National
Romney picks Ryan as running mate
Wisc. lawmaker voted against ‘Don’t Ask’ repeal, opposes marriage equality
Mitt Romney picked Paul Ryan as his running mate Saturday. (Photo by Gage Skidmore via Wikipedia)
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney announced on Saturday Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan is his pick for vice presidential running mate.
Romney made the announcement in Norfolk, Va., before the battleship U.S.S. Wisconsin — a ship that bears the same name as the state Ryan represents in Congress — introducing his choice by talking about Ryan losing his father at a young age.
“As he did, he internalized the virtues and hard-working ethic of the Midwest,” Romney said. “Paul Ryan works in Washington, but his beliefs remain firmly rooted in Janesville, Wis.”
Romney initially made a gaffe when he introduced Ryan by calling him the next “president” of the United States as opposed to the next “vice president” — a mistake the presidential candidate acknowledged and corrected later on.
Upon taking the stage, Ryan attacked President Obama for what he said were failed policies over the course of the past three-and-a-half years and said Romney would change the course of the country for the better.
“This is a crucial moment in the life of our nation, and it is absolutely vital that we select the right man to lead America back to prosperity and greatness,” Ryan said. “That man is sitting right next to me. His name is Mitt Romney, and he will be the next president of the United States of America.”
In terms of LGBT issues, Ryan is a notable selection among the possible choices — which were said to include U.S. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) — because Ryan voted in favor of a sexual orientation-only version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act when it came to the House floor in 2007.
R. Clarke Cooper, executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans, commended the Ryan choice because of his vote for ENDA and his willingness to engage with his organization.
“Congressman Ryan’s 2007 vote in favor of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and his consistent willingness to engage with Log Cabin on a range of issues speaks to his record as a fair-minded policymaker,” Cooper said.
Still, Ryan joined other House Republicans in a vote on a motion to recommit on ENDA that would have shelved the bill moments before his vote in favor of the legislation.
Besides the vote in favor of a version of ENDA, Ryan’s record on LGBT issues has not been supportive. Ryan voted in the subsequent Congress against hate crimes protection legislation and “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal. He also expressed opposition to same-sex marriage and voted for the Federal Marriage Amendment in 2004 and 2006. On NBC’s “Meet the Press” last year, he said, ”I support the Wisconsin Amendment to define marriage between a man and a woman.”
Over the course of the 112th Congress, Ryan voted to reaffirm the Defense of Marriage Act each of the three times that House Republicans have brought measures to the floor — the Foxx amendment last year as well as the Huelskamp and King amendments this year — which demonstrated support for the anti-gay law.
Katie Belanger, executive director of Fair Wisconsin, dismissed in June the notion that a Vice President Ryan would be a champion for LGBT equality upon taking the oath of office.
“Rep. Ryan has maintained a consistently anti-fairness voting record on issues of importance to our community, during the last five congressional sessions, including voting in 2002 against a policy that members of Congress voluntarily adopted to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation in their own congressional offices,” she said.
Ryan, who’s chair of the House Budget Committee, is more well-known on Capitol Hill — and reviled by progressive groups — for taking the lead on Republican versions of annual budgets for the U.S. government that would zero out funding for Medicare in favor of a voucher system and privatize a portion of Social Security.
Jim Messina, President Obama’s campaign manager, slammed the selection of Ryan as vice presidential nominee because of the policies he proposed in his leadership role among the House Republicans.
“In naming Congressman Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney has chosen a leader of the House Republicans who shares his commitment to the flawed theory that new budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthy, while placing greater burdens on the middle class and seniors, will somehow deliver a stronger economy,” Messina said. “The architect of the radical Republican House budget, Ryan, like Romney, proposed an additional $250,000 tax cut for millionaires, and deep cuts in education from Head Start to college aid. His plan also would end Medicare as we know it by turning it into a voucher system, shifting thousands of dollars in health care costs to seniors. As a member of Congress, Ryan rubber-stamped the reckless Bush economic policies that exploded our deficit and crashed our economy. Now the Romney-Ryan ticket would take us back by repeating the same, catastrophic mistakes.”
