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Who paid for Task Force mailer on gambling?

LGBT group wades into Md. gaming debate, triggering reports of links to casinos and GOP strategists

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Tom Synhorst, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, gay news, Washington Blade

Sources linked DCI Groupā€™s Tom Synhorst ā€” a gay Republican strategist ā€” to an expensive mailer from the Task Force Action Fund critical of a proposed gambling expansion in Maryland. (Photo courtesy DCI)

As the dust settles over the Maryland General Assemblyā€™s approval on Aug. 15 of a controversial bill to increase the number of casinos operating in the state, some political insiders say the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force appears to have taken the unusual step of accepting money from gambling interests to campaign against the bill.

The Task Force last month announced it opposed taking up the bill this year, noting it would trigger a voter referendum on gambling that likely would motivate more conservative, religious voters to turn out to vote against both gambling and the stateā€™s same-sex marriage law, which is also on the November ballot in a referendum.

Earlier this month, the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force Action FundĀ mailed an expensive tri-fold flier to thousands of Maryland households asking residents to urge their state representatives to vote ā€œnoā€ on the gambling bill.Ā The mailer was likelyĀ part of theĀ first round of an expectedĀ fierce campaign in which gambling and marriage equality may become entangled, sources familiar with the two issues told the Blade.

The sources, who spoke on condition that they not be identified, said the Task Force Action Fund mailer raised eyebrows among many political observers in Maryland, including officials in the administration of Gov. Martin Oā€™Malley, who introduced the gambling bill. Sources estimated the mailer cost well over $100,000.

ā€œI know for a fact that the Task Force didnā€™t pay for it ā€” a single, anonymous contributor paid for it,ā€ said one of the sources.

Others familiar with the situation say they believe one or more of the five casinos already authorized to operate in the state and that stand to lose business from a sixth casino that the bill authorizes most likely paid for the mailer.

These sources note that Monique Hall, a member of the Task Force Action Fund board of directors, is a vice president for the DCI Group, a Republican-leaning political consulting firm that the sources say has been retained by one of the Maryland casinos to campaign against the gambling bill.

The sources believe one of the casinos paid for the mailing directly or reimbursed the DCI Group, which in turn paid the Task Force Action Fund for the mailing.

One of the sources said the Cordish Company, a national conglomerate that operates casinos in Las Vegas and throughout the country, including a casino located just south of Baltimore, is a client of DCI Group and may have been the source of the money used to pay for the mailer. The Blade could not independently confirm that Cordish is a DCI client. There are other gaming companies operating in Maryland that oppose the expansion, including Penn National Gaming, which owns 20 casinos throughout the nation, including Hollywood Casino of Perryville, Md.

The Task Force has declined to disclose the source of the money used to prepare and pay for the mailer.

ā€œWe do not have a position on gambling, but rather on marriage equality,ā€ said Task Force Deputy Executive Director Darlene Nipper in a statement.

ā€œThe purpose of the marriage equality mailer, funded by the Task Force Action Fund, which like other nonprofits includes many donors, some named and some who are not, is to get marriage equality over the finish line,ā€ Nipper said. ā€œIt was sent to a portion of registered Democratic households in Maryland.ā€

The mailer states, ā€œIf the gaming bill is on the ballot, opponents are likely to spend millions identifying and turning out voters who donā€™t like gamblingā€¦and who also donā€™t like Marriage Equality! So all the ā€˜noā€™ votes on gaming could also be ā€˜noā€™ votes for us.ā€

The mailer added, ā€œThe best thing that can happen ā€“ to give us a fair shot at winning on the ballot in November ā€“ is for the legislature to put gaming aside till next year and let the marriage issue proceed without complications.ā€ The Task Force Action Fund is a 501c(4) nonprofit and contributions made to it are not tax deductible.

The Task Force did not directly answer when asked if it has made financial contributions to the Maryland referendum fight, but two knowledgeable sources said the Task Force has not made cash donations to the effort.

ā€œWe have provided staff resources specifically to advance marriage equality in Maryland,ā€ said Nipper in an emailed statement. She also noted that the Task Force held its annual Creating Change conference in Baltimore earlier this year and that Oā€™Malley spoke to attendees. Task Force executive director Rea Carey is on sabbatical and unavailable for comment.

