21 posts tagged “barack obama”

The McFreeds share a video that really lays out the issues of Rick Warren out well...

I am not always crazy about Rachel Maddow, but this was great!

The McFreeds announce that President-elect Barack Obama has laid out an agenda for GLBT/LGBT civil rights...

Announced today on the President-elect Barack Obama Transition site change.gov, the following items were laid out as the Obama Administration's goals in the area of LGBT/GLBT civil rights. Will we hold them to their promise and help them pass this ambitious agenda which no former President has ever embraced?

The Obama-Biden Plan

• Expand Hate Crimes Statutes: In 2004, crimes against LGBT Americans constituted the third-highest category of hate crime reported and made up more than 15 percent of such crimes. Barack Obama cosponsored legislation that would expand federal jurisdiction to include violent hate crimes perpetrated because of race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, or physical disability. As a state senator, Obama passed tough legislation that made hate crimes and conspiracy to commit them against the law.
• Fight Workplace Discrimination: Barack Obama supports the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, and believes that our anti-discrimination employment laws should be expanded to include sexual orientation and gender identity. While an increasing number of employers have extended benefits to their employees' domestic partners, discrimination based on sexual orientation in the workplace occurs with no federal legal remedy. Obama also sponsored legislation in the Illinois State Senate that would ban employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
• Support Full Civil Unions and Federal Rights for LGBT Couples: Barack Obama supports full civil unions that give same-sex couples legal rights and privileges equal to those of married couples. Obama also believes we need to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and enact legislation that would ensure that the 1,100+ federal legal rights and benefits currently provided on the basis of marital status are extended to same-sex couples in civil unions and other legally-recognized unions. These rights and benefits include the right to assist a loved one in times of emergency, the right to equal health insurance and other employment benefits, and property rights.
• Oppose a Constitutional Ban on Same-Sex Marriage: Barack Obama voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment in 2006 which would have defined marriage as between a man and a woman and prevented judicial extension of marriage-like rights to same-sex or other unmarried couples.
• Repeal Don't Ask-Don't Tell: Barack Obama agrees with former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff John Shalikashvili and other military experts that we need to repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. The key test for military service should be patriotism, a sense of duty, and a willingness to serve. Discrimination should be prohibited. The U.S. government has spent millions of dollars replacing troops kicked out of the military because of their sexual orientation. Additionally, more than 300 language experts have been fired under this policy, including more than 50 who are fluent in Arabic. Obama will work with military leaders to repeal the current policy and ensure it helps accomplish our national defense goals.
• Expand Adoption Rights: Barack Obama believes that we must ensure adoption rights for all couples and individuals, regardless of their sexual orientation. He thinks that a child will benefit from a healthy and loving home, whether the parents are gay or not.
• Promote AIDS Prevention: In the first year of his presidency, Barack Obama will develop and begin to implement a comprehensive national HIV/AIDS strategy that includes all federal agencies. The strategy will be designed to reduce HIV infections, increase access to care and reduce HIV-related health disparities. Obama will support common sense approaches including age-appropriate sex education that includes information about contraception, combating infection within our prison population through education and contraception, and distributing contraceptives through our public health system. Obama also supports lifting the federal ban on needle exchange, which could dramatically reduce rates of infection among drug users. Obama has also been willing to confront the stigma -- too often tied to homophobia -- that continues to surround HIV/AIDS. He will continue to speak out on this issue as president.
• Empower Women to Prevent HIV/AIDS: In the United States, the percentage of women diagnosed with AIDS has quadrupled over the last 20 years. Today, women account for more than one quarter of all new HIV/AIDS diagnoses. Barack Obama introduced the Microbicide Development Act, which will accelerate the development of products that empower women in the battle against AIDS. Microbicides are a class of products currently under development that women apply topically to prevent transmission of HIV and other infections.

Sean shares this funny story...

Gawker.com had this amusing, making that naughty curl with your mouth as you smirk story that I had to post about...

Barack Obama's historic presidential victory aroused so much emotion: Tears on an Oprah level, ecstasy on a spontaneous street party level and anger at a loudly-interrupt-an-old-war-hero level. So Newsweek can't help but ask... did it turn you on? And did you then have hot, hope-filled change sex, or maybe change-filled hope sex, possibly ending in someone yelling "Yes We Can?" Because, seriously, that would be perfect. Read the magazine's written inquiry after the jump.

Newsweek's Jessica Bennett sent the following query to flack Peter Shankman's Help A Reporter Out, the wildly successful service for matching attention-hungry experts with reporters desperate to make a point. We're guessing she was thinking of going to the far more appropriate Daily Kos first, but then realized she needed to talk to folks with a sense of humor. (She should have stuck with Kos and then just made fun of her sources, duh.)

