Sunday, Dec. 30, 2018 | 2 a.m.
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When the U.S. House goes back to work this week under its new Democratic majority, one of its priorities should be to right a reprehensible wrong committed by a departing Republican on his way out the door.
The Republican is Bob Goodlatte of Virginia. The wrong he committed was to block passage of Savanna’s Act, a bill aimed at protecting Native American women from violence, based on a political spat.
The bill is an important, well-crafted piece of legislation. Named for Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind, a 22-year-old pregnant woman who was killed by a woman who wanted to abduct her baby, the bill contains provisions to help the Justice Department and tribal authorities curb violence being inflicted on Native American women at epidemic levels.
The Senate passed it unanimously — a reflection of the quality of the bill.
Goodlatte halted it by declining to bring it up for a vote in the House Judiciary Committee, which he chairs.
The reason: He was miffed at the bill’s sponsor, Democratic Sen. Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota. Heitkamp had pressured Goodlatte into pushing the bill through the committee — or, more specifically, had urged people to ask their representatives to press Goodlatte — and the Republican congressman didn’t like it. Goodlatte, who had raised a trifling concern over the bill, called Heitkamp’s efforts “just ridiculous.”
So, instead of bringing the bill before the committee and trying to iron out his concern with it, he acted in a partisan snit and stonewalled it. And a perfectly good bill that would provide critical protections for a group of Americans facing grave dangers failed to make it through the House.
What a thoroughly disgusting act.
The good news here, however, is that Goodlatte will soon be gone, having chosen not to seek another term after 13 years in the House, and bipartisan support for Savanna’s Act remains strong.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said she planned to reintroduce the bill when the new session of Congress begins Jan. 3.
“It’s disappointing that one Republican member of Congress blocked Savanna’s Act from passing this year,” she said in a statement. “But fortunately, Rep. Goodlatte won’t be around to block it in the new Congress.”
The situation shows the wisdom of voters in Nevada and other states that sent moderate, reasonable lawmakers to Congress in this year’s midterms. Thank goodness for them — as in the case with Savanna’s Act, their votes are literally going to help protect the lives of their fellow Americans.
Meanwhile, actions like Goodlatte’s should live on as a testament to the moral rot that has infected a large portion of the Republican Party. His behavior exemplifies a disturbing theme in today’s Congress: Too many congressional leaders focus on their personal interactions and petty political tiffs instead of the needs of the people. The idea that a House leader should block a bill to protect women because his feathers were ruffled is revolting. This is Congress, not middle school.
This isn’t an isolated situation, either. The government shutdown instigated by President Donald Trump has led to the expiration of the Violence Against Women Act, the 1994 law providing funding for programs aiding victims of sexual assault, domestic abuse and stalking. In other words, Trump’s demands for funding for the border wall have not only disrupted the lives of hundreds of thousands of government workers, but have weakened protections for women nationwide.
This kind of madness must stop, and fortunately many voters are recognizing that. In sending a record number of women to Congress this year, they’ve put their foot down.
