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Published by Reuters By Peter Szekely NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York City officials on Friday were preparing for shortages of firefighters, police officers and other first responders as a showdown looms between the city and its unvaccinated uniformed workforce, who face a 5 p.m. EDT (2100 GMT) deadline to be immunized. Leaders of unions representing firefighters and police officers have said more than one-third of their members could be sent home on unpaid leave when enforcement of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate takes effect on Monday. “If you’re going to take a third of the ambulances off-line, if you’re going to take a third of the engine companies off-line, you’ll without question increase response times and increase the rate of death,” Uniformed Firefighters Association Andrew Ansbro told NY1 TV on Friday. But Democratic Mayor Bill de Blasio, who announced the mandate nine days ago, said officials were prepared to manage any staffing gaps with overtime and schedule changes and by enlisting private ambulance companies to cover for the city’s paramedics. Discussing those moves with reporters on Thursday, the mayor pointed out that the city also faced staffing shortages last year when many first responders were infected with the coronavirus. The dispute in the United States’ most populous city was the latest chapter in a series of clashes across the country over public and private vaccination mandates. New York City uniformed workers, including sanitation workers, have staged several protests this week, including one on Thursday at the mayor’s official residence. Many have said consideration should be given for the so-called natural immunity of those who have had COVID, which the firefighters’ union says includes 70% of its members. City health officials have said that while research has yet to determine the degree of immunity that previous COVID infections yield, it is widely agreed that vaccines increase protection – even for those who have been infected. De Blasio said only 76% of the uniformed workers facing the mandate deadline have gotten at least one dose of a vaccine, as compared with 86% of city workers overall. Within that group, he said the lowest rate was among Fire Department employees at 64%, while nearly three-quarters of police employees have complied. He stressed, however, that he expects those rates to rise significantly by Monday. The mayor pointed to earlier mandate deadlines for other New York state and city workers that prompted a rush for last-minute vaccinations by healthcare and education workers as the reality set in that their paychecks were about to stop coming. “And then suddenly it becomes really clear what they have to do,” de Blasio told reporters on Thursday. By the time a vaccination requirement for state healthcare workers kicked in on Sept. 27, Governor Kathy Hochul reported that 92% of hospital employees had gotten at least one dose and 85% were fully vaccinated, up from 77% a month earlier. Thousands of city teachers and other school employees also waited until the final days before an Oct. 1 deadline, de Blasio said, with 96% of the them currently vaccinated. Police and fire unions have filed lawsuits against the mandate. The Police Benevolent Association of the City of New York, which represents 24,000 police officers, lost a bid earlier this week for a court order to halt the deadline, but has taken its request to a state appeals court where it is still pending. The courts have generally not been sympathetic to efforts to block vaccine mandates. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonya Sotomayor rejected https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-supreme-courts-sotomayor-lets-new-york-school-vaccine-mandate-remain-2021-10-01 a request by four teachers and teaching assistants to block the city’s Oct. 1 mandate for school workers. And Justice Amy Coney Barrett in August denied a bid by Indiana University students to block that school’s vaccine mandate. In Chicago, a federal judge was expected to rule on Friday on a request by a group of firefighters and other city workers for a court order to halt vaccine mandates ordered by Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, both Democrats. (Reporting by Peter Szekely in New York; editing by Jonathan Oatis) View the full article

Published by AFP Prince Andrew has vehemently denied claims he had sex with Virginia Giuffre, and said he has no recollection of meeting her New York (AFP) – Britain’s Prince Andrew on Friday filed a motion requesting a New York court dismiss a sexual harassment lawsuit against him, a court document showed. Attorneys for the Duke of York said in the filing that Andrew “respectfully moves to dismiss plaintiff Virginia Giuffre’s complaint.” Giuffre sued Andrew in August, claiming he sexually assaulted her more than 20 years ago when she was 17 and a minor under US state law. Andrew, 61, has been not been criminally charged and has repeatedly and strenuously denied the allegations. Last month, Queen Elizabeth II’s second son accepted that he had been served legal papers in the case and was instructed to respond to the lawsuit by October 29. His lawyers asked a Manhattan district court that the case be dismissed “for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.” Alternatively, they asked that Giuffre, 38, “provide a more definitive statement of her allegations.” “Prince Andrew respectfully requests the court hold oral argument on his motion,” said the short statement. Giuffre alleges that Andrew sexually abused her at the London home of socialite Ghislaine Maxwell. She also said he assaulted her at the New York home of disgraced US financier Jeffrey Epstein, as well as at Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands. Guiffre alleges Epstein, who killed himself while awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges in 2019, lent her out for sex with his wealthy and powerful associates. Andrew has rarely been seen in public since he was forced to quit the royal frontline in 2019 for failing to distance himself from Epstein. Maxwell is due to go on trial in New York on November 29 on charges that she recruited underage girls for Epstein to abuse. She has pleaded not guilty. View the full article

