TresSugar

Do, Dump or Marry? Rachel Maddow

TresSugar — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 11:00:00 -0700

Lipstick lesbians a la the glam ladies from The L Word have given way, according to the Village Voice, to a new kind of sexy: the butch woman as typified by MSNBC news anchor Rachel Maddow.

She’s desired, they say, by lesbians, straight women, and men. (I can attest to that - I’ve heard people of varying sexual orientations say they think she’s hot!)

In the article, Maddow is quoted as saying that she’s “a big lesbian who looks like a man. I'm not Anchorbabe, and I'm never going to be. My goal is to do the physical appearance stuff in such a way that it is not comment worthy." Oh, but comment worthy it is! Do, dump, or marry?

Matthew Shepard's Mom: Hate Crimes Bill Is Necessary

TresSugar — Sun, 03 May 2009 03:00:00 -0700

"I hear that argument all the time: special rights for special people. It's not even the point. What this does is bring us up to a level of equality in prosecution . . . Personal bias in officers and prosecution is absolutely indicative of what's going to happen sometimes. Not always, but sometimes. And we need the vehicle to be able to address it somehow. And the crimes that are committed as hate crimes? They're meant to send a message to a community, not to an individual. It's a totally different type of crime."

-Judy Shepard on The Rachel Maddow Show. She was asked how she would respond to those who think that the justice department shouldn't get involved in hate crimes or that those protected under hate-crime laws are being "privileged" over victims of violent crimes that weren't committed because of bias. Shepard also responded to North Carolina Republican representative Virginia Foxx's claim that Shepard's son Matthew wasn't killed because he was gay.

To watch the video to find out what the bill that may become a law actually does, read more.

The Matthew Shepard Act (officially, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007, or LLEHCPA) expands the 1969 United States federal hate-crime law to include crimes motivated by a victim's actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability. The bill also:

Removes the current prerequisite that the victim be engaging in a federally protected activity, like voting or going to school
Gives federal authorities greater ability to engage in hate crimes investigations that local authorities choose not to pursue
Provides $10 million in funding for 2008 and 2009 to help state and local agencies pay for investigating and prosecuting hate crimes
Requires the FBI to track statistics on hate crimes against transgender people (statistics for the other groups are already tracked)

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Pelosi to Maddow: Criminal Prosecution Must Be On the Table

LibertySugar — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 14:30:33 -0800

Speaker Nancy Pelosi has shared some criticism with Rachel Maddow about both the Bush and Obama administrations. According to Salon, Pelosi told Maddow, during an interview to be aired tonight, that she favors criminal prosecutions for the Bush administration and not just a fact-finding truth commission.

Pelosi apparently tells Maddow:

Senator Leahy has a proposal, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which is a good idea. What I have some concern about though is it has immunity. And I think that some of the issues involved here, like the services part, politicizing of the Justice Department, and the rest, they have criminal ramifications, and I don't think we should be giving them immunity.

An enthusiastic Rachel Maddow herself shared some highlights from the yet-to-be aired interview with Andrea Mitchell earlier today. Fresh from her meeting with the speaker, and still on the Amtrak train, Rachel said that Nancy expressed concern about Obama's rumored plan to keep 50,000 troops in Iraq after combat troops leave. You can hear Rachel break it down in the above video.

They may be in control of the White House and Congress, but I anticipate some back and forth among the big players in the Democratic Party. As for the keeping criminal prosecution on the the table, I'd like to know what you all think!

