Politics
Partisan rancor continues over Gigi Sohn’s historic FCC nomination
Committee urged to reject ‘homophobic and unfair attacks’

Gigi Sohn, President Joe Biden’s nominee for commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission, faced a contentious third hearing before the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee on Tuesday.
“I only ask to be treated the way other nominees were treated,” she told U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), who questioned Sohn’s ability to act in an objective manner if confirmed given her history of working on behalf of public interest groups.
“The role of a policymaker is different from that of an advocate,” Sohn said, noting “[Former] Chairman [Ajit] Pai worked at Verizon, and I’m sure he was a fervent advocate for Verizon” during that time and prior to his tenure as FCC chair.
The contention that Sohn has been treated differently from other nominees has recently given rise to accusations of homophobia. Last week, the LGBTQ Victory Institute issued a letter with more than 375 signatories urging Congress to confirm Sohn’s nomination.
The letter cited right-wing media coverage that has sought to infer a link between Sohn and child sexual abuse and exploitation by virtue of her membership on the board of an organization that came out against child sex trafficking laws that, the group has argued, are ineffective.
However, remarks by Republicans on the committee Tuesday did not directly address these matters. For their part, Democratic members, beginning with Committee Chair U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), took the opportunity to celebrate that Sohn made history as the first openly gay nominee for FCC commissioner.
Those remarks were echoed later by U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), who was the first openly LGBTQ woman elected to serve in the House as well as in the Senate.
“Millions of people across the country including myself are grateful for you continuing to pave the way for LGBTQ people who want to serve our country,” Baldwin said.
In a comment emailed to the Washington Blade shortly after the hearing on Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said, “Ms. Sohn has faced baseless attacks from industry-backed lobbyists and mouthpieces since President Biden nominated her.”
“Congress must reject the homophobic and unfair attacks on Ms. Sohn and confirm her as soon as possible,” Markey said.
During the hearing, Markey noted he has known Sohn for 30 years. “She is one of the single most qualified candidates for any position ever to come before the Commerce committee for confirmation,” he said.
Markey’s comments also spotlighted the important work in which Sohn will be engaged, if and when she is confirmed to serve on the FCC.
“The FCC has important work to do to bridge the digital divide, protect consumers, and ensure that every household in our country has access to a free and open internet upheld by strong net neutrality rules,” the senator told the Blade by email.
The FCC is an independent agency governed by a bipartisan slate of commissioners serving under Democratic Chair Jessica Rosenworcel. Several of the exchanges on Tuesday focused on how American consumers have been negatively impacted by the vacancy that has remained since Sohn was first nominated by Biden in October 2021.
U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) asked Sohn to explain why it was important to have a fully constituted FCC for the rollout of the bipartisan infrastructure law passed by Congress last year.
“Myriad ways,” Sohn said. “First, I would love to be able to help the FCC ensure they have the most accurate broadband map … Without that, money spent by [the] Commerce Department won’t go to the right places,” she said. “I could be an enormous help in that regard.”
Spokespeople from the Commerce Department did not immediately return a request from the Blade for comment.
Republicans on the Committee, beginning with Ranking Member U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) focused their comments and questions on allegations that Sohn harbors deeply held prejudice against conservatives.
“There’s a reason we’re on our third nomination hearing,” Cruz said. “She’s shown herself to be a partisan and associated herself repeatedly with the most extreme views on the far-left.”
“She has engaged in extreme vitriol,” Cruz said. “She has deep ties to far-left organizations and has promoted anti-police views.”
Sohn repeatedly batted away these accusations, which were reiterated by other GOP members, by denying that she shares all of the views espoused by public interest groups with which she has associated.
She also denied there was any link between many of the matters discussed by opponents to her nomination and the actual work she would do at the FCC if confirmed. In many cases, Sohn pointed out that the agency does not have any domain over the issues raised by committee members.
Under questioning from Republican members about instances — many of which happened several years ago — in which she retweeted or otherwise seemed to endorse incendiary messages about conservative media figures and politicians, Sohn said “I will admit that some of my tweets have been sharp,” adding, “The country has changed a lot since 2016.”
Cantwell noted that despite her past tweets, Sohn’s nomination has been endorsed by the presidents of news networks OAN and Newsmax, which are billed as more conservative alternatives to Fox News.
Freshman U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) accused Sohn, by virtue of her past comments, of being part of a “weird trend to be very racialized, to criticize racial groups,” pointing to her decision to re-tweet acclaimed actor and comedian Issa Rae’s tweet calling former President Donald Trump a “raggedy white supremacist” who “would rather kill everybody than stop killing black people.”
Vance then turned his attention to comments made by Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in the wake of a train derailment earlier this month in East Palestine, Ohio, by rail cars carrying toxic chemicals.
“We had a really bad train crash in Ohio,” Vance said. “We’re doing as much as we can to help constituents. But [Sec.] Buttigieg, instead of commenting on this, focused on [what he called] the ‘terrible scourge of too many white men in the construction industry.’ It was a terrible focus for the Secretary of Transportation.”
Andrés I. Jové Rodríguez contributed to this article.
Congress
Top Congressional Democrats reintroduce Equality Act on Trump’s 100th day in office
Legislation would codify federal LGBTQ-inclusive non-discrimination protections

