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Breaking: Russian Bill Banning ‘Public Demonstration Of Homosexuality’ Dies In Committee

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In a surprise move, Russian lawmakers voted against a bill that would fine or imprison gay people for coming out, or even holding hands.

The Russian House Committee for Constitutional Law just voted unanimously against a bill that would have further criminalized homosexuality. The legislation, drafted by Communist Caucus members Ivan Nikitchuk and Nikolai Arefyev, would have allowed for fines and even prison time for the “crime” of coming out as gay or even for holding hands. The two lawmakers said the bill was created in response to requests from constituents.

The bill would have criminalized “anyone who shows ‘distorted sexual preferences’ in public places to be fined between 4000 and 5000 rubles ($53-$66),” RT reports. “Similar actions in educational or cultural establishments should carry up to 15 days in jail, the draft reads.”

Watch: Vladimir Putin Tells CBS News There Is ‘No Persecution’ Of LGBT People In Russia

RT claims that “when the bill was initially introduced in October 2015 it met with sharp criticism from all sections of Russian society, including even the main sponsor of a 2013 law banning gay propaganda to minors, St. Petersburg city lawmaker Vitaly Milonov.”

Human Rights Watch noted before the vote that the “State Duma’s Legal Directorate concluded in its review that the Communists’ bill was unclear and vague,” which may have contributed to its demise today. It would not be surprising to see a new version drafted and submitted for review and a vote in the future.

But Vladimir Putin‘s anti-gay laws, which also banned public displays of affection or the so-called “promotion of homosexuality” were supported by 88 percent of Russians.

Putin’s anti-LGBT policies strengthened and emboldened an already homophobic culture, allowing violent sexual assaults and kidnapping of Russian men, especially younger men, to go ignored.

 

EARLIER:

Proposed Russian Law Would Jail Gays For Displaying ‘Personal Perverted Sexual Preferences’

Vladimir Putin: If Gay People Marry, Russians Will Stop Having Children

1 Million Views In 1 Day: Video Of Reactions To Two ‘Gay’ Men Holding Hands In Moscow Goes Viral

 

Image: Screenshot via ChebuRussiaTV/YouTube

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‘Massive Shift’: FCC Chair Says Local TV Will ‘Decide What the American People Think’

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Explaining the “massive shift” he intends to impose on the focus of the Federal Communications Commission, Chairman Brendan Carr announced that he will take America back to the era when local television stations shaped what the American people “think.”

“So again,” Carr told Fox News on Thursday, “we’re going back to that era when local TV stations, judging the public interest, get to decide what the American people think.”

“And again, we’re constraining the power through those actions of Disney, of Comcast. And I think the American public can be much better off. But, yeah, I don’t think this is the last shoe to drop,” he said, appearing to refer to the suspension of ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel.

READ MORE: Trump Labels Flag Burning, Organized Protests ‘Incitement to Riot’

“This is a massive shift that’s taking place in the media ecosystem, and I think the consequences are going to  continue to flow,” he declared.

On Thursday, speaking aboard Air Force One, President Donald Trump wrongly suggested that broadcast networks, licensed by the FCC, are “not allowed” to criticize him.

“When you have a network and you have evening shows and all they do is hit Trump, that’s all they do — if you go back, I guess they haven’t had a conservative one in years, or something — when you go back and take a look, all they do is hit Trump. They’re licensed. They’re not allowed to do that,” Trump said.

Carr is one of the authors of The Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025. President Donald Trump praised Carr as “a warrior for Free Speech,” CBS News reported last year.

There are few “local” television stations left in the U.S., in the sense that nearly all are owned by several major broadcast conglomerates, including Nexstar Media Group, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Gray Television, Tegna, Hearst, and Scripps.

READ MORE: ‘Corrupt Abuse of Power’: Dems Rip FCC Chair Over Kimmel Suspension

 

Image via Reuters

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Trump Labels Flag Burning, Organized Protests ‘Incitement to Riot’

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President Donald Trump, explaining his controversial decision to attempt to label Antifa a terrorist organization, said burning the American flag is an “incitement to riot,” as are organized protests — which he claimed lead to “death.”

“They have signs and they’re all professionally made,” Trump told Fox News’ Martha MacCallum on Thursday, apparently referring to those suspected of celebrating the murder of Charlie Kirk, NBC News reported. “Real protesters make them in their basement.”

After suggesting without offering any evidence that philanthropist George Soros might be behind organized protests, Trump declared, “it’s incitement to riot. That’s a criminal act. And people are dying because of it. So it’s really, you know, it’s death.”

Speaking about his executive order to designate Antifa — which is not an organized group and it does it have leaders — a terrorist group, Trump said, “They are.”

READ MORE: ‘All They Do Is Hit Trump’: President Says Networks ‘Not Allowed to Do That’

Asked, “do you believe that there is a vast terrorist movement in the United States that people need to be aware of, and is it responsible for Charlie Kirk’s killing, for the attempts on your life, for these CEOs that we saw in New York City?” Trump replied, “You never know, and we’ll find out, maybe.”

“But in the meantime, we’re gonna do a big thing with respect to Antifa. It’s a sick group, a very, very sick group.”

“They love burning the American flag. I think it’s terrible that they burn the American flag. And we’re saying it incites riots, and therefore, you go to jail for one year, if you burn the American flag.”

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that it is not illegal to burn the American flag, it is a protected form of free speech.

READ MORE: ‘Corrupt Abuse of Power’: Dems Rip FCC Chair Over Kimmel Suspension

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‘All They Do Is Hit Trump’: President Says Networks ‘Not Allowed to Do That’

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President Donald Trump has been claiming that the ABC suspended late night host Jimmy Kimmel because of poor ratings, but he shared a different thought on Thursday about what the future of network television might entail.

“When you have a network and you have evening shows and all they do is hit Trump, that’s all they do — if you go back, I guess they haven’t had a conservative one in years, or something — when you go back and take a look, all they do is hit Trump. They’re licensed. They’re not allowed to do that,” Trump said, according to CNN’s Kaitlan Collins.

The Independent added that President Trump “told reporters on Air Force One as he jets back from his State visit to the U.K. that because he won the election and networks give him ‘wholly bad publicity,’ that ‘I would think maybe their license should be taken away.'”

“It will be up to Brendan Carr. I think Brendan Carr is outstanding. He’s a patriot. He loves our country, and he’s a tough guy,” the president said, referring to the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission.

READ MORE: ‘Corrupt Abuse of Power’: Dems Rip FCC Chair Over Kimmel Suspension

 

Image via Reuters

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