Conservatives In Congress-- From Both Parties-- Decide To Beat Up On Disabled People

James Langevin (D-RI)

Jim Langevin (D-RI) is kind of a middle of the road Democrat. Generally speaking, he's not a progressive but he's certainly not a Blue Dog. When he was a 16 year old boy scout he was injured in a gun accident which left him paralyzed. He was elected to Congress in 2000, the first quadriplegic to ever serve in Congress. Far right Texas Congressman Ted Poe offered a bill that puts the Disability Rights Section of the Department of Justice in jeopardy. So Langevin offered an amendment to remove the requirement that a person who claims discrimination must first provide written notice that allows 60 days for an owner to acknowledge receipt of the complaint and 120 days to demonstrate substantial progress in removing the barrier before legal action may be pursued. Basically he was trying to keep the feasibility of law suits for people with disabilities who get illegally discriminated against by businesses.

And sure, the greedy asinine Republicans were almost all gung-ho to pass Poe's bill without Langevin's amendment. So they voted Langevin's amendment down Thursday before heading off for another nice vacation. It failed 188-226. I was happy to see 15 Republicans get in touch with their souls and vote against what Ryan and McCarthy were demanding of them. Most of them are vulnerable Republicans in swing districts or Republicans who have decided to just abandon the whole fucked up Trump-enabling Congress--

• Barbara Comstock (VA)
• Ryan Costello (PA)
• Brian Fitzpatrick (PA)
• Rodney Frelinghuysen (PA)
• Gregg Harper (MS)
• John Katko (NY)
• Peter King (NY)
• Leonard Lance (NJ)
• Dave Reichert (WA)
• Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL)
• Chris Smith (NJ)
• Fred Upton (MI)
• Kevin Yoder (KS)

The only Republicans who don't fit either category but who voted NO were Jim Sensenbrenner (WI) and Glenn Thompson (PA). Nice-- whatever the motivation. But it didn't help because, as usual, Ryan and McCarthy know exactly which Blue Dogs and New Dems from the Republican wing of the Democratic Party to go to when they need to find some sellouts. These were the Blue Dog and New Dem sell-outs this time, mostly the usual suspects:

• Ami Bera (New Dem-CA)
• Jim Cooper (Blue Dog-TN)
• Lou Correa (Blue Dog-CA)
• Henry Cuellar (Blue Dog-TX)
• Bill Foster (New Dem-IL)
• Scott Peters (New Dem-CA)
• Kathleen Rice (New Dem-NY)
• Kurt Schrader (Blue Dog-OR)
• Kyrsten Sinema (Blue Dog), who Schumer picked to be the next senator from Arizona
• Norma Torres (New Dem-CA)

Maybe you don't get why this is a big deal-- and why we need to make sure Blue Dog and New Dem nominees don't get the Democratic nominations anywhere-- so let's turn to... Teen Vogue. They get it. "The bill," wrote S.E. Smith, "which has been introduced and went nowhere before, would change the way that access to public accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) is enforced. Disabled people argue this legislation will introduce substantial barriers to accommodations. Proponents say the legislation is necessary to curb so-called 'drive-by' lawsuits that spuriously target businesses for purported ADA violations. Disability rights have been under threat from the Trump administration: Last year’s attacks on health care put disabled people in the crosshairs; proposed changes to Medicaid would radically limit access to needed health care; the Department of Education has rescinded certain guidance on disability and civil rights; and Jeff Sessions suggested, in reference to the opioid crisis, that people can take aspirin."

The ADA is a landmark piece of bipartisan legislation that affirms and protects the civil rights of disabled people. H.R. 620 specifically takes on Title III, a section that gives disabled people the right to sue public accommodations (like restaurants, hotels, and movie theaters) that don’t comply with the ADA’s accessibility requirements. When you hear “ADA,” you may think of wheelchair users who need ramps, lifts, and accessible bathrooms. But it applies to other disabilities too, as in the case of the complaint against Netflix by the D/deaf and hard of hearing community because the service wasn’t fully captioning its content.

“It's largely up to disabled folks to enforce the ADA by filing lawsuits when businesses violate our civil rights,” disabled attorney Matt Cortland tells Teen Vogue. Historically, the Department of Justice has also mounted suits under the ADA when doing so could expand access for a broad class of people.

