Tag Archives: Executive Order

Trump Signs Executive Order to Counter Own Policy of Separating Families at Border

Trump Signs Executive Order to Counter Own Policy of Separating Families at Border

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Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday to solve the issue of family separation at the border, which his administration created and enforced while keeping in place key components of the administration’s “zero tolerance” policy of prosecuting illegal border crossings along the U.S-Mexico border.  While the administration will continue prosecuting crimes of “improper entry”, the administration will “maintain family unity, including by detaining alien families together where appropriate and consistent with law and available resources,” according to the order’s text. 

“We are keeping families together and this will solve that problem. At the time we are keeping a very powerful border and it continues to be a zero tolerance, we have zero tolerance for people that enter our country illegally,” Trump said. He added falsely that no one has had the “political courage” to take care of the issue which he claims has gone on for over 60 years.

In actuality the family separations at the border began earlier this year, when Trump’s own Attorney General Jeff Sessions under orders from the White Hoouse mandated that all people caught crossing into the U.S. illegally be referred for criminal prosecution. Under that policy, adults were sent to jail under the auspices of the Department of Homeland Security, while children have been held in facilities run by the Office of Refugee Resettlement. Since the policy was implemented, over 2,000 children have been separated, according to government figures.

The House is slated to vote Thursday on two immigration bills, one of which appears doomed while the other has only a moderate prospect of passing. Lawmakers in general are not remotely close to a consensus on what an immigration solution might actually look like.

Trump’s EO does nothing to alleviate the suffering of children already separated from their parents, who already may be deported. And if you think this government is in any way prepared for the massive task of reuniting children with their parents who are still awaiting court proceedings and being held in custody, well, I have a lovely resort in Mexico I can get for you cheap.

Trump Signs Executive Order to Protect "Religious Freedom" and Help Promote LGBT Discrimination

Trump Signs Executive Order to Protect “Religious Freedom” and Help Promote LGBT Discrimination – READ THE EO

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Many of you may have missed this news yesterday but during the annual National Day of Prayer commemoration at the White House, Donald Trump signed the latest executive order of his presidency, to establish a faith-based office, the White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative. He said it would focus on protecting “religious freedom” and ensuring that “the faith-based and community organizations that form the bedrock of our society have strong advocates in the White House and throughout the federal government.”

The initiative will be led by a newly appointed White House adviser to the group and will be supported by various faith leaders from outside the federal government. The order also aims to ensure faith based organizations have “equal access to government funding and equal right to exercise their deeply held beliefs.

Based on it’s content the new “faith initiative” seems to be actively seeking out opportunities to facilitate discrimination. and —will “consult with” religious leaders who can provide “expertise” on issues including “poverty alleviation,” “religious liberty,” and “strengthening marriage and family”—and then make “recommendations to the President.”

The initiative will also be required to inform the attorney general’s office “of concerns raised by faith-based and community organizations” about perceived violations of “religious liberty” protections.

It will also require any executive agencies that do not currently have a faith-based initiative to establish a “point of contact” who can “coordinate with the [initiative’s] Advisor in carrying out this order.”

Read the “White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative” Executive Order below:

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and to assist faith-based and other organizations in their efforts to strengthen the institutions of civil society and American families and communities, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1.  Policy.  Faith-based and community organizations have tremendous ability to serve individuals, families, and communities through means that are different from those of government and with capacity that often exceeds that of government.  These organizations lift people up, keep families strong, and solve problems at the local level.  The executive branch wants faith-based and community organizations, to the fullest opportunity permitted by law, to compete on a level playing field for grants, contracts, programs, and other Federal funding opportunities.  The efforts of faith-based and community organizations are essential to revitalizing communities, and the Federal Government welcomes opportunities to partner with such organizations through innovative, measurable, and outcome-driven initiatives.

