Women no SAFER thanks to the House GOP

So this morning we talked about the House GOP killing VAWA, and now let’s talk about them killing the SAFER Act of 2012. Don’t know what that is? No one else does either.

Mother Jones had a little written about the SAFER Act by Erika Eichelberger. The SAFER Act of 2012 is the Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Registry Act. It was introduced by Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas) back in May, and by Representative Ted Poe (R-Texas) in the House in December. The SAFER Act would have reallocated $117 million to start making a dent in the national backlog of untested rape kits, which contain forensic evidence. There are about 400,000 untested rape kits across the country. The longer these kits go unprocessed the easier it is for the perpetrators to get away with rape.

This legislation would require that 75% of federal grants already allocated for rape kits to actually be used for that purpose or to increase law enforcement agencies’ capacity to process the kits…yeah, just making the money already being sent that way actually be used for the testing of the kits. It would also set up a reporting system to track localities’ progress in reducing their rape kit backlog and require yearly audits of the number of untested kits.

A bill like this of course had bipartisan support, hell Allen West was for it. Yeah, take a minute. We can get that wing nut on board, but still not get this through the House. The bill was stalled in the House judiciary committee, chaired by Representative Lamar Smith (R-Texas), because of the provision requiring local law enforcement to report the specifics of backlogged cases to the Department of Justice. The Senate addressed Smith’s concern in the version of the bill they passed (by unanimous consent by the way) changing the legislation so that law enforcement agencies only had to report aggregated case data to the DOJ instead of individual case data.

And then on Wednesday, the unthinkable happened: the House suspended its rules to take up the bill, and they passed the SAFER Act. Be in awe, but then remember this is Congress.

So the House passed it, but the measure was different than what came out of the Senate. They had no time left in the legislative session to reconcile the two versions of the bill so the legislation is all but dead.

The House bill included some amendment, which removed the language that Sens Cornyn, Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) crafted. Their language specifically authorized not just forensic labs, but all law enforcement agencies to receive grant money to process the rape kits. A Congressional staffer told Mother Jones that amending the language was the only way Smith would allow the bill to move to the House floor for a vote. Without reconciling the bills both die. Smith didn’t respond to Mother Jones’ request for comments on why the bill was amended.

So for those playing at home: the House GOP killed two bills that protect women, not involving choice stuff, just bills that keep women safer. Bills that protect women from rape and violence. Bills that would assist in the prosecution of those committing these acts. Someone want to tell me again why women would vote for people in this party?

Aside, I may be trolling John Boehner again. I can’t help it. Every time I see his Twitter feed, I’m enraged by something his people posts. His office probably prefers it this way to me calling. By the way, his office number are in Ohio 513-779-5400 and 937-339-1524, and in DC 202-225-6205. You’re very welcome. And congrats to John on his re-election as Speaker of the House. I’d hate to get used to someone knew.

We officially do not have the VAWA

Congress is a hot mess, which is generally the norm, but for the love of all that is holy 66 days without a disaster package for victims of Sandy and the death of the VAWA. I’m glad we avoided a fake crisis that was the fiscal cliff, because there is totally nothing else going on.

So can someone explain to me how we failed on the Violence Against Women Act? Because this was supposed to be easy. Maddow’s blog had a post about it written by Steve Benen.

So the VAWA was approved by the Senate back in April with a 68 to 31 vote. The bill was co-written by a liberal Democrat Pat Leahy (VT-D) and a conservative Republican Mike Crapo (ID-R). It should have been approved like it had been in 2000 and 2005. But House Republicans killed it.

Why you ask? Because the GOP hates women, gays, and people of color. The House GOP found the bill was too supportive of immigrants, the LGBT community, and Native Americans. They decided it was better to let the bill expire than to approve an expanded proposal. Vice President Joe Biden (an original author of the bill) tried and failed to keep the bill alive. This is the first time since 1994 that the Violence Against Women Act doesn’t exist.

Senator Patty Murray (WA-D) said:

“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.”

So, proponents of the law aim to revive the law in the new Congress, but they will start from scratch, and in the meantime state and local governments will have fewer resources to combat domestic violence.

Republicans took a beating in the last election from the ladies. Remember the rape caucus? Yeah, they lost. Apparently, the GOP continues to believe that women are not important. Anyone who votes for these people better be able to defend this or not speak to me for a lengthy period of time.

Women of Ohio, you’re still losing

According to RH Reality Check, with the end of the Ohio 2012 legislative session women of Ohio breathed a sigh of relief as the final attempted to pass the “Heartbeat” ban (making abortion illegal in Ohio) was blocked by Speaker Tom Niehaus. However, Niehaus is out going.

2013 looks very different for the “Heartbeat” bill. New members of Ohio legislative body haven’t even been sworn in, and the Speaker Bill Batchelder is claiming he is ready to move on the bill. Batchelder is super excited about this bill. I guess he’s really looking forward to that legal battle. In 2011, Batchelder told Reuters that “We’re writing bills for courts.” Of course, even the anti-choice community in Ohio and the senate have refused to move on the bill so fingers crossed this goes nowhere.

Of course then there is an article on Plunderbund that makes me think we should burn Ohio to the ground. Just kidding, mostly kidding. Personhood Ohio is getting backing from Personhood USA. Just to be clear these people don’t care about all persons just fertilized eggs, not the women carrying them (or as I’m sure one day they will be called incubators).

