Bolton and Pompeo’s desperate and transparent attempts to go to war with Iran aren’t fooling anyone. Wall Street feels left out of the student debt crisis, so is shopping around a form of debt called Indentured Servitude Agreements (er, we mean “Income Share Agreements”). We stan Elizabeth Warren’s “Break Up Big Tech” billboards, debate beating World Cup teams 13-0, and get super gay. Happy Pride!
Category Archives: LGBTQ
Ivanka Trump is Fake, Betsy DeVos’s Mess, and James Comey gets pwned (E22)
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We debrief on the House of Representatives vote to let Internet Service Providers (ISPs) sell our personal data. We talk about two troubling actions by Betsy DeVos and the Department of Education that has the potential to seriously screw Americans with student loans — and those about trying to get them. Finally, we’ll laugh at James Comey, and Alexis will discuss the Queer Dance Party she attended outside of Ivanka Trump’s house, and ask WTF has Ivanka Trump actually done for LGBTQ rights.
TAKE ACTION:
- Call the Capitol Switchboard, (202) 224-3121, and ask for your Senators, and tell them: I am concerned that Betsy DeVos will not obey the law and grant Public Service Loan Forgiveness to borrowers who’ve dutifully paid their loans and worked in public service for ten years. I want to know what you are doing to protect the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program? Has the Senator signed a letter or otherwise spoken out? This is a priority for me.
MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
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Forgive My Student Debt: Explainer page about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program
- Information about other student loan forgiveness programs like Pay As You Earn.
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Student Loan Forgiveness Program Approval Letters May Be Invalid, Education Dept. Says
- Applying for Financial Aid is Going to be Harder This Year –
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A bipartisan group of 43 lawmakers from the House and Senate wrote a joint letter expressing concern about the outage we mentioned on the show. See if your member of Congress signed it.
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Muslims inside FBI describe culture of suspicion and fear: ‘It is cancer’
- Simple VPN Comparison Chart
Image credit: @lpritchard8 on Twitter

Trump’s Crony Cabinet and Chase Strangio on Gavin Grimm, HB2, Carrie Fisher (E18)
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We dig further into Trump’s selections for his crony cabinet including Rep. Tom Price for HHS, and Vincent Viola for Army Secretary, both of whom have massive financial conflicts. Then, Alexis talks with Chase Strangio, staff attorney at the ACLU, about the ongoing disaster that is North Carolina’s anti-trans law HB2; Gavin Grimm’s pending Supreme Court case and its implications for LGBTQ rights; and an update on Chelsea Manning. And we also talk briefly about how sad we both are over the death of Carrie Fisher.
TAKE ACTION:
- Don’t Let Trump & Congress Destroy Our Safety Rules
- Send your Senator an email, demanding they REJECT Tom Price for HHS Secretary and Vincent Viola for Army Secretary
FOR FURTHER READING:
- Trans People at the Supreme Court — Now What? – by Chase Strangio
- The duplicity of HHS nominee Tom Price – By Samuel Gorovitz
- Tom Price: ‘There’s Not One Woman’ Who Doesn’t Have Access To Birth Control
Credit where due:
The theme for this show is the song “Missing You” by Jahzzar, also know as Javier Suarez. You can find his work at betterwithmusic.com.

Reflections on Orlando and the Questions Congress SHOULD be asking (E13)
Kade and Alexis discuss the tragedy in Orlando, the response from politicians, the failures of the FBI, the questions politicians should be asking vs the reaction they are having, and how proud we’ve been of the LGBTQ community’s response to this tragedy, including rejecting responding to bigotry with more bigotry and Islamophobia.
Further Reading / Mentioned on the Show:
- LGBT and Muslim Communities Warn Against Demonizing of Both After Orlando Shooting – an excellent summary of the DC vigil Alexis attended, organized by the Muslim American Women’s Policy Forum.
- Omar Mateen’s domestic violence was a clue to his murderous future by Suzanne Moore at the Guardian
How to Help Orlando or LGBTQ Organizations:
- The LGBTQ Center of Orlando
- The Audre Lorde Project
- Fierce NYC – Building the Leadership & Power of LGBTQ Youth of Color
- Black and Pink – an open family of LGBTQ prisoners and “free world” allies who support each other
Credit Where Due:
The theme for this show is the song “Missing You” by Jahzzar, also know as Javier Suarez. You can find his work at betterwithmusic.com. And the font for our logo is by the graphic designer Marisa Passos.
Header image credit: photo by Alexis Goldstein of signs by Code Pink at the DC Vigil in DuPont for Orlando
