Politics

The Desert Sun reports: For years — starting with the election of Ron Oden, an openly gay man, in 1995 and then the passage of a domestic partnership ordinance — LGBT voters and their allies had been making slow but steady progress at Palm Springs City Hall. Then in 2008, after the passage of a statewide initiative to ban same-sex …

The Hill reports: A key Democratic senator who attended Tuesday’s meeting on tax reform with Trump administration officials recounted to The Hill trying to get off the phone with President Trump. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) said National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn and White House legislative affairs director Marc Short came ready to listen; the president – who joined by …

Talking Points Memo reports: Maine voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to become the first state in the nation to expand Medicaid by ballot initiative, approving the measure by a nearly 20-point margin. But Republican Gov. Paul LePage, a vehement opponent of Medicaid who has vetoed expansion bills five times since the Affordable Care Act became law, is threatening once again to …

The Hill reports: President Trump congratulated his supporters on the Wednesday anniversary of his historic victory in the 2016 election, calling them “deplorables” in a nod to former Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton. The anniversary tweet came attached to a photo of the president with key White House aides aboard Air Force One on Trump’s 13-day trip through Asia, including White …

The New York Times reports: The Trump administration on Wednesday tightened the economic embargo on Cuba, restricting Americans from access to hotels, stores and other businesses tied to the Cuban military. A lengthy list of rules, which President Trump promised in June to punish the communist government in Havana, came just as Mr. Trump was visiting leaders of the communist …

The Associated Press reports: Former President Barack Obama, free of a job that forced him to move to Washington for eight years, showed up to a downtown Chicago courthouse for jury duty on Wednesday morning. Whether he will be selected to sit on a jury, and presumably be selected jury foreman, was not known. But if he is like other …

Politico reports: Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski said Tuesday night his “memory has been refreshed” regarding his email exchange with Carter Page in which the former foreign policy adviser requested Lewandowski’s permission to travel to Moscow. Page, who testified last week before the House Oversight Committee as a part of their ongoing probe into Russian election meddling in 2016, …

Newsweek reports: With President Donald Trump out of the country, his son Donald Trump Jr. decided to urge people to vote Tuesday in the Virginia gubernatorial election. Except he completely messed it up, and, of course, Stephen Colbert had great fun at his expense. Colbert remarked: “Donald Jr. woke up this morning to urge people to get the vote out…but …

ABC News reports: Two longtime GOP lawmakers announced their retirements Tuesday from the House of Representatives, adding to the growing list of Republicans electing to leave Capitol Hill under the Trump administration rather than face voters in next year’s midterm elections. Twelve-term Rep. Frank LoBiondo of New Jersey declared in a statement that “our nation is now consumed by increasing …

The Associated Press reports: Former President Barack Obama is congratulating the two Democrats who won gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey. In a Wednesday morning tweet, Obama said: “This is what happens when the people vote.” Democrat Ralph Northam beat Republican Ed Gillespie in the race for Virginia governor. In New Jersey, Democrat Phil Murphy trounced Republican Lt. Gov. …

The Helena Independent Record reports: Wilmot Collins will be Helena’s new mayor, unseating incumbent Jim Smith in a close race Tuesday. Collins, 54, will be the city’s first new mayor in 16 years after running a long campaign based in progressive principles. “The people of Helena have spoken, and I am honored to be able to serve them,” Collins said …

From Breitbart editor Joel Pollak: Democrats, exuberant from their first important win in the past year, are selling their hot takes all over social media. Their favorite theme seems to be that voters rejected “hate.” The only real hate on display was in the Latino Victory Fund ad that portrayed Gillespie supporters as racists. It neatly captured Democrats’ contempt for …

Mediaite reports: During his major address to the South Korean National Assembly, President Trump invoked his Bedminster golf club. Trump was complimenting South Korea and at one point talked about Korean golfers being some of the best on earth. And then the President said this: “In fact, and you know what I’m going to say, the Women’s US Open was …

The Advocate reports: Jenny Durkan has been elected mayor of Seattle, making her the city’s first out lesbian mayor and its first woman mayor since the 1920s. Durkan won 61 percent of the vote, more than 21 percentage points ahead of her opponent, Cary Moon, The Seattle Times reports. Durkan is a former federal prosecutor, having been appointed U.S. attorney …

NBC News reports: Democrat Ralph Northam handily defeated Republican Ed Gillespie in the Virginia governor race on Tuesday in a contest that was being closely watched for signs of the national electorate’s mood. With 99 percent of the vote counted, Northam had 54 percent and Gillespie had 45 percent. Gillespie conceded in a speech last night to supporters several hours …

Vox reports: A Virginia politician made history Tuesday night, becoming the first openly transgender person to be elected to any state legislature in the United States. Danica Roem, 32, just won a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates, defeating Republican incumbent Robert Marshall in the 13th District. Roem, a former journalist, won a surprise victory in the Democratic primary …

Polls will be closing shortly in a number of important elections. In Virginia, the gubernatorial battle between Democrat Ralph Northam and Trump acolyte Ed Gillespie promises to be a nail-biter. Also in Virginia, transgender candidate Danica Roem has proven to be strong challenger for viciously anti-LGBT loony bird Bob Marshall’s seat in the state House. In Atlanta, former city council …

Forbes reports: Fresh off a tour through Thailand, Laos and China, United States Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross Jr. picked up the phone on a Sunday afternoon in October to discuss something deeply personal: how much money he has. A year earlier, Forbes had listed his net worth at $2.9 billion on The Forbes 400, a number Ross claimed was …

From Funny Or Die: Trae Crowder (The Liberal Redneck) recruits his fellow redneck comedians Corey Ryan Forrester and Drew Morgan to perform at “The Gathering”, a gay naturist retreat, only to discover that none of them know what a naturist actually is.

The Washington Examiner reports: Justice Department prosecutors dropped their case against the woman who was arrested after laughing during Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ confirmation hearing, according to a report Tuesday. Desiree Fairooz, who was set to face a second trial next week, is a 61 year-old veteran activist associated with the organization Code Pink. She was arrested during Jeff Sessions’ …