The former US ambassador to Germany under President Trump, Richard Grenell, says the current White House press secretary should apologize to gay people for “demeaning” language she used in a tweet from last year.
Grenell, who is gay, highlighted a tweet from Jen Psaki that she posted last August. In it, she used a much-used nickname for Senator Lindsey Graham, saying “only in 2020 does #LadyG get to push a bunch of debunked conspiracy theories while questioning @SallyQYates (aka an American hero).”
The tweet appeared after Graham quizzed the former Deputy Attorney, Sally Yates, when she appeared before a Senate Judiciary Committee.
‘LadyG’ is a nickname that was allegedly coined by male sex workers in DC. It has gone viral on Twitter on several occasions in reference to the Southern Senator.
Psaki’s tweet was first highlighted yesterday by the conservative, gay organization, Outspoken, and then retweeted by Grenell, who said Psaki should apologize.
. @PressSec should apologize to the gay community. This is the type of demeaning language we should all be against. This isn’t partisan. @jrpsaki https://t.co/jbzhbuHp2N
— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) February 2, 2021
Grenell later re-shared Psaki’s tweet himself, saying, “Homophobia and intolerance from the Left is growing. This should be widely condemned. @PressSec”
Homophobia and intolerance from the Left is growing.
This should be widely condemned. @PressSec https://t.co/94GW0Xzaoq
— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) February 3, 2021
Grenell was a consistent supporter of Donald Trump whilst he was President. This is despite advocacy groups such as GLAAD keeping a running count of all the Trump administration’s attacks on LGBTQ people. It totaled 181 by the time Trump left office, including his ban on trans people serving in the military and a move to allow federal employers to discriminate against LGBTQ just days before his departure from the White House.
On his first day in office, President Joe Biden signed an executive order described by one leading advocacy group as “most substantive LGBT+ executive order in history.” He acted swiftly to overturn Trump’s trans military ban and has pledged to introduce an Equality Act to further cement LGBTQ rights.
Related: President Biden signs historic LGBTQ executive order on first day in office
Grenell was the most high-profile gay supporter of Donald Trump during his re-election campaign, spearheading its LGBTQ outreach and co-hosting a number of Trump Pride events with Tiffany Trump.
Besides being appointed US Ambassador to Germany, Grenell was also appointed by Trump to the position of acting Director of National Intelligence in February 2020.
Although Director of National Intelligence is considered a cabinet-level position, Grenell did not face a Senate confirmation because he only occupied the role in an acting capacity for four months. Trump later appointed John Ratcliffe to the role in a full-time position.
Grenell’s remarks yesterday come on the same day Pete Buttigieg was confirmed by the Senate in the role of Transport Secretary. This makes the former Mayor from Indiana the first openly gay person to be confirmed by the Senate to a Cabinet Secretary position.
Related: Pete Buttigieg becomes America’s first out Cabinet member
Grenell yesterday congratulated Buttigieg on his appointment but pointedly took the opportunity to remind people of his period in an acting cabinet-level role.
Congratulations to @PeteButtigieg on becoming the second openly gay member of a President’s Cabinet.
Welcome to the club! pic.twitter.com/BbKK6iTBW1
— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) February 2, 2021
Cam
So then is Grenell outting Graham?
jmg619
Lol yeah how is it homophobia if Graham is supposedly “not” gay? That’s not how homophobia works.
doodleboi
It would seem that way.
sydneyismyalias
Yeah, she doesn’t owe me an apology. BTW way to go Grenell for outing Lindsey.
jcool
i imagine this conversation:
lyndsey – bitch shut up, you just told everyone i’m queer
richard -my bad. can i rent you girth brooks for your birthday to make up for it?
lyndsey – july 9
mikeTigg
Good one! LOL!
Dick Gozinia
Ditto, she doesn’t owe me an apology. I love it that she referred to him as LadyG.