Sec. 2.  Amendments to Executive Orders.  (a)  Executive Order 13198 of January 29, 2001 (Agency Responsibilities With Respect to Faith-Based and Community Initiatives), Executive Order 13279 of December 12, 2002 (Equal Protection of the Laws for Faith-Based and Community Organizations), as amended by Executive Order 13559 of November 17, 2010 (Fundamental Principles and Policymaking Criteria for Partnerships with Faith-Based and Other Neighborhood Organizations), Executive Order 13280 of December 12, 2002 (Responsibilities of the Department of Agriculture and the Agency for International Development With Respect to Faith-Based and Community Initiatives), Executive Order 13342 of June 1, 2004 (Responsibilities of the Departments of Commerce and Veterans Affairs and the Small Business Administration with Respect to Faith-Based and Community Initiatives), and Executive Order 13397 of March 7, 2006 (Responsibilities of the Department of Homeland Security With Respect to Faith-Based and Community Initiatives), are hereby amended by:

(i)    substituting “White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative” for “White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives” each time it appears in those orders;

(ii)   substituting “White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative” for “White House OFBCI” each time it appears in those orders;

(iii)  substituting “Centers for Faith and Opportunity Initiatives” for “Centers for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives” each time it appears in those orders; and

(iv)   substituting “White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative” for “Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships” each time it appears in those orders.

     (b)  Executive Order 13279, as amended, is further amended by striking section 2(h) and redesignating sections 2(i) and 2(j) as sections 2(h) and 2(i), respectively.

Sec. 3.  White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative.  (a)  There is established within the Executive Office of the President the White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative (Initiative).

(i)    The Initiative shall be headed by an Advisor to the White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative (Advisor).  The Advisor shall be housed in the Office of Public Liaison and shall work with that office and the Domestic Policy Council, in consultation with the Centers for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives established by Executive Order 13198, Executive Order 13280, Executive Order 13342, and Executive Order 13397, to implement this order.

(ii)   The Initiative shall, from time to time and consistent with applicable law, consult with and seek information from experts and various faith and community leaders from outside the Federal Government, including those from State, local, and tribal governments, identified by the Office of Public Liaison, the Domestic Policy Council, and the Centers for Faith and Opportunity Initiatives.  These experts and leaders shall be identified based on their expertise in a broad range of areas in which faith-based and community organizations operate, including poverty alleviation, religious liberty, strengthening marriage and family, education, solutions for substance abuse and addiction, crime prevention and reduction, prisoner reentry, and health and humanitarian services.

(iii)  The Advisor shall make recommendations to the President, through the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, regarding changes to policies, programs, and practices that affect the delivery of services by faith-based and community organizations.

(iv)   Executive departments and agencies (agencies) that lack a Center for Faith and Opportunity Initiative shall designate a Liaison for Faith and Opportunity Initiatives as a point of contact to coordinate with the Advisor in carrying out this order.

(v)    All agencies shall, to the extent permitted by law, provide such information, support, and assistance to the Initiative as it may request to develop public policy proposals.

     (b)  To the extent permitted by law, the Initiative shall:

(i)    periodically convene meetings with the individuals described in section 3(a)(ii) of this order;

(ii)   periodically convene meetings with representatives from the Centers for Faith and Opportunity Initiatives and other representatives from across agencies as the Advisor may designate;

(iii)  provide recommendations regarding aspects of my Administration’s policy agenda that affect faith-based and community programs and initiatives;

(iv)   help integrate those aspects of my Administration’s policy agenda that affect faith-based and other community organizations throughout the Federal Government;

(v)    showcase innovative initiatives by faith-based and community organizations that serve and strengthen individuals, families, and communities throughout the United States;

(vi)   notify the Attorney General, or his designee, of concerns raised by faith-based and community organizations about any failures of the executive branch to comply with protections of Federal law for religious liberty as outlined in the Attorney General’s Memorandum of October 6, 2017 (Federal Law Protections for Religious Liberty), issued pursuant to Executive Order 13798 of May 4, 2017 (Promoting Free Speech and Religious Liberty); and

(vii)  identify and propose means to reduce, in accordance with Executive Order 13798 and the Attorney General’s Memorandum of October 6, 2017, burdens on the exercise of religious convictions and legislative, regulatory, and other barriers to the full and active engagement of faith-based and community organizations in Government-funded or Government-conducted activities and programs.

