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NOM Has A Fundraising Problem? Despite ‘Obama’s Assault On Marriage’?

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NOM, the National Organization For Marriage, apparently is having a fundraising problem, even despite what they labeled as “Obama’s Assault on Marriage,” and claimed this week, “Obama abandons marriage.” Brian Brown, who in addition to his role as President of NOM, today we learn is also Chairman and Founder of ActRight.com, a PAC response to the Democratic ActBlue.

Of course, as the head of both NOM and ActRight, Brown is able to capitalize on right wing causes and candidate campaigns, and be seen as a money man — a nice position of power for Brown.

Brown is now spinning his new conservative empire, in, for example, a fundraising email in which he introduces “Stand for Marriage America,”a campaign to raise $100,000 by midnight tonight to support the four state campaigns defending marriage at the ballot box this November: Washington State, Maryland, Maine and Minnesota.”

In a companion email, Brown notes:

Through Stand for Marriage America, you can make a single contribution and know that all of it will go directly to the four state campaigns in Minnesota, Maine, Maryland, and Washington state.

…

With President Obama’s marriage flip, the stakes just got even higher.

…

God is real, and the inevitability myth is made up to substitute for His providence.

That’s why I’m challenging you today to make a generous gift, not to NOM today, but to Stand for Marriage America.

In another of Brown’s many weekly fundraising emails (the frequency of NOM’s money-whoring fundraising emails under the guise of “protecting marriage” demonstrates just what their real goal is: the enrichment of senior NOM leaders) he tonight writes, “URGENT! Stop President Obama’s Assault on Marriage!,” and “We’re Running Out of Time!”

But as the above screenshot demonstrates, NOM’s new ActRight-based “Stand for Marriage America, a campaign to raise $100,000 by midnight tonight to support the four state campaigns defending marriage at the ballot box this November,” NOM is having a tough time raising funds.

If NOM were effect, if America really were outraged that President Obama declared his support of same-sex marriage, wouldn’t NOM be raking in the cash?

They, as of this writing, have taken in a mere $20,938, from 282 people. There are 311 million Americans in the U.S. 282 people? That’s a constituency of 0.000090675241%, I believe. (Check my math, please!)

In the timeline of the march toward equality, President Obama’s announcement on Wednesday that he supports the rights of same-sex couples to marry no doubt will be seen as a milestone. Yet NOM can’t even capitalize on one of the biggest events in same-sex marriage history?

You know, I have a theory:

Remember when HRC unearthed those previously-sealed court documents that revealed NOM’s corporate policy of race-baiting? Maggie Gallagher had already left the organization, and as soon as she did, NOM became clearly more angry, more hate-filled, more religious, and more divisive.

A quick glance seems to find that Gallagher didn’t meet many of the goals found in the unsealed court documents. It’s not illogical to wonder, was she forced out?

President Obama Thursday evening made $15 million dollars at a fundraiser, after his marriage announcement. NOM — who yesterday sent a fundraising email trifled, “SSM Will Cost Obama Re-election Bid” – can’t even meet a $100,000 goal?

Is Brian Brown’s leadership at NOM also in jeopardy?

Time will tell.

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News

New Jersey Third State to Ban Banning Books From Libraries

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December 24, 2024

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New Jersey has become the third state, with Illinois and Michigan, to stop schools and public libraries from banning books.

Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, signed the Freedom to Read Act earlier this month on December 9, at the Princeton Public Library. The act keeps age-appropriate books available to students at public schools and libraries.

“The Freedom to Read Act cements New Jersey’s role on the forefront of preventing book bans and protecting the intellectual freedom of our educators and students. Across the nation, we have seen attempts to suppress and censor the stories and experiences of others. I’m proud to amplify the voices of our past and present, as there is no better way for our children to prepare for the future than to read freely,” Murphy said.

READ MORE: Tim Walz Mocks Anti-LGBTQ Book Bans During HRC Speech

The law also protects librarians from being sued in criminal or civil court. This is in clear contrast to laws in other states like Idaho, where libraries that allow young patrons to check out a book deemed inappropriate are given a mandatory $250 fine. Idaho’s law also allows libraries and individual librarians to be sued, with no cap on the amount of damages that can be awarded.

The New Jersey law will make school boards and libraries establish curation policies and set up a review system to address concerns over individual materials. That said, books cannot be banned because of an author’s identity or background, or their personal or political views. Banning books based on the offensiveness of content is not allowed either, unless it’s developmentally inappropriate.

For example, while one could—and should!—ban a preschooler from checking out a collection of Tom of Finland artwork because it’s clearly for adults, they’re free to get And Tango Makes Three, the children’s book about gay penguins.

“The freedom to read and to freely access information is an essential part of a quality education and a core component of our democracy,” New Jersey Senate President Nick Scutari said. “This law will help New Jersey libraries guard against politically-inspired censorship and protect librarians from harassment for simply doing their job.”

This is another departure from other states’ bans, which are often written so vaguely to leave librarians in a lurch. The Idaho law officially bans “obscene materials” but defines it very broadly. “Homosexuality” is included in the definition of “obscene materials,” without clarifying if it means queer characters in a book or explicit sex. To avoid prosecution by an overzealous activist, one Idaho library even prohibits anyone under 18 from entering the adult section without their parent or guardian signing a form on every visit. Another small library had to go adults-only.

While three states have prohibited banning books, the Associated Press reports that over 15 states have introduced bills this year that would punish librarians for “inappropriate” books being given to patrons.