Island House in Key West is the perfect place for letting it all hang out. Photo courtesy Island House. I Missed Being Around Gay People After 18 months of canceled Pride celebrations, postponed weddings and more sourdough starters than sunshine, my travel bug had grown to Dune sandworm-sized proportions. Without so much as a weekly Drag Race viewing at the local bar, I didn’t just miss the world outside my sofa; I missed being around gay people. I didn’t need to merely go somewhere gay-friendly, I needed to go somewhere gay-saturated. And there’s no destination gleefully gayer than the renowned, all-male, clothing optional resort, Island House. (It doesn’t hurt that it happens to be located in the idyllic island paradise of Key West.) A short, direct flight from NYC got me into town early one Monday morning. The island’s tiny airport is the first indicator to visitors they’ve left the drudgery of their origins behind for something different. Walking across the tarmac (there are no jetways), you see a replica of the southernmost point landmark and large figurines that look right out of Squid Game under the words “Welcome to the Conch Republic.” It’s a cheeky nod to the island’s brief (mostly performative) cessation from the nation, but it’s also an enduring reminder of Key West’s proud independent spirit and uncompromising weirdness. The island embraces uniqueness with its more-than-a-marketing-tagline “Close to perfect, far from normal” ethos. ISLAND HOUSE IN KEY WESTThe island embraces uniqueness with its more-than-a-marketing-tagline “Close to perfect, far from normal” ethos. It’s on display with the drag queens down Duval, at the annual Fantasy Fest and even in City Hall, where they proudly installed Florida’s first openly-lesbian mayor, Teri Johnston. The local queer community is woven into the DNA of the island, from politics to business leaders and artists, but the central hub for gay life in Key West is Island House. Nestled in Old Town, the resort feels comfortably isolated once inside the grounds, but is just a quick walk to most areas of interest on the island. However, if you’re not up to much exploration, Island House is the perfect one-stop spot for the best, gayest vacation you can get. Early Arrival I arrived before check-in and planned to stash my bag and hit the pool right away. The always cheery front-desk clerk told me the room was ready early, but I decided to delay settling in just yet. Even though this was my third visit to the Island House, I always opt for a quick refresher tour when I arrive. The friendly staff at Island House is one of its greatest assets, and this is a great way to get to know the faces you’ll see as you traipse around the grounds in a towel or less. (Plus, when they’re not on the frontlines of the resort’s COVID response, they’re great sources of gossip as you get the lay of the land.) He led me to my room beside the heated pool, the epicenter of Island House activity. That’s where they host the lively Sunday and Wednesday pool parties, and it’s right beside the resort’s delicious, 24-hour bar and café. Room 106 would be my Island House base of operations (and subject of poolside gossip). Photo courtesy Island House. My initial concern about late-night noise keeping me awake proved unfounded (though the luxe, feather-topped bed probably helped). Plus, the convenience of dinner, coffee or a party just a step outside my door felt like an additional layer of luxury. The only downside, I’d come to learn, is everyone enjoying the social scene by the pool witnessing all the comings and goings from your room. Despite feeling like an Island House veteran, I immediately made a rookie mistake. An earlier than expected check-in and the rush of excitement of my arrival inspired a very early start to the cocktails. I forgot how generous the pours are at Island House, but before long, it hardly mattered. The pool filled up with newly arriving travelers for the week, and the gaggle of gays I’d been craving descended on the pool like a flock of waterfowl. Traveling solo can certainly be lonely, and not having a wingman with you at a party full of gay men, naked, could understandably sound like a nightmare. However, there’s not a gay bar I’ve entered on Earth (and, trust me, I’ve been to many), that comes close to the level of friendliness and congeniality at Island House. Friendly faces at Island House in Key West. When Some Are Naked, Everyone Sheds Layers of Awkwardness I’m sure the fact some people are naked helps everyone shed some layers of social awkwardness. While it may be the first thing people seem to focus on, nudity at Island House feels much less dramatic in practice. It’s not always sexual (unless you want it to be), and, at least on all of my visits, the various body types and age ranges keep it from feeling exclusionary. There are solo travelers, like myself, couples, friends, even co-workers, so anyone worrying if it’s too sexual/not sexual enough just needs to know it’s exactly what they make of it. And, unlike many a reality-TV competitor, I was, in fact, there to make friends. I immediately glommed onto a couple of bears from Boston. They were returning to Island House to celebrate one of their birthdays, and they spent most of their trip in the pool ordering rounds of mudslides (which I insisted on calling Fribbles between sips of vodka). ..not having a wingman with you at a party full of gay men, naked, could understandably sound like a nightmare. However, there’s not a gay bar I’ve entered on Earth (and, trust me, I’ve been to many), that comes close to the level of friendliness and congeniality at Island House. I did at one point remember to eat something from the café between drinks. The food at Island House is famously better than it needs to be. I love the tuna tataki, a generous portion of seared, sesame-crusted, sashimi-grade tuna atop a bed of seaweed salad. Besides the convenience and quality of the food, the poolside seating is a perfect way to enjoy the tropical climate (and great for those avoiding indoor dining). If I wanted to seriously soak up some of these cocktails, though, I’d need something a little heavier. My favorite dish — and a nightly post-drinking staple — is the crispy, fried conch fritters. I lost track of the Boston bears and the Fribbles after sundown, but soon the compound effects of that early start replaced the surge of excitement I felt when I first arrived. I woke up the next morning feeling distinctly not great. Opening my door to the bright sun shining over the poolside lounge chairs and café, I was greeted by an older guest. “Glad to see you’re OK this morning. You looked like you had a lot of fun last night.” I had, and I appreciated his friendly check-in. That’s community for you. I wasn’t as interested in the subsequent commentary on whomever may or may not have entered and exited my room and when, but I guess that’s what friends are for, too. The author soaking up those Key West rays on the Island House sundeck. A quick, fresh breakfast and hangover-quenching coconut water from the café later, and I was en route to my ride on the BluQ for a male-only, clothing-optional snorkeling and sailing adventure. My friends at the front desk gave me the tip to snatch a towel from the locker room, fill a water bottle and bring plenty of sunscreen. I was the only guy aboard staying at Island House, but later that evening, everyone from the boat was there, including the sexy captain. For gay travelers, it’s impossible to resist. The term “Happy Hour” doesn’t do justice to the nightly complimentary top-shelf cocktails for guests. Uninhibited visitors blissed out on vacay vibes mingle with a mix of curious travelers staying nearby and gracious locals enjoying the never-ending fresh supply of men. Since residents are able to buy memberships, Island House feels like a neighborhood watering hole in addition to a world-class resort. Even I, having only spent less than a full month total on the island in my lifetime, ran into a guy I met on a previous trip and made plans for later in the week. Everyone at Island House feels like an old friend, even the new ones. Of Happy Hours, Handsome Locals, and A Hunk from Houston During Wednesday’s happy hour, as I chatted trunkless with my handsome local friend, we spotted a fellow solo traveler across the pool. I swam over and hit him with the standard, three-question Island House intro: What’s your name? Where are you from? Where are you staying? He was a hairdresser from Houston with beautiful tattoos, and soon we bonded over Tex-Mex and body art. By the end of the happy hour, we were doing shots and sharing RuPaul’s Drag Race takes like best Judys. Raise a glass to community. Photo courtesy Island House You could easily visit Key West and never see anything besides the pool at Island House and the airport, but where’s the fun in that? Key West boasts tons of natural splendor, funky art and a unique gay nightlife. Though, Island House has a way of staying with you, even when you’re off-property. I spotted my Houston buddy across the backyard bar at Bourbon Street Pub the next day. When I managed to score a ticket to one of Randy Roberts‘ legendary drag performances, I found myself seated with the Island House bartender responsible for all those strong pours and the sexy captain of the BluQ (the image of whose naked body had not yet dissipated from my mind). Sometimes I’d just catch someone with one of the resort’s black, spiral keychains still dangling from their wrist and know I’d be seeing them later for happy hour. It really makes the difference between traveling solo and traveling alone. As I waited for my Uber, I thought about the last year, being cut off from community and how nice it was to see Island House still there, gay as ever. At some point, I did have to tear myself away and head home. I bid farewell to the concerned older man from the bar, the hairdresser from Houston, the bears and their Fribbles. I zipped up my suitcase full of swimsuits never worn, and I gave my last goodbyes to the guys at the front desk. As I waited for my Uber, I thought about the last year, being cut off from community and how nice it was to see Island House still there, gay as ever. I took one last look around and ordered a round of conch fritters for the road. Discover more about Island House and Key West with our previous coverage. View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Paddy McGuinness shared a topless kiss with Prince Harry on a drunken night out. The ‘Top Gear’ host had a rowdy night out with the Duke of Sussex – who now has two children, Archie, two, and Lili, four months, with wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex – at a 2016 party for the charity sporting tournament Soccer Aid which saw the 37-year-old royal take off the presenter’s shirt before they shared a smooch. Paddy wrote in his new autobiography ‘My Lifey’, in an extract shared in The Sun newspaper: “To say we were dancing close was an understatement — our chests were touching. He asked me again if I could send him to Fernando’s. “He then proceeded to take my shirt off. So now I’m topless, a bottle of beer in each hand, dancing with Prince Harry.” Harry then “disappeared” after the dance off, only to return with strong Jagerbomb drinks and beginning their battle again – with a surprising ending. Paddy recalled: “We finished dancing and while everyone was cheering, we embraced and he gave me a smacker on the lips.” Immediately after the smooch, Harry left Jak’s nightclub in Chelsea, west London – where he’d been invited by his friend Jack Whitehall – leaving Soccer Aid players including One Direction’s Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan and footballers Jamie Carragher, Ronaldinho and Cafu stunned. But they all agreed the prince was an “absolute legend”. And the following day, Harry texted the ‘Jungle Cruise’ actor to thank the stars for a great night, and to enquire after Paddy’s hangover. Harry recently spoke of how he turned to partying to “mask” the pain he felt in his late 20s, even when he wasn’t enjoying himself any more. He said: “I was willing to drink, I was willing to take drugs, I was willing to try and do the things that made me feel less like I was feeling. “But I slowly became aware that, okay, I wasn’t drinking Monday to Friday, but I would probably drink a week’s worth in one day on a Friday or a Saturday night. And I would find myself drinking, not because I was enjoying it but because I was trying to mask something.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Joseph Ax (Reuters) – Felicia Moore, Atlanta’s city council president, vows to hire 250 police officers to help combat her city’s rising crime rate if she is elected mayor next week. Her most prominent Democratic rival, former Mayor Kasim Reed, wants to go even further, putting 750 more officers on the streets. Public safety is at the forefront in dozens of major U.S. cities poised to elect mayors on Tuesday. However, a year after “defund the police” became a rallying cry at protests against racism and police brutality, Democratic candidates from Atlanta to Minneapolis are eschewing proposals to reduce police funding even as they emphasize the need for reform. With most urban areas deeply Democratic, the campaigns provide a preview of how Democrats may seek to bridge the gaps between liberals who support policing overhauls and moderates who worry Republicans will weaponize the issue in next year’s congressional elections. Republicans effectively labeled some Democrats as police “defunders” during the 2020 elections, even though most mainstream candidates – including President Joe Biden – never embraced the movement pushed by party progressives. Democrats want to avoid similar pitfalls in 2021 as crime continues to surge. Last month, the FBI reported murders rose nearly 30% in 2020, while violent crime overall went up for the first time in four years. That trend has not abated in cities like Atlanta, where homicides have risen more than 60% since 2019. A Pew Research Center poll released this week found 47% of Americans want to see police spending increase, up from 31% in June 2020. Only 15% said funding should be reduced, down from 25% last year. Polls show Black voters – who are more likely to be victims of crime and live in neighborhoods with high crime rates – are particularly opposed to cutting funding. “Communities that tend to be Black and brown, that tend to be less affluent, actually want police,” said Tammy Greer, a political science professor at Clark Atlanta University. “The pendulum was always going to shift back.” An early signal came in New York, where former police officer Eric Adams won the Democratic mayoral nomination in June over several progressive rivals after positioning himself as a moderate who favored more aggressive policing. Even candidates who still support redirecting funds from policing to other priorities, such as public housing and social work, have curbed their language to avoid alienating residents fearful for their safety. In Buffalo, New York, India Walton joined protesters last year as they chanted anti-police slogans after a city officer was videotaped shoving a 75-year-old man to the ground. But as a mayoral candidate, Walton has eschewed “defund” language and vowed not to lay off a single officer, even as she calls for cutting $7.5 million from the police budget as well as reforms such as relying on civilian personnel to handle mental health calls. “In her capacity as an activist, during the uprisings last summer, she was really speaking from a place of resistance to injustice,” campaign spokesperson Jesse Myerson said. “Obviously, that’s a very different posture than the sort of cooler-headed, more intellectually studied posture of a candidate for office.” This summer, Walton, a democratic socialist, pulled off a shocking upset in the Democratic primary, beating four-term incumbent Byron Brown. Brown, who has since mounted a write-in campaign, has in ads accused Walton of wanting to “defund” the police. BACKLASH TO ‘DEFUND’ MOVEMENT In Boston, Annissa Essaibi George, a city council member running for mayor, has similarly attacked the race’s leading candidate, Michelle Wu, as planning to “defund” the police. Wu rejects the charge as false. Wu was among several council members who called for a 10% cut to the police budget last year. Her mayoral campaign, however, has not promoted a specific figure, instead pushing changes such as using civilians to respond to emergency calls for mentally disturbed or homeless people. “Michelle has always said that we need to invest more in the intersection of public health and public safety,” said campaign spokesperson Sarah Anders. “Michelle thinks that it’s less about pinpointing any one number and more about the reforms that we need.” In Seattle, one of the country’s most liberal cities, mayoral candidate and city council President Lorena Gonzalez supported calls last year to halve the police budget and invest the money in social programs. Polls show her trailing Bruce Harrell, a former council president and fellow Democrat who has advocated hiring more officers alongside a number of police reforms. “If this is a year ago, in the face of a dramatic few months in mid-2020, I think this would be a very different story,” said Zachary Wood, a public affairs professor at Seattle University. In Minneapolis, where George Floyd’s murder by a white police officer prompted last year’s widespread demonstrations, voters will decide whether to approve a ballot measure replacing the police department with a new public safety agency. Mayor Jacob Frey, who is seeking reelection, opposes the proposal. He says the city needs to hire more police to replenish an under-staffed department. “I have never supported defunding or abolishing the police,” he said at a debate this week. All of the leading candidates in Atlanta’s mayoral race support more officers to combat crime, while also calling for reforms to ensure racial equity. Moore, who like Reed is a Democrat in the nonpartisan race, backs the creation of civilian first responders to handle non-violent emergency calls, among other reforms. But the city also needs enough officers to keep neighborhoods safe, she said. “Defunding the police doesn’t get us anywhere,” she said. The race has disappointed left-wing activists like Kelsea Bond, co-chair of the Atlanta chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America. “There really was this glimmer of hope last year,” Bond said. “The city has only expanded policing and incarceration since last year, and a lot of it has been backlash to the ‘defund the police’ movement.” (Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Cynthia Osterman) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Joseph Tanfani (Reuters) – Former U.S. president Donald Trump’s slashing rhetorical style and divisive politics allowed him to essentially take over the Republican Party. His supporters are so devoted that most believe his false claim that he lost the 2020 election because of voter fraud. But the same tactics that have inspired fierce political loyalty have undermined Trump’s business, built around real-estate development and branding deals that have allowed him to make millions by licensing his name. Trump’s business brand was once synonymous with wealth and success, an image that now clashes sharply with a political brand rooted in the anger of his largely rural and working-class voter base. His presidency is now associated in the minds of many with its violent end, as supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Those searing images, along with years of bitter rhetoric, are costing Trump money. Revenues from some of his high-end properties have declined, vacancies in office buildings have increased and his lenders are warning that the company’s revenues may not be sufficient to cover his debt payments, according to Trump’s financial disclosures as president, Trump Organization records filed with government agencies, and reports from companies that track real-estate company finances. Prospective tenants in New York are shunning his buildings, one real-estate broker said, to avoid being associated with Trump. Organizers of golf tournaments have pulled events from his courses. Trump’s focus on the political brand has increasingly overtaken his identity as a real-estate mogul, says one hospitality industry veteran. “Prior to his political career, the Trump brand was about luxury – the casinos, the golf resorts,” said Scott Smith, a former hotel executive and hospitality professor at the University of South Carolina. “When he entered into politics, he took the Trump brand in an entirely different direction.” Trump’s business also remains under the cloud of a joint criminal fraud investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office and the New York Attorney General. The company and its longtime chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, have been charged with a scheme to evade payroll taxes, and investigators continue to probe whether Trump or his representatives committed fraud by misrepresenting financials in loan applications and tax returns. Weisselberg and the company deny wrongdoing and are contesting the charges. As his development business struggles, Trump has announced his first major deal since leaving office — and it has nothing to do with real-estate. On Oct. 20, he said he will build a new social media platform aimed in part at giving him a political forum after being banned by Facebook and Twitter, who said after the U.S. Capitol riots that Trump used their platforms to incite violence. That deal could prove lucrative for Trump regardless of whether the platform succeeds. Investors rushed to buy shares in Digital World Acquisition Corp, the publicly traded blank-check acquisition company that plans to merge with the newly announced Trump Media and Technology Group. Digital World shares surged and are now worth about $2 billion. Trump’s new media company will have at least a 69% stake in the combined company, but Trump has not disclosed his level of ownership in Trump Media. Trump has also been raising money for his political operation, which reported having $100 million on June 30, as he hints at a 2024 presidential run. Eric Trump, the former president’s middle son and a Trump Organization executive, said in an interview that the company is now in “a phenomenal spot.” He cited a refinancing of a loan on San Francisco office buildings that gave the Trump business about $162 million in cash, according to loan documents and a release by Vornado Realty Trust, the venture’s majority owner. “We’re sitting on a tremendous amount of cash,” Eric Trump told Reuters. In an email, a spokesperson for Donald Trump denied that the business has slumped since he entered politics. “The real estate company is doing extremely well, and this is evident in Florida and elsewhere,” Liz Harrington said in an emailed statement. “Considering the coronavirus pandemic, in which the hotel industry was hit particularly hard, Mr. Trump’s company is doing phenomenally well.” Financial records show Trump’s real-estate business has declined. Income from the family’s holdings, heavy on golf courses and hotels, took a beating during 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic. Revenues at his Las Vegas hotel, for instance, fell from $22.9 million in 2017 to $9.2 million during 2020 and the first 20 days of 2021, according to Trump’s financial disclosures. Trump is now making a second attempt to sell his lease on one high-profile property, the Trump International Hotel, housed in a former federal building in Washington, D.C., after failing to secure a buyer at the original asking price of $500 million. Meanwhile, the business is paying the federal government $3 million annually in lease payments, according to documents released earlier this month by the House Oversight Committee of the U.S. Congress. Those records show Trump’s Washington hotel lost more than $73 million since 2016. The damage to Trump’s business image started early in his presidency. One consultant for Trump, arguing in a 2017 public hearing for a lower tax bill at his Doral golf resort, said Trump’s politics had damaged his business model. “It’s actually not about the property, it is about the brand,” said consultant Jessica Vachiratevanurak, at a December 2017 hearing of the Miami-Dade Value Adjustment Board, in a video recording reviewed by Reuters. She cited a meeting she attended where top Trump Organization executives had described “severe ramifications” to his golf business from, for instance, tournaments and charity events being canceled by organizations wanting to avoid associating with Trump. The resort saw revenues fall from $92 million in 2015 to $75 million in 2017, she said at another hearing the following year. Trump’s presidential financial disclosure listed Doral revenues at $44 million last year. Vachiratevanurak declined a Reuters request for comment. “This is obviously false as Doral is doing very well,” Trump spokesperson Harrington said. In Trump’s home base of New York, the Trump name has become increasingly toxic. One high-profile property, the Trump SoHo hotel in lower Manhattan, was rebranded the Dominick in 2017. New York City in January canceled his leases on a golf course, two Central Park skating rinks and a carousel; Trump has sued the city for wrongful termination of the golf course lease. At 40 Wall Street, the 72-story skyscraper that was among Trump’s proudest acquisitions, problems that started before the pandemic have gotten worse, according to reports from firms that track real-estate performance. After the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riots, some of Trump’s large tenants, including the Girl Scouts and a nonprofit called TB Alliance, said they were exploring whether they could get out of their leases. One commercial real-estate broker says many prospective tenants won’t consider the building because Trump’s name is on it. The Girl Scouts did not respond to comment requests, and TB Alliance said it was “exploring all options” for leaving the Trump building. “Most New York tenants want nothing to do with it, and that’s been the case for five years now,” said Ruth Colp-Haber, who said she has placed seven clients in the building over the years, but can’t interest anyone now. “It’s the biggest bargain going, but they won’t look at it.” Occupancy was 84% in March 2021, well below the average of about 89% for that downtown New York office market, according to Mike Brotschol, managing director of KBRA Analytics LLC. The rents Trump has been able to charge are lower, too – between $38 and $42 per square foot in a market where the average runs closer to $50, he said. The property’s financials have tumbled into risky territory, the reports say. Trump took out a $160 million loan in 2015 to refinance 40 Wall Street – personally guaranteeing $26 million. Last year, the building was placed on an industry watchlist for commercial mortgage-backed securities at risk of defaulting, according to reports by KBRA and Trepp, which also monitors real-estate loans. In the first quarter of the year, according to the KBRA report, the debt-service coverage ratio, a statistic monitored by banks, dipped to a number indicating that the building’s cash flow can’t cover its debt payments. In the statement for Trump, Harrington blamed “the disastrous policies of Bill de Blasio,” New York’s mayor, for the downturn in the city’s office market. “Despite all these serious headwinds, Mr. Trump has very little debt relative to value and the company is doing very well,” she said. The Doral resort and Washington hotel, along with a hotel in Chicago, are secured by about $340 million in loans from Deutsche Bank AG, Trump’s biggest lender. But the bank has no appetite for more business with Trump and has no plans to extend the loans after they come due in 2023 and 2024, a senior Deutsche Bank source told Reuters on condition of anonymity. Asked about the bank’s unwillingness to work with Trump, his spokeswoman said: “So what?” Experts say the prospect of any new Trump-branded development faces long odds. One hotel industry executive said hotel developers – worried about cutting themselves off from the millions of customers turned off by Trump – will likely think twice before signing any branding deals to put the Trump name on their properties. “People have choices. You can go to the Ritz Carlton, you can go to the Four Seasons, and not bring the politics into it one way or the other,” said Vicki Richman, chief operating officer of HVS Asset Management, a hospitality industry consultancy and property manager. The Trump Organization tried to take its premium luxury hotel brand downmarket with two new brands: Scion, a mid-priced offering, and American Idea for budget travelers. The company scrapped plans for both in 2019, citing difficulties doing business in a contentious political environment. Harrington said nothing is off the table for Trump’s business. “We have many, many things under consideration,” she said. “But we also have politics under consideration.” (Reporting by Joseph Tanfani; additional reporting by Peter Eisler, Greg Roumeliotis and Matt Scuffham; editing by Jason Szep and Brian Thevenot) View the full article