Rachel Maddow Talks Inauguration and Bush's Plans

Molly — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 03:00:25 -0800

Rachel Maddow took the stage at the TCAs in LA yesterday to promote her wildly popular new show and recent skyrocket to fame. She was friendly and responsive, cracking a few jokes and giving us an idea of what her show will be like as President Bush makes way for President Obama. She likened MSNBC's inauguration plan to "the Mars landing" in its intricacy and talked about how she hopes to be able to take it in as a whole and focus on what an incredible moment it is. Plus, don't worry, she knows she'll still find "idiocy" in Washington to make fun of. Here are some highlights:

On Wednesday's brunch with Obama: He answered whatever we wanted. He was totally forthcoming and didn't 'no comment' us on anything. It was a lot of wonky people in the room asking wonky questions. It wasn't 'How does it feel to be getting inaugurated right now?' 'How do you feel about this historic moment?' It was very much 'This is what I think about Yemen.' 'This is what I think about Guantanamo.' He's as wonky as I am which is extreme.
On President Bush's plans post-inauguration: He gives his big speech [last night] and then he goes away! For as long as he possibly can. And then no international travel, probably, for the rest of his life.
On her show post-Bush: I don’t think we are at risk of idiocy going out of fashion in Washington so wherever there are bad ideas I will find ways to make fun of them. Sometimes it will be bad democratic ideas, sometimes it will be bad republican ideas. Beating up on George Bush now feels like, I’d rather not. . . I will be replacing lame duck quack-itude, there will be something with a funny sophomoric sound effect.

To see what Rachel said about her SNL parody and what she was like in high school, read more.

On the SNL skit parodying her: I thought it was very funny.
On herself in high school: Can anybody actually say with any accuracy what they were like in high school or do we look at it through rose-colored glasses? I got good grades but I also got detention, a lot. I would cut class to go to the doughnut shop and hang out with my friends. I did a lot of sports. I was a three sport varsity athlete - basketball, swimming, volleyball.

The president of MSNBC was by her side and couldn't stop gushing about the network's newest rising star. We're all watching to see what she does next.

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Battle For Turkey Pardon Would Make Great Reality TV

LibertySugar — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 15:00:23 -0800

Last night on her show, Rachel Maddow described the grueling elimination process conducted to select two lucky turkeys who receive the president's Thanksgiving pardon.

The competition begins with 13 turkeys, who then get trained to be comfortable around humans. The two turkeys with the best personalities won George W. Bush's pardon and a first-class trip to Disneyland, where they act as grand marshalls of the Thanksgiving parade and live happily ever after in Disneyland's frontier land.

As for the unlucky losers - you might meet one of the kicked-off turkeys at your local Subway. Watch Rachel break it down, and have a happy Thanksgiving!

Rachel Maddow Coming to a NYT Magazine Near You

LibertySugar — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 07:00:04 -0700

Rachael Maddow is to Keith Olbermann as Stephen Colbert is to Jon Stewart. And just like Stephen, Rachel's new pseudo-Countdown spinoff is acquiring a fan base potentially more dedicated than its predecessor's. This weekend's New York Times Magazine caught up with the Stanford and Oxford grad-turned-progressive-MSNBC host, visiting her home in western Massachusetts where she lives with her partner Susan.

Some items to look forward to:

Rachel, a TV personality, has no TV.
Some of Rachel's favorite objects include: a squirrel sculpture, four kinds of mustard from her fridge (“I am a mustard person"), a sneaker, two ashtrays from the Watergate hotel, and her 7-year-old red Ford pickup.
Fictional character she identifies with: "Wally Cleaver. Cause he is a dork.”
If her show doesn't make it Rachel has a backup. "I am a hobbyist bartender. I have a a liquor cabinet. I research classic drinks from the golden age of American cocktails and I make them for me and Susan.”
Rachel's favorite movie? The Manchurian Candidate, original version.

Are you a fan of Rachel?

Don't Ask, Don't Tell: Save or Scrap?

TresSugar — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:00:00 -0700

Victor Fehrenbach, an F-15 fighter pilot in the US Air Force, has been serving his country with honor for 18 years. In that time, he's flown 88 combat missions, logged 1,500 fighter hours, and received nine air medals. He's gotten word, though, that his record doesn't matter as much as the fact that he is gay.

