Tag Archives: Mark Pocan

Politico reports: A veteran House Democrat is introducing new legislation to respond to billionaire Trump ally Elon Musk’s overhaul of the federal government: Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) on Wednesday rolled out the Eliminate Looting of Our Nation by Mitigating Unethical State Kleptocracy (ELON MUSK) Act, which would ban “special” government employees like Musk from having federal contracts. “No government employee, …

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports: Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan and three other congressional Democrats on Friday called for President Joe Biden to drop out of the presidential race, saying concerns about his viability “are jeopardizing what should be a winning campaign.” Fellow Democratic U.S. Reps. Jared Huffman of California, Marc Veasey of Texas and Chuy Garcia of Illinois joined Pocan …

Via press release from Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan: As LGBTQI+ History Month comes to a close, U.S. Representative Mark Pocan (WI-02), Chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus, introduced two bills to begin the process of creating a National Museum of American LGBTQI+ History and Culture. “As our community faces unprecedented attacks and attempts to erase our history, we must preserve …

Roll Call reports: House Republicans struck three Democratic projects that would provide services to the LGBTQ community during Tuesday’s fiscal 2024 Transportation-HUD Appropriations markup, enraging Democrats on the committee. The three earmarks total $3.62 million, with two in Massachusetts and one in Pennsylvania. The projects were eliminated as part of a Republican en bloc amendment, including a provision that would …

Reuters reports: Amazon.com Inc has apologized to U.S. Representative Mark Pocan, admitting to scoring an “own goal” in its initial denial of his suggestion that its drivers were sometimes forced to urinate in bottles during their delivery rounds. “We know that drivers can and do have trouble finding restrooms because of traffic or sometimes rural routes, and this has been …

Mediaite reports: Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) called Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) “an idiot,” Tuesday, before adding that he hopes “the people of Kentucky understand that they have a senator who is not serving their best interest in any way.” After being asked on the Dean Obeidallah Show about McConnell’s claim that the impeachment attempt against President Donald Trump …

The Associated Press reports: Rep. Mark Pocan, who didn’t back anyone in Wisconsin’s Democratic presidential primary in 2016, announced Thursday that this year he is endorsing Bernie Sanders, giving the Vermont senator a boost in the battleground state three months before its primary. Sanders and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren have been battling to win over the liberal wing of the …

Raw Story reports: President Donald Trump’s Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos appeared on Wednesday before a House appropriations subcommittee to testify on behalf on Trump’s new budget proposal, which makes drastic cuts to public education funding and diverts “critical resources” to for-profit and religious charter schools. Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) asked DeVos if she would consider sending her own children …

Via press release: Today, HRC joined with bipartisan lawmakers and an unprecedented number of businesses to announce the re-introduction of the Equality Act — federal legislation that would finally guarantee explicit, permanent protections for LGBTQ people under our nation’s existing civil rights laws. The bipartisan legislation would provide clear and equal protections under federal law for all Americans in vital …

Mediaite reports: One day after Adam Schiff, the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said that there was “more than circumstantial evidence” pointing to collusion between the Donald Trump campaign and the Russian government prior to the election, another Democratic congressman affirmed that account, saying there is “damning evidence” on the horizon. Appearing on the The Michelangelo Signorile Show …

On the one month anniversary of the attack, the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus is holding a “evening of remembrance” honoring the victims and survivors of the Pulse Massacre. “Speaker Ryan, no more moments of silence without moments of action!” – Rep. Mark Pocan. Watch below.

Lambda Legal reacts: We applaud the introduction of this essential bill. Today, it spotlights the pervasive, unjust, and unacceptable discrimination facing LGBT Americans and their families; when passed, it will be a crucial next step forward in ending that discrimination. Its introduction comes nearly one month after the Supreme Court’s historic decision in Obergefell v. Hodges that made marriage equality …

“I know there are Republican members of the LGBT community. And there are Republican legislators who support equality, albeit not many. Fine, go ahead and throw them a fundraiser they will remember for a long time. But let’s not support those who believe we’ll burn in hell because of who we are and who we love. Does a candidate for …

A former professional magician, Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) has launched a weekly video series in which he uses magic tricks to explain the workings of Congress. Now in his second term, Pocan won Tammy Baldwin’s former House seat on the day she was elected to the Senate.

The 2014 midterms were not a total disaster, at least for the six openly LGBT members of the US House. Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA), Rep. Jared Polis* (D-CO), Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY), Rep Mark Pocan (D-WI), Rep David Cicilline (D-RI), and Rep. Kysten Sinema (D-AZ) all retained their seats today.  Openly gay US House candidates who lost their bids …

“For the first time, LGBT couples received the legal recognition and benefits of marriage from our state. The rights of all LGBT individuals across Wisconsin were upheld by a federal court on Friday and yet today Attorney General Van Hollen is asking a federal appeals court to stop county clerks from issuing marriage licenses.  The Attorney General’s decision to appeal …

The Washington Post has created an interactive graph which notes the known positions of Congress members on a possible US strike on Syria. So far only two Senate Democrats have said that they oppose US intervention: Sen. Chris Murphy (CT) and Sen. Tom Udall (NM). Perhaps the most notable House Democrat to oppose intervention so far is Rep. Alan Grayson …

The Runaway & Homeless Youth Act, which was first passed in 2008, is due to be reauthorized. Rep. Gwen Moore has filed a new version of the bill that would explicitly include LGBT youth in its coverage. Moore’s bill is co-sponsored by openly gay Rep. Mark Pocan. I ran away from home when I was an adolescent,” said Rep. Moore. …

Almost half of the sitting members of Congress today filed a joint Supreme Court brief in the support of the overturn of DOMA. Via press release: Today, Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Ranking Constitution Subcommittee Member Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) in the House, and Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) in the Senate, along with …

Openly gay freshman House Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) today announced his co-sponsorship of a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United, the landmark 2010 Supreme Court ruling that permits unlimited political spending by corporations. The lead sponsor of the amendment is Rep. Rick Nolan (D-MN). Via press release: In making the announcement, lead sponsor Rep. Rick Nolan (DFL-Minnesota), said: “It’s time …