The count is in and the US Senate just advanced the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) in a 61-30 cloture vote. Unfortunately, the bill is headed for the House where Speaker John Boehner dropped his two-cent nonsense earlier today with his claim that:
The Speaker believes this legislation will increase frivolous litigation and cost American jobs, especially small business jobs,
His office later added,
We have always believed this is covered by existing law, . . . this is not a new issue or a new position — it’s a longstanding position, and, frankly, not ‘news’ at all. This has been his position, on the record, for years, stated publicly many times.
Sounds like the same tired Republican defense against supporting equal rights for just about anyone but stodgy old straight white dudes. Got it.
Also on today’s #TWiBRadio, #TeamBlackness we’re joined by Wagatwe Wanjuki, Online Community Manager at RH Reality Check, with a special docket item about sexual assault on US university campuses. We also discussed what the hell happened to stop-and-frisk in New York, and we got some “sad but informative” analysis from TWiB! Legal Analysis Rad-Femme Lawyer on why we should care about what’s happening to all those with uteri in Oklahoma and Texas.
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And this morning on #amTWiB, The Morning Crew discussed the millions of hungry and homeless Americans in the wake of massive SNAP cuts last week, an update on state voter ID laws, and a field trip to the piercing studio?
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Jim, Foolish Literalist
Just saw a headline that Rob Portman, who had been on the fence, voted for cloture, and I saw on the twitters that Mark Kirk spoke on the floor for the first time since his stroke in favor of ENDA.
SiubhanDuinne
Yeah? Frivolous THIS, Mr. Speaker.
KG
Well, if this is already covered by existing law, might as well pass it so that there’s no confusion
Ash Can
Please proceed, Mr. Speaker.
Baud
Both sides!
Mnemosyne
Ronald freakin’ Reagan failed to get California voters of the 1970s to agree to officially discriminate against gays and lesbians. Not only has public opinion already been decided about this, it was decided 40 years ago! Why does it have to be such a chore to get today’s Republicans caught up to where Goldwater and Reagan were?
KG
@Mnemosyne: actually, Reagan opposed it. Which is just another reminder that the Teahadis would see Reagan as a dirty RINO squish
ETA: to clarify, Reagan opposed the Briggs Initiative. Meaning he was opposed to denying gay people public sector jobs.
ranchandsyrup
Frivolous is in the eye of the beholder. The only beholder that counts is the judge.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
Tweety just had a meltdown because one of his guests suggested that Chris Christie will not revolutionize American politics forever.
Wow, he is nastily insulting his guest.
Cervantes
A crying shame.
Baud
@Cervantes:
Boehner certainly is.
ranchandsyrup
@Cervantes: HA!
David Koch
No difference btwn Democrats and Republicans
/Dude-Bro
LanceThruster
You don’t like when things don’t go your way, Speaker Boehner? You could always shut the govt down and see how that works out for you.
Yatsuno
@LanceThruster: He doesn’t have to go that far. All he has to do is refuse to bring the legislation to the floor until the end of the session. Heck the Teahadis will reward him for that, even if he did give in to THAT ONE over the shutdown thing. They have memories unless they don’t.
David Koch
Mavericky “moderate” McGramps declined to cast any vote.
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=113&session=1&vote=00229
So he voted and railed against the repeal of DADT, opposed the overturning of DOMA, and doesn’t support eliminating employment discrimination. Yet the Beltway trash media insists he’s a moderate.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@David Koch: the delightful Claire McCaskill also couldn’t seem to make it. Christ, when you’re to the right of Mark freakin’ Pryor….
I’m more honestly surprised at Murkoski sitting this one out than McCaskill
gbear
I hope that at some point before John Boehner dies that he realizes how totally pathetic he has been as a civil servant. He really needs to go out feeling tremendous remorse for how he’s treated people in this country. I want him to go out choking on shame.
WereBear
@gbear: Takes a LOT of alcohol to let him forget that, apparently.
gbear
@WereBear: Then I’ll settle for him choking in his sleep on his own vomit.
Suffern ACE
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: he’s Reagan and Tip all in one body! Heck, if you melted them down for parts, Christie would have more mass.
Suffern ACE
@David Koch: no. This is the one where there is a difference, but because it involves the shape of ones genitals, it is a distraction.
gbear
@gbear: ….or someone else’s vomit.
tybee
@gbear:
dayyum.
Keith P.
Give the man a point for not saying it “kills jobs”. Deduct five points for using the same generic fucking stock answer for not doing shit that they always use. No what also costs jobs? Not passing any kind of jobs bill.
Cervantes
@gbear: I hope that at some point before John Boehner dies that he realizes how totally pathetic he has been as a civil servant.
You put it well. I am pretty sure he realizes it already.
drkrick
@Cervantes: Whatever it is he dreamed of doing when he decided to be a politician, I doubt this was it. Whether he thinks he’s failure for the same reasons we do is an open question.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@efgoldman: I think he stumbled into the Speakership and then came the dream of greatness. I can’t remember who reported he dreams, or dreamt, of being classed with O’Neill and Rayburn and Longworth, now he just likes that big fancy office and the title. A second-rate country club-Roatarian mediocrity.
fuckwit
@gbear: He’s not a civil servant. He’s a corporate servant. And, doing a bang up heckuva job at that. There is no problem here. The people who write his checks are happy, and that’s all he cares about.
fuckwit
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Someone who yells at and demeans people for a living decides to yell at and demean someone for failing to share his man-crush on a guy who yells at and demeans people? Where’s the surprise here?
Cervantes
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I can’t remember who reported he dreams, or dreamt, of being classed with O’Neill and Rayburn and Longworth.
Richard Cohen (no, not that one). But to be fair, Boehner’s view of Nick Longworth derives from a book written by Dick Cheney and his wife — so there’s that.
Sly
ENDA is just a part of the radical homosexual agenda.
Baud
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
Rachel saying McCaskill was stuck on a plane, which is why she wasn’t there.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Baud: I caught that. I offer my apologies to Sens McCaskill and Murkowski
Yatsuno
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Honestly though, with 61 to pass I could cut her some slack if she wanted to vote no on that. I’m certain Harry had that calculus mapped out should that have been necessary.
Groucho48
@WereBear:
Naw. One good chip shot onto the green and life is good.