Comments on: FDL Welcomes Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton On The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act

By: dmac

dmac — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 14:07:11 +0000

called senator voinavich’s office back this morning—to see if he had come off of the fence yet–

still on the fence, hasn’t released a statement on why…..i said put a checkmark by the ’not happy with that’ column.

morning of the vote and *crickets*…..

By: Christy Hardin Smith

Christy Hardin Smith — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 20:29:31 +0000

Thanks Gabriel — why is it that the list always ends up being the usual suspects: the Gang of 14, all the women on the GOP side, and those in tight races who can never seem to make up their minds on anything? I swear, some days it really does feel like we are trying to herd cats.

By: gabriel

gabriel — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 19:53:44 +0000

Thanks for this list. There’s also a national journal article here

http://www.nationaljournal.com.....8_9546.php

that lists, in addition to some of the folks you listed, these senators as potentially on the fence:

Nelson
Snowe
Specter
Dole

By: QuakerGirl

QuakerGirl — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:22:17 +0000

Here is a message I received from Feminist Majority today. If nothing else, call your senator. At the least add two others from (all if possible) from Imericks @40.

Call your senators immediately to urge them to vote yes on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act! The vote is expected Wednesday, April 23. There is not a moment left to lose! This toll free number, 866-338-1015, will be available Monday through Wednesday. Call now!

The House has already passed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to correct the recent Supreme Court decision that guts the ability of women workers to sue for wage discrimination. Celebrate Equal Pay Day by calling your senators toll-free at 866-338-1015 today!

Lilly Ledbetter worked at Goodyear for nearly 20 years before she discovered that men in the same job were paid more. The Supreme Court ruled that wage discrimination complaints must be filed within 180 days of the initial discriminatory salary decision, even if the victim is unaware of the discrimination until much later. This 5-4 decision by the Bush Supreme Court reversed decades of precedent un wage discrimination cases decided under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.

It is imperative that the Senate pass the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. Call your senators toll-free at 866-338-1015 today! Tell them to reverse the Supreme Court’s assault on women’s right to sue by voting for the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.

For Equality,
Ellie Smeal
Eleanor Smeal
President

By: Christy Hardin Smith

Christy Hardin Smith — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:20:19 +0000

When we are down to fighting about whether medically necessary birth control has to be dispensed by pharmacists, I think we need to re-think how we are doing things. Absolutely agree with you there.

By: Wordsmith

Wordsmith — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:14:07 +0000

Damnit, Hugh! Now I have to clean coffee off my laptop . … again.

By: TobyWollin

TobyWollin — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:14:05 +0000

Christy – you and I between us have three daughters. My girls are much older than your Peanut, but even they do not understand what it is like to be asked in a job interview, “What does your husband do?” or “What form of birth control are you using,” as I was in the early 1970s, or what it is like to go through continual humiliation in terms of jobs being given to men who are younger, less educated, less experienced, etc. At the moment, however, I feel that we have degenerated into fighting to protect our daughters’ rights to controlling their own uteruses.

By: Christy Hardin Smith

Christy Hardin Smith — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:10:44 +0000

There are days when I’m right there with you — and then I think about folks like Eleanor Holmes Norton and others just like her who have spent a lifetime fighting these battles and who haven’t given up yet. And I keep on going…

By: TobyWollin

TobyWollin — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:07:58 +0000

Christy, there are days when I find it very difficult to draw the line on the continuum between people like Alito(representing certain factions of the right wing and the GOP), and the FLDS.

By: Christy Hardin Smith

Christy Hardin Smith — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:04:38 +0000

And to be clear, I am basing the “not a priority for Dems” comment on how difficult it was to get any interest in opposing Alito for womens’ issues problems we saw in his judicial history. It was painfully obvious that it wasn’t a priority for Senators to stand up on that issue just based on conversations — over and over again — that we tried to get going with various Senators and their staffs.