“Dennis Rodman was a great basketball player. And as a diplomat, he is a great basketball player. And that’s where we’ll leave it.”
—And there you have it, the best quote of the day, courtesy of Secretary of State John Kerry, in reference to Rodman’s bizarre journey to North Korea.
“Here’s the big question before the country and the world and the State Department: After the last eight years, can a man actually run the State Department? As the saying goes, I have big heels to fill.”
—New U.S. Secretary of State JOHN KERRY, on his first day of work at the State Department. He succeeds Hillary Clinton and Condoleeza Rice as the first man to hold that post in eight years.
“Dennis Rodman was a great basketball player. And as a diplomat, he is a great basketball player. And that's where we'll leave it.”
—U.S. Secretary of State JOHN KERRY, dissing our new North Korean envoy. (via the New York Post)“But eliminating Title X funding and putting Planned Parenthood out of the business of providing preventative health care to Medicaid patients is not about fiscal responsibility. It makes no fiscal sense to stop investing in programs that have a proven track record in saving money, and saving lives. Quite simply, without the care Planned Parenthood provides - without access to Pap smears, pelvic exams and breast exams - women will die.”
—Sen. John Kerry, Kerry: Money, lives and Planned Parenthood
“I will be a passionate advocate on this not based on ideology but based on facts and science, and I hope to sit with all of you and convince you that this $6 trillion market is worth millions of American jobs and we better go after it.”
—Secretary of State nominee John Kerry pledges to confront climate change.
Overall, great comments today at his confirmation hearing. Watch it.
John Kerry urges LGBT-friendly financial aid
advocate.comSen. John Kerry is leading the way in asking the federal government to make financial aid a little easier to come by for transgender students or students of same-sex parents.
For trans students, filling out the FAFSA, which determines financial aid, can be difficult and unhelpful because the name and gender information students provide may not match their official documentation. Kerry called this issue “disturbing” and wants to find a way to fix it.
Kerry also asked that students with same-sex parents not be short-changed because their parents’ relationship receives fewer benefits due to DOMA. From the Advocate:
“I request that you consider ways to clarify the FAFSA for applicants who have same-sex parents and for students who are gay and transgender,” Kerry wrote. “I also ask that you consider the whole of the financial aid process — beginning to end — from the perspective of these applicants and make any possible modifications that would improve the application and reward procedures for all applicants.”
Kerry’s turning out to be quite the ally. These changes could make a big difference for lots of students, so hopefully more people get behind them.
