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Florida parents file lawsuit against state transgender youth care ban

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Four Florida families filed a lawsuit Thursday in federal court against Florida’s Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, Board of Medicine, and Board of Osteopathic Medicine, over the state ban against gender-affirming care for transgender youth.

The ban prohibits puberty blockers, hormones, cross-hormone therapy and gender-affirming surgery for people under the age of 18. The families behind the lawsuit have transgender youth who would be impacted by the restriction.

The families say they fear for their children’s mental and physical health as some studies have shown gender-affirming care has been found to improve mental health of transgender youth.

According to the press release regarding the suit, the Does are a military family who moved to Florida when John Doe was stationed there as a Senior Officer in the U.S. Navy. Jane Doe said she has concerns about her 11-year-old daughter receiving the care she needs.

“Like most parents, my husband and I want nothing more than for our daughter to be healthy, happy, and safe,” said Jane Doe, concerning her 11-year-old daughter, in the release. “Being able to consult with our team of doctors to understand what our daughter is experiencing and make the best, most informed decisions about her care has been critically important for our family.”

She continued, “This ban takes away our right to provide her with the next step in her recommended treatment when she reaches puberty.”

Another family, called the Boes for anonymity, are also challenging the ban on behalf of their 14-year-old son.

“This ban puts me and other Florida parents in the nightmare position of not being able to help our child when they need us most,” said Brenda Boe. “My son has a right to receive appropriate, evidence-based medical care … That has been ripped away by this cruel and discriminatory rule.”

Gender-affirming care has been targeted across the country – with at least eight states with policies or laws that restrict it.

However, major national medical associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and over 20 more agree that gender-affirming care is safe, effective, beneficial, and medically necessary for transgender people.

In an email from the Department of Health to ABC News, a spokesperson responded with a gif of Gov. Ron DeSantis that stated “If you want to waste your time on a stunt, that’s fine. But I’m not wasting my time on your stunt.”

Ladapo, the Board of Medicine, and Board of Osteopathic Medicine have not yet responded to ABC News’ request for comment.

Rhode Island bill would give autistic drivers option for special license

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(PROVIDENCE, R.I.) — For autistic drivers, a police stop or emergency while driving can be a scary situation, according to Joanne G. Quinn, the executive director of the non-profit, The Autism Project.

Sirens, flashing lights, and a law enforcement member asking questions can be too much to handle for someone who is autistic, Quinn, who has an autistic son, told ABC News.

“There is no way to know how you’ll react in one of those encounters,” she said. “And sometimes individuals’ reactions or how they answer a question can get them into trouble with an officer who doesn’t know they’re autistic.”

A bill introduced in the Rhode Island House of Representatives this week would give autistic drivers an option to alert others about their disability with special designations on their license and vehicle.

Lawmakers said it would improve the safety of autistic drivers, however, some advocates argued that in its current form, the specialized license could lead to discrimination and harassment.

Rhode Island House Rep. Samuel Azzinaro introduced the bill that would allow the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles to offer an optional driver’s license “that is clearly marked ‘autism,'” and decals that are “marked ‘autism'” that can be affixed to a vehicle in a “conspicuous place,” according to the legislation’s current language.

Drivers would also have the option of receiving blue envelopes that contain “information regarding ways to enhance effective communication between a police officer and a person with autism spectrum disorder,” the bill said.

Connecticut launched a similar blue envelope program for autistic drivers in 2020.

Quinn said she supported the bill’s purpose, because it would help resolve an ongoing issue affecting the autistic community, which is communication between them and law enforcement.

She said first responder academies have been improving their training to understand how to communicate with autistic individuals properly, and her group has made videos to educate those departments about the community.

However, Quinn said there is still work to be done, especially when it comes to emergencies, and a designated license and information card would go a long way.

“Either it’s a pullover or a crash, they see the [marker], hopefully, they are educated to know what it is, and in the glove compartment is information about the driver,” Quinn said. “The purpose for our community is if it’s a stop in the highway it gives the officer a heads up.”

During a hearing on the bill Wednesday, some autistic residents also expressed support. Toby Silva, a 17-year-old Rhode Island resident who spoke through an electronic device, told lawmakers that he researched the Connecticut law and said Rhode Island would benefit from similar options for drivers.

“The goal is to avoid misunderstanding between the officer and the driver,” he said.

Some advocates, however, warned that putting an autistic person’s disability in big letters on an official ID can lead to problems.

Mireille Sayaf, the executive director of the Ocean State Center For Independent Living, sent a letter to the House of Representatives’ Health & Human Services Committee Wednesday, noting that such a designation on an official identification document would “lead to stereotyping and breaches of the individual’s confidentiality.”

