The Trump administration recently weighed in on two upcoming U.S. Supreme Court cases that’ll examine whether it’s okay to fire someone for being gay or trans, and guess what? His administration thinks it’s perfectly legal, and his reason is jaw-droppingly stupid.
Related: WATCH: Log Cabin Republican spokesperson gives absurd defense of Trump on Fox News
Basically, Trump’s Solicitor General Noel Francisco submitted amicus briefs to the Supreme Court offering its opinion in two cases, Zarda v. Altitude Express, Inc., and Bostock v. Clayton County — both cases involve male employees who were fired for being gay.
The men’s lawyers are basically saying their firings count as sex discrimination under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, a law which prohibits employers from discriminating against employees on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin and religion.
How about we take this to the next level?
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The men’s lawyers argue that being fired for being gay violates Title VII because if the men were women who were attracted to men, they wouldn’t have been fired. That is, they were fired on the basis of their sex.
AIn his amicus brief, Francisco said that it’s not sexual discrimination to fire a man for being attracted to men because a woman could be fired for being attracted to someone of her own gender too. Therefore, both gay men and women are being treated equally under existing U.S. law — equality!
Furthermore, the Trump administration argues that because firing people for being gay isn’t explicitly forbidden by pre-existing federal law it is therefore legal.
It’ll be interesting to see if the conservative-leaning U.S. Supreme Court follows his reasoning as other lower courts haven’t.
If they do, they’ll effectively be saying that it’s okay to fire someone for not adhering to stereotypes of how men and women should behave, a position that could undo decades of legal precedent, setting up heterosexual employees to be harassed, discriminated against and fired for not acting like a man/woman “should.”
Cam
Republicans don’t even want LGBTQ people to be able to work.
Good employee? Honest? Loyal? Liked by your co-workers? Irrelevant, Republicans want to be able to fire you and prevent you from earning a living.
It is only about the hate and bigotry at this point.
Chrisk
I kind of like it though. No more compassionate conservatism or hate the sin but love the sinner BS. They’ve finally taken off the sheeps clothing to show their open hate.
Cam
@Chrisk
True, they’ve taken off the suits and put on the Klan Hoods
youarederanged
You are aware that the Dems had the control and ability to change the laws for our protections and didn’t, right? This notion that the Repubs are all bad and the Dems are all good is delusional. Neither party actually fights for us when it matters. I know that, do you?
DarkZephyr
“You are aware that the Dems had the control and ability to change the laws for our protections and didn’t, right?”
When? In 1995? Certainly not when Obama was in office.
youarederanged
They had the White House, the House of Representatives, and 59 seats of the Senate including the two independent votes. That’s one vote short of total control in the Senate but they had a huge opportunity to make the case and fight the fight for one more vote. They didn’t even try.
Cam
@youarederanged
Translation: The article is about a purley bigoted hatefilled attack on the LGBTQ community so the right wing troll account is desperately trying to talk about “Democrats”.
1. Its obvious and desperate.
2. You’re lying. When democrats had power, guess what sweetie, they DID change some of the laws, they pushed through a repeal of DADT and that was used to knocked down anti-LGBTQ workplace discrimination.
Once again ,the goal of this troll account is to take attention off the fact that the Trump administration and Republicans are seeking to attack LGBTQs and end our ability to even hold jobs.
youarederanged
What does DADT have to do with this article? I’m talking about legislation to protect the issue this article is about. Get with it. And despite your attempts to label me as right wing, I am not a republican, I do not vote republican, and I did not vote for Trump. I just come here to add my voice to the overwhelming group think comments left on here, which vilify Republicans while promoting Democrats as our saviors and defenders, and it’s total bs. They’ve used bandaids when brain surgery is needed. Good luck putting all your eggs in that basket.
Cam
@youarederanged
Awwww, how “Specific” of you. So just so I understand how your right wing, anti-LGBTQ mind works. The Republicans and Trump are attacking the Community by attempting to overturn decisions protecting our community from being fired due to bigotry, and you are shrieking about Democrats to try to deflect that, claiming they didn’t pass any helpful laws.