Though businesses have been required to provide accommodations for nearly 30 years, they don’t always comply, as social worker Vilissa Thompson tells Teen Vogue. During a layover last year, Thompson entered a supposedly accessible bathroom stall with a door that couldn’t close around her chair. “The attendant who was with me had to stand in front of the door to be a cover of sorts while I had to do my business.”

Disabled people sometimes have to sue for the right to go to the movies, go grocery shopping, or have a fun night out with friends. Some people claim businesses are being plagued by bogus lawsuits filed by disabled people who are greedy for cash. This ignores a couple of things: Filing suit is expensive, and furthermore, ADA suits only entitle disabled people to legal fees and injunctive relief-- addressing the accessibility failure in question. And the legal system already has measures in place to address frivolous lawsuits, up to and including bar action against attorneys who engage in bad faith litigation.

So which shithead candidates are running this year as New Dems and Blue Dogs? Most candidates try to hide it but if you go to the Blue Dog and New Dem websites you get lists of their endorsees. I'm sure if you ask them if they would support the rights of disabled people, 100% of them would say they do. But I guarantee you, if they get into Congress, they'll be leaned on by their corrupt corporate campaign contributors and they'll soon be looking for rationales for living the rest of their professional lives on the Dark Side. That's what being a Blue Dog or a New Dem is all about. Unless you want to sink America into a Trumpazoid swamp, don't support or even vote for any of these:

And below are the New Dems who the Blue Dogs haven't formally endorsed, at least not yet. These days there are basically no substantive differences between the Blue Dogs and the New Dems. Most New Dems are also Blue Dogs and most Blue Dogs also join the New Dems. They should just formally merge and call themselves what they are: the Republican wing of the Democratic Party, bought and paid for by Wall Street.

• Ann Kirkpatrick (AZ)
• Greg Stanton (AZ)
• Dave Min (CA)
• Harley Rouda (CA)
• Hans Keirstead (CA)
• Lauren Baer (FL)
• Jason Crow (CO)
• Elissa Slotkin (MI)
• Angie Craig (MN)
• Dean Phillips (MN)
• Mikie Sherrill (NJ)
• Susie Lee (NV)
• Chrissy Houlahan (PA)
• Jana Lynne Sanchez (TX)
• Dan Kohl (WI)

GOP Greed: Taking From Disabled Vets To Make Their Wealthy Donors Richer

"I have a rough time wanting to spend billions and billions and trillions of dollars to help people who won’t help themselves-- won’t lift a finger-- and expect the federal government to do everything." Although reactionary vulture, Utah scumbag Orrin Hatch said this in regard to the children who count of CHIP (which he helped kill), he might as well have been talking about disabled veterans as well, since he just voted to set the government on a path of destroying their lives too.

The Republican Tax Scam will have serious, even devastating, consequences for the nearly 20% of us who have disabilities-- greater tax burdens and decreased opportunities. As Robyn Powell explained last week to Rewire readers, "People with disabilities already have massive expenses and far less income, on average, than their non-disabled counterparts. Many of their medical necessities-- such as long-term care and certain wheelchairs-- are not covered by some insurance plans, including Medicare, and can cost an individual tens of thousands of dollars. These services are not just about one’s health; having access to a power wheelchair or in-home care can be the difference between living in an institution or a private residence. Right now, taxpayers may deduct out-of-pocket medical expenses if they exceed 10 percent of their adjusted gross income. Notably, 8.8 million people-- primarily people with disabilities and seniors, as well as their caregivers-- benefited from this important deduction last year." But to make life a tad more bearable for overburdened private jet owners, Ryan's Tax Scam eliminates the out-of-pocket medical expenses deduction

The ability to live and move in the world is also under assault by the GOP. Currently, small businesses can receive tax incentives for modifying their facilities so that people with disabilities can patronize their place of business (as well as comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act or ADA).

Disability-related small business tax incentives also help businesses employ people with disabilities by allowing them to deduct some expenditures related to accommodating those employees, such as providing sign language interpreters. The employment rates for people with disabilities are shockingly low: In 2015, only 35 percent of people with disabilities were employed compared with 76 percent of people without disabilities. As the party of “individual responsibility,” you would think that increasing employment across the board would be a priority for the GOP. However, without these important tax breaks for small businesses... far fewer people will be able to work.