Under the Pentagon's Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, he will be fired two years before he could receive a full Air Force pension, which he discussed recently on The Rachel Maddow Show. Don't Ask, Don't Tell, which allows gay people to serve in the military as long as they don't disclose their sexual orientation and which forbids their supervisors from asking if they are gay, was enacted in 1993 and approved by Bill Clinton, who saw it as a compromise between his campaign promise to let all people serve in the military regardless of sexual orientation and what was a ban on gays in the military.

Don't Ask, Don't Tell is based on the premise that being gay "would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of moral, good order, discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability." Many argue that it's time for President Obama and Congress to review - and get rid of - Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Do you think it's a good policy based on sound reasoning, or is it antiquated and discriminatory?

Pentagon: More Ex-Gitmo Inmates Returning to Terrorism

CitizenSugar — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 15:30:30 -0800

News broke yesterday that President-elect Obama plans on signing an order to close Guantanamo Bay perhaps as early as his first day on the job. Well today, the Pentagon cast a potential shadow on the plan, announcing that 61 ex-Gitmo prisoners have "returned to the fight." The Pentagon's spokesperson said: "The overall known terrorist re-engagement rate has increased to 11 percent" from 7 percent.

The Pentagon's assessment previews the challenges Obama will face while trying to close the controversial prison. While some detainees present a clear danger, the US admits that others, such as 17 dissidents kept at Gitmo because they could face death back in China, should be released.

Last night on the Rachel Maddow Show an Air Force major who defends detainees in Gitmo's US military tribunals said: "Americans would expect that the military commission would focus on high-level terrorists, people responsible for 9/11 and other serious terrorist attacks against the United States. In fact the early focus of the commissions has been on child soldiers, drivers, foot soldiers."

Do you think the Pentagon's 11 percent terrorist recidivism rate for those released from Guantanamo is enough to justify the prison, or should the US close it ASAP? And, to see the clip from last night's Rachel Maddow Show, read more.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

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Briefing Book! Pelosi Got a Workout During Obama's Speech

CitizenSugar — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 12:48:14 -0800

Rachel Maddow goes gaga over Nancy Pelosi's enthusiasm during Obama's speech. - Townhall
Secretary Geithner "deeply offended by the quality of judgments" coming from banks. - Huffington Post
Obama declares war on churches and conservative institutions? - RedState
Obama's approval rating for handling the economic crisis leapt 17 percent after the speech among those who watched. – The Raw Story
Have you been eating more soup to save money? - SavvySugar
Pat Buchanan's sister lays into fellow Republicans at CPAC for not standing up for conservative values. - Wonkette

It's Not Me, It's You: Should Obama Stop Wooing Republicans?

LibertySugar — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 14:00:48 -0800

Obama may have won 52.9 percent of America over and pretty much all of Europe, but there's one group who continues to resist his charm, his cocktail parties, and his stimulus plan (I spared you package). With zero votes for the stimulus, Republicans have yet to give an inch when he's given them tens of billions in tax cuts.

Last night, Rachel Maddow asked if Obama is in an unrequited relationship with Republicans. How far can he go before bipartisanship becomes a fool's errand?

President Obama's latest outreach came today when he nominated a Republican, Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, to the commerce secretary post. Before accepting, Gregg said he would refuse the job if his seat were filled by a Democrat. Another Democratic senator would push the Senate one seat closer to the 60-seat filibuster, giving Democrats complete control. But as predicted, his chief of staff, Republican Bonnie Newman, will replace him.

So what's in it for the president? To find out, read more.

While it may do wonders for his bipartisan image, it does little to change Washington. Are Republicans testing him? Or are they just laughing, tax cuts in hand? It could be that Obama needs to set some boundaries and remind Congress that in politics no favor goes unreturned - start a little quid-pro-quo fire underneath their seats.

For now one question buzzes through the tunnels of Washington: Is bipartisanship worth it if President Obama gets nothing in return?

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