Posted by AzBlueMeanie: A unanimous panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit said the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which was signed by President Clinton and denies federal economic and other benefits for married people from same-sex couples married in states where it is legal, could not be justified under current … Read more
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: I posted about this protest by residents of Washington, D.C. against their self-appointed "Mayor," Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ). Today, the Washington Post rips Franks in an editorial opinion, The House tramples again on the District's rights: THE ISSUES ADMITTEDLY are not normally the domain of a member of Congress. But D.C. residents … Read more
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: Rep. Trent Franks is Arizona's most embarrassing congessman by far, he just doesn't get the kind of media attention the others do. Last week Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) held Congressional hearings on a bill that would prevent doctors in D.C. from performing abortions after 20 weeks (the bill the Arizona legislature recently … Read more
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
So the Tea-Publican response to the GOPs "war on women" is to form a Women's Policy Committee and put a female face on their misogynist anti-woman policies. "How can there be a war on women if women are sponsoring these misogynist GOP policies?" (The Arizona legislature has used this tactic for years).
Tea-Publicans insult your intelligence. They think you are stupid and you will fall for this kind of crap. As Steve Benen writes, The 'Women's Policy Committee' gets to work:
The "war on women" didn't catch on as a national phenomenon because GOP officials are invariably men; it caught on after Republicans in Virginia decided to mandate medically-unnecessary, trans-vaginal ultrasounds for women who want to undergo a legal medical procedure.
In recent months, Republicans at the state and federal level and have been fighting to restrict contraception; cut off Planned Parenthood; approving sweeping new restrictions on abortion; playing games with the Violence Against Women Act; denying the existence of gender-based pay discrimination and rolling back pay-equity laws.
When it came time for House Republicans to pay for lower student loan interest rates, GOP officials decided to get the funding by cutting access to breast cancer and cervical cancer screenings.
And in nearly all relevant instances, every member of this new Women's Policy Committee voted with their far-right male counterparts.
If these lawmakers think a committee and a video will help improve the political circumstances, they don't yet understand that this is about public policy, not perceptions about gender diversity. If they want to close the gender gap, they need to change the substance, not the style.
The Women's Policy Commttee video has the feel of an SNL ad skit, and reminded me of this earlier ad from the creative minds at Funny or Die. (Video below the fold – not work safe).
By Michael Bryan I consider the fight for equal rights for LGBT Americans one of the true litmus tests for true progressivity in American politics today. If you don't think that the equal treatment under law of LGBT Americans is vitally important, you don't really think much of the central value proposition of the American … Read more