When it’s pointed out to you that Democrats did indeed pass laws protecting LGBTQs, your response is….Oh, I didn’t mean THAT law.
Go back to eating those lead paint chips.
youarederanged
Huh? Your ramblings are hard for the same to follow. You want to bring up some lipstick and rouge laws the Dems made that have nothing to do with the point of this article which is that workplace protections don’t exist. So blab on all you want, but Dems didn’t do anything about that. And if you really want to know what brought me here leaving comments about the Dems, it’s the fact that upon first reading this article I noticed that you had already been leaving your comments about how evil the Repubs are, so I had to chime in. You’re just such an easy target that I can’t resist. Derangement at its best!
Steven R
@ youarederanged
You say you’re not a Republican, but that your comments were based on not following the Democrats. My question is this: who do you propose we support then? You don’t like what the Democrats are doing, and we can see what the Republicans are doing, so what is your solution?
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jsmu
@youarederanged Utterly classic Rapeublic*nt projection in your name, trollette. Simply brilliant self-condemnation. As someone told your alternate TROLL SOCK PUPPET ACCOUNT ‘airiestheram,’ ENDA, you moron. For decades now. False equivalences, straw men, and imbecilic illogic are all you’ve got, baby. How are you enjoying the last days of #BunkerBeeyotch???? HMMMMMM?
wancell
Do you really think the lawmakers in 1964 were thinking about homosexuality as sex discrimination when they put Title VII to law.
The reason it is going to the Supreme Court is because there is disagreement at the Appeals Court level with two say yes and one says no.
We need a new Civil Rights Law passed by Congress and stop trying to shoehorn interpretations due to the lack of leadership in Congress.
Congress can settle this by doing their jobs by hammering together agreements and pass legislation to fix these kind of issues instead of punting to the courts to set policy which it should not be doing.
DarkZephyr
In other words, you aggressively support and defend this vicious and damaging act of homophobia.
“Do you really think the lawmakers in 1964 were thinking about homosexuality as sex discrimination when they put Title VII to law.”
Irrelevant. This is HOW the courts have always done things, by interpreting laws for modern times. Its always been done that way. Hell, its why everyone has the right to bear arms whenever and wherever they want, based on an amendment that was originally meant to apply to militias. Its been re-interpreted to mean you can walk around with assault weapons in a KFC or convenient store now.
In THIS case, the decision was made that discriminating against people for being in same sex relationships is indeed discrimination based on sex…and it is. How can you deny that? If I was fired for being a man in a romantic or sexual relationship with another man, that would *absolutely* be because I am a male. If I was a woman in a sexual or romantic relationship with a man, I would not be fired in that scenario. So what really needs to stop happening is that people like you need to stop defending and encouraging legislative acts of homophobia by the “President” and his DOJ. You help to enable this evil.
Cam
No, the reason it is going to the Supreme Court is because bigoted, anti-LGBTQ Republicans are taking it there.
And let’s not play the game of “What the people who wrote the law were thinking”
Do you really think the framers of the Constitution were thinking about assault weapons and machine guns when they wrote it? Ooooops, guess you didn’t think of that part.
PinkoOfTheGange
If you read the legislative intent of the Civil Rights act of 1964 “Sex” in title VII was to not allow prejudices of what sexes can do to rule the employment process.
It is the way that SSM should of gone through the courts rather than equal protection. Roberts even pointed that out in oral arguments.
youarederanged
More proof that neither party actually works for LGBTQ rights. Obama and the Dems had their chance to add real legal protections and they didn’t do a thing. But guess how many readers of this site still blindly follow the party that just a handful of years ago stood opposed to marriage equality and never made any serious legislative changes for us. Hate on Trump all you want, but also hate on Obama. He failed us. But at least he’ll be living it up pretty in his Martha’s Vineyard mega mansion with an insane carbon footprint. He suckered you all lol. Him and Trump and all the other past presidents are the same. They pander and suckers fall for it.