Published by Reuters ROME (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden said on Friday that Pope Francis told him he should keep receiving Communion, after holding an unusually long meeting with him at the Vatican. Asked if abortion came up in the talks, Biden said the Pope told him he was happy he was a good Catholic. (Reporting by Jeff Mason, writing by Angelo Amante) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) -A criminal complaint charging former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo with a misdemeanor sex offense has been filed in a court in Albany, the state’s capital, a spokesman for the New York state courts said on Thursday. “As this is a sex crime, a redacted complaint will be available shortly,” the spokesman, Lucian Chalfen, said in an emailed statement. Representatives for Cuomo, 63, who resigned from office over two months ago under mounting legal pressures and demands for his ouster from President Joe Biden and others, were not immediately available for comment. A copy of the complaint posted online by WNBC-TV in New York said Cuomo engaged in the misdemeanor offense of “forcible touching” on Dec. 7, 2020, at the governor’s Executive Mansion by placing “his hand under the blouse shirt of the victim … and onto her intimate body part.” The complaint goes on to say that Cuomo fondled the woman’s breast “for purposes of degrading and gratifying his sexual desires,” but the name of the woman has been redacted. The week prior to his resignation, Brittany Commisso filed a criminal report with the Albany County Sheriff’s Office alleging that the then-governor of groped her breast at the Executive Mansion in Albany late last year. The New York Post said Cuomo was expected to be arrested next week and charged with a misdemeanor in the alleged groping of a former aide. It said the anticipated charge resulted from a probe by Albany County District Attorney David Soares, citing a source briefed on the matter. Soares’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Cuomo resigned as governor in August after over 10 years in office, following a probe https://www.reuters.com/world/us/new-york-governor-cuomo-resigns-after-sexual-harassment-findings-2021-08-10 that found he had sexually harassed 11 women. New York Attorney General Letitia James said a five-month independent investigation concluded that Cuomo had engaged in conduct that violated federal and state laws. “The criminal charges brought today against Mr. Cuomo for forcible touching further validate the findings in our report,” James said in a statement on Thursday. The former Democratic governor has long denied wrongdoing, though he has said he accepted “full responsibility” for what he called ill-conceived attempts to be affectionate or humorous. Cuomo’s resignation capped a months-long downfall, derailing the political career of a man once considered a possible U.S. presidential contender, and whose daily briefings early in the COVID-19 pandemic raised his national profile. Cuomo’s resignation spared him from possible removal from office through impeachment proceedings in the state legislature, which appeared likely even though that body is dominated by fellow Democrats. The independent investigation found that Cuomo groped, kissed or made improperly suggestive comments to women, including current and former government workers, and retaliated against at least one woman who accused him of sexual misconduct. Like his father Mario Cuomo, Andrew Cuomo was elected to three four-year terms as governor. He was hailed as a national leader last year at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic after delivering daily news conferences as his state became the U.S. epicenter of the public health crisis. (Reporting by Jonathen Stempel; additional reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; editing by Tim Ahmann, Aurora Ellis and Marguerita Choy) View the full article

