S. veterans, calling denial of the procedure for transgender people “unconscionable.”In the Sept. 7 letter, the lawmakers respond to a request for comment on coverage for gender reassignment surgery. “Simply put, the VA has an obligation to provide the necessary care that is prescribed to enrolled veterans by their health care practitioners,” the letter says. “It is unconscionable to deny veterans the same access to health care services that civilians receive in the private sector, and that […]

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Trans Military Ban Ignored by Reporters, White House at Briefing

On the first White House news briefing after President Trump reaffirmed his ban on transgender people serving in the U.S. military, White House Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah declined to address the issue, nor did any reporters from mainstream media outlets ask about it as part of their questioning. The main focus from reporters on Monday during the 20-minute briefing, characteristically abbreviated for the Trump White House, was instead the “60 Minutes” interview Sunday night with porn star Stormy Daniels and the details she revealed about her alleged sexual affair with Trump. Other questions were about the U.S. expulsion of […]

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