Los Angeles area Congressman Ted Lieu (D-CA), a veteran and an Air Force colonel is the West Coast regional Vice Chair for the DCCC. He told us that "The GOP tax scam will be a disaster for our veterans and our country. It is particularly disgusting that Republicans have proposed repealing tax credits to hire disabled veterans while at the same time giving billionaires and corporations a huge tax cut. Tax policy is ultimately a statement of priorities-- and Republicans like Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell are showing us what their priorities are, and it isn't our veterans."

I wonder if all those self professed Christians in the Republican Party ever think of Jesus' admonition: "As you do to the least of these, so do you do to me." This morning, Randy Bryce texted us that he had been going over parts of the GOP Tax Scam and one of the parts that infuriated him was how it penalizes veterans wounded in the line of duty. "After serving in the Army I returned home to Southeast Wisconsin," he told us. I saw fellow veterans without homes and I worked hand in hand-- through my union and with the Democratic Party and state government to bring needed assistance their way. That is the best of America and is the America I was proud to protect and serve. Targeting disabled veterans who served their country is especially cruel and unAmerican. Seeing this tax scam try and rip needed services away from my brothers and sisters who served sickens me. We didn't serve to protect a billionaires ability to fly a Learjet on the cheap. We served to protect the best of our American values. These frauds are shameful, and we will repeal and replace their leader in the house, Paul Ryan-- a man who appears to truly enjoy hurting those in need in order to see his billionaire buddy's smile."

Lieu and Bryce are exactly right: the Tax Scam falls especially hard on disabled veterans. Blue America talked to the progressive veterans running for Congress, listed on the page that clicking on the thermometer on the right takes you to. As Pennsylvania's Tom Prigg put it: "We fought for our country. Some returned home wounded. All we want is the ability to live a good, normal, productive life. To take care of our families. But now Keith Rothfus and the Republican’s new  tax bill will eliminate the Disabled Access Credit and the Work Opportunity Credit  tax credits for businesses who hire disabled people like our vets. This heartless bill not only takes away our wounded warrior’s ability to work and take care of their families, it also takes away their dignity by undermining their livelihood. Keith Rothfus, a congressman who never misses an opportunity for a veteran photo-op, supports this bill that will hurt tens-of-thousands of American Veterans and their families."

And Tom's concerns were echoed by all the veteran candidates we talked with. James Thompson is running for the Wichita, Kansas seat, held by Ryan rubberstamp Ron Estes. "Ron Estes is a hypocrite," he told us. "He gives lip service to supporting veterans by showing up to some high profile events to get free media coverage. Yet when the rubber meets the road, and he is given a real opportunity to help veterans, especially disabled veterans, he didn't have their six. He voted in favor of the Republicans’ Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which will give massive tax breaks to the wealthiest of Americans, like the KOCH brothers here in my district. This is not tax reform, it is tax robbery paid for by robbing disabled veterans to pay the privileged princes of Wall Street. Ron Estes and his ilk, at the direction of these modern day robber barons, removed the Disabled Access Credit and the Work Opportunity Tax Credit. Simply put, the Work Opportunity Credit incentivizes companies to hire disabled veterans, while the Disabled Access Credit allows them to actually hire disabled vets by making it possible for those same companies to afford special accommodations like ramps. Ending these two credits, harms veterans. PERIOD. Veterans need representatives to watch their six, not use it as an opportunity to stab them in the back. I promise every veteran out there, regardless of party, I will have your six, and will lead the way in making sure our countries heroes are taken care of when they go to war and when they return from it. I hope everyone will call and encourage their Senators and Representatives to vote FOR VETERANS by voting no on the #GOPTaxScam."

Jared Golden is the Maine House whip. He told us that: "Bruce Poliquin and his corporate allies in Washington are intent on funding their tax cuts on the backs of our children and disabled veterans. By adding over $1 trillion to the debt, future generations will be on the hook for tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy. Where the tax plan does make up costs are on the backs of the disabled including our wounded fighting men and women. These tax credits are designed to create an incentive for businesses to hire disabled veterans and others with disabilities, I find it morally reprehensible that these laudable and effective tax credits are where Rep Poliquin and the Republicans in Congress want to find 'savings' so that millionaires and billionaires can buy an extra yacht, or a corporation can move more jobs overseas."

 

Too Late To Stop Betsy DeVos?

