ICYMI: John Kelly Finally Lets Loose on Trump. Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman, the former National Security Council aide and impeachment witness President Donald Trump fired Friday, was just doing his job, former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly told students and guests at a Drew University event here Wednesday night. Over a 75-minute speech and Q&A session, Kelly laid out, in the clearest terms yet, his misgivings about Trump's words and actions regarding North Korea, illegal immigration, military discipline, Ukraine, and the news media.

And Trump responds:

….which he actually has a military and legal obligation to do. His incredible wife, Karen, who I have a lot of respect for, once pulled me aside & said strongly that “John respects you greatly. When we are no longer here, he will only speak well of you.” Wrong!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 13, 2020

VETO IN 3, 2, 1: Eight Republicans join Democrats to pass Senate measure to limit President Trump's war powers against Iran

TWEET OF THE DAY: George Takei blasts Rush Limbaugh over anti-gay attack against Pete Buttigieg.

Rush Limbaugh asked how parents would explain to their kids @PeteButtigieg kissing his husband @Chas10Buttigieg.

Easy. They're in love and married.

That's a whole lot easier than explaining why a misogynistic, racist, homophobe has a damn Presidential Medal of Frredom.
— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) February 12, 2020

QUEERS AGAINST PETE: The LGBT Opposition to Buttigieg, Explained

CONDRAGULATIONS: AOC Is Joining “RuPaul's Drag Race” as a Guest Judge. AOC isn't the first politician to be on the show as of late — Nancy Pelosi visited the queens of All Stars 3 back in 2018. But AOC has been a Drag Race fan for a while, tweeting her love in the past and even stopping by season 9 winner Sasha Velour‘s show in Washington D.C.

I've been a huge fan for years. If enough NYC-area supporters are down, I'll host an Ocasio2018 watch party for AS3. 💜
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 19, 2018

CLASS ACT: Michelle Obama will have a second California school named after her.

HOT STUFF: “The Thing About Harry” Is the Gay Rom-Com Jake Borelli Wish He Had Growing Up

LATE-NIGHT CLIP OF THE DAY: Jimmy Fallon, Janet Jackson & The Roots Sing “Runaway” (Classroom Instruments)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOXTBuXILiQ&feature=emb_logo

CUPID FLICK PICKS: Valentine's Day movies to stream on Netflix.

HIS BAD: Snoop Dogg Has Apologized To Gayle King For His Tirade Against Her Over Her Kobe Bryant Questions

EAT THE RICH: Jeff Bezos dropped $165 million for an LA estate, a love shack for Lauren Sanchez

WEAR PROTECTION: Gay and bisexual men ‘more likely' to suffer skin cancer, study finds. Study authors believe the reason is vanity.

SO LONG, SALEM: Gay Couple Will and Sonny Depart “Days of Our Lives”

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE DAY: Jakk Fynn, “Special”

THIRSTY THURSDAY: Bryce Willard Smithe

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Black history is decadent. It goes so far back and is often deeply affirming on so many levels for other black men and women but is largely hard to access . So many poem books can be so hard to find. Never translated or stored in so few places. I wanna try to share some excerpts this month to make the words of these men and women a little more accessible. Here is an excerpt from the poem “Cordon Negro” by Essex Hemphill written in 1992, the year I was born…… . . . I drink champagne in the morning instead of leaving my house with an M16 and nowhere to go I die twice as fast as any other american between eighteen and thirty-five this disturbs me I try not to show it in public Each morning I open my eyes is a miracle The blessing of opening them is temporary on any given day I could be taken out I could go off I could forget to be careful Even my brothers, hunted, hunt me I'm the only one who values my life and sometimes I don't give a damn my love life can kill me I'm faced daily with choosing violence or a demeanor that saves every other life but my own I won't cross over it's time someone came to me not to patronize me physically, sexually or humorously… -Essex Hemphill Pic somewhat unrealated but feels appropriate. 📸: @gregory_vaughan_ (The hashtags i would need to use to make sure this gets seen cause me to roll my eyes so severely that i fear they may never return to normal… so i will leave it blank.)

A post shared by Bryce Willard Smithe (@brycewillardsmithe) on Feb 4, 2020 at 1:28pm PST