Sec. 4.  Revocation of Executive Orders.  Executive Order 13199 of January 29, 2001 (Establishment of White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives), and Executive Order 13498 of February 5, 2009 (Amendments to Executive Order 13199 and Establishment of the President’s Advisory Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships), are hereby revoked.

Sec. 5.  General Provisions.  (a)  Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

(ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

     (b)  This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c)  This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

DONALD J. TRUMP

 

READ: Presidential Executive Order Promoting Free Speech and Religious Liberty – FULL TEXT

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READ: Presidential Executive Order Promoting Free Speech and Religious Liberty - FULL TEXT

 

We’ve finally got the text.

As posted on WhiteHouse.gov:

 

The White House
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
May 04, 2017

Presidential Executive Order Promoting Free Speech and Religious Liberty

EXECUTIVE ORDER

– – – – – – –

PROMOTING FREE SPEECH AND RELIGIOUS LIBERTY

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, in order to guide the executive branch in formulating and implementing policies with implications for the religious liberty of persons and organizations in America, and to further compliance with the Constitution and with applicable statutes and Presidential Directives, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1.  Policy.  It shall be the policy of the executive branch to vigorously enforce Federal law’s robust protections for religious freedom.  The Founders envisioned a Nation in which religious voices and views were integral to a vibrant public square, and in which religious people and institutions were free to practice their faith without fear of discrimination or retaliation by the Federal Government.  For that reason, the United States Constitution enshrines and protects the fundamental right to religious liberty as Americans’ first freedom.  Federal law protects the freedom of Americans and their organizations to exercise religion and participate fully in civic life without undue interference by the Federal Government.  The executive branch will honor and enforce those protections.

Sec. 2.  Respecting Religious and Political Speech.  All executive departments and agencies (agencies) shall, to the greatest extent practicable and to the extent permitted by law, respect and protect the freedom of persons and organizations to engage in religious and political speech.  In particular, the Secretary of the Treasury shall ensure, to the extent permitted by law, that the Department of the Treasury does not take any adverse action against any individual, house of worship, or other religious organization on the basis that such individual or organization speaks or has spoken about moral or political issues from a religious perspective, where speech of similar character has, consistent with law, not ordinarily been treated as participation or intervention in a political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) a candidate for public office by the Department of the Treasury.  As used in this section, the term “adverse action” means the imposition of any tax or tax penalty; the delay or denial of tax-exempt status; the disallowance of tax deductions for contributions made to entities exempted from taxation under section 501(c)(3) of title 26, United States Code; or any other action that makes unavailable or denies any tax deduction, exemption, credit, or benefit.

Sec. 3.  Conscience Protections with Respect to Preventive-Care Mandate.  The Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Labor, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall consider issuing amended regulations, consistent with applicable law, to address conscience-based objections to the preventive-care mandate promulgated under section 300gg-13(a)(4) of title 42, United States Code.

Sec. 4.  Religious Liberty Guidance.  In order to guide all agencies in complying with relevant Federal law, the Attorney General shall, as appropriate, issue guidance interpreting religious liberty protections in Federal law.

Sec. 5.  Severability.  If any provision of this order, or the application of any provision to any individual or circumstance, is held to be invalid, the remainder of this order and the application of its other provisions to any other individuals or circumstances shall not be affected thereby.   

Sec. 6.  General Provisions.  (a)  Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or 

(ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b)  This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c)  This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

DONALD J. TRUMP

THE WHITE HOUSE,
May 4, 2017.

 

As for how much of this Executive Order which is actually enforceable and legal is up in the air since the language is very vague.

As for ” Respecting Religious and Political Speech.”  The Johnson Amendment that stops religious organizations from preaching political opinions because of thier non-profit status was introduced and voted into law by Congress and only a vote in Congress can repeal it.

Trump Signs Executive Order Overturning LGBT, Race, Sex, and Religion Protections for Federal Contractor Employees

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In a widely under-reported piece of devastating news.  On Monday, Donald Trump signed an executive order revoking three previous orders issued by President Obama and affecting Executive Order 11246, signed in 1965 by President Johnson , including Executive Order 13673 or the “the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Order.” Signed in 2014, it required that companies receiving large federal contracts to demonstrate that they have complied for at least three years with federal laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender stereotyping.

