trump off the CO ballot

[President Bush]

Being the father of in-vitro fertilization kinda implies not having sex or needing a functional dick.

I wonder who the mother (of ivf) is?

Nadya Suleman?

[Meadmaker]

It's so hard to see where the race is going these days. Polls, which have been questionable for years, are practically useless by now. In an effort to try and get a representative sample from people who won't answer their phone unless they know the caller's number, the pollsters end up making all sorts of assumptions and projections to try and take their raw numbers and massage them into something that they hope is accurate. Unless of course they are biased in which case they know that saying "Our guy is winning" will help their guy. So they do that.

That being said, it's still disconcerting to see Trump bump up in polls after the Fox interview with Harris. I thought she did well, but I was a bit nervous about a couple of questions she didn't really answer. On the other hand, it's so ironic to hear right wing media shouting about her refusing to answer questions, when their candidates won't answer "Who won the last election?"

I keep thinking about why that last question doesn't seem to matter so many people. To me, it seems so obvious why that's a big deal. i.e. Why Trump refusing to admit that he lost is not something that can be easily brushed aside, and that seems obvious to me. I think I've figured out why the Democrats aren't gaining more traction with it. I think it's a problem that Democrats have had for a very long time.

The problem is that, if the truth be told, it isn't as obvious as it seems. After all, what bad thing happened? When all was said and done, Trump stepped aside. Let's look forward. At least, that's what the Republicans say. When they say that, though, I and people like me tend to say, "What the hell is wrong with you that you can't see the problem, idiot!"

I think the politicians who want to use it when running for office have to have a better answer. They have to act like it isn't obvious, and the voters aren't stupid, and then explain the issue.

In my opinion, it is obvious, and, frankly, the voters are indeed stupid. But I can afford to say that. I'm not running for office.

Two and a half weeks to go.

[stanky]

You kind of nailed it there.
Trump's refusal to admit defeat doesn't amount to much. Elections are often disputed. They're quite possibly sometimes faulty. Bush/Gore is a decent example. Had Gore been more Trumpish, we may not have suffered Bush.

Polls I see have it both ways. There seems to be an agreement that it's very close. That adds some excitement. Good for views and news.Trump appears to be imploding. The 20 minute broken mike could have been staged. It may have helped him in this weird new world, where violence is love and lies are truth.

[arthwollipot]

I'm amazed that even after all this time, there is still a suggestion that simple incompetence might have been "staged".

It's not like they've been demonstrated to be good at stuff before now.

[stanky]

They had spare microphones. The guy was the president. Seemed far fetched to me; maybe sabotage?
I'd read that the crowd was having fun and loving Trump while the mic was out. He can do no wrong.

[Meadmaker]

I wish Democratic strategists would listen to Bill Maher. He's so spot on so often.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAxNTFtQa6Y

(Summary for those not wanting to click link: If Kamala can distance herself from far left positions that most Americans view as bizarre, she'll win. If not, the election is a toss up.)

[President Bush]

I wish Democratic strategists would listen to Bill Maher. He's so spot on so often.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAxNTFtQa6Y

(Summary for those not wanting to click link: If Kamala can distance herself from far left positions that most Americans view as bizarre, she'll win. If not, the election is a toss up.)

Used to enjoy watching Bill Maher back in the 90s when he had good writers, interesting guests, and ideas. Now he has an audience who gives a big round of applause to the idea of Trump running over a group of kindergartners. What far left positions has Harris advocated, anyhow?

Flash from the past...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eos11vc ... qNqv-XWm92

[Meadmaker]

What far left positions has Harris advocated, anyhow?

Taxpayer funded sex change operations for illegal immigrants in prison.

Maher covered that question better than anyone I've ever seen. It can be found at the six minute mark of the video I previously linked, but I'll quote it here, too.

Describing that issue, which has been featured in Trump ads and was asked by Brett Baier during the Fox interview, Maher called it "something that has never actually happened and has no real bearing on anyone's life, but it's a litmus test, for voters out there, who want to know of the Democrat, "Is there anything your fringe can suggest that will ever make you say, 'No, that's fucking ridiculous.' "

He has hit the nail on the head.