Speculation over who could have paid for the Task Force Action Fund mailer has centered on Tom Synhorst, a gay Republican strategist and founder and chair of the DCI Group, which bills itself on its website as a public affairs company that ā€œhelps corporations navigate their most challenging political, legislative and regulatory problems anywhere in the world.ā€

Monique Hall (Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Monique Hall, the DCI Group vice president and the Task Force Action Fund board member, did not respond to Blade inquires. A receptionist at DCI initially refused to take a message for Synhorst on Aug. 17 and declined to transfer a Blade reporterā€™s call into Synhorstā€™s voicemail. Another receptionist did take a message when the Blade called back on Monday, but Synhorst did not immediately respond.

DCI doesnā€™t disclose its client list on its website, but two sources with knowledge of the Task Force mailer said DCI has gaming clients, including possibly the Cordish Company.

Carmen Gonzales, a spokesperson for Maryland Live! Casino said Cordish has no immediate comment on any of the issues surrounding the approval of a sixth casino for Prince Georgeā€™s County, including the Task Force mailer, except for this statement:

ā€œMaryland Live! is, and will continue to be, the premier casino entertainment destination in the region. In the next few months, Live! will open new world-class dining and entertainment amenities, including the Prime Rib and Rams Head Center Stage.ā€

One political observer familiar with Maryland gambling rivalries, speaking on condition of anonymity, speculates that the existing casinos in the state that oppose the opening of a new casino ā€œwill create new or use existing faith-based organizations to front their campaign, arguing that gambling is morally wrong.ā€

Other observers familiar with Synhorst and the DCI Group say DCI has a history of creating front groups to wage battles in political campaigns.

Synhorst has a long record of working for Republican political candidates, including former Sen. Robert Dole (R-Kan.), former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-Ark.), and former Presidents George Walker Bush and George W. Bush.

DCI has been involved with ā€œthe creation of several front groups for the Bush administration and telecommunications, pharmaceutical and computer industries,ā€ according to SourceWatch, which is published by the Center for Media and Democracy.

SourceWatch noted that the Associated Press reported in June 2001 that Synhorst ā€œhas been linked to South Carolina ā€˜push pollsā€™ in the 2000 Republic primary that attacked candidate John McCain as ā€˜a cheat, a liar and a fraud,ā€™ according to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.ā€

The Center for Media and Democracy added, ā€œDCI and its affiliates offer ā€˜direct contactā€™ that bypasses the media entirely. The clientā€™s message is directly delivered via phone banks, regular mail and/or the internet. Direct contact provides the campaigns with complete control over the message. Freed from the filters created by news outlets, they can be as biased and inflammatory as the message shaper deems necessary.ā€

Will gaming push derail marriage?

On Aug. 15, the General Assembly passed the gambling bill, with the House of Delegates approving it by a vote of 71-58 and the State Senate approving by a margin of 32-14.

Six of the eight openly gay or lesbian members of the General Assembly voted for the bill, citing arguments by proponents, including Oā€™Malley, that the measure would generate an additional $174 million a year in revenue for the state. Oā€™Malley said most of the revenue would be used to fund state education programs.

The gambling measure was drafted to include a provision requiring that it must come up before voters in the November election if the General Assembly passes it.

Meanwhile, earlier in the year, opponents of same-sex marriage obtained the required number of petition signatures needed to place on the November ballot a same-sex marriage law that the General Assembly passed and Oā€™Malley signed in February.

Same-sex marriage advocates have expressed conflicting views over whether a gambling referendum would hurt chances for upholding the same-sex marriage law if both referenda were on theĀ ballot at the same time. The marriage law has been on hold pending the outcome of the November referendum.

The Task Force, among other LGBT advocates, says a gambling referendum is likely to encourage a greater number of conservative, religious-oriented voters to go toĀ the polls who oppose both gambling and marriage equality.

Other advocates, including Josh Levin, campaign manager of Marylanders for Marriage Equality, the organization leading the campaign to uphold the same-sex marriage law, say a gambling referendum would have no impact on the marriage equality vote.

ā€œWeā€™ve been looking at this carefully for a long time and we have yet to see any data that suggests there are any voters who would come out in the election because of the gaming initiative who were not already going to be out for a presidential election or to vote on the question of marriage equality,ā€ Levin told the Blade.

Levin said he bases his assertion on private polls and focus groups commissioned by Marylanders for Marriage Equality.

At least one pollster sympathetic to LGBT equality, who asked not to be identified,Ā said Levin’s assessment may not be correct.