Federal contractors will no longer have to prove they have been compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act or Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which bans discrimination based on sex in employment.

The Obama administration had argued that Title VII’s prohibition on sex discrimination includes sexual orientation and gender identity, a definition the Trump administration has been steadily moving away from. As Keen points out, the ADA and Rehabilitation Act are both of concern as they prohibit discrimination based on HIV status and other disabilities.

By nullifying EO 13673, “this administration has made it extremely difficult to enforce these federal laws as applied to federal contractors,” said Lambda Legal attorney Camilla Taylor.

“It’s sending a message to these companies that the federal government simply doesn’t care whether or not they violate the law.”

The 14 affected federal laws and regulations affected by the new Trump executive order also includes Executive Order 11246, signed in 1965 by President Johnson. Executive Order 11246 prohibited federal contractors from discriminating in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Four years later, President Nixon added discrimination based on disability and age. In 1998, President Clinton added sexual orientation. And in 2014, President Obama added gender identity, plus prohibited federal contractors, too, from discriminating against their employees based on these categories

 

WTF?! - ACLU Leaves Gays & Lesbians Out of the Equality Act

ACLU Demands Anti-LGBT “Religious Liberty” EO Documents From Four Federal Agencies

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ACLU Demands Anti-LGBT “Religious Liberty” EO Documents From Four Federal Agencies

Via ACLU press release:

The American Civil Liberties Union has today demanded documents from four federal agencies concerning a potential executive order that would sanction religiously motivated discrimination against LGBT people, members of minority faiths, women, and people seeking reproductive health care.

“The American people deserve to know whether this administration plans to protect the rights of all Americans or whether it will sanction discrimination,” said Louise Melling, deputy legal director for the ACLU. “The ACLU fights every day to defend religious freedom, but religious freedom does not mean the right to discriminate against or harm others. If President Trump signs an executive order that authorizes discrimination against women and LGBT people, we will see him in court.”

The Freedom of Information Act requests were filed with the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, Justice, and Treasury and seek any communications regarding the drafting of an executive order that would attempt to grant broad religious exemptions to organizations from rules barring discrimination. A draft version of the order leaked last month.

Among other items, the draft order would insert broad exemptions into existing nondiscrimination protections under the Affordable Care Act requiring employers to offer insurance coverage for contraception, authorize federally funded child welfare organizations to make decisions based on religious directives regardless of the best interests of the child, and allow federal employees, contractors, and grantees to discriminate against same-sex couples, transgender people, and women seeking reproductive health care.

Today’s FOIA requests are here:

Department of Treasury: https://www.aclu.org/letter/foia-request-department-treasury

Department of Justice: https://www.aclu.org/legal-document/foia-request-department-justice

Department of Labor: https://www.aclu.org/legal-document/foia-request-department-labor

Department Health and Human Services: https://www.aclu.org/legal-document/foia-request-department-health-and-human-services

FRC Hate Group Leader Tony Perkins: God Did Not Make Mayor Pete Gay!

Family Research Council Hate Group: We Wrote Trump’s Anti-LGBT Executive Order And It Is Coming

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Family Research Council Hate Group: We Wrote Trump's Anti-LGBT Executive Order And It Is Coming

Michelangelo Signorile via The Huffington Post:

Former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, who has served as domestic policy chair of President Donald Trump’s transition team, told me in an interview on SiriusXM Progress that the controversial “religious freedom” order that leaked to the press a few weeks ago is very much on the way, even though White House officials had played it down.

Blackwell, a senior fellow at the Family Research Council (deemed an anti-LGBTQ hate group by the Southern Policy Law Center), said in our interview at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) over the weekend that the order is far from dead. He also confirmed that the former director of Family Research Council’s Center for Religious Liberty, Ken Klukowski, had “actually structured” the draft order as a legal advisor to Trump’s transition team.