[President Bush]

What far left positions has Harris advocated, anyhow?

Taxpayer funded sex change operations for illegal immigrants in prison.

Maher covered that question better than anyone I've ever seen. It can be found at the six minute mark of the video I previously linked, but I'll quote it here, too.

Describing that issue, which has been featured in Trump ads and was asked by Brett Baier during the Fox interview, Maher called it "something that has never actually happened and has no real bearing on anyone's life, but it's a litmus test, for voters out there, who want to know of the Democrat, "Is there anything your fringe can suggest that will ever make you say, 'No, that's fucking ridiculous.' "

He has hit the nail on the head.

Maher simply promotes the way Trump is framing the situation. You believe him.

Meanwhile, it took less than ten seconds to find this.

Harris’ Record on Gender-Affirming Care for Federal Prisoners

Although Trump’s advertisement takes Harris’ 2019 comments on transgender inmates out of context, she did give broader support for gender-affirming care for prisoners in response to the 2019 ACLU questionnaire.

The ACLU questionnaire asked, “As President will you use your executive authority to ensure that transgender and nonbinary people who rely on the state for medical care — including those in prison and immigration detention — will have access to comprehensive treatment associated with gender transition, including all necessary surgical care? If yes, how will you do so?”

Harris checked a box answering “Yes,” before elaborating:

Harris, 2019 ACLU questionnaire: It is important that transgender individuals who rely on the state for care receive the treatment they need, which includes access to treatment associated with gender transition. That’s why, as Attorney General, I pushed the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to provide gender transition surgery to state inmates. I support policies ensuring that federal prisoners and detainees are able to obtain medically necessary care for gender transition, including surgical care, while incarcerated or detained. Transition treatment is a medical necessity, and I will direct all federal agencies responsible for providing essential medical care to deliver transition treatment.

At the time, no federal prisoner had received gender-affirming surgery. The first gender-affirming surgery was provided to a U.S. federal prisoner in 2022, after a federal court ruling stated that the government was required to provide this care. A second surgery took place in 2023.

Actions taken during the Biden-Harris administration have indicated some support for necessary medical care for transgender inmates. The Department of Justice has provided statements of interest in cases in which state prisoners have sought gender-affirming care. These statements note that, among other legal bases, the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment requires adequate care for prisoners, including those with gender dysphoria. Gender dysphoria is a diagnosis that some but not all transgender people have, and refers to intense distress over the mismatch between a person’s sex assigned at birth and their gender identity.

In 2022, the BOP reissued a Transgender Offender Manual for how to treat federal prisoners, following Trump-era changes made to the document. In response to questions about gender-affirming care, a BOP spokesperson sent us a link to this document. Among other policies, the document now addresses gender-affirming surgery.

“For transgender inmates in Bureau custody, surgery may be the final stage in the transition process and is generally considered only after one year of clear conduct and compliance with mental health, medical, and programming services at the gender affirming facility,” the document reads, while acknowledging that not all transgender inmates even want these surgeries.

Nor is asking for gender-affirming surgery a guarantee that a federal prisoner will get it. The manual simply says that the requests will be considered. The BOP spokesperson confirmed to us that two federal inmates have gotten these surgeries to date. There are 1,461 transgender female prisoners and 770 transgender male prisoners currently in the custody of BOP, according to the agency.

Context on Gender-Affirming Care for Immigrant Detainees
In his recent comments on free “sex change” surgeries, Trump has often focused on the idea that Harris wants to give these surgeries to immigrant detainees.

However, as we’ve said, we weren’t able to find a record of immigrant detainees having gotten these surgeries.

Immigrants who are detained while trying to enter the U.S. may be held by Customs and Border Patrol. These detainees should “generally not be held for longer than 72 hours in CBP hold rooms or holding facilities,” according to the agency. A report found that people were in custody for an average of 62 to 74 hours between October 2022 and June 2023, depending on the type of CBP facility.

People may be in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody for longer, but stays are still supposed to be relatively short. The average length of stay for a person detained by ICE in 2024 so far is 47 days. As of Sept. 8, there have been 231 transgender detainees booked into ICE custody in 2024, and there are currently 47 transgender people in custody, according to ICE statistics, although groups that advocate for transgender people in detention have said the ICE statistics are probably an undercount.

