What Mike Pence Had to Do to Overcome Opposition to Betsy DeVos’s Nomination (Video)

@ 2026 Equal Entertainment LLC.
All rights reserved

What Mike Pence Had to Do to Overcome Opposition to Betsy DeVos
In response to the vice president's tie-breaking vote to break the deadlocked U.S. Senate and confirm DeVos as Education secretary, her opponents are threatening to homeschool their children.
 Dawn Ennis
          
          Feb 07, 2017
          
        
Dawn Ennis
The Advocate's news editor Dawn Ennis successfully transitioned from broadcast journalism to online media following another transition that made headlines; in 2013, she became the first trans staffer in any major TV network newsroom. As the first out transgender editor at The Advocate, the native New Yorker continues her 30-year media career, in which she has earned more than a dozen awards, including two Emmys. With the blessing of her three children, Dawn retains the most important job title she's ever held: Dad.
 See Full Bio 
                  Follow:
                  

        
        FROM OUR SPONSORS
        
    

        
        The Latest
        
    
News
        Budapest mayor charged for supporting Pride march
    Hungary had banned public LGBTQ+ events before the parade.
Jack Walker
National
        Alex Pretti 'had a way of lighting up every room he walked into'
    The nurse shot and killed by federal agents "touched more lives than he probably ever realized," said his sister Micayla Pretti.
Alyssa Chen
Education
        Trump's Education Dept. claims San José State violated Title IX with trans inclusion in women's sports
    Administration officials want the university to apologize to women athletes, ban trans women, and more.
Trudy Ring
National
        Bruce Springsteen releases anti-ICE protest song, honoring Renee Good and Alex Pretti
    The rock legend said he wrote 'Streets of Minneapolis' on Saturday following Pretti's killing.
Max Nesterak

        
        More For You
        
        ‘We keep us safe’: Thousands of LGBTQ+ activists and organizers gathered in D.C. for equality
    
Christopher Wiggins
Jan 28, 2026
National LGBTQ Task Force executive director Kierra Johnson addresses the crowd at Creating Change 2026 in Washington, D.C. 

        National LGBTQ+ Task Force/YouTube
    
        About 2,000 activists, organizers, and supporters of LGBTQ+ rights from across the country gathered in Washington, D.C., last week for Creating Change 2026, the National LGBTQ Task Force’s flagship annual conference. Keep Reading →

        Meet the activist who wants people living with HIV to know they’re still sexy
    
Ryan Adamczeski
Jan 28, 2026
Executive director Andrew Spieldenner speaks at the MPACT Global AIDs conference (July 28, 2022).

        Photo by Daniel Guevara courtesy of MPACT Global
    
        Andrew Spieldenner's favorite superhero growing up wasn't Superman, Batman, or Wonder Woman — it was Color Kid. Keep Reading →

        Trump admin targets Minnesota for allowing trans girls to participate in sports
    
Kate Sosin
Jan 27, 2026
The Trump administration on Monday targeted Minnesota schools, saying they have violated federal law by allowing transgender girls to play sports with their peers. 
DCStockPhotography/Shuttershock.com
    
        This story was originally reported by Kate Sosin of The 19th. Meet Kate and read more of their reporting on gender, politics and policy. Keep Reading →

        Democrats push for commission investigating anti-LGBTQ+ military policies
    
Trudy Ring
Jan 27, 2026
From left: Nicolas Talbott and Bree Fram are among those affected by Trump's trans military ban.

        Courtesy subjects
    
        On the first anniversary of Donald Trump’s executive order announcing his renewed ban on transgender people in the military, Democrats in Congress Tuesday reintroduced a bill to establish a commission to investigate the impact of discriminatory policies on LGBTQ+ service members and veterans. Keep Reading →

        ‘Nothing about what is going on here is normal’: A fight over evidence in Good, Pretti cases
    
Brian Martucci
Jan 27, 2026
Lena lights a candle at a growing memorial site at 26th Street West and Nicollet Avenue, where federal agents shot and killed 37-year-old Alex Pretti Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026 earlier in the day.

        Nicole Neri/Minnesota Reformer
    
        Hours after Gov. Tim Walz said President Donald Trump was open to an independent state investigation into the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents this month, Minnesota state and local lawyers told a federal judge Monday that they had reason to believe federal agencies wouldn’t follow through. Keep Reading →

        Most Popular
        
News
        Alex Pretti’s killers placed on administrative leave as Kristi Noem’s story of the shooting unravels
    After days of outrage, two federal agents with the Department of Homeland Security, who shot and killed the ICU nurse, have been sidelined.
Christopher Wiggins
Arts & Entertainment
        10 of the sexiest music videos that gagged everyone in 2025
    These celebrities brought the sex appeal in their steamy videos this year.
Ricky Cornish
People
        Drag queen felt 'helpless and gaslit,' so she created her viral Erika Kirk act & broke the internet
    "So many things feel so insane, so not-normal, and it feels like no one is addressing it," drag queen Lauren Banall told PRIDE.
Ariel Messman-Rucker
Arts & Entertainment
        Heated Rivalry's Hudson Williams is a mouthful in splashy new photo shoot
    The actor discussed his dynamics with Heated Rivalry costar Connor Storrie, his polarizing runway debut for Dsquared2, and how he's keeping himself grounded.
Bernardo Sim
News
        Here are Minnesota groups that need your help organizing against ICE and DHS operations
    Here are some mutual aid groups in Minnesota that need donations and volunteers. 
Ryan Adamczeski
Opinion
        Tim Cook chooses riches over justice and coddles the evil ways of dictator Trump
    Opinion: While Americans were reeling from the killing of Alex Pretti in Minnesota, Tim Cook chose to attend a nauseatingly tone-deaf screening of a glossy documentary about Melania Trump. A vanity project soaked in controversy and obscene money, writes John Casey.
John Casey