Texasholdem
Grenell was never in the presidential line of succession like Pete is now. Pete is currently 7th in line to become President.
DCFarmboy
The American Prince Archie.
Fahd
This guy, who can’t reconcile his own sexuality with his fascist political urges, is a sad case for sure – a national embarrassment as ambassador in Germany and going around perpetrating evil wherever it might be convenient for his overlords. What kind of network of closeted right wingers must he be an integral part of ? – I can think of the guy who heads that Conservative PAC, Sen. LG, etc. Do they have dinners with blackout curtains and naked waiters? They’ll never get the approval they crave from people who hate them for their sexuality (who they are). Log Cabin Republicans with attitude -sad – btw, Phylis Shoefly is dead – what are they working/striving for?
Wayne_in_NYC
I couldn’t agree more! Not to mention attempting to make himself more important than he actually was, as Trump’s token gay temporarily on his cabinet but not good enough to fill the position permanently… just a seat-filler for the cameras like those used for the Oscars. Congratulations to Mayor Pete, the first REAL GAY member of a REAL PRESIDENT’s Cabinet! Trump’s 4 years should be wiped from the history books as one of the most embarrassing nightmares in the history of our country, including Grenell’s pitiful role in perpetuating it!
rbernard
bla bla bla,
Richard Grenell is attempting to stoke false outrage.
Consider the source.
This false outrage is coming from a gay conservative republican who worked tirelessly to empower an administration that did everything they possibly could to appease the religious bigots and set back our rights through codifying discrimination against the transgendered, re-writing government regulations to exclude protections for the LGBTQ, and challenging our rights in court whenever they could.
Donald Trump’s self deprecating house-queer is a conflicted mental hypocrite and doesn’t get a pass when he criticizes the good guys just getting in town.
David Myers
Hear hear!!!
Peacemaker
Grenell doesn’t speak for me. Lady G is a delusional closet case and participated in helping get this country where we find ourselves today.
dman3379
Stop giving this clown attention. He doesn’t need to be bolstered.
Mundo
Amen, ignore this idiot.
drmiller
Grenell, sit your old, tired, ugly ass down. You are the last person who has any right to cry homophobia—you self-hating, self-aggrandizing, useless piece of garbage. Can we all forget this guy exists please? Go back to living the rest of your life in shame now that the community has collectively, and deservingly, turned its back on you. You have been officially canceled and that’s on periodt.
JD17
Amb. Grenell (whatever your views on his politics) has a point. Ms Psaki could set an example to GOP members of Congress who have made far more frequent and far more egregious tweets by apologizing for her own tweet about Sen. Graham
Cam
Notice how the Troll account is trying to give Grenell his title to boost his image, but doesn’t give a title to Biden’s press secretary?
We get it, you’re here to support self hating closet cases who attack us and demean allies.
Goforit
JD17……You and Grenell should both get your panties out of a bunch and find something more important to throw a hissy-fit about.
ShiningSex
Graham should be honest about his sexuality. She has NOTHING to apologize about. Grenell is some bitter queen that needs to look in his backyard before complaining. He also outed Graham which is great too.
KyleMichelSullivan
No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Psaki said nothing to apologize for, you pathetic troll. Go away.
Den
“Lady G should come out and stop lying to his wife.”
Graham has never married, is not known to have dated any women other than a supposed German stewardess he “was in love with” back in his air force days, who would not leave her elderly mother so they could not get married.
So at least he is not living the lie of having a political “beard”, but there are a whole lot of other lies he is living and telling even if he actually is heterosexual.
Brian
Yes, he’s right that it’s demeaning and homophobic. (Gay men are not women. That’s an outdated and offensive trope.) And since her *career* is giving public statements, she really should be better than this.
But it’s more than a little disingenuous for any Trump fan to be whining about this now. Grenell himself is garbage. This complaint is opportunistic, hypocritical, and so political as to be almost meaningless.