In a statement to FactCheck.org, an ICE spokesperson mentioned emergent care needs, a phrase typically used to refer to health care that is needed immediately to stave off significant harm. “The agency recognizes that detained transgender noncitizens have unique needs while in ICE custody,” the spokesperson said in an email. “In response to those needs, we have developed structures within our operation to safeguard their rights and ensure their emergent care needs are met from the moment they arrive and throughout the entirety of their stay.”

Gender-affirming surgery is not usually a quick process. As we’ve said, there is a waiting period of one year before federal inmates can even seek gender-affirming surgery. Experts also told The 19th, a nonprofit news site that writes about gender issues, that a waiting period for gender-affirming surgery is common whether someone is in a prison or not.

A 2015 ICE memorandum outlines policies for transgender detainees, including some recommendations on gender-affirming care, Dr. Elizabeth Kvach, a Colorado family physician with experience providing medical care to transgender individuals in immigration detention, told us. This includes recommendations that detainees be given access to “mental health care and other transgender-related health care and medication (such as hormone therapy) based on medical need.”

Kvach said that in her experience in Colorado, transgender detainees are given access, if desired, to “evaluation for initiation and/or continuation of hormone therapy for affirmation of their gender identity while detained.” However, she was not aware of instances of care extending to gender-affirming surgery.

“To the best of my knowledge, in the decade I have been doing this work in Colorado there have been no transgender detainees who have sought or received gender affirming surgeries while in immigration detention,” Kvach said, while acknowledging that she “cannot speak to practices in other detention facilities or states.”

Elana Redfield, federal policy director at the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, also shared a recent report indicating that some transgender and other detainees had trouble getting hormone therapy or other medical care, “let alone surgical treatments,” she said, although she noted that only a small number of people were interviewed.

For the report, representatives of nonprofit organizations interviewed 41 LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive immigrants pursuing asylum and held by CBP and ICE, including 14 people identifying as transgender. Four transgender detainees reported trouble getting hormone therapy, while a transgender woman who had previously gotten breast implants told a story of receiving delayed and inadequate medical care after one of her implants burst while in ICE custody.

“What we’re seeing there is an enormous unmet need for even basic health care,” Kellan Baker, a health services researcher with expertise in cost-related issues and transgender health, told us of the experience of immigrants in detention. Baker is executive director of Whitman-Walker Institute, a research and policy institute affiliated with a Washington, D.C., community health center. The institute’s mission is “advancing the health and wellbeing of LGBTQ+ people, people living with HIV, and other groups facing barriers to quality care.”

“No one is taking advantage of being in a prison system or in immigration detention to try to get care that they don’t need,” he said.

https://www.factcheck.org/2024/10/harri ... detainees/

Surprise! Laws exist, ideally, to enable society to deal with legitimate issues.

But if you're not one of a minority dealing with something... guess it's easy just to say "hahahaha, shut up, you’re bothering the rest of us."

[Meadmaker]

Maher simply promotes the way Trump is framing the situation. You believe him.

I don't know how to tell you this, but the text that you posted supports Trump's framing, and my framing, and Maher's framing.


Now, you may very well think that the current policies in place are very good policies, and that's ok. Generally, people on the left would agree. Generally, people on the right would disagree.

The people who are generally on the left will vote for Kamala Harris. The people generally on the right will vote for Trump. This issue won't matter for all those voters.

But then there are the rest of the voters, who would read what you posted from that article and say, "That's fucking ridiculous." If a candidate said that, the candidate would attract those votes, and that is what Maher said.

Bill Clinton got it, way back in 1992. We didn't have the word "woke" yet. We called it "politically correct". One day, someone asked then-candidate Clinton what he thought about a song by a rapper who had a song about killing policemen. Instead of saying, "We really need to understand the causes of suffering in the black community." or some such, Clinton said that the song was wrong. (I don't remember his exact reply, but he made no doubt about condemning it.

Kamala Harris needs a Sister Soulja moment. It might be too late, though. If she were to come out with something like that, people might see it as insincere opportunism.