House GOP blocks Violence Against Women Act

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Yes, yes, I know it's Maddow.

Congress had a lengthy to-do list as the end of the year approached, with a series of measures that needed action before 2013 began. Some of the items passed (a fiscal agreement, a temporary farm bill), while others didn't (relief funding for victims of Hurricane Sandy).

And then there's the Violence Against Women Act, which was supposed to be one of the year's easy ones. It wasn't.

Back in April, the Senate approved VAWA reauthorization fairly easily, with a 68 to 31 vote. The bill was co-written by a liberal Democrat (Vermont's Pat Leahy) and a conservative Republican (Idaho's Mike Crapo), and seemed on track to be reauthorized without much of a fuss, just as it was in 2000 and 2005.

But House Republicans insisted the bill is too supportive of immigrants, the LGBT community, and Native Americans -- and they'd rather let the law expire than approve a slightly expanded proposal. Vice President Biden, who helped write the original law, tried to persuade House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) to keep the law alive, but the efforts didn't go anywhere.

And so, for the first time since 1994, the Violence Against Women Act is no more. Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), the Democratic point person on VAWA, said in a statement:

"The House Republican leadership's failure to take up and pass the Senate's bipartisan and inclusive VAWA bill is inexcusable. This is a bill that passed with 68 votes in the Senate and that extends the bill's protections to 30 million more women. But this seems to be how House Republican leadership operates. No matter how broad the bipartisan support, no matter who gets hurt in the process, the politics of the right wing of their party always comes first."

Proponents of the law hope to revive the law in the new Congress, starting from scratch, but in the meantime, there will be far fewer resources available for state and local governments to combat domestic violence.

As for electoral considerations, Republicans lost badly in the 2012 elections, thanks in large part to the largest gender gap in modern times, but if that changed GOP attitudes towards legislation affecting women, the party is hiding it well.

Update: Reader AG asks about the House version that was approved several months ago. As I reported at the time, the House gutted the bipartisan Senate bill with a watered-down version, which was widely seen by everyone involved as a joke that undermined the interests of victims. It had no support in the Senate and drew a White House veto threat. House Republicans knew this, and instead of revisiting the issue and/or working with the Senate on a compromise, GOP leaders simply decided the law was not a priority. The result was this week's outcome.

http://maddowblog.ms...-women-act?lite

[^_^ 5,021]

Maddow is a lesbian.

[Penny Lane 8,159]

Good to see the GOP is comfortable with clinging to the one demographic they have left - the white male. The women, the minorities, screw em! Clearly it worked very well for them in November and they're eager to do it all over again next election season. I can't wait.

[^_^ 5,021]

Good to see the GOP is comfortable with clinging to the one demographic they have left - the white male. The women, the minorities, screw em! Clearly it worked very well for them in November and they're eager to do it all over again next election season. I can't wait.

I don't think you're paying attention. Rachel Maddow is a lesbian. You know what that means, don't you?

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

[quote name=' timestamp='1357161482' post='5899126]

I don't think you're paying attention. Rachel Maddow is a lesbian. You know what that means, don't you?

She favours short haircuts and sensible shoes?

[Penny Lane 8,159]

[quote name=' timestamp='1357161482' post='5899126]

I don't think you're paying attention. Rachel Maddow is a lesbian. You know what that means, don't you?

A lesbian WOMAN. The worst kind of lesbian, if you ask me.

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

A lesbian WOMAN. The worst kind of lesbian, if you ask me.

There are many men on here who claim to be male lesbians. They must be the better type of lesbian.

This really is a patriarchy. I mean, the men even get to be better lesbians!

[^_^ 5,021]

There are many men on here who claim to be male lesbians. They must be the better type of lesbian.

This really is a patriarchy. I mean, the men even get to be better lesbians!

Rachel Maddow is a pusher of the gay agenda.

[Penny Lane 8,159]

Clearly someone has not informed her that she should be in the kitchen.

[^_^ 5,021]

Clearly someone has not informed her that she should be in the kitchen.

I don't think you want any gays cooking your food. Might be a health hazard.

[Penny Lane 8,159]

[quote name=' timestamp='1357161880' post='5899143]

I don't think you want any gays cooking your food. Might be a health hazard.

That's true. I had a cousin who caught gay from a toilet seat once. A summer at church camp cleared it up though.

[Darnell 8,478]

ya, if the wording had been changed:

1. to leave out same-sex couples and

2. to not redefine illegal alien to mean immigrant (instead of illegal alien)

then

it would have passed.

What's the problem, really?

Edited January 2, 2013 by Darnell

[^_^ 5,021]

ya, if the wording had been changed:

1. to leave out same-sex couples and

2. to not redefine illegal alien to mean immigrant (instead of illegal alien)

then

it would have passed.

What's the problem, really?

the gay agenda must be pushed at every possible opportunity.

the gays never stop pushing. push, push, push. it's because they spend so much time in the gym, they have a lot more stamina.

[natty bumppo 297]

That's true. I had a cousin who caught gay from a toilet seat once. A summer at church camp cleared it up though.

on a hotter than normal day they must have escorted him to a outhouse, lifted him upside down over a one-holer, then lowered his head below the seat level ...

[Darnell 8,478]

sorry, doesn't wash, with the wording in the bill.

nice try though.. I feel your pain in yer largess-backside, I really do.