Chad’s Morning Brief: President Obama Comes Out in Support of Same-Sex Marriage in an Election Year, and More
Here is your Morning Brief for the morning of May 10, 2012. Give us your feedback below and tune in to Lubbock’s First News with Chad Hasty for these and many more topics from 6-9 am.
1. Obama Supports Gay Marriage (link)
President Obama came out in support of gay marriage yesterday which means that he is no longer evolving on the issue. I don't buy that he was ever evolving on the issue because I think he always supported it. Yesterday was all politics and anyone who doesn't think it was all about politics must live a very sheltered life. In an interview with ABC, Obama gave his reasoning for backing gay marriage.
“I hesitated on gay marriage in part because I thought civil unions would be sufficient, that that was something that would give people hospital visitation rights and other elements that we take for granted,” he continued. “And I was sensitive to the fact that for a lot of people, you know, the word ‘marriage’ was something that evokes very powerful traditions, religious beliefs and so forth.”
“But I have to tell you that over the course of several years — as I talk to friends and family and neighbors — when I think about members of my own staff who are in incredibly committed, monogamous relationships, same-sex relationships, who are raising kids together, when I think about those soldiers or airmen or marines or sailors who are out there fighting on my behalf, and yet feel constrained, even now that ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ is gone, because they’re not able to commit themselves in a marriage, at a certain point, I’ve just concluded that for me personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married.”
The White House is of course saying that the President had a plan all along of announcing his support before the Democratic National Convention, but Biden ruined it and forced their hand. So what will the Obama Administration do for gay marriage? I predict nothing.
What do you think about Obama's embrace of gay marriage?
2. Romney Opposes Gay Marriage (link)
The line in the sand has been drawn. President Obama supports gay marriage... officially. Mitt Romney opposes it. Let the fighting begin! According to the AP:
"My view is that marriage itself is between a man and a woman," the presumptive Republican presidential nominee told reporters. He said he believes that states should be able to make decisions about whether to offer certain legal rights to same-sex couples.
"This is a very tender and sensitive topic, as are many social issues, but I have the same view that I've had since - since running for office," Romney said. He first ran for political office in 1994, when he challenged Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., and was elected governor of Massachusetts in 2002.
I don't believe this will be a major campaign issue because most voters don't consider the topic a major issue in their life right now. Either way it's not a big plus or minus for either candidate, though Obama may... may have more to lose. Gay marriage advocates who view it as their only issue were going to vote for Obama anyway. Romney loses nothing on this, but may gain a few voters who leave Obama's side. The more religious Democrats perhaps.
3. Senator John Cornyn Goes After Holder (link)
Eric Holder and the Obama Administration are arrogant? Shocking!
Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn told The Daily Caller on Wednesday that he thinks Attorney General Eric Holder needs to comply with the congressional subpoena demanding documents relating to Operation Fast and Furious.
Cornyn also said he thinks Holder’s demonstrable failure to comply with House oversight committee chairman Rep. Darrell Issa’s subpoena for Fast and Furious documents is an indicator of his overall disregard for congressional oversight.
“It’s abundantly clear that when it comes to cooperating with Congress, the Attorney General’s arrogance knows no bounds,” Cornyn told TheDC.
President Barack Obama now has a responsibility to step forward and make Holder comply with the subpoena, Cornyn added. He said Obama and Holder owe it the family of Border Patrol agent Brian Terry, who was murdered more than a year ago with Fast and Furious weapons the Obama administration allowed to get into the hands of Mexican drug cartels.
“President Obama should show leadership and direct the Attorney General to provide the Terry family with answers,” Cornyn said.
Good to see Cornyn get fired up about this and he is right. However, he shouldn't hold his breath. Obama will do NOTHING about Eric Holder.
4. Young Workers Are Underemployed (link)
1 in 3 young adults are underemployed. This is the same demo that voted for Obama in 2008.
Thirty-two percent of 18- to 29-year-olds in the U.S. workforce were underemployed in April, as measured by Gallup without seasonal adjustment. This is up from 30.1% in March and is slightly higher than the 30.7% of a year ago.
Gallup's U.S. underemployment measure combines the unemployed with those working part time but looking for full-time work. Underemployment among 18- to 29-year-olds has hovered around 30% for most of the past year, showing no real improvement. Underemployment among all Americans has declined over the past year to 18.2% in April from 19.3% in April 2011.
Young adults were more than twice as likely as those in older age groups to be underemployed in April. Underemployment in April was 14.0% among those aged 30 to 49, 13.6% among those aged 50 to 64, and 12.7% among those 65 or older.
5. Dumb story of the morning (link)
Good for the environment, bad for you.
Thanks to proposed legislation scheduled for a vote May 23, shoppers in the Los Angeles area will no longer be able to get disposable plastic shopping bags in stores. But what environmentalists see as a win for landfills may also be a loss for public health.
Oregon researchers discovered norovirus — “the perfect human pathogen” — Wednesday on reusable shopping bags that were left in a hotel bathroom, reports the Los Angeles Times. The virus is believed to have caused an outbreak of diarrhea, vomiting and nausea that afflicted nine of thirteen girls on a youth soccer team, along with parent chaperones and members of the girls’ families.
If passed, the council’s ban — which affects both plastic and paper bags — will take effect after a six-month warning period.
The norovirus causes an “estimated 21 million acute cases of gastroenteritis annually … causing the deaths of 200,000 children annually,” the LA Times adds.
As Oregon epidemiologist told MSNBC, “We wash our clothes when they’re dirty; we should wash our bags, too.”
In 2010, University of Arizona researchers tested 84 bags collected from shoppers in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Tucson, More than half were contaminated with bacteria. Twelve percent of the bags contained E. coli, a sign of fecal matter, and many contained even more dangerous pathogens.
6. Good Brews Good News of the Day (link)
I've never believed that a breed of dog is bad just because of nature. If they are abused, dogs will become vicious. If they are in a loving home and trained, they will be just fine. This is a great story about a pit bull.
An 8-year-old pit bull rescued by a police officer who wanted a companion for his mom has returned the favor in the most selfless way possible. When her owner passed out while crossing a train track in Shirley, Mass., Lilly bravely pulled the unconscious woman out of danger, but ended up being hit by an oncoming freight train herself. The woman escaped unharmed, but the poor pup's price for her courage included a fractured pelvis and an amputated leg. "We've always known she's a special dog," said the woman's son, David Lanteigne. "She's going to be OK, and that's the main thing. This dog is my mother's life."
Everyday, Good Brews Coffee & Tea Lounge brings you the Good News of the Day!
Other Top Stories:
These and many more topics coming up on today’s edition of Lubbock’s First News with Chad Hasty. Tune in mornings 6-9am on News/Talk 790 KFYO, streaming online at kfyo.com, and now on your iPhone and Android device with the radioPup App. All guest interviews can be heard online in our podcast section after the show atkfyo.com.
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