Wyoming State Senator to LGBT Youth: Homosexuality Equates to Bestiality and Pedophilia

Anti-gay GOP State Senator Lynn Hutchings.

In the wake of Virginia's political crisis ignited by far right GOP operatives, one recent article noted that black Virginians feel they have nowhere to turn to except to the Democrat Party.  The same can be said for LGBT Virginians and LGBT Americans in general.  Here in Virginia, GOP Speaker of the House of Delegates, Kirkland Cox, for the second year in a row killed bills that would have provided non-discrimination protections in employment and housing.  Believe it or not, that move is moderate compared to some Republicans who seem hell bent to drive even more in the LGBT community to vote a straight Democrat ticket.  A case in point is Wyoming State Senator Lynn Hutchings who compared homosexuality to bestiality and pedophilia in a meeting last week with LGBT youth at that state's capitol. Given how right wing and extreme Wyoming is, Hutchings may feel the loss of LGBT votes doesn't matter, but in other states in close elections, the LGBT vote literally can decide the winner of a very tight race. CBS News looks at the cruel batshitery directed at young teenagers.  Here are excerpts:

The civil rights group Wyoming Equality accused Wyoming Sen. Lynn Hutchings of comparing homosexuality to bestiality and pedophilia in a meeting last week with LGBTQ youth, according to an informal complaint made public by the organization.

The advocacy group posted the complaint Friday afternoon on its website. It also posted a link to the complaint on its Facebook page.

“It is our understanding that while the state legislature’s anti-harassment policy mentions no protected classes, including sexual orientation and gender identity, Senator Hutchings’ behavior was unacceptable and inexcusable,” the complaint reads. “Fourteen- and fifteen-year old high school students wishing to engage with the legislative process should not have been confronted with the comments made by Senator Hutchings.”

Hutchings did not respond to email and phone requests seeking comment Friday.

On Feb. 1, the Cheyenne-based organization hosted Gay-Straight Alliance Civics Day at the Capitol, giving members of LGBTQ activist clubs across the state an opportunity to “learn about state government and civic engagement,” according to a Wyoming Equality announcement Friday. At this year’s event, Hutchings met with 10 members of the Cheyenne Central High School Gay Straight Alliance, who had requested to speak to her about House Bill 230, known as the “Enhancing Quality Employment Law,” according to Wyoming Equality.

The students wanted Hutchings, their district representative, to support the bill, according to the complaint letter.

According to the complaint, she responded by saying: “If my sexual orientation was to have sex with all of the men in there and I had sex with all of the women in there and then they brought their children and I had sex with all of them and then brought their dogs in and I had sex with them, should I be protected for my sexual orientation?”

Cheyenne Mayor Marian Orr tweeted Friday night, "Shame on you, Sen Hutchings. We deserve better. Our youth deserve better. Bestiality is equivalent to being gay? Really?"

After Hutchings allegedly made the comments, she rebuffed the students’ attempts to clarify the meaning of the bill, . . . All other discussions with legislators that day were “civil and respectful no matter where the legislators stood on bills and issues,” the complaint states.

“This incident is not unique,” the announcement says. “We hear stories like this across Wyoming all time. The difference is this happened at the state legislature where every Wyomingite should be welcomed and given the respect and dignity we all deserve.”

Hutchings has made comments critical of homosexuality before. When the Legislature debated domestic partnership legislation in 2013, Hutchings said being gay was harmful to the mind, spirit and body and noted the number of cases of AIDS.

What I find bizarre is that Hutchings is black and Republican - sort of an oxymoron. 

Liz Cheney Quits Wyoming Senate Race

Perhaps realizing that she was going to go down in a humiliating defeat, Liz Chaney - who I consider to be one nasty bitch - has abruptly pulled out of the Wyoming GOP senatorial primary race.  Chaney, who seems to be the female version of her evil father, cited undefined family health issues as a motivation.  Time will tell if this is truly the case or whether she finally figured out that she was viewed as a carpetbagger and was not wanted by Wyoming Republicans.  Here are excerpts from a New York Times story:

Liz Cheney announced early Monday morning that she is withdrawing from the Wyoming Republican Senate primary, bringing an abrupt end to her unsteady challenge to the incumbent, Michael B. Enzi.

“Serious health issues have recently arisen in our family, and under the circumstances, I have decided to discontinue my campaign,” Ms. Cheney said in a statement. “My children and their futures were the motivation for our campaign and their health and well-being will always be my overriding priority.”