“I don’t think a gambling ballot measure by itself will generate a greater turnout,” the pollster said. “But the Cordish Company is likely to spend millions to bring out anti-gambling voters … You are injecting a huge unknown factor if you put gambling on the ballot.”

The bill authorizes the state to expand the number of casinos allowed to operate in Maryland from five to six, with the sixth site to be located in Prince Georgeā€™s County, most likely in the countyā€™s National Harbor complex located near D.C.

Oā€™Malley says the expansion would result in an additional $174 million a year in revenue when all six casinos are fully operational in 2017.

The five existing casinos approved for other locations in the state raised strong objections to Oā€™Malleyā€™s proposal, saying another casino in P.G. County would draw away patrons from the other five casinos.

Among the strongest opponents of the Oā€™Malley proposal is the Cordish Companies. Cordish just opened its Maryland Live! Casino and entertainment complex at Arundel Mills just south of Baltimore. Observers say the Maryland Live! Casino would be impacted the most by a P.G. County casino because itā€™s the closest among the five casinos approved to operate in Maryland to the P.G. site.

Lessons from Ohio fight

Gambling industry observers say a furious battle between rival casinos in a 2008 Ohio voter referendum on whether a new casino should be allowed in the state might be a predictor of things to come in Maryland this year.

Known as Ballot Issue 6, Ohio voters were asked to decide whether Lakes Entertainment, a large casino owner, should be allowed to open a new casino in Ohio located 30 miles from an existing casino in Indiana owned by rival Penn National Gaming. Penn National reportedly put up $38 million to fund the ā€œNo on 6ā€ committee compared to at least $26 million spent by Lakes Entertainment for the campaign in support of the casino.

Ohio voters ultimately defeated the proposal to build the new casino, with large numbers of conservative voters believed to have turned out to vote no.

The Task Force mailer included quotes from three commentaries critical of Oā€™Malleyā€™s push to expand gambling in the state published by the Washington Post, the Washington Blade, and the blog Care2.com. The Post piece was written by gay commentator Jonathan Capehart; the Bladeā€™s was written by editor Kevin Naff.

The gay and lesbian legislators voting for the gambling bill were Sen. Rich Madaleno (D-Montgomery County) and Delegates Luke Clippinger (D-Baltimore City), Bonnie Cullison (D-Montgomery County), Anne Kaiser (D-Montgomery County), Maggie McIntosh (D-Baltimore City) and Mary Washington (D-Baltimore City). The gay and lesbian delegates voting against the bill were Peter Murphy (D-Charles County) and Heather Mizeur (D-Montgomery County).

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District of Columbia

Protests against Trump executive orders to take place in D.C. on Thursday

Demonstrations will happen outside attorney general’s office, Kennedy Center

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The Kennedy Center (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The Trump-Vance administration has taken an aggressive stance against the LGBTQ community by passing executive order after executive order that restricts the ability of transgender people to exist. In response, LGBTQ activists in Washington will take to the streets on Thursday to protest the slew of actions the White House has undertaken.

In back-to-back protests, demonstrators will rally against a federal ban on gender-affirming care for minors, followed by a protest at the Kennedy Center condemning a newly imposed ban on drag performances at the venue.

The first protest of the day will take place outside the D.C. Attorney General’s Office (400 6th St., N.W.) to oppose Trump’s executive order banning gender-affirming care for minors. Originally scheduled for the previous day but postponed due to snow, the protest will run from 12-2 p.m. Organizers aim to pressure D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb and Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Wayne Turnage to join 15 other states in issuing official public guidance against the order and declaring it unlawful. 

Under the D.C. Human Rights Act, passed by the D.C. City Council in 1977, discrimination based on gender identity and expression is explicitly prohibited. The law defines gender identity and expression as ā€œa gender-related identity, appearance, expression, or behavior of an individual, regardless of the individualā€™s assigned sex at birth.ā€ Trumpā€™s executive order, officially titled the ā€œProtecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilationā€ order, directly violates this act by banning all forms of gender-affirming healthcare for trans youth, effectively preventing them from accessing medical care necessary for their transition.

The 15 other statesā€™ that objected to the order include California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Maine, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.

This protest was organized by the Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America Bodily Autonomy Working Group, which focuses on ā€œthe fight for queer, trans, and feminist liberation and against systems of patriarchal capitalist oppression that devalue women and LGBTQIA+ people, under the guidance of reproductive justice.ā€ 

Organizers encourage protesters to bring friends and signs to get their voices heard. 