But gay conservative groups praised the selection of Ryan based on his conservative policies as chair of the House Budget Committee.
Jimmy LaSalvia, executive director of the gay conservative GOProud, which has endorsed Romney, commended Ryan for his conservative vision for the country.
“Paul Ryan is one of the few political leaders anywhere in the country willing to tell the American people the truth about the unprecedented budget crisis we are facing, and — more importantly — willing to put forward bold plans to put this country back on the road to fiscal solvency,” LaSalvia said.
LaSalvia continued that the conservative policies that Ryan has articulated benefit all Americans, gay and straight alike.
“Like all Americans, gays and lesbians in this country are concerned with the out-of-control spending and growing mountains of unsustainable federal debt,” LaSalvia said. “Gay Americans understand that without reforms – Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will go bankrupt. The future prosperity for all Americans, regardless of their sexual orientation, is at stake if we do not act today.”
Log Cabin’s Cooper also had kind words about the conservative budgets that have been articulated by Ryan.
“As chairman of the House Budget Committee and author of the Republican ‘path to prosperity’ that provided the blueprint for serious spending cuts in this Congress, nobody is more qualified to articulate a conservative economic vision to restore the American economy and stimulate job creation,” Cooper said.
Many observers have speculated that the selection of Ryan, a Tea Party favorite, would bring a new energy to the Romney campaign. Most polls consistently show that Obama has a lead over the GOP contender.
But Larry Sabato, a political scientist at the University of Virginia, said Friday night he doesn’t think the selection of Ryan will put any additional states on the table in the electoral college.
“We have Wisconsin as Leans Democratic — the least Blue category,” Sabato said. “The state is competitive already. But Ryan has never run statewide in Wisconsin. That means to me there will be far less impact than if he were a governor or a senator. Maybe it’s the late hour plus my advanced age, but I can’t think of another state that changes colors or shades.”
U.S. Military/Pentagon
Federal appeals court rules White House illegally banned trans troops
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says Pentagon will appeal to SCOTUS
A panel of federal appeals court judges ruled that President Donald Trump’s policy banning transgender troops likely violates their constitutional rights.
The three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled 2-1 that Trump’s Executive Order 14183, also known as “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness,” was created with the intent to exclude people from the military based on their gender identity.
The policy argues that trans people are inherently incapable of meeting the military’s “high standards of readiness, lethality, cohesion, honesty, humility, uniformity, and integrity,” citing a history of or signs of gender dysphoria as the cause. According to the Defense Department, this creates “medical, surgical, and mental health constraints on [an] individual.”
The policy states that, regardless of the physical or intellectual capabilities of each applicant, it views trans military applicants as a monolith, considering them less qualified than their cisgender peers.
Despite the panel’s majority opinion issued on Monday, the first day of Pride Month, the ban remains in effect. The U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Pentagon to enforce the policy last year and will continue to allow it to remain in place as litigation proceeds.
The panel’s new ruling will prevent the military from discharging current service members named in the lawsuit, but it does not allow new transrecruits to join.
The policy “appears to be driven by the bare desire to harm a politically unpopular group: persons who identify as transgender,” Judge Robert Wilkins, a Democratic appointee of President Barack Obama wrote for the majority.
Judge Justin Walker, the author of the dissenting opinion and a Republican Trump appointee, argued that the authority to determine military policy does not rest with the courts. Instead, he wrote, the Constitution grants that power to Congress through legislation and to the president as commander in chief of the armed forces.
“We have neither the expertise nor the authority to decide whether the military can exclude the plaintiffs from its ranks. The Constitution assigns that authority to Congress and the commander-in-chief,” Walker wrote.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth indicated that an appeal is in the works, posting, “See you at SCOTUS” on X on Monday in response to the ruling.
Jennifer Levi, senior director of transgender and queer rights at GLAD Law, which has led the litigation since last November, applauded the decision.
“Today’s decision is a powerful vindication of the plaintiffs’ extraordinary courage and unwavering commitment to their country,” Levi said.
