Tag Archives: Barack Obama

Never before has a president mentioned us in an inauguration speech. Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law – for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well. We, the people, declare today that the most …

The owner of a Utah-based company says that he fired two employees because they supported the re-election of President Obama. “They were Obama supporters. We just knew they were,” Terry Lee, owner of Terry Lee Forensics, a Cedar City, Utah, digital forensics company, told The Salt Lake Tribune on Thursday.  Lee first mentioned the firings in the comments section of …

From the official White House channel.

The public swearing-in will take place tomorrow.

Posted today to the official White House channel.

Politico has the breakdown of today’s speech: President Barack Obama on Wednesday announced what he called a “common sense measures” plan to reduce gun violence, including legislation for a universal background check and new bans on assault weapons and high capacity magazines. He also initiated 23 executive actions aimed at improving background checks, school security and mental health care, in …

The White House has responded to the below ad: “Most Americans agree that a president’s children should not be used as pawns in a political fight. But to go so far as to make the safety of the president’s children the subject of an attack ad is repugnant and cowardly,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

The shelves in my DC hotel’s gift shop are jammed with Inauguration 2013 swag of almost every imaginable type. Sadly, no snow globes. This will all be 80% off in two weeks, of course.

If this pans out, WOW. UPDATE: CNN says Giglio voluntarily withdrew. UPDATE II:  Think Progress has a statement from Giglio. Due to a message of mine that has surfaced from 15-20 years ago, it is likely that my participation, and the prayer I would offer, will be dwarfed by those seeking to make their agenda the focal point of the …

The gays aren’t the only ones upset with Pastor Louie Giglio’s selection to perform the benediction at President Obama’s second inauguration.  The American Family Association doesn’t like it either. “Louie Giglio has made some of the best DVDs you’ll ever see, theologically,” Wildmon stated on American Family Radio. “He’s done a wonderful job, I think, of galvanizing Christian young people …

Today we reveled in the news that President Obama’s second inauguration team has selected an openly gay poet to read at the event. That good news was almost immediately overwhelmed by a swarm of controversy that has erupted around Pastor Louis Giglio, who will deliver the event’s benediction. Think Progress blogger Josh Israel reported this afternoon that Giglio has delivered …

President Obama has selected openly gay poet Richard Blanco to read at his second inauguration. On Wednesday the president’s inaugural planners will announce that Mr. Blanco is to be the 2013 inaugural poet, joining the ranks of notables like Robert Frost and Maya Angelou. “Since the beginning of the campaign, I totally related to his life story and the way …

The widow of murdered civil rights activist Medgar Evers has been chosen to deliver the invocation at President Obama’s second inauguration.  Mylie Evers-Williams will be the first woman and the first lay person in history to deliver the prayer. Obama will privately take the oath of office for his second term on the constitutionally mandated date of Jan. 20, a …

UPDATE: The White House press office sends us this statement about Chuck Hagel: President Obama has come to know and trust Senator Hagel over nearly a decade, dating back to their time together in the Senate. Together, they travelled to Afghanistan and Iraq in the summer of 2008, and they share a commitment to end the war in Afghanistan responsibly. …

Politico reports that President Obama will formally nominate former GOP Sen. Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense today. The choice of Hagel, who opposed his party on the Iraq War as a senator, is likely to ignite a raucous confirmation battle because several Democratic interest groups and prominent Republicans have voiced strong opposition since Hagel’s vetting for the job was …

“President Obama has utterly failed the first test of his second term, even before inauguration day. His signature means indefinite detention without charge or trial, as well as the illegal military commissions, will be extended. He also has jeopardized his ability to close Guantanamo during his presidency. Scores of men who have already been held for nearly 11 years without …

Last night President Obama signed the funding authorization bill for the Department of Defense which includes “protections” against the punishment of military members and clergy who harass gay soldiers. Those so-called protections, sponsored by Rep. Todd Akin, were discussed here last month and were backed by GOP House members opposed to the repeal of DADT.  The president included a signing …

Through his spokesman, President Obama has issued a statement in support of same-sex marriage in his home state of Illinois. “While the president does not weigh in on every measure being considered by state legislatures, he believes in treating everyone fairly and equally, with dignity and respect,” White House spokesman Shin Inouye told the Chicago Sun-Times on Saturday. “As he …

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