Like to laugh? Like to be informed? Then sign up for TheDC Morning email here.
1.) A fight on the right — There’s a fight within the GOP. Actually, there are many fights. But one of those fights is over gay marriage. The Daily Caller News Foundation’s Jim Antle reports:
“A growing push to get Republicans to alter their position on same-sex marriage could put some of the party’s major donors and political strategists in conflict with the social conservative activists who make up a large part of the GOP at the grassroots level. The debate illustrates a wider rift between Republicans who believe their party is on the wrong side of history on gay rights generally and those who feel the GOP is marginalizing the social issues that inspired millions of evangelical Christians — a large Republican voting bloc — to enter politics.”
As your TheDC Morning facilitator has previously suggested, the GOP doesn’t have to support gay marriage to show it is not indifferent to the plight faced by many gays, especially those who face severe persecution around the world. For instance, why don’t GOP leaders speak out against the so-called “Kill the gays” bill in Uganda which, if passed, could enforce a death penalty on gays? Regardless of whether working to stop such abhorrent legislation from being passed in another country would win the GOP any more votes from the gay community, it would be the right thing to do. As a secondary consideration, it could potentially help politically.
2.) Dennis Rodman, dictator coddler — Dennis Rodman has done many embarrassing things, but none as embarrassing has his embrace of the world’s most vile regime. TheDC’s Jeff Poor reports:
“In an interview on this weekend’s broadcast of ‘This Week with George Stephanopoulos’ on ABC, former NBA power forward Dennis Rodman downplayed human rights abuses in North Korea under Kim Jong-un, and said the dictator wants President Barack Obama to give him a call. …Throughout the interview, Rodman referred to Kim Jong-un as his friend and said he was humble, but loved power. STEPHANOPOULOS: As a great guy, he puts 200,000 people in prison camps? RODMAN: Well guess what — we do the same things here. STEPHANOPOULOS: We have prison camps here in the United States? RODMAN: This is all politics, right? This is all politics, right? He don’t want to do that. I’m not like a diplomat. I don’t want to do that. STEPHANOPOULOS: But it sounds like you’re apologizing for him? RODMAN: No, I’m not apologizing for him. I think guess what — he’s was a good guy to me. He was my friend. I don’t condone what he does. But as a person-to-person, he’s my friend.”
Disgusting.
3.) Danger alert — A dangerous student has been taken down by the school system, TheDC’s Eric Owens reports:
“Yet another student has been suspended for having something that represents a gun, but isn’t actually anything like a real gun. This time, it was a breakfast pastry. Josh Welch, a second-grader at Park Elementary School in Baltimore, Maryland, was suspended for two days because his teacher thought he shaped the strawberry, pre-baked toaster pastry into something resembling a gun.”
The world is now a safer place. Great job, Maryland.
4.) Gavin Newsom, risk taker — Gavin Newsom sparred with Adam Carolla Friday. It’s worth a listen. TheDC’s Jeff Poor reports:
“During his Friday podcast, comedian Adam Carolla skewered California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom for not having a clear answer about why poverty strikes African-Americans and Hispanics in such high numbers. Newsom was a guest on Carolla’s show to promote his book ‘Citizenville,’ which he co-authored with Lisa Dickey. But the Democratic politician invited an attack when he made said both African-American and Hispanics struggle with being prepared for financial hardship.”
This raises an important question: Why in the world would Gavin Newsom agree to go on Adam Carrolla’s podcast? Newsom is a Democratic political star! He could only be hurt by engaging with the irreverent conservative comedian. But give credit to Newsom for comporting himself pretty well considering he waded into a conversation he certainly didn’t want to engage in. He at least proved himself to be an able politician, navigating himself out of the conversation without saying anything that would hurt his political career. But he did provide entertainment squirming through the interview.
5.) Tweet of Yesterday — Michael C Moynihan: Reading Drudge, one might get the impression that Louis Farrakhan is a major figure in American politics
6.) Today in North Korean News — BREAKING: “Many ‘Sea of Blood’-style Operas Produced in Four Decades”
VIDEO: TheDC’s Jamie Weinstein makes the case against sequestration