DarkZephyr
Obama actually helped bring about marriage equality by refusing to defend anti-LGBT legislation such as the Defense of Marriage Act. Obama did what he could with a GOP House AND Congress constantly blocking him. He did make an executive order, which Trump overturned. Its not his fault the GOP House kept sabotaging ENDA. So no, I am not gonna “hate on Obama” but I will certainly continue to “hate on Trump” and the whole rest of the lousy GOP. Next.
youarederanged
Dems controlled the House of Representatives for two years under Obama and they had 57 of the 100 seats in the Senate, with two independent seats leaning their way. Sorry bud, but your history is wrong.
Cam
Once again, Trump and the Republicans are seeking to end LGBTQs ability to even work here through a bigoted attack and the right wing troll account is foaming at the mouth screaming about Democrats.
Sweetie, please tell the person in the basement of the Siberian troll farm to switch you over to decaf.
DarkZephyr
@youarederanged
Is it now?
So Obama didn’t refuse to defend DOMA? Obama didn’t make an executive order defending LGBT people in the Federal work place? Trump didn’t overturn it and the GOP didn’t stand in the way of ENDA?
youarederanged
Did you read anywhere where I defended Trump or the Republicans? No. I never did. You are defending the Dems and Obama, and I’m saying they’re all complicit. Both parties. So let’s be honest about that instead of acting like one side has always had our back, which is not the case.
youarederanged
And btw, executive orders are garbage and the next president can easily overturn them. And DOMA was signed by a Dem president! Obama had no choice but to not defend it which still was a cop out. Neither he nor Dems in Congress fought for real legislative changes.
Cam
@youarederanged, Said…..
“Did you read anywhere where I defended Trump or the Republicans? No. I never did. ”
——————–
No precious, what you did was desperately deflect from the bigoted attack on LGBTQs by Trump and Republicans by shrieking about Obama. Your job as a right wing troll is to give cover to Republican bigots, and when you can’t defend them, your job is to try to derail the topic.
But nice try sweetie.
youarederanged
LOL. You seriously need help. The idea of me being right wing is hysterical but I’ll let my grandma know you think I am one! She’ll be thrilled!
PinkoOfTheGange
Okay…and your point is what? Just give up? Because no on likes us so let’s go out to the garden and eat worms?
Cam
@youarederanged
Translation, you lied, got caught and now are trying to lash out to deflect.
Let’s not forget also, the topic of this article. The Republicans are trying to push through the policy that LGBTQ people shouldn’t have the right to work.
youarederanged
@Cam Did you see the New York Times article last month about the group of Republicans that wrote a brief to the Supreme Court urging them to protect LGBT in the workplace. I know you want to stereotype them all as evil, but it doesn’t help our cause. We have to work with people on all sides, that’s sort of the point of government.
DarkZephyr
“Did you read anywhere where I defended Trump or the Republicans? No. I never did. You are defending the Dems and Obama, and I’m saying they’re all complicit. Both parties. So let’s be honest about that instead of acting like one side has always had our back, which is not the case.”
Did you read anywhere where I said the Democrats are perfect and have always been? No. I never did. You are ignoring what the GOP is doing to the LGBT *at this very moment*, seemingly refusing to even comment on it at all.
What I am doing is defending Obama and the Democrats from your claim that they never do anything to help us. Which is baloney, as has been pointed out to you.
Now have a small handful of Republicans helped us? Why yes they have, which is fantastic of them and I am grateful to those particular heroic Republican individuals. But they have done so *contrary to their party’s platform*. They are the *exceptions to the rule*. They have had to literally break with their own party line to do so, even going head to head with their own party in a Court of Law to do it.
Maureen Walsh of Washington had to verbally battle and vote against her own party to work toward getting Referendum 74 on the ballot.
Ted Olson had an epic court battle on his hands when he fought for marriage equality in California. And that epic battle was against *his own party*.