Image via Shutterstock

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INTERNATIONAL

Greenland Gets New Defense Tools Including Drones, Dog Sled Teams After Trump’s Comments

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December 24, 2024

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On Tuesday, Denmark earmarked $1.5 billion in defense spending for Greenland after incoming President Donald Trump again made overtures to buy the autonomous territory.

The exact amount of defense funding for Greenland is not known, but the BBC reports that Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen announced it as in the “double digit million” amount of krone, which would place the minimum U.S. dollar equivalent at $1.5 billion.

The money is likely to be used to increase the amount of military personnel at Arctic Command and one of the country’s airports, the BBC reported, as well as to purchase two ships, two long-range drones and two dog sled teams.

Poulsen said the deal had been pre-planned, and the timing of Trump’s comments was merely “irony.”

READ MORE: Donald Trump Isn’t the First President to Try to Buy Greenland

Trump has suggested that the U.S. should purchase Greenland, an autonomous territory owned by Denmark. It was an occasional topic during his first term as well, though most thought the president was joking, at least initially.

Trump’s current interest was first declared on Sunday when he announced Ken Howery will be the U.S. ambassador to Denmark. He declared that “the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity” in the announcement.

On Monday evening, RNC Chair Michael Whatley discussed with Fox News host Brian Kilmeade the potential price of such a deal, according to Mediaite.

“Well, I think from a national security perspective, as he said, certainly [it’s] a place that is very rich in minerals and is, uh, you know, geopolitically important for him,” Whatley said. “And it’s a conversation that we wanna have with Denmark about being able to use the resources up there.”

“Yeah, it’s gonna cost about $1.5 trillion, but it probably will pay off,” Kilmeade responded.

While Kilmeade has placed a price tag on Greenland, it is unlikely Denmark would agree to sell. Denmark has repeatedly declined offers to buy the territory. Greenlandic Prime Minister Mute Egede invoked the country’s desire for independence in shutting down Trump’s overtures.

“Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and will never be for sale. We must not lose our long struggle for freedom,” Egede said Monday, according to Reuters.

Greenland passed a law in 2009 which gave the territory more power to self-govern. Part of that law includes a provision for independence if the citizens vote for it. However, Greenland currently gets a block grant from Denmark that makes up one-quarter of the territory’s gross domestic product. If Greenland were to become fully independent, it would lose that money.

While citizens of the territory are in favor of independence, according to polling, just not at the expense of a drop in the standard of  living. In response to this, those fighting for independence have worked to diversify Greenland’s economy.

Image via Shutterstock

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politics

MAGA World Ignores Christmas Season on Social Media

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December 24, 2024

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christmas tree

This Christmas season, while President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have celebrated the holiday, MAGA World has stuck to business as usual so far.

Tuesday is Christmas Eve, and on that day, incoming President Donald Trump has posted to Truth Social about Herschel Walker being named ambassador to the Bahamas and raged at Biden for commuting the sentences of death row prisoners. JD Vance hasn’t posted since Monday when he tweeted a screenshot of one of Trump’s Truth Social posts, this one showing an AI-generated American Flag in the middle of the Panama Canal.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) did tweet early Tuesday afternoon, wishing her followers a merry Christmas, but got in a dig at Biden all the same.

“Merry Christmas Eve everyone!! It’s the last Christmas under Democrat Communist control. Freedom is coming!” she wrote, along with an American flag emoji.

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) did tweet this Christmas Eve, but it just a retweet of Former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) sharing a print out of a Federalist article slamming the House Ethics Committee, signed by Trump as “Very Unfair!”

Gaetz also hasn’t posted any Christmas material, though that’s understandable as he’s got other things going on right now.

In contrast, Biden and Harris have had the Christmas spirit all week. On Monday, she retweeted her husband Doug Emhoff sharing their holiday card, and Tuesday, a brief video about the card’s designer.

“It was an honor to meet Tania, a young artist and student at Calvin Coolidge Senior High School, who designed our 2024 holiday card. Thank you for sharing your incredible talent with us,” Harris tweeted.

Biden on the other hand, has been Christmas posting since the 20th, sharing a photo op taken at the Children’s National Hospital and a video of the White House Christmas tree. On Monday, he posted a Christmassy photo of Willow, the Bidens’ cat, captioned “One of my favorite Christmas tails,” and on the morning of Christmas Eve, he shared a diorama of the White House decked out for the holidays, writing “The People’s House is ready for St. Nick.”

On his personal account, he also shared a special Christmas Eve greeting with a photo of him with his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, thanking veterans for their service.

“Jill and I hold a special place in our hearts for the brave men and women in uniform who defend our nation, many of whom are away from their families this holiday season. Wishing you and your loved ones a safe Christmas Eve,” he wrote.

Obviously, whether or not a world leader goes all out during the Santa season is of little importance. It’s merely interesting that the party that prides itself on its deep Christian faith and on fighting against the “war on Christmas” is mostly ignoring the holiday.

But too, the Trump administration has had its own prickly relationship with Christmas, cancelling the annual White House party in 2018, his son sharing a meme featuring Trump on the top of the tree instead of an angel or star, and Melania Trump complaining about how poorly received her choice of decorations was.

Update: This article has been updated to include a Christmas Eve tweet from Marjorie Taylor Greene.

Image by JD Hancock via Flickr, used under Creative Commons license.

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