“While the intent behind the bill to improve interactions with law enforcement is good, we feel that there are less intrusive ways to accomplish this goal that would lead to less stigma for persons on the autism spectrum,” she wrote.

Quinn said she agreed that the wording or markings on those special licenses and car decals must be more discreet.

“There should be another way, like a blue dot, or strip that is subtle and law enforcement should be informed about it,” she said.

Azzinaro, who didn’t immediately return messages to ABC News’ request for comment, told the committee that the bill’s language is not final and he is open to tweaking it based on the community’s input.

He also told the committee that he would consider a recommendation for drivers to apply for a special placard on their dashboard.

Quinn said whatever comes of the bill, it is important that lawmakers hear more from autistic drivers and residents, and she encouraged the community to weigh in.

“We need the neurodivergent voice and we need them at the table to tell us what works best for them,” she said.

Rapper Taxstone convicted of shooting bodyguard during New York concert

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Darryl Campbell, better known as the rapper and hip-hop podcaster Taxstone, was convicted Thursday in New York of manslaughter in connection with the 2016 shooting of a bodyguard during a concert at Irving Plaza.

A jury in Manhattan found Taxstone guilty of shooting and killing Ronald McPhatter and seriously injuring three others.

He will be sentenced next month for what District Attorney Alvin Bragg called a “tragic and deadly confrontation in a packed New York City music venue.”

The shooting stemmed from a longtime feud Taxstone had with Roland Collins, known as rapper Troy Ave, who testified against him, prosecutors said. McPhatter was Troy Ave’s bodyguard.

Rapper TI was performing when the shots were fired. Troy Ave was on deck to perform.

Fall Out Boy teases “This Ain’t a Scene” sequel with “Hold Me Like a Grudge” video

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Fall Out Boy‘s next video will deliver a long-awaited sequel.

On Friday, the group will premiere the clip for “Hold Me Like a Grudge,” a track off the band’s upcoming album, So Much (for) Stardust. In a tweet Thursday, Fall Out Boy shares that the video will be a “continuation” of the visual for their 2006 single “This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race.”

The “This Ain’t a Scene” video, of course, is a sequel itself — it picks up at the end of the video for 2005’s “Dance, Dance.” Perhaps “Hold Me Like a Grudge” will mark the conclusion of a trilogy.

So Much (for) Stardust will also be released Friday. It includes the previously released singles “Love from the Other Side” and “Heartbreak Feels So Good.”

Report: Cameron Crowe developing Joni Mitchell movie

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

We may soon see Joni Mitchell’s life on the big screen. The website Above The Line is reporting that Oscar-winning filmmaker Cameron Crowe is planning to write and direct a movie about the legendary singer, and has been working on it with Mitchell for the past two years.

The report claims the film won’t be a “traditional biopic in the conventional sense of the word,” adding that it’s not a documentary either, describing it as “akin to an autobiography.” A source says Mitchell’s story will be told in Crowe’s “singular voice,” so it will be from his point of view, as opposed to hers.

Mitchell and Crowe have been friends for a while — he even escorted her to Clive Davis’ pre-Grammy party in 2017, just two years after she suffered a brain aneurysm. He also interviewed her for the Los Angeles Times in 2021 in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of her legendary album Blue.

The movie will be the first one Crowe has written and directed since 2015’s Aloha, although since then he created the 2016 Showtime series Roadies and directed the 2019 David Crosby documentary David Crosby: Remember My Name.

House Republicans fail to override Biden’s 1st presidential veto

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The Republican-led House failed on Thursday to override President Joe Biden’s veto of a resolution that would have prevented retirement fund managers from accounting for certain social factors when making investment decisions.

The vote was 219-200 in favor of overcoming the veto, but a two-thirds majority vote is needed.

The House initially passed H.J. Res. 30 on Feb. 28 with the support of all Republicans and one Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden of Maine. It took on the issue of environmental, social and governance (ESG), specifically whether retirement fund managers covered under federal law may include that strategy in their calculus.

ESG — labeled by critics as “woke capitalism” — has become a major target by conservatives who say it is unfair to certain companies, including in the oil and gas industry, and can be bad for investors. Supporters of the policy say it guides them to invest in issues they believe help society and reflects changing trends.

Following Biden’s veto on Monday, the first of his presidency, House Republicans took up the issue again. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., said his conference would continue to fight against ESG.

“House Republicans will keep fighting to overturn this rule allowing ESG investing and to make sure Americans are getting the best retirement they can, not the most woke,” the leader wrote in his weekly floor lookout.