The Washington Blade spoke with Second Lt. Nicolas (Nic) Talbott of the U.S. Army, the lead plaintiff in the case, and Levi from GLAD Law back in November.
While discussing the case and his experiences as a trans service member, Talbott said his identity is an asset rather than a hindrance, particularly when it comes to identifying problems and finding solutions, regardless of what others may think or say.
“Being transgender is not some sad thing that people go through,” Talbott told the Blade. “This is something that has taken years and years and years of dedication and discipline and research and ups and downs to get to the point where I am today … my ability to transition was essential to getting me to that point where I am today.”
He also discussed the impact of removing qualified and dedicated service members from the military, arguing that the consequences will be felt long after Trump leaves office.
“When we’re losing thousands of those qualified, experienced individuals … those are seats that are not just going to be able to be filled by anybody,” he said. “[That’s] military training that’s not going to be able to be replaced for years and years to come.”
“Every person who puts on the uniform is expected to make a tremendous amount of sacrifice,” Talbott said. “Who I am under this uniform should have no bearing on that … We shouldn’t be picking and choosing which veterans are worthy of our thanks on that day.”
Levi characterized the policy as overtly cruel and legally indefensible to the Blade.
“This policy and its rollout is even more cruel than the first in a number of ways,” Levi explained. “For one, the policy itself says that transgender people are dishonest, untrustworthy and undisciplined, which is deeply offensive and degrading and demeaning.”
She also argued that the administration’s cost justification is flawed, saying that removing and replacing trans service members is more expensive than retaining them.
“There’s no legitimate justification relating to cost … it is far more expensive to both purge the military of people who are serving and also to replace people … than to provide the minuscule amount of costs for medications other service members routinely get.”
National
Results from key Tuesday primary races
State officials in California had not called the governor’s race as of Wednesday morning but Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra appear likely to advance to the general election.
The race for governor has been scrambled several times after Kamala Harris opted not to run, Rep. Eric Swalwell dropped out after sexual misconduct allegations surfaced, and Rep. Katie Porter’s campaign fizzled. Becerra would be the state’s first Latino governor since 1875 if elected. Hilton was endorsed by President Trump.
In the Los Angeles mayor’s race, the AP declared that incumbent Mayor Karen Bass will advance to the Nov. 3 runoff while former reality TV star Spencer Pratt and LA Council member Nithya Raman were competing for second place. California is notoriously slow in counting ballots and only about half of the results were available by Wednesday morning.
In San Francisco, Democratic State Sen. Scott Wiener advanced to the general election in November, besting Supervisor Connie Chan, who was endorsed by House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi. Pelosi is retiring from Congress after nearly 40 years in the House.
In Iowa, Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek won the primary for an open U.S. Senate seat, defeating state Sen. Zach Wahls. Turek will face Rep. Ashley Hinson, who won the GOP primary with President Donald Trump’s endorsement, in the general election.
The Iowa seat is open because Sen. Joni Ernst (R) decided not to seek re-election. The primary was closely watched by LGBTQ advocates because Wahls rose to national prominence after a speech he made defending marriage equality went viral in 2011. Wahls was raised by a lesbian couple.
National
White House Correspondents’ Dinner rescheduled after shooting
‘We will not allow an act of violence to have the last word’
The White House Correspondents’ Association announced on Tuesday that it has rescheduled its annual dinner for July 24 after the April event was halted when gunshots rang out at the Washington Hilton.
Cole Allen, 31, is charged with the attempted assassination of President Trump, who was in the ballroom at the time of the incident. One Secret Service officer was wounded in the attack. Officers stopped Allen before he could enter the ballroom where 2,500 journalists and politicos were having dinner and waiting for Trump to speak. It was Trump’s first time attending as president.
“We will not allow an act of violence to have the last word, especially during a year when we are reflecting on the 250th anniversary of America and everything we stand for,” said WHCA President Weijia Jiang in a statement to members.
She did not announce further details, including venue and ticketing.
Washington Blade White House reporter Joe Reberkenny was in the audience when shots were fired and reported live on social media from the scene.
This post will be updated as more details are announced.
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