When Democrats work toward helping LGBTQ+ people, they do not have to break with party lines or go against the Democratic platform, they actually are following that platform. So who’s the one who’s pretending, here? Its certainly not me, Cam or PinkoOfTheGange.
The Democrats may not be perfect, but they are the only game in town that is actually helping us and the only one with a real chance of winning elections.
By the way, I am not a Democrat. I am an Independent. The GOP is evil and the Democrats aren’t perfect. I never claimed they were. But I am also not stupid. I know who we need to vote for at this time in history, and I know which party has been trying to help us and which one has not been.
Your demonization of the Democrats is a HUGE and absurd exaggeration and your words about the Republicans being no worse than the Democrats is a HUGE and absurd downplay of what they do to hurt us.
truthseeker
@DarkZephyr
“By the way, I am not a Democrat. I am an Independent. The GOP is evil…”
>Not Democrat
>Claims to be Independent
>Only votes Democrat
Sure, Jan…
DarkZephyr
@truthseeker
Its no damage to me if you want to think I’m a Democrat. If you thought I was a Republican, I might find myself feeling insulted. But I have no hatred for the Democrats and never claimed to. I just don’t agree with some of their positions, and they are major enough disagreements to keep me out of the party. I only vote Democrat right now because the Green Party and Libertarian party can’t win jack and we need to get Trump and this current vile GOP the HELL outta there. If you wanna “sure Jan” me over that, be my guest. When compared to Trump’s GOP, it is NO insult to be thought a Democrat.
David Myers
You art making “false equivalency” arguments which at their heart are saying there’s no difference between republicans and Democrats with regard to LGBTQ rights. If that was true in the past it is certainly no longer true. You are attempting to make this argument (as stated by others) as a deflection argument and . . . because you are . . . a TROLL. Only one question remaining . . . are you Trump/republican TROLL . . . or a russian TROLL. In the end you both push hate and disinformation. Begone TROLL you have no power here!
Aires the Ram
@youarederanged: Ah! But according to all these leftists, Martha’s Vineyard will be under water in 10 years anyway. I’m sure the Obamas took that into consideration when making the decision to sink 15 million dollars into it. Don’t you think? Hmmmmm
youarederanged
@Aires Yeah, there is nothing that illustrates how phony liberals are more than their horrible carbon footprints, massive mansions, private jets, etc., while claiming it’s a life or death end of the world thing. It’s hilarious to watch.
PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS
There must be some crazy unimaginable raunchy freaky thit on that video!!
Cam
The frantic hysteria of the right wing trolls on this thread is very telling.
Mack
Must be LCR. And yes DADT was signed by a Democratic President with a majority right wing Congress that could have made it a lot worst had they wanted to since they could have overridden his veto but don’t let truth get in the way of the bullshit ‘youarederanged’ is putting out.
truthseeker
@Cam
The only “frantic hysteria” I’m seeing is from you. You’ve commented 9 times on this topic already. That (at this moment) is over 27% of the comments
You must be desperate for those ShareBlue / MediaMatters nickels today
Mack
Yes the Democrats had control for 2 years. But they spent that 2 years trying to bring the US back from a disastrous situation cause by George W Bush and his stupidity. Then the spent the time on healthcare for the whole country. Excuse the Democrats for trying to help the WHOLE NATION vs a specific group.
youarederanged
Wow. You are deep in delusions. Here’s a fact for you. Every politician and political group has one purpose and that is to get and maintain power. Every move, every position, every policy is based on that one goal. No party is fighting for the whole nation. They all pander and they all go after specific groups. That’s the way it works. Dems and Repubs are exactly the same in that regard, so let’s not exalt one side as saviors when clearly they are political gamers just like the other side.
screwtop
Just when I think that revolting man at 1600 Pennsy couldn’t POSSIBLY get any worse, he does it all over again, in spades! Since breakfast time, I’ve seen two different photos of him showing how he’s mutating and his face is starting to clone-copy Mitch McConnell’s – then another couple of shots showing how similar he is (when he’s not making faces like McConnell) to Britain’s Boris Johnson. Now he’s bashing gays & lesbians, like the homophobe he is – his sex life as a heterosexual is utterly disgusting. And he’s at it again, proving how completely brainless he is. Only a total moron could dream up such ridiculous arguments. If it’s OK to fire someone for not adhering to sexual stereotypes, then Dumbo Tramp can be fired too! Because he’s been live on television, telling the 6:30 news how abhorrent his sex life has been, as a twisted heterosexual.
tjr101
Shameless gay republicans are out in force trying to deflect.