Tomorrow's the day. The full Senate will vote on Trump's nominee to destroy the American education system, crackpot Republican billionaire Betsy DeVos. Frequent DWT commenter, Hone, a retired school psychologist, told me she spent Friday at a teachers' union headquarters in upstate New York calling Republican Senate offices about DeVos. I told her that the only possible Republican who could be swayed was Nevada's Dean Heller, who lives in a swing state and is up for reelection in 2018. Hone, though, spent most of her time calling Thom Tillis' various offices trying to communicate the message about DeVos' unsuitability. I told her she was probably wasting her time. But as of yesterday, Tillis was actually claiming he was still undecided and wanted to hear from his constituents. His numbers, by the way, are (919) 856-4630 and (202) 224-6342.

Fortunately there was no need for Hone to call centrist New Hampshire Democrat Maggie Hassan, someone who has supported some Trump nominees but wrote an OpEd in the NY Times Friday explaining why she's voting against DeVos today. It's pretty heavy-- particularly coming right on top of hypocritical Republican congressmembers defending their move to obliterate a rule preventing severely mentally disabled people from buying guns. The Republicans whined to the media about protecting the rights of the handicapped, not exactly something we ever hear from the GOP these days.

Our nation recognized early in its history that public education is a necessary foundation for a democracy. It’s critical that we continue to support a strong public education system that prepares our young people, all of them, to participate in our democracy and compete on a fair footing in the work force.

For this reason, our public officials should share a reverence for the importance of public education to our country’s success, both now and in the future. And they must show a commitment to enforcing our laws so that all students have the opportunity to succeed.

That is why I oppose President Trump’s nominee for secretary of education, Betsy DeVos. Throughout her confirmation process, Ms. DeVos has demonstrated a complete lack of experience in, knowledge of and support for public education. Instead, it is clear that she would pursue policies that would undermine public schools, in my home state of New Hampshire and across our nation.

At her nomination hearing before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions last month, I questioned Ms. DeVos on whether she would enforce the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, the law that ensures that all students receive a free and full education in our schools. Not only did Ms. DeVos decline to assure senators that she would enforce the law to protect students with disabilities, but she also demonstrated her confusion about whether the I.D.E.A. is a federal law.

Ensuring access to public education for every student is an issue that is personal to my family. My adult son Ben was born with cerebral palsy. Ben is bright and funny (and quite handsome, according to this unbiased source). He cannot walk, cannot use his fingers to type and can speak only in difficult-to-understand single words.

If Ben had been born a generation or two earlier, we, his parents, would have been pressured to put him in an institution. But Ben was able to go to a public school in his hometown, Exeter, N.H., because of the tireless work of the advocates, educators and public officials who came before us.

Ben had the opportunity to go to school and make friends in his own community-- something that all parents want for their children. And I was drawn to public service to ensure that all children have the same opportunities that Ben did.

Instead of supporting public schools, Ms. DeVos has supported voucher systems that divert taxpayer dollars to private, religious and for-profit schools without requirements for accountability. Voucher systems often fail to serve children who have disabilities. To use a voucher, families are sometimes forced to sign away their child’s legal rights, and the schools receiving the voucher often lack the experience or resources necessary to educate the child.

This is in sharp contrast to public school systems that focus on serving all students, including those with disabilities. In these public schools, educators are better prepared to recognize challenges faced by all students-- not just those who have a diagnosed disability-- and are empowered to tailor educational experiences to individual students.

That is the wonder of a public education system that reinforces the principle that every student counts. Too often, though, the voucher programs that Ms. DeVos advocates leave out students whose families cannot afford to pay the part of the tuition that the voucher does not cover; the programs also leave behind students with disabilities because the schools do not accommodate their complex needs.

I am also concerned about the number of unresolved conflicts of interest regarding Ms. DeVos’s finances, which call into question whether she will put America’s students before her own financial interests. Ms. DeVos has invested in numerous companies in the education sphere, and she has failed to answer basic questions about her finances, including which companies she would stay invested in if she is confirmed.

I will always fight to improve our public education system and ensure that all students have the opportunity to reach their full potential. This week, I voted against moving forward with Ms. DeVos’s nomination in committee, and I will vote against her nomination again on the Senate floor.

Thousands of my constituents have called my office about this nomination, and nearly all have voiced concerns that Ms. DeVos is completely unqualified to serve as secretary of education. Two of my Republican colleagues have also announced their opposition. This leaves just one more vote needed to defeat her nomination.

I hope there is another senator willing to break with the president and vote against this woefully unqualified nominee. We must listen to the thousands speaking up for our children and the public education system that serves all Americans.

