National
Locals rally around Murphy
D.C. gays plan Pa. trip to help champion of ‘Don’t Ask’ repeal
U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, lead House sponsor of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ repeal, trails his GOP opponent by 14 points in a recent poll. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Local LGBT Democratic activists are making plans to travel to Pennsylvania to help the champion of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal in the U.S. House in a challenging re-election campaign.
The National Stonewall Democrats and D.C.’s Gertrude Stein Democratic Club are collaborating in an effort dubbed “Stein Storm” to bring local supporters of U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Pa.) to his district to help with his campaign.
The organizations plan to bus Murphy supporters from D.C. to Pennsylvania’s 8th congressional district on the weekends of Oct. 15 and Oct. 22.
Linsey Pecikonis, a Stonewall spokesperson, said Murphy’s leadership on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal makes him one of the “strongest heroes here in the LGBT community.”
“Right now when we’re struggling as a community to have our voice represented in Congress, we can’t lose our heroes,” she said. “And so, the LGBT community needs to come out and show support for our strongest allies and Patrick Murphy is one of those.”
Murphy, who’s straight, has been praised by LGBT advocacy groups for taking the lead in repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in the House.
An Iraq war veteran, Murphy assumed sponsorship last year of legislation that would repeal the statute when the bill had about 150 co-sponsors and gradually built support for the measure.
In May, Murphy introduced an amendment to major defense budget legislation that would lead to repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” The measure passed, 234-194.
Jeffrey Richardson, president of the Stein Club, said his organization is planning to assist Murphy because of this work on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
“We don’t have a lot of allies — particularly on the national level — these days, so when you have a strong ally like Rep. Murphy, we as a community have to stand up and do all that we can,” Richardson said. “We can’t sit on the sidelines.”
Although Richardson said he doesn’t have a final count on the number of local supporters who will travel from D.C. to help with Murphy’s campaign, he said he already has the commitment of about 10 to 15 volunteers.
Planned activities include phone banking and canvassing the district as well as giving Murphy more visibility in upcoming rallies planned in Pennsylvania.
Stonewall’s efforts go beyond helping to transport people from the D.C. area to Murphy’s district. The organization has one paid organizer working with the Murphy campaign to help with his re-election.
Additionally, Pecikonis said all Stonewall staffers will be spending time in Murphy’s district.
Murphy is among 12 Democratic candidates that Stonewall has endorsed as part of its “Elect Equality” initiative. Others in this group include Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-N.H.), who’s facing a difficult re-election campaign, and Ed Potosnak, a gay schoolteacher who’s seeking to unseat Rep. Leonard Lance (R-N.J.).
In a statement, Murphy said, “it’s been a honor” to have the support of LGBT people and to “work with them to advance pro-equality legislation and lead the fight to repeal the military’s discriminatory and outdated ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy.”
“When I served in Baghdad as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne, we didn’t care about the sexual orientation of the guy next to us, but rather whether he could do his job,” he said.
Murphy is facing a challenging re-election campaign. He’s running in what pundits expect to be a Republican year and against a GOP candidate he narrowly unseated in 2006 during a surge in Democratic popularity.
Mike Fitzpatrick, now an attorney, is challenging Murphy to regain the House seat he once held. Murphy defeated Fitzpatrick in 2006 by less than one percentage point.
Pecikonis warned that Republicans view Pennsylvania’s 8th congressional district as a potential pickup and are devoting considerable efforts to defeat Murphy.
“We see that Republicans feel that his seat is one of the most vulnerable seats in the House and they’re dumping millions of dollars into his opponent’s campaign,” she said.
Fitzpatrick opposes “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal, according to the Bucks County Courier Times.
In response to an inquiry about the Senate’s recent failure to move forward with legislation that would end the law, Darren Smith, a Fitzpatrick spokesperson, was quoted as saying Democrats were forcing the issue too soon by not waiting for the completion of a Pentagon study due Dec. 1.
“What Congress has essentially done here is prejudged the outcome of that study,” Smith reportedly said. “If we ask the military to figure something out, why are [Senate Democrats and the White House] taking action now?”
Murphy said Fitzpatrick once held the view that “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” should be repealed and criticized him for what he said was changing his position on the issue.
“As far as I’m concerned, every day that goes by with this policy still in place is a disservice to all our troops and harms our national security,” he said.
Recent polling data confirms that Murphy won’t have an easy path to re-election this year. A poll published last month by Franklin & Marshall College found that he trails Fitzpatrick by 14 points among likely voters in the district.
The poll is based on phone interviews conducted between Sept. 14-19. The margin of error is plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.
But Murphy dismissed the poll and noted the same dire predictions were made by the same polling firm in the days before he defeated Fitzpatrick in 2006.
“Some polls have me up, others down,” Murphy said. “This was always going to be a tough race and I’m taking nothing for granted. National pundits like the Cook Report have cited my leadership on [‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’] repeal as the reason I’m in a tough fight, but I don’t give a damn what they say — what’s right is right.”
Richardson said the poll is “concerning” but also called the numbers a “rallying cry” for Murphy supporters.
“The reality is we can’t sit on the sidelines and just sort of sit back and say, ‘Well, he’s down in the polls. Well, OK,'” Richardson said. “We have to step it up and put our boots on the ground and try to do all that we can to get him back in Congress.”
State Department
Democracy Forward files FOIA request for State Department bathroom policy records
April 20 memo outlined anti-transgender rule
Democracy Forward on Tuesday filed a Freedom of Information Act request for records on the State Department’s new bathroom policy.
A memo titled “Updates Regarding Biological Sex and Intimate Spaces, Including Restrooms” that the State Department issued on April 20 notes employees can no longer use bathrooms that correspond with their gender identity.