TheMarc
Rather sincerely, I feel that I am repeating the theme of other great comments I’ve read here. But there is a simple truth. No one should be fired based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. period. Any true conservative would have no problem agreeing that someone should be judged on their ability to perform the job. Anyone that continues to foster the belief that the Trump administration is pro-LGBT is delusional. And I don’t mean that in a hyperbolic sense. I mean seriously delusional. Democrat, Republican, Independent…it doesn’t matter. This is a matter of one of the most basic and necessary rights we MUST have. The right to work. Filing that brief is optional. This administration CHOSE to stand in the way of basic human rights. If that doesn’t tell you where their priorities lie, I don’t know what will. Maybe Pence getting his wish by having us stoned in the town square?
youarederanged
I was really liking what you had to say until you took it ultra deranged. If you actually believe Pence wants gay Americans to be stoned, you honestly should go seek professional help. He may not support all of our positions and has his own religious beliefs, which I personally think are crazy, but he is not a violence seeking mass murderer who wants to stone hundreds of thousands or even millions of Americans. Give me a break dude.
TheMarc
So you take one hyperbolic line to try to discredit my complete statement? Nice try. How much do professional trolls make by the way?
Cam
@truthseeker
It’s cute that you switched screenames from “youarederanged” but apparently forgot you had and kept answering posts that were made to that screename.
PLEASE…..send us some SMARTER right wing troll accounts. The ones we have are just too bad at this!
youarederanged
Fake news. I am the one and only me. Good try though DCGuy.
Aires the Ram
The fact remains, in the 55 years since the enactment of the Civil Rights Act, we’ve had a Democrat President for 25 of those years, and a Republican President for 30 of those years, and nobody has done a G.D. thing about adding sexual orientation to the federal civil rights statutes. It’s going to take a grass roots effort to bring this about, just like it took a grass roots effort to bring about the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in the first f-ing place.
youarederanged
Exactly! Well said. And demonizing one side as all evil is not going to get that done.
Cam
Translation:
Republicans are attacking LGBTQ civil rights, and the two screenames from the same troll account keep trying to deflect.
Kangol2
@AirestheRam, you have just told a bald-face lie to defend the GOP. Again. .
The Employer Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) has been repeatedly introduced by Democrats over the last 26 years. REPEATEDLY. To say that “nobody has done a G.D. thing about adding sexual orientation to the federal civil rights statutes” is a blatant lie that flies in the face of reality. In fact, “ENDA has been introduced in every Congress since 1994 except the 109th. Similar legislation has been introduced without passage since 1974.[1]”
In fact, it was almost passed, and guess why it didn’t? “The bill gained its best chance at passing after the Democratic Party gained the majority after twelve years of Republican majorities in the 2006 midterm elections. In 2007, gender identity protections were added to the legislation for the first time. Some sponsors believed that even with a Democratic majority, ENDA did not have enough votes to pass the House of Representatives with transgender inclusion and dropped it from the bill, which passed the House and then died in the Senate. President George W. Bush threatened to veto the measure. LGBT advocacy organizations and the LGBT community were divided over support of the modified bill.”
GEORGE W. BUSH!
Barack Obama repeatedly supported the law, as a US Senator, and then as US president, but could not pass the law in 2011, when it came very close, because the new GOP majority in the House would not allow it.
But the basic point is, Democrats have introduced such legislation every single Congress since 1994, and a majority of Republicans, including Republican presidents, like the current one, have opposed it.