The Washington Post described grassroots reaction to DeVos' nomination as a "groundswell of opposition" and over the weekend the whole country saw her portrayed as a clod on Saturday Night Live in a performance that closely mirrored her own jaw-dropping testimony before the Senate. Editorial boards across the country have urged her rejection. Even the Republican Chicago Tribune summed her up as representing all that is wrong with the charter movement. "DeVos," they wrote over the weekend, "is woefully unqualified and unprepared to lead the Education Department. DeVos has no direct experience at any level of public education. Her only true experience is using her family wealth to influence legislation aimed at expanding and protecting charter and voucher schools in Michigan and across the country. She brings the flaws of the charter/voucher movement into clear focus... [T]here is the lack of any transparency with respect to how tax dollars are used in charter/voucher schools. Taxpayers deserve to know how sponsors of charter/voucher schools are taking profit or using tax dollars for nonschool church purposes versus educating kids. Here again, DeVos has financially influenced decisions to avoid such transparency. No legislator or government official should falsely preach against the effectiveness of public education, reject responsibility for making all schools effective or endorse the use of tax dollars while avoiding accountability and transparency and visiting financial harm on existing public schools."

The intensity of opposition to DeVos seems greater than even the opposition to Scott Pruitt (EPA), Jeff Sessions (Justice) and Steve Mnuchin (Treasury), widely seen as his three worst appoints aside from her. Politico outlined the quixotic, furious last minute bid to sink the nomination.

Teachers unions, civil rights advocates and a ragtag assemblage of other opponents are bombarding congressional offices with tens of thousands of phone calls and more than 1 million emails-- a massive but almost certainly doomed effort to vanquish one of President Donald Trump’s most controversial Cabinet picks.

Sen. Brian Schatz, a Hawaii Democrat, said on Twitter that the last three days had “been the busiest in Capitol switchboard history” by “almost double.” He urged opponents of DeVos to “keep it up.”

The campaign kicked into high gear this week after two Republican senators, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, announced their opposition, leaving the charter schools advocate hanging by a 50-50 thread. Just one more “no” vote and DeVos is done-- a prospect that seems tantalizingly close for Democrats but that GOP leaders say they’re confident won’t happen.

Author Stephen King, a Maine resident, tweeted to his 2.8 million followers: “Thanks to Susan Collins for saying ‘No’ on Betsy DeVos. Notice that it's possible to be a good Republican and still say no to Donald Trump.”

Trump doesn't even know her; she was Pence's pick. When Trump ran into her at event the other day, he seemed unsure of who she was and eventually said, in front of reporters, "You're the education lady, right?" Pence will have break the Senate tie tomorrow-- unless one good Republican is found to vote against her (or even just disappear for the day). Spicer claims the Regime is "100% confident" she'll be confirmed.

Teachers unions, who have long warred with DeVos over her support of charter school expansion and using taxpayer money for vouchers, among other things, are continuing to mobilize hundreds of thousands of their members across the country to call lawmakers.

The country’s largest union, the National Education Association, says it has organized more than 80,000 phone calls and more than 1.1 million emails in the past four weeks.

But the opposition to DeVos mushroomed into something bigger after clips from her bumpy confirmation hearing exploded across social media, reinforcing questions about her qualifications for the job and turning the nominee into a punchline on late night television.

“Betsy DeVos teaches us that if you're born rich, never go to public schools, and hate public schools, someday you can run public schools,” tweeted comedian Mike Birbiglia.

Union organizers say that although they are still campaigning against DeVos, a good deal of the backlash comes from the general public. And they anticipate those efforts would increase over the weekend as activists share lawmakers’ phone numbers on Facebook and Twitter.

“This has become such a high-profile fight for our education system that there will no doubt be an enormous amount of activism over the weekend,” said Mary Kusler, senior director of the Center for Advocacy at the NEA.

Parent groups have become soldiers in the cause, incensed that DeVos has never been a teacher or school administrator and fearful she will put their children's education at risk.

Deena Mitchell, a parent activist in Anchorage, said she is disturbed by Devos' "absolute lack of experience for this job."

“I think anyone who makes a comment that public education is a ‘dead end’ doesn’t fundamentally believe that public education is the bedrock of our democracy,” Mitchell said.

Mitchell and her group, Great Alaska Schools, cheered Murkowski's decision to oppose DeVos. This weekend, they’re organizing “a tie-breaker telethon,” collecting comments to deliver to their other senator, Dan Sullivan, who has said he’ll vote to confirm her.