But the vote to override Biden’s veto — the House GOP’s first attempt to do so in the new Congress — was always unlikely to succeed. The measure needed two-thirds of the lower chamber’s support to advance to the Senate, where it would also need a two-thirds majority vote.

While there is a slim Republican majority in the House, the GOP is in the minority in the Senate.

Legislative action on the ESG issue came after a Labor Department rule under Biden took effect at the beginning of February allowing retirement fund managers to consider ESG factors. But it is an issue Republicans in Congress oppose because they say it is wrong to consider non-financial variables, like climate change.

House Republicans quickly introduced a resolution to block the Biden administration’s rule, which gained sufficient support in both chambers of Congress. After H.J. Res. 30 passed the House, it passed the Senate on March 1 with the bipartisan support of Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Jon Tester of Montana.

Biden vetoed the measure on Monday, saying then that the Department of Labor’s rule “protects the hard-earned life savings and pensions of tens of millions of workers and retirees across the country.”

ABC News’ Lauren Peller contributed to this report.

Biden uses 13th anniversary of Affordable Care Act passage to hammer Republicans on health care

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden marked the 13th anniversary of the passage of the Affordable Care Act in the same room where he once whispered in President Obama’s ear that enacting the legislation was a “big f—— deal.”

Biden cheekily recalled the hot-mic moment on Thursday, saying he stands by the terminology he used years ago in describing the sweeping health care reform.

“Many of you joined us that day after fighting for decades to make it happen, and I remember three words I used at the time, I thought it was –” Biden said, smiling to invited guests in the White House East Room. “I thought it was a big deal. And I stand by the fact, it was a big deal.”

The landmark health care law was passed in 2010 when Biden was vice president, and he gave high praise to former President Barack Obama for his leadership in securing the “extraordinary achievement.”

“While the Affordable Care Act has been called a lot of things, ‘Obamacare’ is the most fitting description,” Biden said to applause.

But Biden mostly used the event to hammer Republicans over health care policy, making the event resemble more a campaign speech than an anniversary celebration.

“Folks, our MAGA Republican friends — and by that way, I want to be clear: There are some good decent Republicans out there,” Biden said. “But this new crowd, this ain’t your father’s Republican Party.”

The president touted the progress his administration has made to advance health care policy though legislation like the Affordable Care Act and Inflation Reduction Act and warned that Republicans in Congress have not supported the same policies in a divided Washington.

“Folks, look, we’re making health care more affordable in many other ways as well. Last year, I proposed and the Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) which no Republican voted for, even the good ones. I don’t mean ‘good’ in the moral sense. I mean the normal Republican,” he said.

Biden also highlighted recent moves by several pharmaceutical companies to cap the price of insulin — something he called for during his State of the Union address — as well as provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act that will allow for Medicare to negotiate the price of some prescription drugs.

He also repeatedly focused on the fact that Republicans have yet to release their budget proposal and argued that the White House releasing its proposal earlier this month shows where they stand.

“Don’t tell me what you value. Show me your budget, and I will tell you what you value,” he said. “Well, I value everyone having a decent shot. It’s about fairness. It’s about dignity. My budget continues to build on the progress we made in the Affordable Care Act.”

“We still haven’t seen the House Republican budget. They want to negotiate. I say, ‘I’ve laid down my budget on the 9th, you lay down yours, let’s negotiate.’ I don’t know where their budget is. No, I’m serious,” Biden added to laughter.

After his remarks, Biden took time to hold up Democratic Rep. Jimmy Gomez’s son, Hodge, who has become a familiar sight in Washington, including getting on TV during the week-long votes for House speaker.

The president held Hodge close for a few moments, with the seven-month-old baby putting his hands on Biden’s face.

Parkland victim’s dad seen pinned by Capitol Police, arrested after interrupting House hearing

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The father of a student killed in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting was pinned to the ground and briefly arrested at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday afternoon after he loudly protested during a House hearing on what Republicans called federal government “overreach” regarding gun ownership.

Manuel Oliver and his wife, Patricia Oliver, were removed from the House oversight subcommittee hearing by Capitol Police officers at the direction of Chairman Pat Fallon.

The Olivers’ 17-year-old son, Joaquin, was murdered along with 16 other students, faculty and staff in Parkland, Florida, in 2018.

The Olivers have become advocates against gun violence in the years since. Manuel Oliver was previously removed from the White House last year after shouting at President Joe Biden for, he said, not doing enough on the issue.