In a unified display of support for LGBTQ rights on President Donald Trump’s 100th day in office, congressional Democrats, including leadership from the U.S. House and U.S. Senate, reintroduced the Equality Act on Tuesday.
The legislation, which would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, codifying these protections into federal law in areas from jury service to housing and employment, faces an unlikely path to passage amid Republican control of both chambers of Congress along with the White House.
Speaking at a press conference on the grass across the drive from the Senate steps were Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.), House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (Mass.), U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (Wis.), who is the first out LGBTQ U.S. Senator, U.S. Rep. Mark Takano (Calif.), who is gay and chairs the Congressional Equality Caucus, U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (N.H.), who is gay and is running for the U.S. Senate, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (N.J.), and U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (Ore.).
Also in attendance were U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride (Del.), who is the first transgender member of Congress, U.S. Rep. Dina Titus (Nev.), U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (Ill.), and representatives from LGBTQ advocacy groups including the Human Rights Campaign and Advocates 4 Trans Equality.
Responding to a question from the Washington Blade on the decision to reintroduce the bill as Trump marks the hundredth day of his second term, Takano said, “I don’t know that there was a conscious decision,” but “it’s a beautiful day to stand up for equality. And, you know, I think the president is clearly hitting a wall that Americans are saying, many Americans are saying, ‘we didn’t vote for this.'”
A Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll released Sunday showed Trump’s approval rating in decline amid signs of major opposition to his agenda.
“Many Americans never voted for this, but many Americans, I mean, it’s a great day to remind them what is in the core of what is the right side of history, a more perfect union. This is the march for a more perfect union. That’s what most Americans believe in. And it’s a great day on this 100th day to remind our administration what the right side of history is.”
Merkley, when asked about the prospect of getting enough Republicans on board with the Equality Act to pass the measure, noted that, “If you can be against discrimination in employment, you can be against discrimination in financial contracts, you can be against discrimination in mortgages, in jury duty, you can be against discrimination in public accommodations and housing, and so we’re going to continue to remind our colleagues that discrimination is wrong.”
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which was sponsored by Merkley, was passed by the Senate in 2013 but languished in the House. The bill was ultimately broadened to become the Equality Act.
“As Speaker Nancy Pelosi has always taught me,” Takano added, “public sentiment is everything. Now is the moment to bring greater understanding and greater momentum, because, really, the Congress is a reflection of the people.”
“While we’re in a different place right this minute” compared to 2019 and 2021 when the Equality Act was passed by the House, Pelosi said she believes “there is an opportunity for corporate America to weigh in” and lobby the Senate to convince members of the need to enshrine federal anti-discrimination protections into law “so that people can fully participate.”
Politics
George Santos sentenced to 87 months in prison for fraud case
Judge: ‘You got elected with your words, most of which were lies.’