Shots from a modeling session for Mugler appeared on Instagram and it’s a batch of Lourdes Leon revealing modeling pics making a statement. She is pushing her own limits and getting attention for her power and physicality her own way. Maybe. Lourdes Leon Revealing Modeling Pics on Towleroad Josh Cavallo Comes Out. The Aussie is The World’s Only Out Gay Male Pro Footballer (Ok, ‘Gay Pro-Soccer Player’); ‘Living A Double Life Is Exhausting’ More On Jan 5th, Bannon is in Trump’s War Room At A Luxury Hotel Where, He Takes A Call From The President, And The Two Decide To ‘Blow It Up’. More U.S. Congress puts Big Oil in the hot seat in climate deception probe More Biden announces $1.75 trillion US spending deal ahead of Europe trip More Democrats offer mixed messages as Biden presses domestic agenda More Over 600,000 homes without power in eastern US due to storm More Alan Cumming: Hollywood saved my life More Jonas Brothers land Netflix comedy show More Art group seeks to ‘destroy’ Warhol work by mixing with 999 copies More Courtroom Bombshell! Elizabeth Holmes Scammed Betsy DeVos Into Investing $100 Million In Theranos More U.S. issues first passport with ‘X’ gender marker More Load More View the full article

Published by TDPel Media Josh Cavallo, an Australian professional footballer who plays as a left back and central midfielder for Adelaide United, has come out as homosexual, making him the world’s only known gay male top-flight player. In an emotional video uploaded on Adelaide United’s social media, the 21-year-old said, “I’m a footballer and I’m gay.” “I just want to play football and be treated fairly.” Cavallo is the first active gay professional footballer in Australia’s top division, declaring that he is no longer “ashamed” of his sexuality. He added: “I’m tired of trying to perform at the best of your ability a… Read More View the full article

Published by AFP Investigators are examining whether a group of powerful Trump backers used a Washington (AFP) – A “war room” set up in a luxury Washington hotel by advisors of president Donald Trump has become the focus of the congressional investigation into the violent January 6 attack on the US Capitol. Trump strategist Steve Bannon and legal consultants Rudy Giuliani and John Eastman worked in suites at the Willard InterContinental across the street from the White House in the days surrounding the attack, in which Trump supporters stormed Congress to halt certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s presidential election victory. They and others are suspected of maintaining communications between the White House and groups involved in so-called “Stop the Steal” protests, according to a congressional resolution holding Bannon in contempt last week. Bannon, who rejected a subpoena to testify in the January 6 investigation, was cited for his “role in constructing and participating in the ‘stop the steal’ public relations effort that motivated the attack.” That included, the resolution said, “his participation in the events of that day from a ‘war room'” at the Willard. Longtime hub for powerbrokers First established in 1847, the elegant Willard has long been a hub for high society, political powerbrokers and visiting dignitaries in the US capital, especially those visiting the White House. The term “lobbyist” gained currency in Washington, where people hung out in the Willard’s lobby seeking to influence US presidents and other politicians. Earlier this year independent investigator Seth Abramson, on his website “Proof,” documented that dozens of people involved in trying to reverse Biden’s November 2020 election victory over Trump were at the hotel in the run up to January 6. They included Trump advocates like political tactician Roger Stone, one-time spokesman Jason Miller, campaign advisor Boris Epshteyn, and former New York City police commissioner Bernard Kerik. The House special committee probing the January 6 insurrection is examining whether people close to the White House, including potentially Trump himself, instigated the attack on the Capitol, which shut down for several hours the joint session meant to confirm Biden as election winner. The Willard operation has also come into focus because of the explosive new book, “Peril,” an account of the last weeks of the Trump presidency by Washington Post journalists Bob Woodward and Robert Costa. They document how Eastman fashioned an extraordinary legal strategy for Trump to have vice president Mike Pence block Biden’s confirmation in Congress on grounds of alleged election fraud. (There has been no evidence to support significant fraud claims.) ‘Point of attack’ On January 5 Trump told supporters that Pence had agreed to block Biden’s certification the next day. But according to Woodward and Costa, in an evening meeting Pence rejected the pressure. After that meeting Trump made at least one call to the Willard operation. “After it doesn’t go well for Trump, he calls in to the Willard War room…. He’s coordinating this effort to speak for Pence,” Costa said Monday on MSNBC. Who Trump spoke to and what was said are not known. The January 6 committee is seeking phone records on communications related to what took place, and to interview others who were at the Willard. Bannon is a key figure because, according to “Peril,” in December he encouraged Trump to use the unsupported claims of voter fraud to stop certification on January 6. In a podcast on January 5, Bannon predicted the next day would be momentous, successfully blocking Biden’s presidency. “It’s all converging and now we are on the point of attack,” he told listeners. “We’re on the cusp of victory…. All hell is going to break loose tomorrow.” No secret The Willard operation was not secret. “We had a war room at the Willard Hotel, kind of coordinating all of the communications,” Eastman told Denver radio talk show host Peter Boyles in May. Abramson also documents a key meeting at another hotel nearby, the president’s own Trump International, where on the night before the attack Trump’s sons, Giuliani, several top advisors and Republican officials gathered. But Woodward told MSNBC on Monday that the communications involving the White House and the Willard operation on January 5 were central to what happened the next day. “Bannon and Trump realized that this is the point that they have to blow it up, and that’s exactly what they did,” he said. View the full article