Klukowski, who is now a senior attorney at the Liberty First Institute and a Breitbart contributor, is one of the lawyers “in the process of redrafting it,” Blackwell said, hinting that the original order may have been perceived as being too vulnerable to a legal challenge.

UPDATE: Obama To Sign Amended Exec Order 11246 With Bush Era Religious Exemptions Intact

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exec orderUPDATE:

It turns out that there is more to the earlier story that has been reported as President Obama will not be signing a NEW Executive Order protecting LGBT  federal contractors from discrimination but amending the previous Executive Order 11246, which prohibits federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, sex and will not remove President George W. Bush’s amendment to EO 11246,  whick would still allow religious-affiliated federal contractors (charities) to discriminate on the basis of religion,

The White House believes the executive actions protect LGBT workers and the interests of religious-affiliated employers, officials said.

In other words, gay people still won’t be protected against the most common reason for discrimination and our “fierce” leader is still really not that “fierce” 

————————–

Today the White House has announced that President Barack Obama will sign executive order on Monday that will prohibits federal contractors from discriminating against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender employees and job seekers WITHOUT a religious exemption that would allow LGBT discrimination continue under the guise of so called “religious beliefs”. Heather Cronk, GetEQUAL director, issued the following statement:

“We’re so proud today of the decision made by the Obama Administration to resist the calls by a small number of right-wing conservatives to insert religious exemptions into civil rights protections. While we will continue to press for full equality under the law for LGBTQ Americans, we’re thrilled with the announcement today and look forward to President Obama signing his name to an executive order on Monday that we can all be proud of.” For weeks, GetEQUAL — a national social justice organization that advocates for full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) Americans — has pressured the Obama Administration to take this action without including religious exemptions in order to avoid creating a dangerous precedent not only for the LGBTQ community, but for women, immigrants, young people, and many others.”

Prepare for the right-wing bigot super meltdown in 5…. 4….. 3….. 2…….

Freedom to Work Shills It’s Dangerous Version of ENDA On The Coattails of Obama’s Executive Order‏

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Freedom to work

 

President Obama spoke to BIG money LGBT donors at a Democratic National Committee gala in New York City on Tuesday night only one day after the White House announced that Obama plans to sign the executive order that would bar federal contractors from discriminating against LGBT workers and reminding the deep pocketed attendees of the accomplishments over the course of his administration and saying that much more needed to be done.

Speaking onstage at Gotham Hall before an American flag, Obama received a prolonged standing ovation when he said he told his staff to prepare an executive order that would bar federal contractors from discriminating against LGBT workers.

“We don’t benefit as a country or an economy — businesses don’t benefit if they’re leaving talent off the field,” Obama said. “And that’s why I’ve directed my staff to prepare for my signature, an executive order prohibiting discrimination by federal contractors on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity…Because in the United States of America, who you are and who you love shouldn’t be a fireable offense.”

But Obama said efforts must continue to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, legislation that would bar discrimination among public and private employers, not just federal contractors. The executive order he plans to sign doesn’t “reach everyone that needs to be reached,” Obama said.

“It would be better, by the way, if Congress passed a more comprehensive law that didn’t just cover federal contractors,” Obama said. “And we need to keep working on that, so don’t take the pressure off Congress.”

But many questions remain about the planned executive order, such as whether it’ll contain a religious exemption like the very broad and much criticized religious exemption crafted by Tico Almeida and Freedom to Work in the current version of ENDA that if passed, would write LGBT discrimination into law by allowing businesses and groups who claim they part of a religious movement the right to refuse to hire and terminate LGBT employees without any legal repercussions.

In an interview with the Washington Blade Almeida took the opportunity to shill his dangerous version of ENDA.

“Those were the strongest and most thorough remarks I’ve ever heard from President Obama in support of ENDA,” said last nights speech “The president very much deserved the strong applause he received when he discussed the upcoming executive order, and he was right to say that we must all keep the pressure on Congress.”

Almeida and Freedom to Work it seems is still pushing its dangerous version of ENDA of which Almeida admitted last year at Netroots Nation 2013 in San Jose that the very open religious exemption was specifically written  “just to get ENDA passed’.   Thankfully it has not but has instead drawn the ire and condemnation of many LGBT activists and organizations.

