
Drag shows on US military bases canceled by Pentagon after Republican criticism
President Joe Biden’s administration has stopped U.S. military bases from hosting drag shows after criticism from some Republicans
2023-06-02 06:21

Republican senator sparks laughter as he tells witness: ‘I don’t want reality!’
Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma sparked a round of laughter in the a Senate hearing room after misspeaking and snapping “I don’t want reality!” at a witness. Mr Mullin’s comment came during a Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) hearing on race and education where he was aggressively questioning a panel of witnesses about whether it’s better to teach the book Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race or the lyrics of the song “Jesus Loves Me.” After Mr Mullin became irritated with a response given by Cheryl Morman, president of the Virginia Alliance for Family Child Care Associations, and cut her off, Sen Bernie Sanders, the committee chair, asked Mr Mullin to allow her to answer the question he had posed. One of the witnesses started saying: “The reality is ...” at which point Mr Mullin cut her off. “No, I don’t want reality, I’m asking the question, which one is better?” Mr Mullin said. “That’s exactly what it is.” Spectators in the hearing room errupted with laughter as Mr Mullin acknowledged that he “misspoke” and then continued with his questioning. The HELP committee was convened for a hearing called “Solving the Child Care Crisis: Meeting the Needs of Working Families and Child Care Workers.” When it was Mr Mullin’s turn to question the panel of witnesses, he pulled out a copy Our Skin — a book meant to teach young children about the history and function of race — and announced that he would read a passage from it. “‘A long time ago, way before you were born, a group of white people made up an idea called race,” Mr Mullin said. “They sorted people by skin colour and said that white people were better, smarter, prettier, and they deserved more than everybody else.” Mr Mullin later said he disagreed with the book “one thousand percent” and suggested it would prejudice children against white people. Mr Mullin, who is a member of the Cherokee Nation, said schools should instead teach the song “Jesus Loves Me,” a Christian hymn written before the onset of the Civil War that would likely violate the prohibition against religious activity in many public school districts. Mr Mullin has frequently made headlines in the last several months for his conduct on the HELP committee, where he’s clashed with figures ranging from Mr Sanders to Teamsters president Sean O’Brien. Mr Sanders has significantly raised the profile of the committee since he took over as chair at the beginning of the current Congress, bringing a range of activists, labour leaders, and major CEOs like Starbucks’ Howard Schultz to Washington to testify in high-profile hearings. Mr Mullin, a multimillionaire business owner who was elevated to the Seante in a special election last year, has chafed in past hearings at Mr Sanders’ treatment of major corporate executives like Mr Schutlz. Read More Trump launches rant after reports of bombshell classified documents tape - live Roger Stone caught on hot mic explaining how he manipulated Trump Trump and Maga allies mock Biden for Air Force graduation fall Teamsters boss boasts about taking on ‘schoolyard bully’ Republican at fiery Senate hearing
2023-06-02 06:19

Trump surprises crowd by mocking people who say ‘woke’ – including his own son who runs businesses off it
Donald Trump surprised a crowd in Iowa by mocking people obsessed with using the Republican buzzword “woke”, insisting that most people cannot even define what it means. The former president has himself regularly used the phrase to attack opponents, and just last month his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr, announced the launch of a “non-woke men’s lifestyle magazine.” The magazine, which is called Field Ethos, says that it will focus on “a forgotten lifestyle to those who refuse to conform,” with fishing and hunting articles written by “old-school adventurers who make no apologies for who we are.” Mr Trump’s main rival for the GOP 2024 presidential nomination, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, is also obsessed with the term and has said as president he would destroy the “woke mind virus.” In 2021, Mr DeSantis also signed into law Florida’s “Stop WOKE Act,” which banned college professors in the state from teaching critical race theory. “I don’t like the term ‘woke’ because I hear ‘woke woke woke’—it’s just a term they use, half the people can’t even define it, they don’t know what it is,” Mr Trump said at the Westside Conservative Club in Urbandale, Iowa, on Thursday. During the event, Mr Trump attacked trans athletes, a popular right-wing grievance, calling it a “woke” issue before catching himself. “I guess they define that as ‘woke,’ but that’s all woke. We have to bring common sense back to the country,” he said. Read More Trump news - live: Trump slammed for campaign ad amid silence on reports of bombshell classified papers tape DeSantis news - live: Florida governor snaps at reporter for simple question at New Hampshire campaign event Marjorie Taylor Greene cryptically says the FBI knows who mystery Capitol pipe bomber is Trump accuses DeSantis of faking his own name Oath Keeper who guarded Roger Stone before Jan. 6 attack gets more than 4 years in prison
2023-06-02 06:16

Dye Hard: How Blue Man Group Took Performance Art Mainstream
The Smurf-colored trio came up in the counterculture. Then Intel came calling.
2023-06-02 05:57

Eating disorder group pulls chatbot sharing diet advice
The US National Eating Disorder Association is investigating reports the chatbot shared harmful advice.
2023-06-02 05:54

New Tiananmen museum opens in New York ahead of June 4 anniversary
By Aleksandra Michalska and Michael Martina NEW YORK The hope for a "free China" lives on in a
2023-06-02 05:54

Airbnb sues New York City over restrictions on short-term rentals
Airbnb is suing New York City over rules that the company says would make it much more difficult for people to turn their property into short-term rentals
2023-06-02 05:47

Sotheby's buys modernist Breuer building from Whitney Museum, will move NYC galleries there
The auction house Sotheby’s will buy the modernist Marcel Breuer-designed building that housed New York’s Whitney Museum of American Art for nearly 50 years
2023-06-02 05:45

Arizona announces limits on construction in Phoenix area as groundwater disappears
Arizona state officials announced Thursday the state will no longer grant certifications for new developments within the Phoenix area, as groundwater rapidly disappears amid years of water overuse and climate change-driven drought.
2023-06-02 05:30

Former Playboy model accuses Bill Cosby of drugging and sexually assaulting her in 1969
A former Playboy model who alleges Bill Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted her and another woman at his home in 1969 is suing the entertainer in Los Angeles under a new California law that suspends the statute of limitations on sex abuse claims
2023-06-02 05:26

DePasquale to run for Pennsylvania attorney general in 2024
Pennsylvania’s former two-term auditor general says he's running for state attorney general in the 2024 election
2023-06-02 05:18

Baseball legend Steve Garvey considering US Senate bid in California, energizing beleaguered GOP
Republicans haven't won a U.S. Senate race in heavily Democratic California since 1988
2023-06-02 05:16