Patricia Oliver spoke first during Thursday’s proceeding, interrupting Fallon, R-Texas. Manuel Oliver also shouted out, using an expletive as he criticized Republicans on the panel about halfway through the hearing.

Moments after police were directed to remove the Olivers, yelling and a loud thud were heard just outside the hearing room and Manuel Oliver was pinned to the ground by multiple officers, as seen in video captured by ABC News.

It wasn’t immediately clear what happened prior to Manuel Oliver being taken to the ground. One officer told ABC News that he was “resisting” and “moving around.” But his wife told ABC News that he “kept saying the truth” and that officers “didn’t like the way he speaks out.”

Freshman Democratic Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost of Florida — formerly of the group March For Our Lives, founded in the wake of the Parkland shooting — asked the officers what they were doing as they pinned Manuel Oliver and informed them that his son was killed in Parkland.

Capitol Police confirmed to ABC News that Manuel Oliver was arrested, and Patricia Oliver told ABC News within hours that he had been released.

She said that her husband did not lunge or get physical with officers before they took him down. But Capitol Police said in a statement that Manuel Oliver was detained for allegedly crowding, obstructing or incommoding “after he disrupted a hearing, refused to stop shouting, and then attempted to go back inside the hearing room.”

Patricia Oliver denied to ABC News that her husband tried to go back into the hearing.

Manuel Oliver was issued a citation as part of his arrest and wasn’t booked into jail, police said. They noted that his wife wasn’t detained because she “followed the lawful directions of our officers.”

The altercation appears to have begun after Patricia Oliver yelled during the hearing, leading Fallon to call for officers. Frost tweeted afterward that while “Patricia said one thing,” Fallon “escalated the entire situation.”

“You’re breaching protocol and distributing the committee room,” Fallon said at the hearing.

Fallon also scolded his critics in the gallery: “See, this is exactly what we have to avoid, which is some minority of folks trying to silence dissent. Dissent shouldn’t be kryptonite.”

Soon after, he cracked, “Is this an insurrection? So will they be held to the same– I don’t want another Jan. 6, do we?”

As the disruptions continued, Fallon said, “Does the Capitol Police not do their jobs? What in the hell’s going on?”

He then sent the hearing into recess, during which Manuel Oliver was taken into custody, he said. When the proceeding resumed, he addressed the incident.

“Unfortunately, we had some folks that were disruptive during the hearing,” he said. “We asked Capitol Police to remove them, they were then removed and then one decided to come back in while we were still gaveled in … Capitol Police were overwhelmed outside in the hallway and now we’re back in session.”

Rep. David Cicilline, a Rhode Island Democrat who also sits on the subcommittee, told ABC News afterward, “We had people in the room who had become had become activists because they were personally touched by gun violence, and for them to hear elected officials that our answer to gun violence is to get rid of the ATF — I think it was difficult for member of the public to hear.”

Music notes: Kelly Clarkson, Paula Abdul, Katy Perry and Meghan Trainor

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Kelly Clarkson unleashed her Lenny Kravitz energy when performing his hit song “Are You Gonna Go My Way” on her daytime talk show Thursday. She even opened the song with a confident wink before belting out the 1993 smash.

Paula Abdul whipped out the tap shoes to dance to Meghan Trainor‘s “Mother” alongside actress Shariah True and LA-based dancer Kausha Campbell. The video starts with Paula in hair rollers lecturing the younger girls, before the frame changes to show her in full glam and busting out some moves.

Speaking of Meghan, she wants her fans to find themselves “a hype guy” like her bestie Chris Olsen. Apparently she told fans on Instagram she needed a confidence boost when making the “Mother” music video because Kris Jenner was in it. She has since shared a behind-the-scenes video of how the music video was made.

Katy Perry is selling the clothes off her back — kind of. She announced Thursday she’s working with the Nostalgia Store to sell “REAL stage-worn cutie costumes & props from some of my past performances!” She previewed some of the items that will go up for sale on Friday.

Music notes: Kelly Clarkson, Meghan Trainor, Selena Gomez and Katy Perry

March 23, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Meghan Trainor wants her fans to find themselves “a hype guy” like her bestie Chris Olsen. She told fans on Instagram she needed a confidence boost when making the “Mother” music video because Kris Jenner was in it. She has since shared a behind-the-scenes video of how the music video was made.

Victoria Beckham’s son Brooklyn is apparently in a “throuple” with Selena Gomez. He told The Jennifer Hudson Show that he and wife Nicola Peltz are very good friends with Selena, and called her “such a sweet girl.” The trio have vacationed together before, with Brooklyn noting, “I love when my wife makes new friends, especially really great friends.”

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