Published by Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Congress on Thursday will open a year’s worth of investigations into whether Big Oil deceived Americans about its role in climate change, with Democratic lawmakers planning to grill the chiefs of four oil companies and two lobby groups. Environmental groups and their congressional allies hope the hearing evokes the Big Tobacco hearings of the 1990s, which began a shift in public opinion about that industry. Energy industry representatives plan to focus on their current support of climate action. “The narrative is, in my view, simple: they know they lied and they continue to deceive,” Representative Ro Khanna, chair of the environment subcommittee on the Environment, told Reuters in an interview. “And if we can establish that I think it will be a Big Tobacco moment for Big Oil.” Khanna will lead the hearings along with Representative Carolyn Maloney, chair of the Oversight and Reform Committee. It will be the first time that executives of the top oil majors – ExxonMobil, Shell Oil, BP America and Chevron – and the heads of the American Petroleum Institute and Chamber of Commerce will answer questions about climate change in Congress under oath. Representative James Comer, top Republican on the committee, will say the panel should be addressing inflation and high energy prices which he believes are caused by policies of President Joe Biden’s administration, according to written testimony that contained no mention of climate change. Republicans invited Neal Crabtree, a worker who lost his job after Biden canceled the Keystone XL oil pipeline, to testify to the panel. This summer, the United Nations released a report warning that unless immediate, rapid and large-scale action is taken to reduce emissions, the average global temperature is likely to reach or cross the 1.5-degree Celsius (2.7 degrees F) warming threshold within 20 years. BP America’s CEO David Lawler and Shell Oil’s CEO Gretchen Watkins plan to talk about their recognition that climate change was a problem in the 1990s and about their current efforts to adapt their business models to add more renewable energy and lower emissions, according to prepared testimony. Exxon Mobil CEO Darren Woods will say that the company “responded accordingly” when the “scientific community’s understanding of climate change developed” and that oil and gas will still be needed to meet growing global energy demand. And the energy interests are also likely to say that more time is needed for a transition to cleaner energy. Suzanne Clark, the president and CEO of the Chamber, will tell lawmakers that one of President Joe Biden’s top climate aides, John Kerry, said this year that half of the emissions cuts needed to get to net zero will come from technologies that are not developed yet, according to her written testimony. (Reporting by Valerie Volcovici and Timothy Gardner; Editing by David Gregorio) View the full article

Published by AFP US President Joe Biden is presenting Democrats with a $1.75 trillion social spending plan that he is confident will break weeks of wrangling Washington (AFP) – US President Joe Biden announced Thursday a revised $1.75 trillion social spending plan that he is confident Democrats will support, ending weeks of wrangling and delivering a political victory hours before he departs for twin summits in Europe. Biden failed in his original goal of securing a vote in Congress, where Democrats hold a razor-thin majority, before going to Rome for meetings with Pope Francis and G20 leaders, then a UN climate summit in Glasgow. Instead, his dramatic last-minute intervention will present Democrats with a deal too good to refuse, senior aides believe. Putting the full prestige of his presidency on the line, Biden will unveil the framework agreement to Democratic leaders, then address the American people from the White House, before heading to the airport to board Air Force One. The White House said Biden will lay out a compromise outline of legislation pouring $1.75 trillion into education, childcare, clean energy and other social services. This is much less than the original $3.5 trillion price tag Biden and left-leaning Democrats wanted. However, this would still represent a major win a year after Biden, 78, defeated Donald Trump with a promise to heal America’s “soul.” Weeks of Democratic feuding over both the details and costs have threatened to sink the bill, along with a second initiative meant to invest an additional $1.2 trillion in America’s crumbling infrastructure. Biden is now sure he has Congress ready to accept his deal, although the timing of a vote remains up to the Democratic speaker, Nancy Pelosi. “The president believes this framework will earn the support of all 50 Democratic senators and pass the House,” a senior White House official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Seeking to make history An official said the two bills Biden wants will “make historic investments” and that the White House is “confident” in getting Democrats to unite. Biden was set to meet with Democratic leaders in the House of Representatives in private, before returning to the White House for a speech at 11:30 am (1530 GMT). He will depart for Rome shortly after. Biden will “speak to the American people about the path forward for his economic agenda and the next steps to getting it done,” another White House official said. The Democrats enjoy a rare period of controlling both houses of Congress and the presidency. However, the margins are so tight — with only a one vote advantage in the Senate and a handful in the House — that enacting major legislation has proved far harder than supporters hoped. Biden has been repeatedly frustrated as just two moderate Democrats in the Senate held up his social spending ambitions, while left-leaning Democrats in the House blocked the infrastructure bill. Responding to criticism that the pending deal has been watered down too far, a White House official said Biden’s framework will still “make historic investments in the United States.” This will be “the most transformative investment in children and caregiving in generations, the largest effort to combat climate change in history, and historic tax cut for tens of millions of middle class families, and the biggest expansion of affordable health care in a decade,” an official said. View the full article

Published by AFP US President Joe Biden, pictured at a campaign event in Arlington, Virginia on October 26, 2021, is keen to take some big wins with him to Europe Washington (AFP) – The White House and Democratic congressional leaders raced Wednesday to resolve lingering disputes on their giant social spending plan before President Joe Biden flies overseas — although several lawmakers signaled a deal by day’s end looked impossible. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote to colleagues that Biden’s domestic agenda was moving “closer to passing,” but a key centrist senator later dismissed a new tax on billionaires to help pay for the $1.5-$2 trillion package as a non-starter. Biden hopes to use passage of the Build Back Better Act as evidence of the United States leading the world on global warming and other issues as he heads to a G20 summit in Rome and United Nations climate gathering in Glasgow. The president was mulling a galvanizing visit to Capitol Hill later in the day and White House aides were assessing the situation “hour by hour,” his spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters. But Pelosi, the top House Democrat, has given lawmakers until at least the end of Thursday to ready their final language on the historic bill targeting climate change, child care, pre-school education and health care. The mammoth package is crucial to another big win Biden had hoped to secure before jetting off to Rome — a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill to transform US roads, bridges and broadband access. The bills are linked because the Democratic left flank in the House is withholding its green light on the Senate-passed infrastructure legislation until progressives have seen a final text on Build Back Better, their top priority. 50-50 Senate Weeks of negotiations between the party’s left and center have yet to produce consensus even on the price tag of the social welfare package, let alone the provisions it should include or how to pay for it. Biden has no votes to spare in the 50-50 split Senate so any Democrat can tank any bill, throwing Biden’s domestic agenda into disarray. Biden met Tuesday evening with moderate senators Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin, both holdouts on Build Back Better who have spent weeks chiseling the original $3.5 trillion top line to somewhere nearer half that. There was no significant breakthrough, but a White House official said the trio “made progress on top of what has been accomplished in recent days” and the senators were in follow-up meetings Wednesday with Biden aides. “The speaker has said that 90 percent of the Build Back Better Act is done and we’re just waiting on the final agreement from the two senators, who haven’t agreed on everything yet and we need them,” Pramila Jayapal, leader of the 96-member Congressional Progressive Caucus, told MSNBC. House Leader Steny Hoyer, Pelosi’s deputy, echoed reassurances from Democratic Senate chief Chuck Schumer and the White House that a deal on the social spending package was close, but ruled out an infrastructure vote Wednesday. Democrats have yet to reach consensus on a slew of issues in the Build Back Better package, including taxes, paid family leave, prescription drug pricing and expanding health care coverage for the elderly and low-income Americans. ‘Not nailed down’ “There’s just huge pieces of this that are not nailed down. So each time I hear ‘Well, it’s almost done,’ I don’t know what the hell people are talking about,” Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley told NBC. In a last-second scramble to pay for Biden’s plans, Senate Democrats proposed a billionaires’ tax that would target roughly 700 tycoons with over $1 billion in assets or $100 million in income for three consecutive years. The collective fortune of America’s billionaires soared by 70 percent during the pandemic, according to the liberal-leaning Institute for Policy Studies, from almost $3 trillion in March 2020 to over $5 trillion by October 15 this year. Under the proposal, according to US media, billionaires would begin paying capital gains taxes of 23.8 percent on the appreciation in value of tradeable assets such as stocks and bonds, regardless of whether they are sold. The tax would bring in an estimated $300 billion, around a fifth of the expected compromise cost of Build Back Better. But the idea appeared dead on arrival as Sinema and Richie Neal, the chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, indicated they were against it and Manchin explicitly dismissed it as divisive. There were signs of light, however, with tentative agreement among the Democrats, who control Congress and the White House, on a minimum 15 percent corporate tax on the profits of companies clearing more than $1 billion a year. Nearly 200 companies would be subject to the tax, another key revenue raiser that could generate as much as $400 billion, its backers say. Crucially, Manchin and Sinema are both on board. View the full article

