March 5, 2023

Sunday, March 5, 2023 Annette’s News Roundup.

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If you ever wonder if Banana Republicans are really dangerous and disgusting, check out what happened at CPAC yesterday.

CPAC speaker sparks alarm with call for trans people to be ‘eradicated’

Michael Knowles of the Daily Wire sparked alarm on Saturday with his anti-trans rhetoric during his speech at CPAC.

“If [transgenderism] is false, then for the good of society, transgenderism must be eradicated from public life entirely,” he said.

John Knefel of Media Matters called it “eliminationist, genocidal rhetoric”.

Christopher Mathias of HuffPost said it was “a straight-up eliminationist anti-trans tirade”.

Adam Vary of Variety urged people to “pay attention. This is genocidal. That is not hyperbole or alarmist; this rhetoric is calling for the eradication of a group of people for who they are”.

“‘Transgenderism’ is people. He’s talking about eradicating people. When newspapers print scare stories about kids transitioning too early, when podcast hosts whine about girls’ sports, when politicians snark about the definition of ‘woman,’ this is what they’re talking around,” Raphael Bob-Waksberg said.

“It would be great if non-trans people would start paying attention to this, because the quiet part is getting shouted at this point,” Jaclyn Moore added. “If only there was a word for when they want to ‘eradicate’ a kind of people. A word trans people have said these people were talking about but people called us hyperbolic. Hmmm I guess my vocabulary just isn’t good enough.”

Writer Parker Molloy said, “hey, this is really scary s***, and I wish that the a***holes who keep insisting that there aren’t major legislative attacks on trans people of all ages happening right now ... would stop lying about that. Things are getting very bad”.

“The GOP could not be more clear about their intentions: they want to eradicate trans people. They are saying this out loud,” Charlotte Clymer said.

Mr Knowles has said in the past that his rhetoric isn’t genocidal because he doesn’t believe trans people exist, Jezebel noted.

“There can’t be a genocide,” he said on his programme last week, adding that “it’s not a legitimate category of being. They’re labouring under a delusion. And so we need to correct that delusion”.

(The Independent).

At least there were fewer of them there.

The Sad, Desolate Scenes of CPAC 2023.

An attendee yawns, amongst a sea of empty chairs, following a speech by Donald Trump Jr., at the 2023 Conservative Political Action Conference.

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It’s so great to see everyone here, and it’s so great to see a packed house, too!” 

It is approximately 11:15 AM in Washington DC, and investigative reporter Sara Carter is lying. The house is never crowded this early on the first day of CPAC, but even by those standards the Potomac Ballroom looks grim. The camera responsible for providing close-in crowd shots that  CPAC likes to work into their livestream footage is working hard to stay away from the deserted wasteland of chairs in the rear two-thirds of this auditorium, but there’s nothing it can do to disguise the gap-toothed emptiness of the front section. I am beginning to understand the reasoning behind yesterday’s tersely-worded email that expressly forbade reporters from “roam[ing] in the Potomac Ballroom”—but they might want to reconsider: This anemic crowd needs all the extra bodies it can get.

This is my fourth CPAC, a bi-yearly gathering of conservative groupies, donors, political operators, long-shot candidates, and packs of teenage boys in crisp suits who wander the hallways in packs and talk to no one else. Get an autograph from Lauren Boebert, snap a selfie with Steve Bannon, listen to speech after speech about how the Democrats are coming for you and everyone you love. It’s a bacchanale, it’s an indoctrination session, it’s ComiCon for politics nerds. 

Or at least, that’s what it usually is. But this year, CPAC feels like none of those things to me—or rather, those things feel as empty as those seats. The vibes are off. 

The sense of emptiness extends beyond the seats, a fact not lost on CPAC organizer Matt Schlapp. “There’s a lot of chatter in the media over who’s here or not here,” he told the crowd less than fifteen seconds into his opening speech. These are the very first words spoken on the event stage and the insecurities are palpable. 

Some of that aforementioned buzz is slightly silly. The New York Timespointed out the absence of Pence, McCarthy, and the party’s Senate leadership, as though any of those people would be welcome in these halls.

Other absences, however, are more surprising. Two years ago, Fox Nation was a major sponsor of the conference; attendees received a free year-long streaming service membership and a tote bag full of branded swag. This year, the cable news giant is nowhere to be found: It’s not on sponsorship signs, not in CPAC Central, not even in Broadcast Row where Newsmax and Real America’s Voice now dominate.

