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Or tried to, anyway. I think this whole "glitter-bomb" thing is expired, folks. Mildly interesting the first couple of times, not so much anymore.
Rep. Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, was just given an award in the name of another famed progressive Minnesotan, the late Sen. Paul Wellstone, who died in a plane crash in 2002.
I'm not seeing it in this clip, but Michelle "Crazy Eyes" Bachmann was reportedly glittered by GetEQUAL moments ago as she left the stage at the anti-gay hate conference. I'll try to find better video. [Replaced the first video, but it doesn't appear Bachmann was hit by the glitter.]
UPDATE: GetEQUAL has issued a press release.
Shortly after a speech at the RightOnline conference, pro-LGBT activist Rachel E. B. Lang approached Bachmann, threw glitter in the air, and said, “You can run, but you cannot hide! Keep your hate out of our Constitution!” — a reference to the “You Can Run But You Cannot Hide” ministry for which Bachmann has helped raise money [1] and to a proposed ban on same-sex marriage in Minnesota. The ministry, a brainchild of rabidly anti-gay Bradley Dean, charges thousands of dollars to speak at public school assemblies and evangelize young people based on a shocking and offensive anti-gay program.
(Via - Good As You)
I happened to be passing Sam Seder's radio booth when Franken arrived for his interview. Introduced myself, shook hands, got a pleasant (if distracted) "Heyhowareya!" Totally bloggable, though.
I was photographing the above Right Online banner at the Netroots host hotel when the woman on the right said, "Hey, he's NETROOTS! He's not supposed to be here." Other wingnuts told her I was allowed to be there.
Here's how the White House is responding to Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer's claim that the president didn't fill out the 1996 survey in which he appeared to support marriage equality. Via Washington Blade:
The White House is backing off of the comments Pfeiffer made on Friday on Obama’s 1996 statement in support of same-sex marriage. Shin Inouye, a White House spokesperson, addressed the issue in a statement: “Dan was not familiar with the history of the questionnaire that was brought up today, but the president’s views are clear,” Inouye said. “He has long supported equal rights and benefits for gay and lesbian couples and since taking office he has signed into law the repeal of ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,’ signed into law the hate crimes bill, made the decision not to defend Section 3 of DOMA and expanded federal benefits for same sex partners of federal employees.” Inouye didn’t respond to a further question from the Washington Blade to verify whether the White House believes the president in fact filled out the questionnaire in 1996.AmericaBlog is calling the above a "bizarre non-denial."
This may be the biggest news to come out of Netroots.
In an interview conducted in front of an audience at the Netroots Nation blogger conference early Friday in Minneapolis, White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer claimed a 1996 questionnaire favoring gay marriage, which bears Barack Obama's signature, was "actually filled out by someone else." "If you actually go back and look, that questionnaire was actually filled out by someone else, not the President. There was a long debate about this in the campaign. ... This was litigated in the campaign," Pfeiffer said in an exchange with the Daily Kos' Kaili Joy Gray caught on video.AmericaBlog was quick with a denouncement.
King of the scumbags (and GOProud backer) Andrew Breitbart, who famously crashed the press conference of Anthony Weiner, was up to his old tricks this afternoon at Netroots Nation.
There will be no Weiner-style gatecrashing from Andrew Breitbart at the Netroots Nation conference here. That is, unless Breitbart wants to pony up $355 for a ticket. With the annual conservative Right Online conference just down the street from Netroots Nation, it was inevitable that some sort of shenanigan would occur in Minneapolis this week. And so it did, early Friday afternoon when Breitbart, camera crew in tow, showed up at Netroots unannounced and uncredentialed.Talking Points Memo reports that Breitbart left visibly "thrilled" by the incident.
As he no doubt expected, the conservative blogger was immediately accosted by an angry progressive with a Flip cam when he stepped off the escalators at the Minneapolis Convention Center, where Netroots is being held. The attendee yelled in Breitbart's face, demanding he answer questions like "have you ever used cocaine?" and "why are you so fixated on gay magazines?" Breitbart yelled back at the guy, refusing to answer. Eventually Breitbart's security detail pulled him away and sent him toward the entrance to the conference. He was rebuffed by staffers, who denied him entry because he didn't have a credential.
UPDATE: Note how the wingnuts are already spinning this. You might recall escaped mental patient Jim Hoft (below) as the blogger who claimed the Obama administration was using a Jumbrotron to instruct the audience to applaud at the Tuscon shooting memorial.
The rumbles between Netroots attendees and those here for the anti-gay Right Online conference have begun. According to Twitter, one Netroots attendee was just dragged screaming out of Andrew Breitbart's book signing. The haters booked themselves right into the main Netroots host hotel.
She's somewhat the fiery speaker. Video to come soon, hopefully.
Igor Volsky reports at Think Progress: "Lt. Dan Choi ripped up an Obama For America (OFA) flyer this afternoon during a panel at Netroots Nation when he was confronted by an Obama volunteer who attempted to explain away the President’s opposition to same-sex marriage."
NOTE: The Obama administration is prosecuting Choi for chaining himself to the White House fence during a DADT protest. Earlier this week Choi's trial date was set for late August.
UPDATE: Choi later said to Washington Blade reporter Chris Johnson: “Sometimes love comes in harsh forms. I love my detractors enough to let them know when they are misguided and I only regret that we are both suffering under a second-class citizenship imposed by politicians who smile pleasantly while denying our fight for justice. The harshest treatment would be our acquiescence to the view that we do not deserve equality.”
At the moment I'm blogging from a big comfy floral sofa in the Daily Kos Lounge, an oasis of recliners, couches, and power strips (yay!) that runs down the center of the main hall of the Minneapolis Convention Center. That's my 'puter in the foreground and Good As You's Jeremy Hooper is across from me. I have no idea what the deal is with the kiddie pool.
Folks, meet Right Wing Watch bloggers Brian Tashman and Kyle Mantyla. Between the two of them, they probably provide more JMG video and hate-quote content than any other site I regularly reference. Big props and snaps to them both!
Pam Spaulding kicked off the first official day of Netroots Nation 2011 by appearing on the radio show of Lizz Winstead, which broadcast from the main floor of the Minneapolis Convention Center.
You'd think that at a giant convention for thousands of blogger/journalists there'd be ample and easy internet access. If you thought that at last year's Netroots in Vegas, you were wrong then too.
A long list of repulsive anti-gay scumbags will gather here in Minneapolis this weekend "in defiance" of the Netroots Nation convention. Confirmed to attend: Andrew Breitbart, Michelle Malkin, Michele "Crazy Eyes" Bachmann, Tim Pawlenty, Herman "Gays Are Sinners" Cain, Virginia AG Ken Cuccinelli, and GOProud's Jimmy LaSalvia. GOProud won't be allowed to actually participate, of course, but they'll be holding a happy hour in one of the Netroots host hotels. (This one, in fact. Hmm, about that JMG meetup...)
Mike Rogers is at the podium kicking off today's Netroots 2011 LGBT Conference. In the room: Pam Spaulding, Jeremy Hooper, Michael Crawford, Rod McCullom, Jillian Weiss, Jarrod Chlapowski, Jerame Davis, Fred Sainz, Corey Johnston, Chris Johnson, Phil Reese, and about 100 more hard-working LGBT activists.