Since Ms. Cheney, 47, the former vice president’s elder daughter, declared her candidacy in July against Mr. Enzi — a well-liked, three-term Senate veteran —she not only never found traction but also wound up causing deep rifts among longtime friends and even within her own family. 

Her task was always going to be difficult. Unlike some of the other sitting Republican senators who have been challenged in primaries in recent years, Mr. Enzi has a solidly conservative voting record and did not present the sort of vulnerabilities Ms. Cheney could exploit. But Ms. Cheney never was able to focus much on her opponent, spending much of her five-month candidacy fending off distractions to her campaign. 

Having relocated from suburban Washington to the Jackson Hole area in 2012, she faced relentless questions about her residency and why she would move to the state her father once represented in Congress and almost immediately begin running for office against an incumbent. Longtime friends of the Cheney family in Wyoming, including former Senator Alan K. Simpson, fretted publicly about such a divisive primary. His open expressions of concern prompted a private rebuke from Liz Cheney’s mother, Lynne, who told him to “shut up,” according to Mr. Simpson. 

The perception of Liz Cheney as a carpetbagger was compounded when it was revealed this summer in the Wyoming news media that she had sought a fishing license — a rite of passage in the state — by claiming on her application to be a 10-year resident.

Further, in an interview with The New York Times, Mary Cheney revealed that she had not spoken to her sister in months and that they would not be spending the holidays together. That prompted Dick and Lynne Cheney to issue a statement, which seemed to take Liz’s side in the dispute, affirming that their elder daughter was in fact opposed to same-sex marriage. 

Liz Cheney, thanks to some help from her father, had raised $1 million for her campaign in the first months of her candidacy, allowing her to air a pair of introductory television ads that emphasized her family’s deep roots in Wyoming. A “super PAC” supporting Ms. Cheney was also set up and began to raise money. 

Ms. Cheney’s sudden withdrawal, first reported Sunday by CNN, was indeed dramatic — as much of the short-lived campaign had been. But not for reasons she or her parents would have liked. A campaign meant to carry on the Cheney banner of pugnacious conservatism, especially on national security, offered a vivid reminder about the limitations of transferring political power. 

Good riddance and, if the country is lucky, she will fade into the political wilderness.

Dick, Lynne and Liz Cheney Throw Daughter/Sister Under the Bus on Gay Marriage

There are few people that I deem more foul than Dick Cheney who, in my opinion ought to be on trial for war crimes and facing the ultimate punishment.  The man has about as much empathy for the humanity of others as the Nazi death camp guards.  The man is vile and truly deserves to be compared to Darth Vader.  But the "foul stench" to quote Princess Leia also of Star Wars fame extends beyond Dick Cheney to his equally toxic wife Lynne and daughter Lynne who  have shown themselves only too happy to throw daughter/sister Mary Cheney under the bus  on the issue of gay marriage in the insane quest to see Liz Cheney elected to the U. S. Senate.  The Hill looks at the civil war of sorts that has developed within the Cheney family.  Here are excerpts:

As his two daughters publicly feud over gay marriage, former Vice President Cheney is stepping in to defend daughter Liz Cheney (R), who is running for the Senate in Wyoming.

Cheney and his wife, Lynne Cheney, released a statement saying Liz has always opposed gay marriage and defending her treatment of her sister, who is openly gay.

"This is an issue we have dealt with privately for many years, and we are pained to see it become public," the older Cheneys say in a statement.

"Since it has, one thing should be clear. Liz has always believed in the traditional definition of marriage. She has also always treated her sister and her sister's family with love and respect, exactly as she should have done. Compassion is called for, even when there is disagreement about such a fundamental matter and Liz's many kindnesses shouldn't be used to distort her position."

Dick Cheney supports gay marriage. 

Liz Cheney, who is running against Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), has been put in a tough spot on the issue. A socially conservative group has been airing ads accusing her of supporting gay marriage. She's insisted she's always opposed it. After she asserted that again on Sunday, both Mary Cheney and her wife took to Facebook to rip her for the stance.

"Liz — this isn't just an issue on which we disagree — you're just wrong — and on the wrong side of history," Mary Cheney wrote in the public note to her sister.

Adding to the fun, Mary Cheney's wife, Heather has not been one to hold her tongue.  Queerty has a sampling of Heather's response:

Apparently, this was too much for Mary and Heather, who took to Facebook to call Liz a hypocrite.
 
“Liz — this isn’t just an issue on which we disagree you’re just wrong — and on the wrong side of history,” Mary wrote, taking exception to Liz’s portrayal of their opposition as just a policy matter.