Also missing in action: Ron DeSantis, who has instead opted to attend a closed donor event in his home state of Florida with the Club for Growth. This 800-pound fundraising gorilla scheduled their event over the exact four days as CPAC itself; shots fired. Participation in one does not preclude participation in the other—presidential hopefuls Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy plan to attend both events. Nonetheless, the Club for Growth has thrown down the gauntlet against both the American Conservative Union (ACU) and Trump himself, who was not invited to their party. It’s the end of an era. After six years of lock-step unity behind the Golden-Haired One, a war has begun for the future of the party. (Rolling Stone).

Trump Vows to Continue Campaign if Indicted, Gives Snoozy CPAC Speech.

At a press conference ahead of Donald Trump’s speech to the Conservative Political Action Coalition’s annual event, Newsmax’s James Rosen asked whether he would drop out of the presidential race if he is indicted on criminal charges. “I wouldn’t even think of leaving [the race],” Trump responded. “Probably it will enhance my numbers.”

Shortly thereafter, Trump delivered a low energy speech to a low energy CPAC, though he appeared to be briefly interrupted by a protester blaring hip hop music. While the former president did not let the interruption stop him from spouting his usual hateful drivel (the crowd broke into chants of “USA! USA! USA!” to drown the music out), a sweaty Trump gave a speech that seemed more subdued than his typical rallies. (Yahoo).

The Outcome Of CPAC's Straw Poll Was No Surprise.

OXON HILL, Md. — Donald Trump topped the straw poll of declared and likely 2024 presidential candidates at this week’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) — a shock to no one who has followed the increasingly Trump-dominated gathering of activists in recent years.

Trump was the clear winner on the question of whom respondents would support if the 2024 presidential primary were held today, earning 62% of the vote. In second place was Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) with 20%. DeSantis, widely seen as Trump’s chief rival, has yet to declare his candidacy officially. However, he is reportedly heading to Iowa, the first presidential nominating state for Republicans, later this month and is sitting on a massive campaign war chest. Roughly 2,000 CPAC guests voted in the poll online using their conference credentials.

(HuffPost).

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Jon Stewart talks to MAGA.

Touch 👇 to watch. You should.

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Women’s Empowerment Month*

*Source of phrase. Vice President Kamala Harris.

A woman worth noting.

This is a big deal. Elly Schlein, daughter of Italian woman and Jewish American man. She worked for Obama, and now heads the Democratic Party in Italy, leading the opposition against Giorgia Meloni, the Current Italian Prime Minister who, according to some academics. leads the most right-wing government in the history of the Italian Republic.

Ex-Obama campaigner voted head of Italy's Democratic Party.

MILAN (AP) — Elly Schlein, a 37-year-old U.S.-Italian national and longtime left-wing political operative who worked on two presidential campaigns for former U.S. President Barack Obama, defied polls to become the first woman to head Italy’s opposition Democratic Party.

Schlein’s surprise victory Sunday over the popular governor of Emilia-Romagna, a traditional left-wing stronghold, is attributed to support from women and youth in the rank-and-file, while the party apparatus largely supported Stefano Bonaccini.

Schlein claimed 54% of the vote to Bonaccini’s 46%.

We will be a big problem” for Premier Giorgia Meloni, Schlein said to supporters, pledging to help the most vulnerable and shore up the labor market with better-paying, secure jobs.

Schlein took an immediate swipe at Meloni for her far-right government’s anti-migration policies, saying that the shipwreck deaths Sunday of dozens off southern Italy “weighs on the conscience of those who only weeks ago approved a decree whose only goal is to hinder rescues at sea.”

Schlein called instead for a system that allows migrants to legally apply for entry into all European nations and for the EU to invigorate its humanitarian search-and-rescue mission. (AP).

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A second woman worth noting.

A profile of Congresswoman Lauren Underwood by Ruby Cramer.

Lauren Underwood, single and Black, learns what a life in Congress costs.

Was this what she signed up for?

Not exactly. But Lauren Underwood was here to do the job, and today, on a Friday at 11 p.m., the job was to sit in the House chamber and to wait, alert, present, attentive, for her name to be called near the end of the alphabet. So that’s what she did. She had her navy-blue blanket draped over her legs. She had cough drops and hard candy in her bag. Underwood came 405th in line, about 40 minutes into each roll call, after four Johnsons, four Smiths, three Thompsons and two Torreses. Fourteen rounds of votes and still no speaker of the House. Four days of anxiety and confusion, waiting to be sworn in.

It occurred to her early on that week that the world was watching, and that Congress was not exactly putting its best foot forward. There was a grimness haunting the place. It was not a happy scene. Underwood scrolled through text messages on her phone. Across the aisle sat the new Republican majority. She heard murmurs. Then she heard yelling. The word “combustible” came to mind. She turned and saw two colleagues about to lay hands on one another — an almost-fight breaking out in the House chamber. Was she surprised? After four years in this job, no, not really. She looked back down at her phone and fired off a skull emoji to her sister. One more vote and then she could begin her third term in Congress.