Published by AFP A cyclist rides through rain in Brooklyn, New York on October 26, 2021 A powerful coastal storm knocked down trees and left more than 600,000 homes without power in the northeastern United States on Wednesday. The state of Massachusetts was the hardest hit, with 495,000 homes without power as of 9:00 am (1300 GMT), according to the poweroutage.us website. The National Weather Service called the situation dangerous and warned of hurricane-type gusts of wind and many uprooted trees. “Travel is not recommended,” said the NWS office in Boston. Rhode Island was also badly affected, with 96,000 homes without electricity. The NWS said the situation should improve toward the end of the day and that the storm “will move farther offshore tonight.” It drenched the New York region on Monday night and Tuesday before packing winds of almost 100 mph overnight into Wednesday as it headed north. The storm forced the closure of dozens of schools in New England and brought down power lines and branches, littering some roads with debris. In Barnstable, Massachusetts police rescued a woman from her car after a tree fell on it, local media reported. In the coastal town of Duxbury, south of Boston, the fire brigade said it responded to 90 calls in 12 hours due to the storm. Eastern US Storm: Previously on Towleroad Duran Duran Has New Music And You Are About To Enjoy it. It’s 2021. Seriously. Michael Goff October 20, 2021 Read More ‘Mayor Pete’ Trailer; Papa Pete Pwns Tucker; 4-Stars for Dr. Rachel Levine; JoJo Siwa’s Perfect 10s; Lynda Carter’s 8 Wonder-full Words: GOOD NEWS Brian Bell October 20, 2021 Read More Jennifer Hudson As Aretha Franklin in ‘Respect’ Gives All of Herself; Her Own Intense Traumas Gave Entree to Franklin’s: WATCH the GMA Medley Towleroad August 12, 2021 Read More Update: Isiah Brown’s sister hopes family ‘can get answers’ on police shooting of her brother; ‘We need to figure out why this keeps happening’ Brian Bell April 30, 2021 Read More Gay Volcanic Wedding; Lena Waithe; Ricky Martin; Special; Willow Smith; Marvel Pride; The Last of Us; Chelsea Manning: HOT LINKS Brian Bell April 28, 2021 Read More Gay Pilot Breaks With Navy After Homophobic Harassment; ‘I don’t feel part of the military anymore’ Brian Bell April 28, 2021 Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Alan Cumming thinks Hollywood has saved his life. The 56-year-old actor was feeling suicidal before he landed the role of Boris Grishenko, a geeky computer programmer, in the James Bond film ‘GoldenEye’, and he looks back on his casting as a life-defining moment. Reflecting on the day he auditioned for the role, he explained: “It was one of the worst days of my life actually. I felt really, really, really low. I just now think, ‘Oh you poor little thing, you could’ve said I am feeling suicidal today.'” Alan now admits his life was transformed by his starring role in the 1995 film. The actor told ‘CBS Mornings’: “Hollywood saved me. “I have this sort of mantra, which is ‘Cancel, continue.’ When something bad happens I think, okay that happened, we can’t change that, let’s move on.” Alan previously admitted that he thought his career options were limited as a young performer on the Scottish theatre scene in the 1980s. He recalled: “I was told that things were not available to me because of my Scottishness. “America was never a thing. London was maybe a possibility. The idea that I would be doing what I’m doing now or have the opportunities that I have now, there was no one I knew who’d had that trajectory … those things didn’t happen to Scottish people.” Alan also doubts that his sexuality harms his career prospects. He explained: “The constant question I used to get was: ‘Do you think that coming out is bad for your career in Hollywood?’ It’s such a ridiculous question. “I don’t think people in Basingstoke or Idaho are not going to go and see a movie because someone in it is gay. I really don’t think they care.” View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English The Jonas Brothers have landed a Netflix comedy special. The ‘Sucker’ hitmakers – siblings Nick, Joe, and Kevin Jonas – will be roasted by the likes of Pete Davidson, Niall Horan, Gabriel Iglesias, John Legend, Lilly Singh, and Jack Whitehall in ‘Jonas Brothers Family Roast’, while ‘Saturday Night Live’ star Kenan Thompson will serve as the host. In a video announcement, Nick said: “Hey we’re the Jonas Brothers and we have a very exciting announcement for you. Were doing a Jonas Brothers family roast. It’s a one-of-a-kind comedy special that celebrates the universal truth that no one can get under your skin quite like your family.” Kevin added: “You’ll see us like you’ve never seen us before through sketches, songs, games, and special guests.” Their message was repeatedly punctuated by Joe simply saying: “Roasted”. At the end of the video, Nick asked his brother: “You really don’t understand how the roasting thing works, do you?” His sibling responded: “Roasted” The hour-long special will premiere on 24 November. Over the summer, the group’s single, ‘Remember This’, was part of NBC’s coverage of the Olympic Games’ Closing Ceremony and they previously admitted it was an “honour” to be involved. Nick tweeted: “What an honor… Our performance of Remember This (NBC Olympics Edition) just aired as part of the Closing Ceremony on @NBC!! We are so proud of you “@TeamUSA [flex emoji] Let’s get it!! #TokyoOlympics (sic)” And he later added: “So special to be able to have our song as a part of the Olympics this year. Remember This (NBC Olympics Edition) is OUT NOW! (sic)” Joe tweeted: “Our Remember This (NBC Olympics Edition) performance just aired during the Closing Ceremony of #TokyoOlympics on @NBC!! “Getting to perform this song at the Olympics Closing Ceremony is quite the bucket list moment for me!! Remember This (NBC Olympics Edition) is OUT NOW (sic)” And Kevin Jonas watching the performance amid the closing ceremony was a moment he will “never forget”. He tweeted: “A moment I’ll never forget [mindblown emoji] Our Remember This (NBC Olympics Edition) performance just aired on @NBC during the #TokyoOlympics Closing Ceremony!! Wow!! (sic)” Jonas Brothers: Previously on Towleroad Jonas Brothers land Netflix comedy show Towleroad October 27, 2021 Read More ‘Chucky’ is Back… This Time With Young Gay Protagonist, Jake; It’s a Horror Cult-Classic Meets Burgeoning Gay Love on USA/SYFY TV Series Brian Bell October 17, 2021 Read More Tom Hardy on ‘Venom’ As LGBTQ Icon; Takei Rips Dean Cain’s Super Bi-Panic: Co-CEO Repeats At Netflix Trans Lives Don’t Matter As Much As Ratings; Brian Bell October 16, 2021 Read More Action Roundup: Gay James Bond Character; Venom’s ‘Coming Out Party;’ ‘Queer Family’ of ‘Marvel’s Eternals’ Brian Bell October 1, 2021 Read More Cassandra Peterson, Horror Icon Elvira, Comes Out, Reveals 19-Year Relationship in New Memoir Brian Bell September 22, 2021 Read More ‘Everybody’s Talking About Jamie’ is The Gay Coming-Of-Age Tale For Everyone With an Inner (and Outer) Drag Queen Brian Bell August 25, 2021 Read More View the full article

Published by AFP This image published by the art collective MSCHF shows a drawing by Andy Warhol of which it has made 999 copies in which to slip the original New York (AFP) – The New York art collective that brought us “Satan Shoes” with an apparent drop of human blood in the midsole is at it again, this time selling 1,000 copies of an Andy Warhol drawing at the same price, only one of which is the original. On a website called the Museum of Forgeries, the group known as MSCHF says it bought a 1954 ballpoint pen sketch by the pop art master called “Fairies”, which it says is worth $20,000, made 999 exact copies of it and mixed the original in with them. They were all put on sale Monday for $250 and sold out. MSCHF says the copies are an art work called “Possibly Real Copy Of ‘Fairies’ by Andy Warhol.” MSCHF has posted a video showing how the copies are made: a robotic arm with a pen makes the drawings, which are then put through an accelerated artificial aging process with light, heat, pressure and moisture. Then the Warhol Foundation seal and annotations in pencil are manually replicated, MSCHF member Kevin Wiesner said in an email to AFP. “I think if an art conservator were able to inspect every drawing side-by-side, they would eventually discover the original. However, this scenario is unlikely to occur,” he said. MSCHF says that in doing this it seeks to criticize the concepts of “authenticity” and “exclusivity” that dominate the art market. “Our goal is to ‘destroy’ the drawing by breaking down the chain of trust,” Wiesner said. The Warhol Foundation did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment. MSCHF, a collective created in 2016 and based in Brooklyn, specializes in reappropriating works of art or commercial objects. Last spring it made the “Satan Shoe” in collaboration with rapper Lil Nas X. They released 666 pairs of black Nike Air Max 97s customized to feature a bronze pentagram, a Bible verse referring to Satan’s fall, and a drop of human blood mixed with red ink in the midsole. Nike sued on grounds of trademark infringement. MSCHF reached a deal with Nike under which it issued a voluntary recall for the sneakers. View the full article

