Joe.My.God. LGBT News

Reuters reports: A lawyer for Donald Trump sought on Thursday to portray the hush money payment at the center of his criminal trial as extortion, questioning a lawyer involved in the deal about his cash-for-dirt negotiations with other celebrities. Defense attorney Emil Bove’s questioning of the lawyer Keith Davidson hinted at a strategy by Trump’s legal team to undermine the …

The Arizona Republic reports: Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs on Thursday signed into law a repeal of the state’s 160-year-old abortion ban, rescinding one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws after weeks of hard-fought political negotiation at the state capitol. “Today we are doing what 23 governors and 55 legislatures refused to do, and I am so proud to be …

The Hill reports: Arizona congressional candidate Blake Masters took a swipe at his Republican primary opponent Abe Hamadeh for not being married or having kids, claiming it shows his opponent does not have “skin in the game.” In a campaign video published Tuesday, Masters laid out his policy goals and what his campaign called the “differences” between him and Hamadeh. …

Right wing outlet Just The News reports: X owner Elon Musk on Thursday announced that he would reinstate the account of far-right “groyper” leader Nick Fuentes, who was banned from the platform prior to Musk’s purchase of Twitter. Musk made the pledge in response to a request from the “GoyaBeanGroyper” account asking for Fuentes’s return. “Groypers” are supporters of Fuentes …

Fox News reports: Democratic lawmakers in Arizona’s state legislature hosted a “Drag Story Hour” in partnership with Planned Parenthood on Tuesday, sparking backlash from their Republican colleagues who said the event was “deceptively” planned. “Democrat Rep. Lorena Austin deliberately misled House leadership to reserve a conference room to host a drag story hour with Planned Parenthood,” House Speaker Ben Toma …

Mediaite reports: Former President Donald Trump hit back Thursday at media reports that he has been sleeping during his New York hush money trial. Various reporters from across the political spectrum have documented Trump asleep in court. On Thursday, Trump decided to push back on those reporters and wrote on his Truth Social, “Contrary to the FAKE NEWS MEDIA, I …

From the Justice Department: A Massachusetts woman pleaded guilty today to multiple felony and misdemeanor offenses, including assaulting law enforcement during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Her actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election. …

The Texas Tribune reports: A recent “deepfaked” ad targeting House Speaker Dade Phelan [photo] could inspire further legislation to crack down on doctored imagery in political ads. That mailer, paid for by the Jeff Yass-bankrolled Club for Growth Action PAC, depicted Phelan in an intimate hug with former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, apparently a remake of Pelosi hugging new …

Florida Politics reports: Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed legislation giving bank customers who believe they’ve been discriminated against based on their political affiliations a way to file complaints against the financial institution. The measure (HB 989) also includes several provisions important to Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis and his Department of Financial Services. But DeSantis said cracking down on discrimination …

Politico reports: Despite lagging some 30 points behind President Joe Biden in the latest polls, independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. convened national media on Wednesday to make an audacious claim: It’s Biden who should drop out of the race to stop former President Donald Trump from reclaiming the White House. “We only have one chance to beat Donald Trump, …