The second protest of the day will take place in Washington Circle in between the Foggy Bottom and West End neighborhoods to protest Trumpā€™s takeover of the Kennedy Center. Trump removed all 18 members that former President Joe Biden appointed to the Kennedy Center board and has started installing Trump loyalists into their roles. 

The sudden board shake-up was first announced on Truth Social, Trumpā€™s social media platform, as a response to what he called the boardā€™s lack of ā€œvision for a Golden Age in arts and culture.ā€ Many found this statement puzzling, given that Trump has openly admitted he has never attended a performance at the nonpartisan arts center.

The ā€œTrans & Queer Dance Party and Protest,ā€ which will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the circle only a few blocks from the Kennedy Center, is an attempt by six DC based organizations to show the Trump administration that ā€œas D.C. residents, we say the Kennedy Center is our house, and weā€™re not going to let fascists tell us what to do or censor our artists.ā€ The collaborating organizations encourage supporters of art, drag, the Kennedy Center, and the LGBTQ community to show up in ā€œour best (warm) looksā€ to let the administration know that D.C. will not be silenced.

Richard Grenell, a gay man who served as Trumpā€™s ambassador to Germany in his first term, was given the title of ā€œinterim executive directorā€ of the Kennedy Center, tasked with realigning the arts center to better fit Trumpā€™s agenda. The announcement initially caused confusion because before this announcement, there had never been an acting director, but a president elected by the board.Ā Ā 

His agenda so far includes banning any performances in the famous performing arts center, including “Dancing Queens Drag Brunch,” “A Drag Salute to Divas,” and ā€œDixie’s Tupperware Party,ā€ which were put on at the Kennedy Center and aimed at adults. 

This protest was organized through a collaboration of six local left-leaning organizations. They include the DC Dyke March, Harrietā€™s Wildest Dreams, Occupation Free DC, Good Trouble Cooperative, and Claudia Jones School. 

For more information on the trans gender-affirming care protest, visit https://actionnetwork.org/events/schwalb-trans-rally or https://mdcdsa.org/. For more information on the Kennedy Center dance party protest, visit any of the organizers’ Instagram pages.

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District of Columbia

Bill to repeal D.C. home rule would jeopardize LGBTQ rights: activists

Measure introduced by homophobic lawmakers

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ā€˜Bowser and her corrupt Washington City Council are incapable of managing the city,ā€™ said U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn). (Washington Blade file photo by Giuseppe LoPiccolo)

U.S. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn) on Feb. 6 introduced legislation in the Senate and House calling for repealing the D.C. Home Rule Act, which would eliminate the cityā€™s limited home rule government with a mayor and city council.

The two lawmakers named the bill the ā€œBringing Oversight to Washington and Safety to Every Resident Actā€ or the ā€œBOWSER Act,ā€ saying in a statement that D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser was responsible, in part, for leaving ā€œour nationā€™s Capital in crime-ridden shambles.ā€

Lee and Robles each received a ā€œ0ā€ rating, the lowest possible rating, on the Human Rights Campaignā€™s Congressional Scorecard, which assesses the record of members of Congress on LGBTQ related issues.

Most political observers point out that far-right Republican lawmakers have introduced similar bills in the past, including one in 2024, which have died in committee with little support.

Both Democratic and some Republican lawmakers expressing opposition to the previous bills noted that under the existing D.C. Home Rule Act, Congress retains full authority to reject any legislation passed by the D.C. Council and signed by the mayor. They note that Congress also retains authority to impose any law it wishes on D.C.

But some observers, including LGBTQ rights advocates, say the prospects of the current bill could go further with the current GOP-controlled Congress and at a time when President Donald Trump raised the issue of  alleged ā€œout of controlā€ crime in D.C. during his presidential campaign. Trump has said he plans to issue one or more executive orders targeting D.C. home rule.

The bill introduced by Lee and Ogles does not address or propose who or what federal entity would operate D.C.ā€™s local government after the Home Rule Act of 1973 is repealed. The two-page-long bill states, ā€œEffective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the District of Columbia Home Rule Act (Public Law 93-198) is repealed.ā€

Prior to the passage of the Home Rule Act of 1973, which Congress approved under the administration of then-President Richard Nixon, the city was governed by a commission whose members were appointed by the U.S. president and approved by Congress. A ā€œcommissioner-mayorā€ appointed by the president served as the head of the commission.