The push against DeVos has also sparked some unlikely alliances.

Billionaire philanthropist and education reformer Eli Broad, a Democrat who has donated to both parties and pushed for charter school expansion, penned a letter this week urging the Senate to reject DeVos.

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten, who is usually on the opposite side from Broad, shares his position on DeVos. Education secretary nominees are usually given great deference by both parties, she said. But “DeVos breaks the mold.”

This has been circulating on Social Media this week, meant, primarily as a description of Trump, of course, but it seems to fit DeVos perfectly as well as the whole kakistocracy:

The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which unskilled individuals suffer from illusory superiority, mistakenly rating their ability much higher than average. This bias is attributed to a metacognitive inability of the unskilled to recognize their mistakes.

GOP Acts Out The Terrible Two's Here Everyday But Now It's Spilling Over Into The International Arena

Senate Republicans lost the election but today they celebrate crushing the rights of the disabled

How embarrassing was it yesterday when the Senate-- where a two-thirds majority is needed to ratify a treaty-- saw Republican obstructionists take out their institutional anger by voting down a pact that codifies the rights of people with disabilities. The bill had a 61-38 majority-- but not the two-thirds needed. Every single Democrat-- even Nelson, Manchin and McCaskill-- voted for it and so did 8 Republicans willing to act like adults: Doctor John Barrasso (WY), Scott Brown (MA), Susan Collins (ME), Olympia Snowe (ME), Kelly Ayotte (NH), Lisa Murkowski (AK), Dick Lugar (IN) and John McCain (AZ). 6 Republicans who voted for the original Americans With Disabilities Act 22 years ago-- and all this treaty is meant to do is to have the UN use that standard for other countries-- voted against it yesterday: Miss McConnell (KY), Orrin Hatch (UT), Thad Cochran (MS), Dan Coats (IN), Chuck Grassley (IA) and Richard Shelby (AL), the last of which switched from the Democratic Party to the GOP in the interim.

Like 154 other countries, the U.S. had signed the treaty, which guarantees equal access for the disabled to employment, health care, education, physical accommodations and legal protection under international law, in 2009 but the Senate's mindless ideological pique voided that yesterday. (And keep in mind that the treaty was approved 13-6 by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which added an addendum clarifying the point that the U.S. surrenders none of its sovereignty by passing it and that the treaty would have no power to alter or overrule United States law, and any recommendations that emerge from it would not be binding on state or federal governments or in any state or federal court.)

Supporters including former Republican presidential candidate and Majority Leader Bob Dole had tried to convince senators that the treaty would prod other countries to meet U.S. standards on disabled rights and wouldn’t, as some Republican critics argued, force this country to abide by international standards.

“This treaty is not about changing America, it is about America changing the world,” said Senator John Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat and chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee.

Dole, a World War II combat veteran who lost use of his right arm, went to the Senate floor in a wheelchair as the Senate concluded debate and voted on the treaty.

The treaty, which wouldn't have cost the U.S. any money whatsoever had widespread public backing but the die-hard obstructionists just want to see everything fail if they can't get their way. It's a very dangerous situation for the country-- and not one likely to be cleared up in 2014, when very few Republican senators are vulnerable. I suppose if Georgia and Kentucky go blue, maybe some of the others will get a clue... maybe not. Because there is no conceivable way that the Democrats are going to beat dyed-in-the-wool hard core obstructionists like Jeff Sessions (AL), Jim Risch (ID), Pat Roberts (KS), Thad Cochran (MS), Mike Johanns (NE), Jim Inhofe (OK), or Mike Enzi (WY). Voters in those actually want obstructionism and want to see government fail. This is what the NY Times editorial board had to say about the treaty vote the day before the GOP killed it:

The United States is a global leader in defending the rights of people with disabilities, thanks largely to the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, one of President George H.W. Bush’s crowning accomplishments. Now the Senate has a chance to extend the spirit of that law-- and with it, real protections for the disabled-- beyond our borders. It can vote on Tuesday to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities, which declares that all citizens, regardless of ability, deserve to live in dignity, safety and equality under the law.

...[I]t would encourage other countries to bring their treatment of the disabled up to America’s gold standard, the A.D.A. That is more than enough reason to support it. A broad array of disability-rights groups say also that the treaty’s benefits for disabled Americans traveling abroad, particularly veterans, will be considerable.

