| Sen. Brown To House GOP: Stop Blocking Strong Violence Against Women Act |
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 Washington – U.S. Senator Scott Brown (R-MA) spoke from the Senate floor today to highlight the importance of the Violence Against Women Act and press House Republicans to work with Senate leaders to pass a strong bill that President Obama can sign into law.
Excerpts:
“Mr. President, I rise today to speak about the Violence Against Women Act. VAWA is a landmark piece of legislation, one that I believe has saved many lives and brought us together as Americans in standing up for what we believe is right. With this law, we have said that the United States takes domestic violence seriously and we are taking a moral stance against it.”
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“Fortunately, the Senate bill includes many improvements that have been developed over time with various non-profits and law enforcement agencies and individuals that deal with these challenges every day. I'm very proud to be a cosponsor of what is clearly a good, thoughtful bill.
“Unfortunately, following the bipartisan Senate action, the House passed a dramatically scaled back version of the Violence Against Women Act that did not include core provisions that would improve the law. It seems that rather than work through some of the problems, the House was just content to pass a bill that did not address the number of growing problems facing individuals today. That’s not how we legislate. That’s not how we should be legislating. We need to pass a bipartisan, bicameral bill that the president will sign.”
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“As someone who has experienced domestic violence up close and seen its effect on, not only families, but my family, this is completely unacceptable. The vast majority of the bill is broadly supported by both sides of the aisle. It is beyond frustrating that the House has become distracted by a tiny percentage of the bill that has caused gridlock. Even worse, it seems some are willing to allow procedural technicalities to block its way forward. I have to tell you, that just makes no sense to me. At a time when people’s lives are potentially at stake, this bill should be done already. Women in Massachusetts and throughout the country, survivors of violence, deserve better. And we should provide that leadership immediately.
“Mr. President, today I am calling on the House and Senate leadership and committees of jurisdiction to listen to the calls from millions of Americans and come together and pass a bill that addresses critical needs of our communities and citizens of those communities. All sides need to come together and work through the small amount of differences they have.” |
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