Josh447
So true. But about Jen, I do like her calls em as she sees em approach. Pretty hilarious.
trsxyz
@Brian… Totally agree with your comment.
davegun2
Really? Fool, go away. #TakeASeatSis
AxelDC
If you supported the homophobic Trump Administration, you don’t get to speak for the “gay community”.
wikidBSTN
You hit the nail on the head!
Lightbulb
Your are 100%. All you have to do is google trump administration rollbacks on gay rights to see the despicable rights being taken away form our LGBT community not to mention that Trump claimed Pence said we should all be hung? yes, I said that right HUNG! Grnell is the WORST kind of GAY anyone can be PERIOD! Just like the lesbians don’t want Caitlin Jenner we don’t want his fake sorry queer ass in this community…he is disgusting on so many levels!
whateverokok
Sure, O-K. Get down off that cross, honey. Somebody needs the wood.
mikeTigg
Grenell is an offense to the LGBT community. Graham is as offensive. The two should fork each other and disappear under the rocks that bred them.
marshal phillips
Did he ask Trump to apologize for banning transgender military personnel AND all the other anti-gay stuff he did as president?
Kangol2
No. He’s silent as a pangolin and half as interesting or intelligent.
Celtic
Grenell is queer in name only. We don’t want him.
jcool
a QINO lol
G-Man
So this guy worked and supported Trump and he thinks Psaki should apologize for calling Graham Lady G, I don’t have a problem with her at all. I do however have a problem with Grenell trying to align himself with the gay community after supporting one of the biggest homophobes in Washington.
ShiningSex
Calling Grahaha “Lady G” by a straight person is NOT homophobic. Lady G should come out and stop lying to his wife. Grenell is being petty when where was his anger during the crap Trump did to the LGBT community here.
doodleboi
Miss Lindsey isn’t married nor has he ever been.
barryaksarben
Shut the F**k up DICK. We dont want you and YOU DO NOT SPEAK FOR US. You did MUCH worse to us in the TRUMP mob you nazi loving piece of shit on Trump’s taint. The only gays you speak for are the tiny minority of self hating radical right wing racist nazi pukes in the log cabin republicans who are down to double digit membership. Go cry over your tiny dick in the hole you crawled out of. AGAIN YOU DONT SPEAK FOR US AND NEVER HAVE NOR NEVER WILL.
whateverokok
Whoah there, partner. Simmer down there. I sure he speaks for a lot of people. Don’t go getting your pantyhose in a twist. Has it ever occurred to you to pull out that old Sony Discman, grab a CD, and let it spin your troubles & anger away? Or perhaps even some vinyl. You’ve got to cool down before you stroke.
tjack47
F#*k Outspoken.
Saps48
I think LG is a bachelor
p²
I actually think this is a great opportunity for her to show how adults take responsibility for mistakes and pledge to do better. LadyG IS homophobic and misogynistic as well. And many well-intentioned people have used that kind of language without meaning to be either of those things. She could easily stand up and say she was wrong to use that nickname because his mannerisms and sexual orientation whatever it may be are not the things that make Lindsay Graham a monster and that going forward she will be mindful to not fall in the trap of trying to mock someone who really should be denounced for being evil.
Cam
Except, no, it isn’t.
But it’s nice you think trying ANOTHER brand new screename is going to make us now know you’re just the same old right wing Troll.
She can call Graham Lady G 10 times a day if she wants.
Graham and his self hating attacks on our civil rights is the real danger to LGBTQ people and anything that exposes his hypocrisy is welcome.
missvamp
giving attention to any gay who voted for trump is like giving attention to a bad child. ignore them!
Itsonlythetruth
Karen please you worked for the most anti LGBTQ President ever.