Its list of defenders is long and bipartisan, including veterans- and disability-rights groups; the first President Bush; former Attorney General Richard Thornburgh; Senator John McCain; and former Senator Bob Dole, who will be attending a ceremony in Washington before the vote celebrating his advocacy for the disabled. The Senate could do him no greater honor than to ratify this treaty.

The vote is expected to be close, because of an eruption from the right-wing fringe, led by people like Rick Santorum, the former senator, who says the treaty “crushes” American sovereignty and opens the door to bureaucrats taking disabled children from their parents’ arms.

The Senate should ignore such nonsense. America is already ahead of the world on disability rights; it is time for the purveyors of paranoid politics to get out of the way, so it can continue to lead.

And just after the vote, the White House had an official response:

We are disappointed that the overwhelming majority of Senate Republicans today blocked the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which would enshrine American standards that have been developed through decades of bipartisan cooperation. Ratification would require no changes to U.S. law, as the United States already leads the world in promoting and protecting the rights of persons with disabilities. However, it would position the United States to support extending across the globe the rights that Americans already enjoy at home. This in turn would improve the lives of Americans with disabilities-- including our wounded service members-- who wish to live, work, and travel abroad. It would also allow our businesses to operate on a more level playing field and reaffirm American leadership on disability rights. For these reasons, and others, Democrats and Republicans in the Senate and across the country-- as well as disability advocacy groups, wounded warriors, veterans groups and business groups-- have supported this treaty. We commend former Senator Dole and the bipartisan coalition of Senators who worked to secure the treaty resolution’s passage, including Senators Reid, Kerry, Lugar and McCain. We hope the Senate will reconsider this treaty soon in the next Congress. As President Obama declared in a written statement read in tribute to Senator Dole just before the vote, “disability rights should not stop at our nation's shores.”

Santorum won; America-- and the world-- lost. Let's all say a prayer today that the GOP nominates Santorum as their candidate in 2016. They deserve that.

Another Slap Down For Rand Paul As House Unanimously Honors Americans With Disabilities Act 20th Anniversary

I just couldn't resist taking note of the fact that this evening the House voted 377-0 to recognize and honor the 20th anniversary of the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The rules were suspended and it had to be agreed to by 2/3 of the House. This happened at 6:42pm. No one voted against it. That was odd. Did pathetic little Rand Paul even get abandoned by his father? Ron Paul was one of 55 members who didn't vote.

Many of the ones who didn't vote are back home running for office, like Dan Boren (Blue Dog-OK), whose primary is tomorrow; Pete Hoekstra (R-MI) and Zach Wamp (R-TN), busy losing gubernatorial primaries in Michigan and Tennessee; Adam Putnam (R-FL), running for State Agriculture Commissioner of Florida; and Meek (D-FL), Moran (R-KS), Hodes (D-NH) and Tiahart (R-KS), all running for Senate. Others, like John Shadegg (R-AZ), Gresham Barrett (R-SC), Vern Ehlers (R-MI), Parker Griffith (R-AL), Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Bart Stupak (D-MI), either are retiring or have lost primaries and are being retired and no longer care enough to bother coming in to work. Several are prowling K Street lining up new jobs as lobbyists.

But Ron Paul (R-TX), of course, fits none of those categories. I had a hunch. I looked to see what the next vote was. And sure enough, a few minutes later Ed Markey's H.R. 3101, the Twenty-first Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act, came up for a vote. It was opposed by a gaggle of far right-wing loons-- cranks like Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Steve King (R-IA), Tom Price (R-GA), John Campbell (R-CA), Trent Franks (R-AZ), Tom McClinton (R-CA) and... Ron Paul. I knew it!

It must have been humiliating for Ron with his crackpot son having denounced a piece of legislation that has made the lives of millions of Americans much richer and fuller and given them the freedom and liberty he's always squawking about but seems to think only belongs to wealthy white "normal" males. Earlier in the day Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway was hailing the anniversary and the legislation at a nonpartisan rally on Lexington. "Twenty years ago today, " he told the crowd, "when President George H. W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act and 'let the shameful wall of exclusion finally come tumbling down,' we made our country stronger and our people more equal and free. Today, working together, we can continue to improve the lives of those with disabilities." His campaign released a press release blasting Rand Paul's position against the bill:

Jack Conway understands the importance of this landmark civil rights legislation, which, since its enactment on July 26, 1990, has served as a bill of rights, helping over 50,000,000 Americans with disabilities to more actively engage their communities and seek out the American Dream.