Published by Radar Online Elizabeth Holmes is accused of giving false and misleading information to former U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos in an effort to dupe her into investing $100 million into the now-defunct company, Theranos. Holmes is currently facing trial for allegedly scamming investors and patients about her company’s blood-testing technology. According to DeVos’ family representative Lisa Peterson, who took the stand in Holmes ongoing criminal trial, the family initially planned to invest $50 million into Holmes’ company but decided to double the amount after meeting her. “She was inviting us to participate in this opportunity,” Peterson testified on Tuesday. “They were telling us that it worked. We re-lied on what they told us.” Peterson said she was first directed to look into Theranos after receiving an email from one of her bosses who included a cover story of Holmes. “This morning, I had one of the most interesting meetings I can recall with the woman profiled in the attached Fortune magazine article,” the email read. MEGA Peterson also claimed that Holmes convinced the family with the project, saying, “This was going to be a game-changer for health care.” Holmes also reportedly told the family that the blood-testing device produced by her company could be used in places such as military helicopters and refugee camps. She also reportedly said that they could run between 200 to 300 tests through the company’s machines using only a tiny amount of blood. Peterson was intrigued by the presentation and of what it could potentially bring to the health care industry. MEGA Jurors selected in Holmes’ trial were shown for the first time clips of the alleged criminal, who was trying to defend her company during interviews on television from 2015 and 2016. “This is what happens when you work to change things,” she told the interviewer on CNBC Mad Money in 2015. “First they think you’re crazy, then they fight you, and then all of a sudden you change the world.” During her appearance on theTODAY show in 2016, Holmes claimed, “anything that happens in this company is my responsibility.” As Radar previously reported, the alleged scammer and her former COO Sunny Balwani are currently being charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and nine counts of wire fraud. Both are facing 20 years in prison if found guilty. Prosecutors accuse the two of being aware of Theranos’ inability to produce “accurate and reliable results for certain blood tests.” “Holmes and Balwani used advertisements and solicitations to encourage and induce doctors and patients to use Theranos’ blood testing laboratory services, even though, according to the government, the defendants knew Theranos was not capable of consistently producing accurate and reliable results for certain blood tests.” MEGA View the full article

Published by Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. State Department said on Wednesday it had issued the first American passport with an “X” gender marker, designed to give non-binary, intersex and gender nonconforming people a marker other than male or female on their travel document, according to a statement. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced in June that the X marker would be offered as an option on passports, following other countries including Canada, Germany, Australia and India, which already offer a third gender on documents. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement that the United States was moving toward adding the “X” gender marker as an option for those applying for U.S. passports or Consular Reports of Birth Abroad. Price did not say who the first “X” gender passport was issued to, but civil rights organization Lambda Legal said its client Dana Zzyym was the recipient. “I almost burst into tears when I opened the envelope, pulled out my new passport, and saw the ‘X’ stamped boldly under ‘sex,'” Zzyym, an intersex and non-binary U.S. Navy veteran, said in a statement on Wednesday. “It took six years, but to have an accurate passport, one that doesn’t force me to identify as male or female but recognizes I am neither, is liberating.” (Reporting by Simon Lewis; Additional reporting by Maria Caspani in New York; Editing by Mark Porter and Steve Orlofsky) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Estelle Shirbon LONDON (Reuters) -Lawyers for the United States launched a fresh attempt on Wednesday to have Julian Assange extradited from Britain, arguing that concerns about the WikiLeaks founder’s mental health should not prevent him from facing U.S. justice. The 50-year-old Australian is wanted in the United States on 18 criminal charges, including breaking a spying law, after WikiLeaks published thousands of secret U.S. files and diplomatic cables in 2010. The United States is appealing against a Jan. 4 ruling by a London District Judge that Assange should not be extradited because he would likely commit suicide in a U.S. prison. Lawyer James Lewis told the court the United States had addressed the District Judge’s concerns by making assurances to Britain regarding how Assange would be treated if extradited. These included that he would not be subject to a set of strict detention conditions known as Special Administrative Measures and would not be detained at a maximum security penitentiary in Florence, Colorado, known as ADX. The U.S. authorities had also assured Britain that they would consent to Assange serving in Australia any custodial sentence imposed by a U.S. court, Lewis said. Assange, who denies any wrongdoing, is being held at Belmarsh Prison. In the morning, the court was told he felt too unwell to appear via video link, but later in the day he did appear on the screen. Wearing a shirt, tie and mask, he was sitting at a table, holding his head in his hand. In a court document circulated to media, Assange’s lawyers rejected the U.S. assurances, saying he could be held in another maximum security facility under oppressive conditions that would drive him to suicide. They said Australia had given no indication it would consent to Assange being transferred there to serve a U.S. sentence, and he would be at high risk while awaiting a transfer. “On the evidence, Mr Assange will most likely be dead before it (the proposed transfer) can have any purchase,” they wrote. The appeal hearing is scheduled to last two days, with the judges expected to give their ruling at a later date. ‘FREE JULIAN ASSANGE’ Supporters of Assange gathered outside the court building from early on Wednesday, chanting “free Julian Assange”, before his father and Stella Moris, his partner and mother of his two children, arrived. Another subject of dispute in the appeal is whether the evidence of a psychiatric expert called by Assange’s defence team in the original extradition hearing was reliable. The U.S. lawyers argue the evidence should be dismissed because the expert initially failed to disclose that Moris was Assange’s partner and that the pair had children — information they said was highly relevant to the issue of his suicide risk. Assange’s lawyers said the District Judge had been right to take into account the expert’s evidence. WikiLeaks came to prominence when it published vast troves of confidential U.S. military records and diplomatic cables which the United States says put lives in danger. Soon afterwards Sweden sought Assange’s extradition from Britain over allegations of sex crimes. He was ordered to be sent to Sweden in 2012, but instead fled to the Ecuadorean embassy in London and lived there for seven years. He was dragged out in April 2019 and jailed for breaching his British bail conditions, although the Swedish case against him had been dropped. The U.S. authorities then sought his extradition. Supporters see Assange as an anti-establishment hero victimised for exposing U.S. wrongdoing in Afghanistan and Iraq. U.S. prosecutors regard him as a reckless enemy of the state whose actions threatened the lives of agents named in the leaked material. (Reporting by Estelle Shirbon; editing by Christina Fincher and Jonathan Oatis) View the full article

Published by Radar Online Alec Baldwin’s daughter Ireland is coming for Candace Owens after she made light of the tragic on-set shooting where the actor accidentally killed a crew member. The 26-year-old model tore into the 32-year-old conservative mouthpiece for her comments as Alec tries to recover from the incident that left Halyna Hutchins dead. “You are the most disgusting, hateful cancerous human being I’ve ever come across. Regardless of your foul opinions most of the time, the fact that you would disrespect the life of a woman who was accidentally and tragically killed… shame on you,” Ireland said. Her fiery response came after Owens’ tweet, “Alec Baldwin spent 4 years dedicated to painting Donald Trump and his supporters as evil murderers. What has happened for Alec would be an example of poetic justice if it weren’t for the actual innocent people that were murdered by him.” Ireland screenshotted the tweet and posted it on her Instagram Story. “Yup …I’m going to go ahead and take that Instagram break. I am ashamed to breathe the same air as this woman,” Alec’s daughter wrote. Earlier today, Ireland told her followers she’d be taking a break from social media following the tragic incident where her father accidentally shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. @halynahutchins/Instagram “Be a republican. Be unvaccinated. I don’t give a fu-k. There are plenty of republican values that I support and plenty of liberal ones that I support as well … But one fu-king thing I find myself doing is being respectful. But we aren’t debating masks and vaccines and abortions and trans rights here.” “A woman’s life was lost. Your tweets, lack of information, and ignorance are hurting people. You … don’t have a clue what you’re even talking about and you usually never do.” Ireland then urged anyone who disagreed with her to unfollow her. “Hit that unfollow button if you’re trying to defame my father and tweet such horrific statements about this tragic situation. It breaks my heart that people are so hatefully ignorant. As Radar previously reported, sources say Baldwin fled from New Mexico to the Hamptons. He is currently holed up inside his vacation home with his wife and children. “There are no words to convey my shock and sadness regarding the tragic accident that took the life of Halyna Hutchins, a wife, mother, and deeply admired colleague of ours,” he said in his first statement following the incident. Alec Baldwin: Previously on Towleroad Alec Baldwin’s Daughter Ireland Rips ‘Cancerous’ Candace Owens As ‘Disgusting, Hateful’ Human Being After Shooting Remarks Towleroad October 27, 2021 Read More Alec Baldwin’s Prop Gun That Killed A Cinematographer Allegedly Used For ‘Target Practice’ With Real Bullets By Crew Members Off Set Towleroad October 24, 2021 Read More Factbox-Five facts about Alec Baldwin: More Background On This Story Towleroad October 22, 2021 Read More Alec Baldwin shoots prop gun on movie set, killing cinematographer Towleroad October 22, 2021 Read More SNL Calls the Election for Biden and Harris, Sends ‘Macho Man’ Trump Packing: WATCH Andy Towle November 8, 2020 Read More Alec Baldwin’s Trump and Jim Carey’s Biden Face Off In Second ‘And Praise Jesus Final’ Debate on SNL: WATCH Kyler Geoffroy October 25, 2020 Read More View the full article