Heather was a lot less restrained in her Facebook post. ”Liz has been a guest in our home, has spent time and shared holidays with our children, and when Mary and I got married in 2012 — she didn’t hesitate to tell us how happy she was for us,” Poe wrote. “To have her now say she doesn’t support our right to marry is offensive to say the least.”

Heather also didn’t stop from hitting Liz on a campaign weakness: that she’s a carpetbagger in Wyoming. “I can’t help but wonder how Liz would feel if as she moved from state to state, she discovered that her family was protected in one but not the other.”

And just to rub it in, Heather added, “Yes, Liz, in fifteen states and the District of Columbia you are my sister-in-law.”

The postings made public a long simmering family battle over marriage equality that mirrors the one within the Republican party. Mary and Liz stopped talking last August after Liz came out against marriage equality.

Ever the politician, Liz tried to paper over the problem in a statement.  “I love my sister and her family and have always tried to be compassionate towards them. I believe that is the Christian way to behave.” Of course, the “Christian” is code that plays well with the right-wing base Liz is trying to attract.

Mary is having none of it. In an interview with The New York Times, she made it clear that this was a battle not just between two sisters but for the soul of the GOP.

“What amazes me is that she says she’s running to be a new generation of leader,” Mary said. “I’m not sure how sticking to the positions of the last 20 or 30 years is the best way to do that.”

The ultimate irony is that the Cheney family is ripping itself apart when Liz Cheney's opponent is 52% ahead of her in the polls:

Liz Cheney’s support has faded in Wyoming since the summer, according to internal polling conducted for a super PAC that’s been running ads against her and shared exclusively with POLITICO.

Sen. Mike Enzi (R) has expanded his lead over the former vice president’s daughter by 12 points among likely primary voters since August. The three-term incumbent was up 52 points, 69 percent to 17 percent, in a survey conducted by Bob Wickers of The Wickers Group at the end of October.

Read the rest of the article for the rest of the Cheney family batshitery.

Liz "Mini Me" Cheney Announces Senate to Challenge GOP Incumbent

In my view, perhaps one of the foulest figures in more recent U.S. Political history - it's a toss up with Richard Nixon - is Dick Cheney, a/k/a Emperor Palpatine Cheney on this blog.  Cheney almost single handedly led the cretin like George W. Bush around by the nose and precipitated the disasters in Afghanistan and Iraq which resulted in thousands of American deaths and billions of squandered American taxpayer dollars.  Now, Emperor Palpatines's daughter - who is the antithesis to Princess Leah - has announced that she will run for the U. S. Senate seat for Wyoming in the 2014 election.  Never mind that she has never actually lived in Wyoming until recently.  Thankfully, Wyoming Republicans are not amused and the official party apparatus is likely to oppose Ms. Cheney.  An intra-party bloodbath would obviously be delicious to watch.  Here are highlights from Politico:

Liz Cheney announced Tuesday that she will challenge Wyoming Sen. Mike Enzi in a Republican primary next year.  The daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney made the announcement in a six-minute YouTube video. Most of her announcement was an attack on President Barack Obama, with only a veiled swipe at the incumbent.

Enzi, 69, announced Tuesday that he will run for a fourth term. He said at the Capitol that Cheney did not give him a heads up and defiantly insisted that her move will not dissuade him.

National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Jerry Moran, a senator from Kansas, announced that the official party body will back Enzi.

Cheney, 46, worked in the State Department and the Agency for International Development during the George W. Bush administration. But she moved her family to Jackson Hole last year and has traveled aggressively around the state laying the foundation for what everyone assumed would be a political bid.

Wyoming’s other senator, Sen. John Barrasso, quickly endorsed Enzi.  “Mike Enzi is a friend, a mentor and a tremendous US Senator for Wyoming,” Barrasso said. “I support his reelection.”

Another Republican with extensive ties to the fundraising world predicted that Cheney would collect strong support from national security conservatives, including the influential world of pro-Israel donors.

[A] prominent Liz Cheney candidacy in 2014 may come as an unwelcome development for some national Republicans who are seeking to rebrand the GOP after a disappointing 2014 cycle.

The Cheney name is not exactly a beloved calling card in national politics. The family has deep history in Wyoming and Dick Cheney is the state’s most important politician in modern times; nationally, the former vice president is one of the least popular national figures in recent memory.

And the Cheneys are inextricably linked to a brand of interventionist foreign policy thinking that has plummeted in public popularity.