“The administration affirms that there are two sexes — male and female — and that federal facilities should operate on this objective and longstanding basis to ensure consistency, privacy, and safety in shared spaces,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Piggot told the Daily Signal, a conservative news website that first reported on the memo. “In line with President Trump’s executive order this provides clear, uniform guidance to the department by grounding policy in biological sex as determined at birth.”
President Donald Trump shortly after he took office in January 2025 issued an executive order that directed the federal government to only recognize two genders: male and female. The sweeping directive also ordered federal government agencies to “effectuate this policy by taking appropriate action to ensure that intimate spaces designated for women, girls, or females (or for men, boys, or males) are designated by sex and not identity.”
Democracy Forward’s FOIA request that the Washington Blade exclusively obtained on Tuesday is specifically seeking a copy of the memo that details the State Department’s new bathroom policy. Democracy Forward has also requested “all” memo-specific communications between the State Department’s Bureau of Global Public Affairs and the Daily Signal from April 1-21.
Federal Government
House Republicans push nationwide ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill
Measures would restrict federal funding for LGBTQ-affirming schools
Republicans have been gaining ground in reshaping education policy to be less inclusive toward LGBTQ students at the state level, and now they are turning their focus to Capitol Hill.
Some GOP lawmakers are pushing for a nationwide “Don’t Say Gay” bill, doubling down on their commitment to being the party of “traditional family values” by excluding anyone who does not identify with their sex at birth.
The largest anti-LGBTQ education legislation to reach the House chamber is House Bill 2616 — the Parental Rights Over the Education and Care of Their Kids Act, or the PROTECT Kids Act. The PROTECT Kids Act, proposed by U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), and co-sponsored by U.S. Reps. Burgess Owens (R-Utah), Mary Miller (R-Ill.), Robert Onder (R-Mo.), and Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.), would require any public elementary and middle schools that receive federal funding to require parental consent to change a child’s gender expression in school.
The bill, which was discussed during Tuesday’s House Rules Committee hearing, would specifically require any schools that get federal money from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 — which was created to minimize financial discrepancies in education for low-income students — to get parental approval before identifying any child’s gender identity as anything other than what was provided to the school initially. This includes getting approval before allowing children to use their preferred locker room or bathroom.
It reads that any school receiving this funding “shall obtain parental consent before changing a covered student’s (1) gender markers, pronouns, or preferred name on any school form; or (2) sex-based accommodations, including locker rooms or bathrooms.”
LGBTQ rights advocates have criticized both national and state efforts to require parental permission to use a child’s preferred gender identity, as it raises issues of at-home safety — especially if the home is not LGBTQ-affirming — and could lead to the outing of transgender or gender-curious students.
A follow-up bill, HB 2617, proposed by Owens, one of the bill’s co-sponsors, prevents the use of federal funding to “advance concepts related to gender ideology,” using the definition from President Donald Trump’s 2025 Executive Order 14168, making that an enshrined definition in law of sex rather than just by executive order. There is also a bill making its way through the senate with the same text— Senate Bill 2251.
Advocates have also criticized this follow-up legislation, as it would restrict school staff — including teachers and counselors — from acknowledging trans students’ identities or providing any support. They have said that this kind of isolation can worsen mental health outcomes for LGBTQ youth and allows for education to be politicized rather than being based in reality.
David Stacy, the Human Rights Campaign’s vice president of government affairs, called this legislation out for using LGBTQ children as political pawns in an ideology fight — one that could greatly harm the safety of these children if passed.
“Trans kids are not a political agenda — they are students who deserve safety and affirmation at school like anyone else,” Stacy said in a statement. “Despite the many pressing issues facing our nation, House Republicans continue their bizarre obsession with trans people. H.R. 2616 does not protect children. It targets them. This bill is cruel, and we’re prepared to fight it.”
This is similar to Florida House Bills 1557 and 1069, referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill and “Don’t Say They” bill, respectively, restricting classroom discussions on sexual orientation and gender identity, prohibiting the use of pronouns consistent with one’s gender identity, expanding book banning procedures, and censoring health curriculum.
The American Civil Liberties Union is tracking 233 bills related to restricting student and educator rights in the U.S.
National
BREAKING NEWS: Shots fired at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner
Shooter reportedly opened fire inside hotel
Four loud bangs were heard in the International Ballroom of the Washington Hilton during the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday.
According to the Associated Press, a shooter opened fire inside the hotel outside the ballroom.
Attendees could hear four loud bangs as people started to duck and take cover. During the chaos sounds of salad and glasses were dropped as hotel employees, and guests ducked for cover.
The head table — which included President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, first lady Melania Trump, and White House Correspondents Association President Weijia Jiang — were rushed off stage.
“The U.S. Secret Service, in coordination with the Metropolitan Police Department, is investigating a shooting incident near the main magnetometer screening area at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner,” the U.S. Secret Service said in a statement. “The president and the First Lady are safe along all protects. One individual is in custody. The condition of those involved is not yet known, and law enforcement is actively assessing the situation.”
Trump held a press conference at the White House after he left the hotel.
“A man charged a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons and he was taken down by some very brave members of Secret Service,” said Trump.
Trump said the shooter is from California. He also said an officer was shot, but said his bullet proof vest “saved” him.
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, interim D.C. police chief Jeffrey Carroll, U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro, and other officials held their own press conference at the hotel.
Carroll said the gunman who has been identified as Cole Tomas Allen was armed with a shotgun, handgun, and “multiple” knives when he charged a Secret Service checkpoint in a hotel lobby. Carroll also told reporters that law enforcement “exchanged gunfire with that individual.”
Both he and Bowser said the gunman appeared to act alone.
“We are so very thankful to members of law enforcement who did their jobs tonight and made sure all guests were safe,” said Bowser. “Nobody else was involved.”
The Washington Blade will update this story as details become more available.
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