Site Navigation

What Mike Pence Had to Do to Overcome Opposition to Betsy DeVos

In response to the vice president's tie-breaking vote to break the deadlocked U.S. Senate and confirm DeVos as Education secretary, her opponents are threatening to homeschool their children.

The Latest

Budapest mayor charged for supporting Pride march

Hungary had banned public LGBTQ+ events before the parade.

Alex Pretti 'had a way of lighting up every room he walked into'

The nurse shot and killed by federal agents "touched more lives than he probably ever realized," said his sister Micayla Pretti.

Trump's Education Dept. claims San José State violated Title IX with trans inclusion in women's sports

Administration officials want the university to apologize to women athletes, ban trans women, and more.

Bruce Springsteen releases anti-ICE protest song, honoring Renee Good and Alex Pretti

The rock legend said he wrote 'Streets of Minneapolis' on Saturday following Pretti's killing.

The 50 Biggest Homophobes of the Last 50 Years

'Pink coat lady' who filmed Alex Pretti's killing speaks out: 'It could be any of us'

‘Ground is clearly shifting’ against Trump as Americans rise up in Minneapolis, Pete Buttigieg says

Tim Cook and Sam Altman refuse to condemn Trump admin after Alex Pretti’s killing

More For You

‘We keep us safe’: Thousands of LGBTQ+ activists and organizers gathered in D.C. for equality

Meet the activist who wants people living with HIV to know they’re still sexy

Trump admin targets Minnesota for allowing trans girls to participate in sports

Democrats push for commission investigating anti-LGBTQ+ military policies

‘Nothing about what is going on here is normal’: A fight over evidence in Good, Pretti cases

Most Popular

Alex Pretti’s killers placed on administrative leave as Kristi Noem’s story of the shooting unravels

After days of outrage, two federal agents with the Department of Homeland Security, who shot and killed the ICU nurse, have been sidelined.

10 of the sexiest music videos that gagged everyone in 2025

These celebrities brought the sex appeal in their steamy videos this year.

Drag queen felt 'helpless and gaslit,' so she created her viral Erika Kirk act & broke the internet

"So many things feel so insane, so not-normal, and it feels like no one is addressing it," drag queen Lauren Banall told PRIDE.

Heated Rivalry's Hudson Williams is a mouthful in splashy new photo shoot

The actor discussed his dynamics with Heated Rivalry costar Connor Storrie, his polarizing runway debut for Dsquared2, and how he's keeping himself grounded.

Here are Minnesota groups that need your help organizing against ICE and DHS operations

Here are some mutual aid groups in Minnesota that need donations and volunteers.

Tim Cook chooses riches over justice and coddles the evil ways of dictator Trump

Opinion: While Americans were reeling from the killing of Alex Pretti in Minnesota, Tim Cook chose to attend a nauseatingly tone-deaf screening of a glossy documentary about Melania Trump. A vanity project soaked in controversy and obscene money, writes John Casey.

Latest Stories

Stay informed on important LGBTQ+ news.

What Mike Pence Had to Do to Overcome Opposition to Betsy DeVos

In response to the vice president's tie-breaking vote to break the deadlocked U.S. Senate and confirm DeVos as Education secretary, her opponents are threatening to homeschool their children.

FROM OUR SPONSORS

The Latest

Hungary had banned public LGBTQ+ events before the parade.

The nurse shot and killed by federal agents "touched more lives than he probably ever realized," said his sister Micayla Pretti.

Administration officials want the university to apologize to women athletes, ban trans women, and more.

The rock legend said he wrote 'Streets of Minneapolis' on Saturday following Pretti's killing.

More For You

Most Popular

After days of outrage, two federal agents with the Department of Homeland Security, who shot and killed the ICU nurse, have been sidelined.

These celebrities brought the sex appeal in their steamy videos this year.

"So many things feel so insane, so not-normal, and it feels like no one is addressing it," drag queen Lauren Banall told PRIDE.

The actor discussed his dynamics with Heated Rivalry costar Connor Storrie, his polarizing runway debut for Dsquared2, and how he's keeping himself grounded.

Here are some mutual aid groups in Minnesota that need donations and volunteers.

Opinion: While Americans were reeling from the killing of Alex Pretti in Minnesota, Tim Cook chose to attend a nauseatingly tone-deaf screening of a glossy documentary about Melania Trump. A vanity project soaked in controversy and obscene money, writes John Casey.