Liquid Silver
Who?
lwdurant
Grenell is claiming to be the first gay “cabinet” member. Bitch please Ambassador is not a cabinet position. You and LadyG can go play out your Hitler fantasy and have Germany (Grenell) invade Lindsey. Ohhh I think I just threw up a little bit
Beekerman
First off, “acting director” did not make you a cabinet level official. You were just a place holder for a grown up to step in and do the job. And second, Girl, Bye!
Mack
But LadyG is Blanche, but she is.
loren_1955
??? Homophobia and intolerance from the left is growing??? What? We are the left.
Invader7
No. Richard Grenell . YOU need to apologize to the gay community . You sellout !!
butchqueen
Grennel, cool your jets, queen! Ptaki is fabulous!
triguykeith
I think in general too much is made out of literally NOTHING Lady Lindsay Graham is the most homophobic self loathing gay man alive today! SO what she called him Lady G That’s what he is! a right proppaaa laaaaadie! There is room for humor when picking fun at anyone. Lady is hardly offensive. Especially when the young gays have no reclaimed the word queer!
GayEGO
Well, I call him LInda Graham Cracker, so what is the big deal here. I have listened to Jen Psaki several times and she is a terrific press secretary, unlike the Trump failure press secretaries we have had the last four years.
fur_hunter
I call that scumbag Miss Lindseybelle.
Bubbleandsqueal
I did not know “Lady G” was a sex-worker meme to refer to Lindsey Graham. Thanks, Richard Grenell, for the “Streisand Effect.” I’m going to refer to the senior Senator from South Carolina as Lady G, from here on out.
rural queer socialist
sadly, while the senator displays appalling and perhaps il-legal behavior by involving her/him/them/zim self in sexual trafficking/labor trafficking
the manner of discussion his/her/their/zir behavior by Queerty is both homophobic and misogynist by playing on a ‘f-word-ggy sissy’ stereotype – ‘LadyG’.
Queerty media should be ashamed of participating in homophoblic and misoygnist stereotyping.
amanwithanedge
LADY G… MISS THING.
Kevan1
Brainwashed self loathing right wing nut job making a new conspiracy for the right wing extremist. His complaint does not seem to offend anyone gay who is not a right wing nut. Oddly his comment from Richard Grenell seems to be confirming that Lindsey Graham is indeed a closeted self loathing queen.
dannysax
Graham is the most obvious closet case I know, of course she should be called Lady G. And Grenell was never a real member of any Cabinet, the traitor to his kind!
Den
It is amusing how the clueless right has to access a minor 8 month old tweet about an actively anti-gay right wing politician (who may very well be gay himself) to frame the obvious lie that homophobia and intolerance from the left is growing!
By contrast one needs only to look at daily headlines from the past 4 (or 6 or 8) years to see the high and steady level of intolerance and homophobia from the right! Were this lie not coming from a gay man blinded by his own position as a token and slavish in his obedience to a humiliated corrupt sociopath, it might be humorous rather than pitiful.
The Germans hated him as ambassador. Not because he is homosexual, but because he did a lousy job. but he served hos purpose: allowing the right to claim Trump was a pro LGBT president even as he worked to roll back LGBT rights in his desire to kep the evangelicals mesmerized.
Den
(his, not hos…I have found lately that when I edit long posts they disappear into the “awaiting moderation abyss”)
johnnymcmxxx
It’s called “Shade” Lady Grenell & it’s an appropriate sobriquet for Lady G. All the boys she has rented seem to think it applies & so do I.
ProudBLK Gay
Richard Grenell is a disgrace!
Remember, the SS allegedly had a lot of gay men among their ranks.
This guy no more represents the LGBTQ community than Trump does!
I for one canceled my PayPal account once I got True Religion with this wingnut!
He ain’t one of ours and WE DON”T WANT HIM! Let his psychotic Republic colleagues keep him.
David Myers
Actually the Nazi brownshirts (run by an elite corp of about 200 top gay officers under the leadership of Ernst Rohm, a long-time early member of the Nazi party and friend of Hitlers) were called the S.A.