Patrick Lynch Published by Reuters New York City’s police union filed a lawsuit on Monday against a vaccine mandate for municipal workers ordered last week by Mayor Bill de Blasio. The mayor on Wednesday ordered all city employees to show proof of inoculation against COVID-19 or be placed on unpaid leave, drawing the union’s ire. The Police Benevolent Association of the City of New York said on Twitter that it had filed a suit in the state Supreme Court. It asked the court for a temporary restraining order to halt the mandate while the suit remains pending. The union added on Twitter that there was “still no written, NYPD-specific policy guidance on how the mandate will be implemented.” The mayor set a deadline of 5 p.m. this coming Friday for employees to show proof of inoculation to a supervisor. Over 70% of all 160,000 New York City workers, including a similar percentage in the police department, have already received at least one dose, the mayor said. Patrick Lynch, president of the Police Benevolent Association representing the city’s 50,000 active and retired officers, said they should have the opportunity to choose whether to get the vaccine. De Blasio cited overtime and redeployments as contingency plans should a large contingent of those officers and other unvaccinated city workers refuse to comply with the mandate. Municipalities, school districts and other jurisdictions throughout the country are grappling with masking and vaccination requirements. The number of new COVID-19 cases has steadily declined in the United States since a surge caused by the Delta variant of the virus during the summer. De Blasio had said employees will no longer have the option to be regularly tested instead of getting the vaccine, but added the city will still grant medical and religious exemptions. New York City Police Union: Previously on Towleroad Vaccine requirements raised COVID-19 vaccination rates by 20 percentage points -White House Towleroad October 13, 2021 Read More Republican Govs Shell Game Pushes Regeneron Treatments, Maintains Fog Of Fear for Powerful COVID Vaccine Prevention JoNel Aleccia, Kaiser Health News August 26, 2021 Read More Possible HIV Treatment OK’d To expand Phase 1 Human Trials After Stopping HIV in Lab; Brian Bell August 18, 2021 Read More Moderna HIV Vaccine Phase 1 Human Trials to Start as Early as Next Week. Hope to Build on mRNA Learnings Brian Bell August 13, 2021 Read More San Francisco, New Orleans Put Bar and Gym Vaccine Mandates In Place to fight COVID Towleroad August 13, 2021 Read More FDA Authorizes Vaccine Boosters For 3% Organ Transplant (or Similar Weak Immune System; Moderna, Pfizer Only. J&J Fine Without Towleroad August 13, 2021 Read More View the full article

Texas Gov. Greg AbbottTexas Anti-Trans Sports Bill Signed Into Law Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed HB 25, a heavily criticized bill, Monday prohibiting Texas trans students in K-12 schools from competing in school sports as their gender identity. Abbott’s signature will rewrite current policies held by the state’s school sports governing body, the University Interscholastic League (UIL) when the law goes into effect on Jan. 18, 2022. The UIL’s policy requires students to participate on teams that align with the gender designated on students’ birth certificates, but it also recognized birth certificates of students who legally changed their gender marker, giving trans students a path to gender-affirming athletic participation. HB 25 removes that path. The bill’s author, state Rep. Valoree Swanson, heralded the measure as a necessity to protect female participation in sports despite there being no evidence correlating trans athletic participation and diminished cisgender female achievement. It took three separate special sessions of state Congress, all called by Abbott, and circumventing the House Public Education Committee to bring the bill to a vote on the House floor. According to the Chicago Tribune, Rittenhouse faces two first-degree homicide charges and one charge of attempted first-degree reckless homicide after illegally open carrying an AR-15 and shooting three men during protests following the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha. Rittenhouse pleaded not guilty, claiming he acted in self-defense. The term “victim” is usually prohibited in cases where defendants claim self-defense for its, as Schroeder put it, “loaded” connotation. But prosecutors argue that the terms Schroeder is allowing the defense team to use carry just as much weight. “The terms that I’m identifying here such as rioter, looter and arsonist are as loaded, if not more loaded, than the term victim,” said Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger. Despite allowing the terms use, Schroeder warned against Rittenhouse’s defense team using them outside of closing arguments and advised them that they could only be used then if evidence suggested the victims were involved in criminal activity during the protest. Texas Trans Previously on Towleroad Texas Trans Ban Is Law; Isiah Brown Sues for $24 Million; Twitter Suspends And Liz Cheney Busts Rep Jim Banks For Different Violations Brian Bell October 26, 2021 Read More Biden Recognizes National Coming Out Day, Condemns Against Anti-LGBTQ Bills and Again Calls For Passing Equality Act Brian Bell October 11, 2021 Read More First Transgender History Month Established in San Francisco; Compton’s Cafeteria Riots Memorialized Brian Bell September 1, 2021 Read More Virginia Transgender Man Sues Department of Corrections for Denial of Health Care; Top Surgery Denial Causing ‘Substantial Risk of Serious Harm’ Brian Bell August 27, 2021 Read More Tennessee Trans Bathroom Bill Alleged to Violate Title IX. Human Rights Campaign Sues on behalf of the the affected children. Brian Bell August 4, 2021 Read More West Virginia, Arkansas Laws That Restrict Trans Rights are Unconstitutional; and Courts Should Strike Down, says Justice Dept. Michael Goff June 19, 2021 Read More Photo courtesy of World Travel & Tourism Council/Creative Commons View the full article

Don Jr Goes Low. =Buck SlipDon Jr Goes Low Published by Radar Online Donald Trump Jr. is selling shirts mocking Alec Baldwin for accidentally shooting and killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the movie Rust. According to Don Jr.’s Instagram and website, he is selling shirts that read “Guns don’t kill people, Alec Baldwin kills people” for $27.99. This is an insensitive reference to the tragedy that took place Thursday in which Alec Baldwin discharged a prop gun on the set of his newest movie and ended up killing his crew member. MEGA The movie’s director, Joel Souza, was also hit when the weapon fired, and he is still receiving emergency care at a Santa Fe hospital, according to Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Department. This is just the latest stunt by Don Jr. regarding Baldwin and the tragedy that took place last week. Prior to making and selling shirts mocking the actor, Don Jr. started posting memes about the incident. In one that he posted to his social media, Homer Simpson is shown with a sign that reads: “Let’s all watch Alec Baldwin blame the gun.” In another, a picture of his father Donald Trump – who lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden – is standing behind a podium making finger guns with the caption: “Donald Trump, rehearsing for SNL skit where he plays Alec Baldwin.” This particular post is also accompanied by a comment from Don Jr. MEGA “For those who are out there doing the fake sanctimony about leaving Alec Baldwin alone let’s all remember that Alec Baldwin would be the first person pissing on everyone’s grave if the shoes were on the other foot,” Don Jr. said in the comments of his own post. “Screw him!” If you could not already tell, Don Jr. is still a bit upset at Alec Baldwin’s portrayal of his father on SNLleading up to and during the older Trump’s presidency. As Radar has been reporting, this is all happening only a few days after the tragedy took place in New Mexico last week. Baldwin is not only distraught over the accidental tragedy, but that he is even thinking about putting a pause to all of his current acting projects until he is able to properly grieve and process the incident. “There are no words to convey my shock and sadness regarding the tragic accident that took the life of Halyna Hutchins, a wife, mother, and deeply admired colleague of ours,” Baldwin said in an official statement regarding the matter. “I’m fully cooperating with the police investigation to address how this tragedy occurred and I am in touch with her husband, offering my support to him and his family.” MEGA Don Jr. Goes Low on Towleroad Julianna Margulies Plays Lesbian On ‘Morning Show’; ‘Can Understand Criticism’. Assures She Won’t Cross Race Line For Role. More Anne Heche Claims Her Brief Time Dating Ellen Made Her Cancel Culture ‘Patient Zero’. Um… Uh… More Sir Elton John still owns ‘most’ of his crazy spectacles More Wonder Woman’s 1st Trans Amazon; ‘Battlefield’s 1st Non-Binary Specialist; ‘Superman’ Colorist Quits Offended By New Motto. More Bitcoin becomes world’s 13th biggest currency More Rupert Everett sets cast for Lost and Found in Paris More U.N. warns world set for 2.7C rise on today’s emissions pledges More Sir Elton John is eager to spend more time with his family More Rising tide of leaks threatens to inundate with Facebook whistleblowers. More Tesla pulls its new Full Self-Driving beta due to software ‘issues’ More Climate scientists fear tipping points (maybe you should too) More Load More View the full article