Still many questions remain about the Presidents planned Executive Order, such as whether or not it will indeed contain its own religious exemption.

A meeting is planned at the White House on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. between administration officials and LGBT advocates to discuss the planned LGBT non-discrimination order, but no other information was given

Lets just hope that Tico Almeida and Freedom to Work isn’t one of the “advocates” or groups invited to attend.

FINALLY! President Obama Announces He Will Sign Executive Order Protecting LGBT Federal Contract Workers

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Finally

 

President Barack Obama will sign an order banning federal government contractors from discriminating against gay and transgender workers, officials have said.

The executive order follows years of requests and pressure from the LGBT community to act at least partially on LGBT equality rights that have been stalled on Capitol Hill since the 1970’s.

The executive order comes after far broader anti-discrimination legislation ENDA has stalled in the Republican-led House of Representatives depsite that it containing a hugely dangerous religious exemption that has caused many in the LGBT community stand up and speak out against rendition of ENDA and who have called for current version of the bill to be pulled.

We’re thrilled that the White House is finally taking action on LGBT workplace discrimination — action that is long overdue, but that will finally begin to address the enormous hurdles that LGBT individuals face in finding and keeping a job in this country,” said GetEQUAL Co-Director Heather Cronk. “It is now vitally important for all of us to insist that this executive order, when eventually signed by the president, does not include religious exemptions that would permit taxpayer dollars to be spent on discrimination. We will continue to be vigilant about this important aspect of the executive order — LGBT Americans need these protections immediately, and without the gaping holes that exemptions would create.”

The executive order will apply only to federal contractors, which employ nearly one-quarter of the US workforce.

“The action would build upon existing protections, which generally prohibit federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating in employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin,”

One of the largest companies that will be impacted and holds million of dollars in federal contracts by the executive order is Exxon Mobil, which last month voted down LGBT employment protections for the 17th time. The company claims to have a “zero tolerance” policy on the books for mistreatment, but that does not have the same legal force or consistency as the protections shareholders have voted down each year. Exxon is also facing an anti-gay discrimination lawsuit

President Obama still prefers that Congress act, administration officials said, and has only decided to take unilateral steps in the absence of momentum for the legislation

There is currently no word on when Mr Obama plans to sign the order, but a White House official told US media the president has finally asked his staff to prepare the action for his signature.

200 Congressional Democrats Call On Obama To Issue LGBT Federal Workers’ Executive Order‏

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ENDAOver 200 Congressional and House Democrats have joined together and are sending a letter to President Obama calling on him to sign an executive order banning federal contractors from discriminating against LGBT workers.

The move comes as the White House keeps maintaining that Obama’s preferred path is passage of Employment Non-Discrimination Act into law is through Congress rather than signing the executive order and the LGBT community continues to push for the executive order in the wake of last fall’s Senate passage of the ENDA, which is now stuck in the GOP controlled House and is likely to go nowhere.

The bill that would ban most private employers who have Government contracts from anti-LGBT discrimination.

The nearly 200 congressional Democrats write, “We are committed to doing all that we can in Congress to get ENDA to your desk this year; however, there is no reason you cannot immediately act by taking this important step.”

The effort was led by Sen. Jeff Merkley and Rep. Jared Polis, with support from Sens. Tom Harkin and Tammy Baldwin and Reps. Michael Michaud, David Cicilline, Sean Patrick Maloney, Mark Pocan, Kyrsten Sinema, Mark Takano, Frank Pallone, Lois Capps, Diana DeGette, Joe Garcia, Raul Grijalva, Mike Honda, Barbara Lee, Jerrold Nadler, and Adam Schiff.

The proposed order follows Obama’s agreement in a 2008 candidate questionnaire that, if elected president, he would support a nondiscrimination policy for LGBT employees of federal contractors. Advocates and lawmakers have been pressing Obama to model the policy off an existing executive order, Executive Order 11246, that bans federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.


SIGN THE DAMN E.O. ALREADY!