Disgraced former Republican congressman George Santos was sentenced to 87 months in prison on Friday, after pleading guilty last year to federal charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
“Mr. Santos, words have consequences,” said Judge Joanna Seybert of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. “You got elected with your words, most of which were lies.”
The first openly gay GOP member of Congress, Santos became a laughing stock after revelations came to light about his extensive history of fabricating and exaggerating details about his life and career.
His colleagues voted in December 2023 to expel him from Congress. An investigation by the U.S. House Ethics Committee found that Santos had used pilfered campaign funds for cosmetic procedures, designer fashion, and OnlyFans.
Federal prosecutors, however, found evidence that “Mr. Santos stole from donors, used his campaign account for personal purchases, inflated his fund-raising numbers, lied about his wealth on congressional documents and committed unemployment fraud,” per the New York Times.
The former congressman told the paper this week that he would not ask for a pardon. Despite Santos’s loyalty to President Donald Trump, the president has made no indication that he would intervene in his legal troubles.
Congress
Democratic lawmakers travel to El Salvador, demand information about gay Venezuelan asylum seeker
Congressman Robert Garcia led delegation

California Congressman Robert Garcia on Tuesday said the U.S. Embassy in El Salvador has agreed to ask the Salvadoran government about the well-being of a gay asylum seeker from Venezuela who remains incarcerated in the Central American country.
The Trump-Vance administration last month “forcibly removed” Andry Hernández Romero, a stylist who asked for asylum because of persecution he suffered because of his sexual orientation and political beliefs, and other Venezuelans from the U.S. and sent them to El Salvador.
The White House on Feb. 20 designated Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang, as an “international terrorist organization.” President Donald Trump on March 15 invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which the Associated Press notes allows the U.S. to deport “noncitizens without any legal recourse.”
Garcia told the Washington Blade that he and three other lawmakers — U.S. Reps. Maxwell Alejandro Frost (D-Fla.), Maxine Dexter (D-Ore.), and Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.) — met with U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador William Duncan and embassy staffers in San Salvador, the Salvadoran capital.
“His lawyers haven’t heard from him since he was abducted during his asylum process,” said Garcia.
The gay California Democrat noted the embassy agreed to ask the Salvadoran government to “see how he (Hernández) is doing and to make sure he’s alive.”
“That’s important,” said Garcia. “They’ve agreed to that … we’re hopeful that we get some word, and that will be very comforting to his family and of course to his legal team.”

Garcia, Frost, Dexter, and Ansari traveled to El Salvador days after House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) and House Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green (R-Tenn.) denied their request to use committee funds for their trip.
“We went anyways,” said Garcia. “We’re not going to be intimidated by that.”
Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on April 14 met with Trump at the White House. U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) three days later sat down with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man who the Trump-Vance administration wrongfully deported to El Salvador on March 15.
Abrego was sent to the country’s Terrorism Confinement Center, a maximum-security prison known by the Spanish acronym CECOT. The Trump-Vance administration continues to defy a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that ordered it to “facilitate” Abrego’s return to the U.S.
Garcia, Frost, Dexter, and Ansari in a letter they sent a letter to Duncan and Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday demanded “access to” Hernández, who they note “may be imprisoned at” CECOT. A State Department spokesperson referred the Blade to the Salvadoran government in response to questions about “detainees” in the country.
Garcia said the majority of those in CECOT who the White House deported to El Salvador do not have criminal records.
“They can say what they want, but if they’re not presenting evidence, if a judge isn’t sending people, and these people have their due process, I just don’t understand how we have a country without due process,” he told the Blade. “It’s just the bedrock of our democracy.”

Garcia said he and Frost, Dexter, and Ansari spoke with embassy staff, Salvadoran journalists and human rights activists and “anyone else who would listen” about Hernández. The California Democrat noted he and his colleagues also highlighted Abrego’s case.
“He (Hernández) was accepted for his asylum claim,” said Garcia. “He (Hernández) signed up for the asylum process on an app that we created for this very purpose, and then you get snatched up and taken to a foreign prison. It is unacceptable and inhumane and cruel and so it’s important that we elevate his story and his case.”
The Blade asked Garcia why the Trump-Vance administration is deporting people to El Salvador without due process.
“I honestly believe that he (Trump) is a master of dehumanizing people, and he wants to continue his horrendous campaign to dehumanize migrants and scare the American public and lie to the American public,” said Garcia.
The State Department spokesperson in response to the Blade’s request for comment referenced spokesperson Tammy Bruce’s comments about Van Hollen’s trip to El Salvador.
“These Congressional representatives would be better off focused on their own districts,” said the spokesperson. “Instead, they are concerned about non-U.S. citizens.”
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