According to Facebook (yeah, I know, eye roll), Dr. Patrick Johnston said this message will go out Friday (1/4/2013) to 55,000 pro-life Ohioans:

“This is Dr. Patrick Johnston, a family physician and the director of Personhood Ohio, and I’d like to put $5,000 case in your hands for helping us protecting every baby under Ohio law! The failure of the Heartbeat Bill has shown us that the Ohio legislature will not do its duty and protect preborn Ohioans from death by abortion. Well, we can bypass the corrupt legislature and take it straight to the people by ballot initiative. Will you pray with us that every one of these babies will be protected? If you would like to help us save these children—and win $5,000—please press 1 now to be directed to a Personhood Ohio volunteer, or visit Personhood Ohio-dot-com. Thank you so much and God bless you this New Year!”

There is so much here. Apparently, this family physician is uninsured, which is awesome, a Christian radio host, which explains the prayer stuff, anti-LGBT and Operation Save American (don’t Google them) activist, and in his free time he runs a website where he yells about “sodomite activists,” public schools, public employees, and how to keep President Obama from taking our guns. He also writes what Plunderbund calls, “fantasy fanfiction novels in which armed, anti-abortion activists lead a revolution against the federal government." I know, this man is my new best friend forever. If I only lived there and was independently wealthy, then I could literally take my heathen self over there and talk to him about being an idiot.

There are so many things wrong with this guy and his pseudo faith. I guess the major thing I don’t get, and I studied Christianity for sixteen years, he is anti-choice because the babies don’t deserve to die, but anyone who disagrees with him does? Ok crazy man, keep your guns, but stay the hell out of my vag.

I also don’t really know where he gets the idea that the state legislature is corrupt for not passing the laws he specifically wants. I mean it has some problems, not quite Michigan like problems, but still. For conservatives playing at home just because elected officials don’t do what you want doesn’t mean you get to quit or revolt (Revolt 2020 is the name of his fanfiction). If it did, then the revolution would have come welfare reform that castes people into inescapable poverty.

You guys, I hope this is true

House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid got into it on Friday. Huffington Post, Politico, and Wonkette (accompanied by the adorable angry baby below) are all reporting that several people overheard the verbal altercation in the White House lobby.[Couldn't you just die?]

The description of the verbal dispute:

With no bipartisan agreement about the debt ceiling, spending cuts and tax increases in sight, Boehner reportedly pointed at Reid and said, “Go f**k yourself.”

“What are you talking about?” Reid asked.

And Boehner again said, “Go f**k yourself.”

Inside the minds of greatness. 

They then resorted to schoolyard shoving and name calling. This is when Nancy Pelosi broke it up telling them they were scaring the women folk. Just kidding. But for real, "go fuck yourself" is the best Boehner could come up with? I've heard better cussing from third grade girls. And Reid's response...perhaps the man has gone senile, not knowing what "Go fuck yourself" means.

This occurred after Reid took to the Senate floor and claimed that Boehner could have ended the fiscal cliff by bring legislation passed by the Senate for a vote. I think this was the deal the White House suggested that cut Social Security and Medicaid. Reid also accused Boehner of playing politics and catering to members of his party rather than serving the country…You don’t say [if you could see me, which would be weird, you'd see my shifty eyes].

Reid said: “The American people I don’t think understand the House of Representatives is operating without the House of Representatives. It’s being operated by a dictatorship of the speaker, not allowing the vast majority of the House of Representatives to get what they want.”

Gauntlet thrown. You know, since the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the White House are all kind of useless I say death match. The White House can use Cabinet members or call in staff...maybe even former staff, I'm sure some representatives out of Chicago would love to throw a few punches at Rahm. Then the winner is the uncontested dictator. I'm eying the bi-sexual atheist out of Arizona. And I'll campaign for anyone who punches Paul Ryan in the face. 

So of course, they did reach a deal. Good Old Joe Biden rode into the rescue. You can read more about it on the Wonkbook or Train of Thought. The first link lets you know what actually happened, and the second lets you know what is going to happen now.

Behold: Angry Baby.

Ohio is raising their minimum wage again

What good news? And not the “we’ve averted a fiscal cliff where no one really wins anyway” kind? Rock on Ohio.

The Ohio Dispatch article written by Lindsay Friedman says Ohio will be raising its minimum wage. The Ohio Minimum Wage Amendment, enacted in 2006, which I’m proud to say I was in Ohio and working on this in 2006. Well, if memory serves in 2004-2006.

Minimum wage employees in Ohio are getting a 15-cent increase, which brings the minimum wage to $7.85. This isn’t as significant as last year’s 30-cent raise, but it is adjusted annually after the Ohio Department of Commerce assesses the national Consumer Price Index. For employees who receive tips the new wage would be $3.93 an hour.

Theoretically, the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 provided the effort to protect minimum wage workers. It was supposed to match the cost of living and prevent employers from lowering pay. We all know how well this has worked.

The article then discusses the realities of living paycheck to paycheck. So just to demonstrate before the 15-cent increase minimum wage of $7.70 is $16,016 for a 40 hour work week 52 weeks a year, and at the increase rate of $7.85 it is $16,328 per year. The national poverty rate for a family of one is $11,170, for two $15,130, and for three is $19,090. This information was pulled from the HHS 2012 Poverty Guidelines.

Take a minute and wrap your minds around this. They should raise the minimum wage to a living wage, but at this point with a few months of disappointment,  I’ll take what I can get. 

Update: Apparently this will mean nothing because of the deal reached on the fiscal cliff. The meager increase will be offset by the expiration of the holiday payroll tax. So there is the tax hike on workers.