Via press release: Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) responded Tuesday to Attorney General Roy Cooper’s announcement that he will not defend a state law passed with bipartisan support stopping men from entering public bathrooms and locker rooms with young girls and women. “Roy Cooper’s refusal to defend the law makes clear he wants the ACLU to win by default in …

From a Facebook post by the NC Safe Coalition: “While business owners in other states have received criticism and have even been forced out of business for standing up for common sense, hundreds (334) of North Carolina business owners have signed on to a letter thanking Governor Pat McCrory and the General Assembly for passing a law affirming the privacy …

The Springfield News-Gazette reports: A bed-and-breakfast near Paxton that turned down a same-sex couple’s request to hold a civil-union ceremony there in 2011 has been ordered to pay $30,000 in damages to the couple and $50,000 to their attorneys and to stop violating the Illinois Human Rights Act. Michael R. Robinson, an administrative law judge appointed by the Illinois Human …

Via press release from the Cruz campaign: We wanted to share some very exciting news with you: Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has just endorsed Ted Cruz for President. This is a HUGE deal. Scott Walker has enacted big, bold conservative reforms in Wisconsin. His endorsement confirms what we have been saying for months, Conservatives are uniting behind Ted Cruz. Will …

Brian Tashman reports at Right Wing Watch: Pat Robertson once again expressed outrage over the NFL’s strong opposition to an anti-LGBT bill in Georgia today, telling “700 Club” viewers that the league’s stance has made him “sick at my stomach.” Yesterday, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal vetoed the bill, which would have created broad protections for businesses that openly discriminate against …

Via USA Today: Patty Duke, the teen who won an Oscar for The Miracle Worker and later played “identical cousins” in her own TV sitcom, has died. She was 69. The news was confirmed Tuesday by one of her representatives, Mitchell Stubbs. “Anna ‘Patty Duke’ Pearce passed away this morning March 29, 2016 at 1:20 am,” his statement read. “Her …

“It is bad enough that these corporations have put their weight behind same-sex marriage. But when Georgia’s governor caves to the radical gay agenda by vetoing a bill that does nothing more than protect the religious freedom of those who have sincere religious objections to same-sex marriage, we must ask whose interests he truly represents: the people of Georgia or …

The Hill reports: Donald Trump’s campaign manager Corey Lewandowski has been charged in the alleged battery of former Breitbart reporter Michelle Fields, local police said Tuesday morning. The Jupiter, Fla., Police Department said Lewandowski has been charged with one count of simple battery for “intentionally” touching Fields. Video released by the police department appears to show Lewandowski reaching his left …

Minutes ago Buzzfeed News reported that Democratic North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper will not defend the constitutionality of his state’s newly-enacted anti-LGBT law. Cooper is running for governor against incumbent Pat McCrory, who has issued lie-filled statements in support of the law, which excludes LGBT citizens statewide from all discrimination protections. Story developing. See the tweets below from Buzzfeed’s …

In April 2013, Orange County elementary school teacher Rebecca Friedrichs sued the California Teachers Association, arguing that her mandatory union fees meant that she had been unwillingly forced into financially supporting the union’s advertising campaign against the passage of Proposition 8. Friedrich’s suit was joined by the Christian Educators Association International. Which brings us to today. Via The Atlantic: The …

“Whether or not Gov. Deal realizes it, religious liberties are being stripped away from people of all faiths every day. A religious liberties bill is not intended to discriminate, but instead to protect. Discrimination goes both ways. But choosing not to protect the faithful and their beliefs—a freedom that the U.S. Constitution affords us—discriminates against those who live their lives …

From the Knoxville News Sentinel: The state must pay more than $2 million in legal fees to three couples who successfully challenged Tennessee’s same-sex marriage ban, a federal judge in Nashville ruled Friday. Judge Aleta Trauger awarded $1.98 million in attorneys’ fees and $59,916 in expenses to the plaintiffs, which include Knoxville veterinarians Valeria Tanco and Sophy Jesty. The award, …

The LGBT religious group Faith In America gets to the core of North Carolina’s hate bill: Yet again, the religious right has hijacked religious narratives to justify their anti-LGBT bigotry. Ill-informed and misguided religious beliefs are being used against the transgender community in North Carolina. “North Carolina revoked a basic human right for their transgender community — to use public …

North Carolina’s High Point Market Week bills itself as the world’s largest home furnishings industry trade show and mere days after the state’s anti-LGBT bill was signed into law, the show’s organizers say they are being deluged with attendee cancellations for next month’s convention, which delivers an estimated $5.4B to the local economy with its spring and fall events. Via …

“In Georgia, turncoat Republican Governor Nathan Deal just vetoed an extremely modest bill to protect pastors and churches from having to participate in same-sex ‘weddings’ and give some minor protection to religious schools from having to hire someone who openly opposes their religious beliefs. Deal ignored dozens of examples of discrimination against people of faith that have occurred across the …

The Age reports: Victims of some of the worst sexual abuse perpetrated by the Catholic Church are being denied access to a vast archive of clergy crime, as the church continues to ensure the offending is kept secret, despite the files being handed over to the royal commission. The nearly 2000 files – which include evidence about at least 63 …

From the Los Angeles Times: Federal officials on Monday dropped their legal fight against Apple after unlocking the iPhone used by an assailant in last year’s San Bernardino terror attack, leaving unsettled a vexing debate over privacy and security amid rapid advances in technology. The move comes a week after Justice Department officials put a sudden hold on their demands …

Add New York state to New York City, San Francisco, and Seattle. From Gov. Cuomo’s edict: Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today signed an executive order banning all non-essential state travel to North Carolina. The order requires all New York State agencies, departments, boards and commissions to immediately review all requests for state funded or state sponsored travel to the state …

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory is a very unhappy with the lawsuit filed yesterday. From a statement issued by his office: “The governor respects the right of any legal challenges; however, he does not respect the continued distortion of the facts by the groups challenging this law and by many members of the state and national media,” said Graham Wilson, …

Yesterday a press conference was held at which the plaintiffs in the federal lawsuit against North Carolina appeared. Watch below. The Associated Press reports: The plaintiffs are two transgender people, a lesbian law professor, the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina and Equality North Carolina. Defendants include McCrory and the University of North Carolina system, where two of the …