Name: Jessica Bennett

Email: Removed

Title: Reporter

Media Outlet/Publication: Newsweek

Query:  "I'm working on a funny piece about the potential for an Obama baby boom 9 months from election night. Did you make love in the name of Obama on election night? Were you feeling particularly romantic because you candidate won? If you seriously plan to conceive are you happy you'll be bringing a child into the Obama administration? I'm looking for funny and/or stories and anecdotes. If you're not comfortable having your name used, please let me know and we can likely work around that."

Sean ponders...

Barack Obama is now President-elect, but his Senate seat is now open and available.  Who should fill the seat?  Many political considerations are being debated by Governor Rod Blagojevich in who will be chosen for this honor to fill the last 2 years of Obama's term. If I could make a suggestion, it would be this amazing woman Tammy Duckworth. A major in the Army who was a helicopter pilot, double amputee, and Illinois Director of Veteran's Affairs. She is an inspiration - her alive day is November 12, 2004 - and someone we need in the Senate to truly speak up for today's veteran's. What's also awesome is that she is a fellow George Washington University alumni! So get to know Tammy she may be Senator Duckworth soon or U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs!  Honor her regardless for her service this Veteran's Day!

The McFreeds celebrate the election of our next president...

America here is the face of the next four years. Another ceiling has fallen. May we pray that they serve all of us well.

The Next First and Second Families of the USA

The McFreeds spread the wealth around and post the following videos...

Just because we might not support the McCain/Palin ticket does not mean we don't respect their own accomplishment in reaching this moment in their own lives. John McCain is a true patriot and unfortunately, in Sean's mind at least, missed his window in 2000 and ran a campaign focused on character and not action. Sarah Palin is a controversial figure in this election and she has really only been around us for 2 months. But we should recognize the symbolic ideal that she like Barack Obama is showing that America can also nominate a woman to one of the two highest offices in the land. I am sure both of their families are quite proud today of them. McCain has the honor of having his mother alive to see his accomplishment and Palin has her own parents as well. Congrats to them on getting this far regardless of party affiliation and policy position. We must all reach out and work with our political opposites to get this nation back on track again. Here's hoping we do.

I wish McCain and Palin well although they are not getting our votes.

Here are looks at McCain's and Palin's voting experience... just imagine if it was your name on the ballot?

The McFreeds share some Election Day video...

Barack and Michelle Obama vote with their daughters Malia Ann and Natasha in Chicago. The first African-American on the presidential ballot has voted. Good news is that Madelyn Dunham - Obama's grandmother who passes away yesterday - was lucky enough to cast an absentee ballot for her grandson before she left us. Hawaii said her ballot was received properly and is legal for processing. So she got to vote for grandson after all!

Joe and Jill Biden vote with his 90-year old mother Jean in Delaware. How proud his mother must be!

Sean asks...

One of the analysts last night made an important observation: What is John McCain for?  These days it seems that all John McCain and Sarah Palin ever talk about these days is why Barack Obama and Joe Biden bad for America while not talking about what they - McCain and Palin - are going to do for America.  There is a lot of talk about "fight," staying the course in Iraq, and not raising your taxes.  There is no talk by McCain/Palin about hope and a "call to arms" to Americans to employ self-sacrifice and do their part in "fixing" what is wrong with America. All McCain talks about lately is what is the definition of rich, who attended what party/board meeting/fund-raiser with Obama 5 years ago, and who someone says sounds like a socialist. Obama is not the perfect candidate on the negatives of campaigning, but at least there is a huge amount of hope and pride in what he see our nation becoming rather than a celebration of what we were and why the other guy sucks. Some will say that this is the mainstream media's fault, but in the end isn't it really McCain's for not getting his message out in the first place even when he is interviewed?

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The McFreeds would like to share some political humor with you... from the candidates themselves!

Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama attended the Al Smith Memorial Fund dinner in New York last night and brought out the jokes and the barbs (although some are subtley present). This dinner has a tradition of being like the National Press Club dinner in Washington, DC - a time for politicians to poke fun at themselves. Enjoy this last joke between the two candidates that you will probably see in the next 18 days!

John McCain did a great job here. His Hillary Clinton schtick was great!  The man did host Saturday Night Live once after all!

Barack Obama does an OK job here but his jokes are not as well greeted by the dinner guests because it really goes after Wall Street. But wait until the last minute where he has a hysterical comment about "Who is Barack Obama?"

The McFreeds present...

The third debate between the presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain introduced us all to Joe "The Plumber" Wurzelbacher. Below is the actual interchange between Obama and Joe. Listen and make your own judgements.

Here is a follow up interview with Joe "The Plumber" that captures his personal impressions of the debate and who he will vote for based on what he has heard so far. Again, make your own judgements.