The Enzi-Cheney race may create a variety of unconventional fault lines on the right. In a race between Enzi, a conservative incumbent who also supported an Internet sales tax, and Cheney, an ultra-hawkish candidate from the D.C. area, there’s not necessarily an obvious choice for anti-establishment activists.

Tough Times for the GOP Bigots

While there is still much work to be done and there is an extreme need to be watchful lest the GOP manage to use gerrymandering and manipulation of the Electoral College to subvert majority rule in elections, there are nonetheless encouraging signs that the hate merchants of the GOP and its Tea Party and Christofascist auxiliary organizations are slowly but steadily losing the larger culture war.  If nothing else, more and more of the most hate filled bigots - the mainstay of the GOP - are literally dying off.  A piece in the Daily Kos helps to remind us that longer term things will get better (a message one needs to hear from time to time living here in backwards Virginia).  It also has some data that may help explain why the Boy Scouts may be about to change their anti-gay policies: their membership is plummeting.  Here are some column highlights:

Eight months ago, Vice President Joe Biden set in motion a great national evolution when speaking to CBS, he said,

I am absolutely comfortable with the fact that men marrying men, women marrying women, and heterosexual men and women marrying another are entitled to the same exact rights, all the civil rights, all the civil liberties.

It wasn't long before President Barack Obama declared his own "evolution" and embraced equality, setting of celebrations among freedom-loving liberals and, yes, celebrations among bigots convinced this would be the death knell of the Obama presidency. As one online conservative gloated at the time:

If there is a day to finger for Barack Obama losing the Presidency in 2012, it will be Sunday, May 6, 2012.

On that day, Joe Biden* went on national television and proclaimed himself in favor of gay marriage. It started a media spiral for the President. Two days after Biden spoke, North Carolina voters voted by overwhelming margins to leave marriage alone. The next day, Barack Obama went on national television to devolve back to the position he held prior to running for President [...]

*Okay, in fairness, we could arguably say August 23, 2008, was the day Obama lost his re-election. That’s the day he chose Biden to be veep and we all knew it was only a matter of time...

Delicious, isn't it? Things have only looked worse for the haters since mid 2012.

Conservatives didn't just lose their first marriage equality ballot initiative in November of 2012, but got swept in four of them, including Maine which had as recently as 2009 voted the other way. In fact, Maine is quite instructive in the dizzying pace of social change. In the 2009 initiative, marriage equality lost 53-47. In the 2012 edition, it won ... 53-47, a 12-point shift in just three years.  The speed of social change continues unabated.

Meanwhile, another culture warrior organization is on the verge (at least partially) of throwing in the towel.  .  .  .  .   Membership in the Scouts has dropped from 4 million members in 1986, to 3.4 million in 1998 to 2.65 million last year. There is an entire generation of fathers (me included) who spent time in the Scouts but would never consider it for their boys.

Don't worry, though. The Scouts will continue to ban atheists! And Alabama haters should be safe. But that's not enough for Tony Perkins, who is seeing his entire hate-built world view crumbling around him. Very, very delicious!

Young people continue to embrace equality while older haters die off. Hopes that Latinos were "socially conservative" and could help stem the tide were dashed this past November, when exit polls showed them even more socially liberal than the American population at large. People (including me) forgot that on top of everything else, Latinos are young. The median age of native-born Latinos is EIGHTEEN. In our society, youth equals tolerance.

After years of using anti-gay ballot initiatives to drive up their base participation, it is now Republicans who are afraid of those mean Democrats using "divisive social issues" for political gain. Gay marriage is on the cusp of becoming a reality in several more states, from Illinois to Minnesota, from Hawaii to New Jersey.

But it's not just the Blue states. How about one of the Reddest of all?

A bill allowing gay couples to enter into domestic partnerships got the support of a Wyoming House of Representatives committee Monday for the first time in the state's history.

The House Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee voted 7-2 to recommend approval of House Bill 168 and send it to the full House.
The decision to advance the domestic partnership legislation came moments after the same committee voted 5-4 to reject a bill to legalize gay marriage in the state.

Literally a decade ago, Howard Dean's support for civil unions in Vermont was considered so crazy that it would doom any general election presidential chances. This week, it passed easily in Wyoming, and only after gay freakin' marriage lost by a single vote in committee. IN WYOMING! 

One can only imagine the hysteria behind closed doors at Christofascist groups like Family Research Council and NOM where the days of huge salaries (Brian Brown at NOM made $500,000 in 2011) based on peddling hatred may be doomed in the long run.  Just imagine if these bigots have to get real jobs.  Delicious indeed.