The SS was under the auspices of the Gestapo. Hitler was fearful of Rohm’s personal power and Hitler personally led a purge (and murder) of Rohm’s upper echelon of gay officers – with Hitler arresting Rohm personally. Rohm was shot the next day. Hitler later claimed to have only now discovered Rohm (and his top officers’) homosexuality and Hitler denounced homosexuality and then ramped up arrests and imprisonment in camps of gay men in Germany and occupied territories. Most of those arrested were worked to death in concentration camps.
Joey
Richard Grenell is a self-important ass. Our awesome new press secretary doesn’t owe anyone an apology. But lady G sure as hell does.
ta2t2o
The thirst is real with Grenell. He’s as much of a narcissist as Trump. The big difference between Grenell and Buttegieg is that Mayor Pete doesn’t hate being gay and he’s likely to get something accomplished while in office.
BoomerMyles
Grinnell”s bootlicking sycophancy of Sore Loser trump just proves he is a traitor to his own community.
ScottOnEarth
He’s a trump supporter. We don’t need more information than that. Jen Psaki’s tweet was absolutely not homophobic. She was simply using the nickname of an obvious closet-case and the Biden administration is the least homophobic administration in US history.
scotty
she prefers to be called mother superior.
JED08
Richard Grenell, I like Jen very much, and I have no use for you whatsoever. She said nothing that offended me.
Georgeiv2
M.Grenell stop clutching your pearls Sweetie Jen’s comment was a lot kinder than most of us apply to that Closet Case I am too much of a gentleman to say what I would like to call him !! You do our community no favour spouting such rubbish Use you now unimportant voice to support us not subject us to ridicule !
RexRed
Lindsey Graham and Richard Grenell sold out gays for Trump’s money. They are the ones who needs to apologize to the left. I can think of much harsher labels to call Lindsey, hypocrites deserve what they get. Gays don’t identity with Lindsey Graham and gay is the least of Lindsey’s problems… He will probably not vote to convict the traitor Trump also.
SaintRock
As a member of the Gay Community…. Lady G Lady G Lady G…… I do NOT apologize. I have seen Lady G name plastered by other gay and gay friendly people. Tell this idiot to go Sissy that Walk. Lady G Lady G …… LOLOLOLOL. I would not even let Grenell blow me. YUK
blazerboy
Richard Grenell wants President Biden’s Press Secretary Psaki to apologize to the LGBTQ+ Community for calling Senator Lindsey Graham “LadyG” in a post several years ago.
1. Former Acting Secretary Grenell, YOU do not get to do ANYTHING on behalf of the LGBTQ+ community. EVER.
2. You represent a party that has consistently dismissed, berated, and insulted the LGBTQ+ community.
3. Your party cannot on one hand, defend Marjorie Taylor Greene’s comments about murdering top Democrats, promoting the insurrection, and vocalizing conspiracy theories as being “before she was an elected official,” and then turn around and demand a different standard for Democrats.
But, I’ll tell you what: I will join you in asking her to apologize, in the spirit of unity, if:
1. You apologize for outing Lindsey Graham, unless you will state that you did so because outing someone is justifiable if they are closeted and harming the LGBTQ+ communitty.
2. You insist that Press Secretary Psaki give the full context of that nickname, one given to Senator Graham by the male escort community in Washington D.C. for his alleged “exploits” with said community.
3. If not, you, as an out gay man have to explain why calling a “straight” man with a feminine pronoun is insulting, as you have given a pass to your party for doing this for years, and there should be nothing wrong with calling someone gay, as it is not an insult.
Oh, and while we’re at it, FORMER ACTING Secretary Grenell, apologize to Secretary Buttigieg for brazenly including yourself in the same category as he has achieved, as you were simply a temporary appointment, and NEVER approved by the Senate.
Go away, you self loathing sycophant.
That is all.
Musk
I’m no rocket scientist, but Grenell’s hypocrisy is stunning!