And all that was fine, because Lauren Underwood had given a lot to be here. So had everybody in the room, of course. This job, being a member of Congress, was not supposed to be easy. They were America’s public servants. Some of them were famous for it. Most were not. Some put in the work, striving beyond the bare minimum. Some did not. All of them had done what was required to survive, to win a campaign, to secure their seats, to be one of 435. But Lauren Underwood had given something different. There were a lot of women like her. But she didn’t see many in Congress.

The truth is, she loved her job. She believed she was good at it, too. She’d had 14 pieces of legislation signed into law under PresidentsTrump and Biden. She was going to serve in a House leadership role now — the first Black woman elected by her colleagues since Shirley Chisholm in 1977 — as co-chair of the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee. She’d kept her head down and she had worked. Going viral, she had learned, was overrated. If anything, she had dialed back her personal online presence over the past four years. It only invited hostility, an ugly darkness.

She’d come into Congress with the Class of 2018, part of that big blue wave of young, diverse women who promised to block Trump and change the way things work in Washington. Underwood, a registered nurse from the Chicago suburbs, wanted to make the health-care system better. She was 30 years old, just a “regular person,” she said, when she gave up her career to run for office. She was 32 when she became the youngest Black woman elected to Congress.

That first week here, four years ago this January, had been so busy, so full of possibility. Everything was new. She remembers wanting to work with her colleagues in “this really sweet, optimistic way.” She remembers searching the halls for a “Republican bestie,” a fellow member of Congress who could be her partner on meaningful health-care legislation. But that was before two impeachments, before Jan. 6, 2021, before she knew the job. Now, she was less candid, less trusting, more aggressive about managing her time. Now, she knew that people would waste your time here, if you let them. Now, she knew that some Democrats and Republicans avoided eye contact when they crossed paths in the halls.

She also knew that to keep the job, she had to be perfect. She couldn’t mess up. And so she didn’t. Early on that week, when she learned that her assigned seat with the Democratic leadership team would be in view of a C-SPAN camera, she was vigilant, careful to be seen paying attention. She was seated on the aisle, across from the Republicans — the confrontation between Reps. Matt Gaetz and Mike D. Rogers just a few rows behind. Her district, Illinois’s 14th, about an hour outside of Chicago, was competitive. The seat had once belonged to a Republican giant, the former House speaker of eight years, Dennis Hastert. Now it was Underwood’s to lose. She’d won it by five points in 2018. Two years later, the margin shrunk to 1.4 — a difference of about 5,000 votes. Her opponent had refused to accept defeat. He’d even flown to D.C. for freshman orientation. Three times now, always by single-digit margins,Underwood had fought to hold on to her place in Congress — and she’d done it, she said, “in a really serious way, in an all-consuming way, in a no-days-off kind of way.” Which meant raising money, lots and lots of money, and then turning around and doing it all over again. Every day felt like an “opportunity for the whole thing to implode.” It was like a war, and there were land mines everywhere. “And you just can’t step on any, but you’re seeing them explode all around you.” It had been that way since 2018.

But she was 36 years old now. She was single. She wanted kids. She dated, but life with a member of Congress, she knew, was “not for everyone.” Like a lot of women, she had mapped out what it would mean to raise a child on her own. She had researched the costs of fertility treatments, the timeline she’d need to follow, the financial reality of paying for full-time child care on top of not just one home, in Illinois, but also an apartment in Washington, on a salary of $174,000. Like a lot of women her age, Underwood said, she had health complications that put her “firmly, permanently,” in a “high, high, high risk category” for pregnancy. She knew all the data, all the risks, in part because she had made Black maternal health her signature legislation in Congress. Like a lot of women, Underwood had made sacrifices for her work.

“And that’s fine for now,” she’d remind herself.

It was an active choice to be here, sitting in the chamber at 11 p.m. on a Friday, as her Republican colleagues prepared for the 15th time to elect a new speaker. But it wasn’t always an easy choice.

Sometimes it was like the skull emoji, funny and surreal. Sometimes, it was not funny.

“This is what we do. It’s not who I am,” she’d remind herself.

But then, another thought would come creeping in.

“This is all I do.” To continue, click here. The Washington Post).

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A third woman worth noting 👇.

I wish we knew more.

Bernadette Carey Smith, Black Reporter in Mostly White Newsrooms, Dies at 83.

Bernadette Carey Smith, who in the 1960s was one of the first Black women to be hired as a reporter at The New York Times and The Washington Post, died on Dec. 5 at an assisted living complex in Tuckahoe, N.Y. She was 83.

Her nephew Scott Taylor said the cause was arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Her death was brought to the attention of The New York Times only last week.