LGBTQ rights activists believe a similar type of governing body under the current Republican Congress and the Trump administration could pose a threat to the LGBTQ rights laws currently on the books in D.C., including the cityā€™s Human Rights Act, which bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

ā€œRepeal of Home Rule at this time can only be a negative for the LGBTQ community, especially the transgender community, because of the virulent antagonism toward that community of the MAGA Republicans in control of Congress,ā€ according to D.C. gay Democratic activist Peter Rosenstein.

Howard Garrett, president of the Capital Stonewall Democrats, D.C.ā€™s largest local LGBTQ political organization, also expressed concern that repeal of D.C. home rule would pose a threat to the local LGBTQ community.

ā€œRepealing D.C. home rule would be a direct attack on our cityā€™s ability to govern itself and protect the rights of all residents, especially the LGBTQ+ community,ā€ Garrett told the Washington Blade. ā€œWashington, D.C. has been a leader in advancing LGBTQ+ rights, from nondiscrimination protections to access to affirming healthcare,ā€ he said. ā€œIf Congress were to strip away our autonomy, it would leave us vulnerable to reactionary policies that do not reflect the values of our residents.ā€

Garrett added, ā€œThis latest attempt to revoke home rule is nothing more than political interference that undermines democracy.ā€

In a joint statement released on the day they introduced their D.C. home rule repeal bills, Lee and Ogles denounced what they called a ā€œradically progressive regimeā€ of Bowser and the City Council.

ā€œWashington is now known for its homicides, rapes, drug overdoses, violence, theft, and homelessness,ā€ Ogles said n the statement. ā€œBowser and her corrupt Washington City Council are incapable of managing the city,ā€ he said.

Lee stated, ā€œThe corruption, crime, and incompetence of the D.C. government has been an embarrassment to our nationā€™s capital for decades. It is long past time that Congress restored the honor of George Washington to the beautiful city which bears his name.ā€  

Daniel Solomon, co-founder of D.C. Vote, a local nonpartisan group that advocates for D.C. statehood, said in a statement that supporters of the home rule repeal bill were putting out misleading information about crime in D.C.

ā€œMake no mistake: This bill is a thinly veiled attempt to punish D.C. for political differences under the guise of public safety,ā€ he said. ā€œWe all agree that public safety is paramount, but dismantling home rule will do nothing to make our communities safer,ā€ his statement continues.

ā€œInstead, it will silence the voices of D.C. residents and threaten the progress weā€™ve made on criminal justice reform, economic growth, and local accountability,ā€ he said.

Bowser, who has declined to comment specifically on the current bill to repeal D.C. home rule, has pointed out that violent crime in D.C. dropped by 35 percent from 2023 to 2024 and property related crime declined by 11 percent during that same period.

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Virginia

Virginia High School League reverses policy on transgender athletes

Trans athletes previously allowed to compete on teams that corresponded with gender identity

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Virginia flag flies over the state Capitol. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The Virginia High School League on Monday announced it will no longer allow transgender athletes to compete on teams that correspond with their gender identity following another executive order signed by President Donald Trump targeting trans people.

The VHSL announced their policy change on their X account. It undoes a 2023 announcement that said it would not change their policy that allowed trans athletes to compete on teams that affirmed their identities.

Following a Jan. 28 executive order signed that stopped hospitals and other medical institutions from providing gender-affirming care to minors under that age of 19, Trump on Feb. 5 signed another executive order, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.”

The ban seeks ā€œto rescind all funds from educational programs that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities, which results in the endangerment, humiliation, and silencing of women and girls.ā€ The NCAA and many other educational institutions agreed to implement the ban in fear of losing federal funding.

“The VHSL is an association comprising 318 member schools with more than 177,000 students participating yearly in sports and academic activities. The VHSL is the governing body, and our member schools look to and rely on the VHSL for policy and guidance. To that end, the VHSL will comply with the executive order,” said VHSL Executive Director John W. “Billy” Haun. “The compliance will provide membership clear and consistent direction.”

The VHSL also said staff will be making changes to their handbook and policy manual in the coming days, reminiscent of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scrubbing all of the papers in its database of any now-banned language regarding LGBTQ people and attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The VHSL’s own data indicates only 29 of the student athletes it oversees have been reported as trans since 2022.

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