Further, Jack Conway recognizes the ADA's importance to Kentucky. Kentucky is the state with the third largest percentage of non-institutionalized, working aged people with disabilities. These individuals depend on the ADA to help safeguard their rights, including the right to seek employment, to utilize public accommodations, and to access basic public services.

By contrast, Jack Conway's opponent Rand Paul has repeatedly expressed his disgraceful opposition to key provisions in the ADA, putting the rights of businesses over the rights of disabled American citizens. He even suggested that businesses employing disabled persons confined to a wheelchair should not be required to comply with federal standards and maintain an elevator, suggesting instead that the employer simply "get them a job on the first floor."

Jack Conway will stand up for Americans with disabilities-- our friends, neighbors and fellow citizens.

This must have been terribly embarrassing for Jeb Bush, who found himself stuck hosting a fundraiser today for the son of another politician, a non-certified eye doctor in Kentucky.

ONLY 17 EXTREMISTS VOTE AGAINST AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT. CAN YOU GUESS THEIR NAMES?

Bush I signing the Americans With Disabilities Act in 1990

Did you ever want to walk up to a blind man and punch him in the face when no one else was around? You didn't? Neither did I. I'm less certain about 17 members of Congress-- and especially one from New Jersey. Now, nothing against New Jersey-- except for this one maniac, every single New Jersey Democrat and every single New Jersey Republican voted for H R 3195, the Americans With Disabilities Act Amendments, late yesterday. Actually it wasn't only the whole New Jersey delegation (minus one) that voted for this. Every single Democrat in the nation and all but these 17 far right extremist Republicans supported it too. It's beyond veto-proof. It passed 4102-17. The bill slaps down Bush's corporate Supreme Court by making Congress' intention so clear than not even Antonin Scalia or Clarence Thomas could misunderstand and misinterpret. Here's what it does:

· Specifically rejects the erroneous Supreme Court decisions that have reduced the protections for people with disabilities under the ADA, restoring original Congressional intent.
· Makes it absolutely clear that the ADA is intended to provide broad coverage to protect anyone who faces discrimination on the basis of disability.
· Clarifies the definition of disability, including what it means to be “substantially limited in a major life activity.”
· Prohibits the consideration of mitigating measures such as medication, prosthetics, and assistive technology, in determining whether an individual has a disability.
· Provides coverage to people who experience discrimination based on a perception of impairment regardless of whether the individual experiences disability.
· Is supported by a broad coalition of civil rights groups, disability advocates, and employer trade organizations.

So, who were the skunks at the picnic? Some of the worst of the rubber stamp extremists who love to oppose this kind of positive legislation-- people like Mean Jean Schmidt, Patrick McHenry, Michelle Bachmann, Tim Walberg and David Dreier-- are too scared of facing their constituents in November to pull their regular hate-filled routines. But that doesn't account for this handful of lunatic fringe Republican hate-mongers:

Paul Broun (GA)
John Capmbell (CA)
John Doolittle (CA)
John Duncan (TN)
Jeff Flake (AZ)
Scott Garrett (NJ)
Louie Gohmert (TX)
Jeb Hensarling (TX)
Jack Kingston (GA)
John Linder (GA)
Kenny Marchant (TX)
Ron Paul (TX)
Ted Poe (TX)
Tom Price (GA)
Tom Tancredo (CO)
Dave Weldon (FL)
Lynn Westmoreland (GA)

The Texas and Georgia Republican parties look like more than half the problem. But how do you account for a congressman supposedly representing a moderate district in northern New Jersey, much of it in thoroughly mainstream Bergen County? That would be GOP wildman Scott Garrett. I don't know if he hates all disabled people but I know he's unhappy with one. His opponent for the congressional seat he will likely lose in November is himself a blind man, Dennis Shulman. We asked Dennis for his reaction to Garrett's bizarre vote yesterday.

"I'm not outraged as someone with a disability, I am outraged as someone who fights for the fundamental American value of equal opportunity."

"The Americans with Disabilities Act is a landmark piece of legislation that has provided millions of Americans with equal access in virtually all areas of life, including education, the workforce, and technology. Perhaps without it, I wouldn't be here to offer a sensible alternative to an out of touch career politician like Scott Garrett."

Anyone who donates at least $25 to Dennis Shulman's campaign today via the Blue America ActBlue page will get a great new double CD-- Quixotic by Matt Keating-- sent to them as a Blue America thank you.

Where were you in 1982?