Ms. Smith, who married Bruce Smith, an executive at the American Communications Group, in 1980, was still Bernadette Carey when, in October 1965, The Times hired her to work on its women’s news section, called Food, Fashions, Family, Furnishings.

She may well have been the newspaper’s first Black woman reporter, although records are inconclusive; certainly she was one of only a handful of Black journalists, male or female, hired by The Times before the late 1960s. (New York Times).

Remember, dear readers, all women are worth noting.

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A man worth noting too.

Doug Emhoff is the antidote to toxic masculinity by Jonathan Capehart.

This Women’s History Month, I want to celebrate a man: Doug Emhoff.


In American politics, we are not accustomed to seeing men sacrifice their careers for powerful female spouses. At the White House level, we’ve never seen it before at all.


As the husband of Vice President Harris, Emhoff has the title of second gentleman. With that comes a host of duties once performed by female spouses. But as the first man in this role, he is not only shattering perceptions of gender roles; he is also taking a sledgehammer to toxic masculinity.

When Emhoff and Harris married in 2014, he was a high-powered lawyer at a Los Angeles firm. She was attorney general of California. When Harris was elected to the Senate in 2016, Emhoff stayed rooted in California while Harris made the bicoastal commute. But when Joe Biden chose Harris as his running mate, Emhoff took a leave from his firm to hit the campaign trail. And when Biden and Harris won, Emhoff left the firm to be by Harris’s side.


“He had a thriving legal career. Women give those up or scale back constantly in hetero relationships,” NBC News Capitol Hill correspondent Ali Vitali said of Emhoff. Her book “Electable: Why America Hasn’t Put a Woman in the White House . . . Yet” is about the gendered double standards women face in politics. “He’s trailblazing in that effect on a big stage."


Emhoff is very conscious of this. “I want more Kamala Harrises in the future,” he told me during a recent interview at his White House office. "And I want to do as good a job as I can to try to set as good an example as I can, so some other person out there might say, ‘Hey, that Doug Emhoff guy was very supportive. If my partner is like that, I’m going to throw my name into the ring and run for something.’“


In addition to being the first second gentleman, Emhoff is the first Jewish spouse of a president or vice president. With rising antisemitism at home and abroad, he has become the administration’s leading voice decrying hate.
“It’s not just a Jewish issue, it’s an issue for all of us. I’m going to continue to lean in, and speak up, speak out, and call out those who stay silent,” Emhoff said. This was a day before Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel revealed that she and other Jewish state elected officials had been targeted for murder by a man arrested by the FBI.


Emhoff’s thoughts on toxic masculinity have gotten less attention.
“We’ve kind of confused what it means to be a man, what it means to be masculine. You’ve got this trope out there that you’ve got to be tough and angry and lash out to be strong. It’s just the opposite,” he said. “Strength is how you show your love for people. Strength is how you are for people and how you have their back. And how you stick up for other people and [push back] against bullies.” Hear! Hear! (Washington Post).

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Sometimes people make you smile.

These students raised thousands to make their playground wheelchair-friendly.

When he'd go outside at recess, John Buettner would dream of learning the monkey-bars. The fifth-grader uses a wheelchair, so they aren't accessible to him—in fact, most of the playground at Glen Lake Elementary School isn't.

Meanwhile, Betsy Julien would look out from her classroom window as she ate lunch, at the students in their wheelchairs, and thought, "Our playground is not set up for everybody in the school to play and have fun."

Julien's own son is a third-grader at Glen Lake, in the Minneapolis suburb of Hopkins, and he uses a wheelchair, too. "So, this dream and passion of being able to have an accessible piece of equipment has been with me for a long time."

Now, thanks to this teacher and her students, that dream is about to come true in a bigger way than she ever imagined.

Last fall, Julien and a few of her colleagues applied for, and won, a grant for an accessible swing and merry-go-round. The grant fell $35,000 short of the amount the school needed, and so Julien came up with an idea: She asked her combined fifth- and sixth-grade class to help raise the rest.

Her students jumped at the idea, and took it a step further. "We were like, 'Why can't we make the whole playground accessible?' " says sixth-grader Hadley Mangan. "It was $300,000, which is a lot, but we knew we could do it." The next day, they launched a fundraiser online.

Julien's class reached their $300,000 goal in a matter of weeks, and have increased it twice since then. Now, they aim to raise $1 million so they can completely transform their playground. Anything they raise beyond their goal will go towards accessible equipment at neighboring schools, "because if they see us doing this, they're going to want a playground, too," says Haji. (NPR).

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Women’s sports are getting more attention.

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One More Thing.

Someone 👇 weighed in on someone else’s divorce.

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