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Psaki gets emotional when asked about anti-LGBTQ bills in state legislatures

WH spokesperson says measures purely political

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White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki got emotional when asked about anti-LGBTQ bills in state legislatures.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki became emotional in an interview released Tuesday over legislation targeting the LGBTQ community, maintaining the measures were purely for the purpose of scoring political points.

Psaki made the comments in an interview with the News Not Noise podcast when host Jessica Yellin asked her about the motivations behind the bills.

ā€œHow do you make sense of whatā€™s happening?ā€ Yellin asked. ā€œIs this sort of a predictable backlash to change? Or is this an organized political attempt to create a wedge issue ahead of the midterms in the 2024 campaign? Sort of like the way gay marriage was weaponized in 2004?ā€

The initial response from Psaki: “Ding, Ding, Ding.” Psaki added she had to be careful about what to say because of the Hatch Act, which limits the political speech of U.S. government officials.

Psaki went on to condemn the bills by saying, ā€œthe political games and harsh and cruel attempts at laws, or laws that weā€™re seeing in some states like Florida, that is not a reflection of the country moving to oppose LGBTQ+ communities.

“That is not what we see in data, that is not factual, and that is not where things stand,” Psaki added. “This is a political wedge issue, and an attempt to win a culture war.ā€

When they talked about the impact of the measures on LGBTQ families and children, Psaki grew emotional.

ā€œTheyā€™re doing that in a way that is harsh and cruel to a community of kids, especially,ā€ Psaki said, through tears. ā€œIā€™m going to get emotional about this issue because itā€™s horrible! But itā€™s kids who are bullied, and all these leaders are taking steps to hurt them, and hurt their lives and hurt their families! And you look at some of these laws in these states and whoā€™s going after parents who are in loving relationships, who have kids. Itā€™s completely outrageous! Sorry, this is an issue that makes me completely crazy.ā€

The flurry of anti-LGBTQ bills includes measures aimed at restricting access by transgender youth to transition-related care, in some cases penalizing medical providers for providing such services to minors with time in prison; legislation against transgender kids competing in girls’ sports consistent with their gender identity and measures known as “Don’t Say Gay” bills ā€” one prominently signed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in Florida ā€” essentially placing a gag order on teachers in grade schools from even acknowledging LGBTQ people exist.

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Denmark

Denmark issues US travel advisory for transgender people

Federal government only recognizes two genders: Male and female

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(Bigstock photo)

Denmark is the latest country to issue a travel advisory for transgender people who plan to visit the U.S.

ā€œWhen applying for an ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization) or visa to the United States, there are two gender designations to choose from: Male or female,ā€ reads the travel advisory the Danish Foreign Affairs Ministry issued on Friday, according to the Associated Press. ā€œIf you have the gender designation ‘X’ in your passport, or you have changed your gender, it is recommended that you contact the U.S. Embassy prior to travel for guidance on how to proceed.ā€

President Donald Trump shortly after he took office on Jan. 20 issued an executive order that bans the State Department from issuing passports with ā€œXā€ gender markers. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in response to directive ordered State Department personnel to ā€œsuspend any application requesting an ā€˜Xā€™ sex marker and do not take any further action pending additional guidance from the department.ā€

Trump on Feb. 5 issued another executive order that bans trans women and girls from female sports teams. The Guardian reported Rubio later instructed American consular officials to deny visas in ā€œcases where applicants are suspected of misrepresenting their purpose of travel or sex.”

The German government earlier this month issued a travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who are planning to visit the U.S. The AP notes Finland followed suit.

WorldPride is scheduled to take place in D.C. from May 17-June 8.

InterPride, the organization that coordinates WorldPride events, on March 12 issued its own travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who want to travel to the U.S.

ā€œDue to an executive order issued by the U.S. president on Jan. 20, all travelers must select either ā€˜maleā€™ or ā€˜femaleā€™ when applying for entry or visas. The gender listed at birth will be considered valid,ā€ reads the advisory. ā€œIf your passport has ā€˜Xā€™ as a gender marker or differs from your birth-assigned gender, we strongly recommend contacting the U.S. diplomatic mission before traveling to confirm entry requirements.ā€

The Capital Pride Alliance is the local WorldPride host. Capital Pride said it is working on the guide mentioned in the InterPride advisory.

The guide has yet to be released.

The African Human Rights Coalition, a group that promotes LGBTQ rights in Africa, last week called for a boycott of WorldPride, noting an “antagonistic fascist regime which presents distinct dangers to foreign LGBTQI+ attendees” now governs the U.S. Egale Canada, one of Canadaā€™s largest LGBTQ advocacy organizations, in February announced its members will not attend WorldPride and any other event in the U.S. because of the Trump-Vance administrationā€™s policies.

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Maryland

Former College Park Mayor Patrick Wojahn disbarred

One-time official serving 30-year prison sentence for child pornography possession, distribution

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Patrick Wojahn (Mugshot courtesy of the Prince George's County Police Department)

Patrick Wojahn, the former mayor of College Park who resigned after law enforcement executed a search and seizure warrant and discovered a ā€œvery large quantityā€ of child sexual abuse material on his cellphone, has agreed to be disbarred in Maryland.

Wojahn, 49, a Democrat who served as mayor from 2015 to 2023, later pleaded guilty in Prince Georgeā€™s County Circuit Court to 140 counts of possession and distribution of child pornography and was sentenced to 30 years in prison ā€” plus five years of probation.

In an order on Friday, Maryland Chief Justice Matthew J. Fader granted a joint petition for disbarment by consent and noted that Wojahn agreed that his actions constituted professional misconduct.

The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

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District of Columbia

Sentencing for Ruby Corado postponed for second time

Former Casa Ruby director pleaded guilty to wire fraud

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Ruby Coradoā€™s sentencing is now scheduled for April 29. (Washington Blade file photo by Ernesto Valle)

The sentencing in D.C. federal court for Ruby Corado, the founder and executive director of the now-defunct LGBTQ community services organization Casa Ruby on a charge of wire fraud, has been postponed for the second time, from March 28 to April 29.

A spokesperson for U.S. District Court Judge Trevor N. McFadden, who is presiding over the case, said it was the judge who postponed the sentencing due to a scheduling conflict. The earlier postponement, from Jan. 10 to March 28, came at the request of Coradoā€™s attorney and was not opposed by prosecutors with the Office of the U.S. Attorney for D.C.

Corado pleaded guilty on July 17, 2024, to a single charge of wire fraud as part of a plea bargain deal offered by prosecutors. The charge to which she pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for D.C. says she allegedly diverted at least $150,000 ā€œin taxpayer backed emergency COVID relief funds to private offshore bank accounts for her personal use,ā€ according to a statement from the U.S. Attorneyā€™s office.

Under the federal wire fraud law, for which Corado is being prosecuted, she could be subjected to a possible maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and restitution requiring her to repay the funds she allegedly stole.

Court observers, however, have said that due to Coradoā€™s decision to waive her right to a trial and plead guilty to the lesser charge, prosecutors will likely ask the judge to hand down a lesser sentence than the maximum sentence.

An earlier criminal complaint filed against Corado, which has been replaced by the single charge to which she has pleaded guilty, came at the time the FBI arrested her on March 5, 2024, at a hotel in Laurel, Md., shortly after she returned to the U.S. from El Salvador.

At the request of her attorney and against the wishes of prosecutors, another judge at that time agreed to release Corado into custody of her niece in Rockville, Md., under a home detention order. The release order came seven days after Corado had been held in jail at the time of her March 5 arrest.

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