Allen's Pathetic Record on Womens' Issues

By: Lowell
Published On: 9/13/2006 4:18:20 PM

Look into George Allen's record on womens' issues for a few minutes, and it quickly becomes clear how pathetic it is.  Here's Allen's record on a few key areas.

Choice: As Governor, Allen vetoed a bill making it illegal to intentionally block access to abortion clinics.  Allen's veto came less than five months after John Salvi III fired 20 rounds into a Norfolk abortion clinic. 

Discrimination Against Women: As a member of the House of Delegates (1983), Allen was one of eight members to vote against outlawing housing discrimination based on "parenthood."  Allen's position would allow landlords to discriminate against single mothers.  As a delegate in 1986, Allen was one of seven members to vote against allowing Fairfax County to establish a Human Rights Council to "prohibit discrimination in housing, employment, public accomodations, credit and education on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, or disability."

Sexual Assault in the Workplace: As a member of the Virginia House of Delegates (1988), Allen voted against legislation allowing a woman who was sexually assaulted in the workplace to sue her attacker rather than be limited to benefits under workers' compensation.  Allen was one of just 20 House members who apparently believed that sexual assault in the workplace is just another job hazard.

Family and Medical Leave Act: Allen's first nonprocedural vote as a member of Congress was against the Family and Medical Leave Act.

Human Rights for Women: George Allen voted against the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).

Protecting Children: As Governor, George Allen vetoed legislation that would have banned guns from recreation centers in Fairfax County.

Great stuff, huh?  And George Allen's campaign has the gall to talk about something Jim Webb wrote almost 30 years ago?  Amazing.

Lowell Feld is Netroots Coordinator for the Jim Webb for US Senate Campaign.  The ideas expressed here belong to Lowell Feld alone, and do not necessarily represent those of Jim Webb, his advisors, staff, or supporters.


Comments



Pathetic.. (drmontoya - 9/13/2006 4:34:17 PM)
is the word. George Allen is a pathetic U.S. Senator.

And he's a disgrace to politics.



Gall? (JasonK - 9/13/2006 4:45:47 PM)
So Reagan's decades old words supportive of Webb's service are fair game but Webb's own words on women are off limits?

And is "but Allen said..." a proper defense?  Are you trying to excuse Webb's comments?

Talk about gall...



Webb has apologized for what he said 30 years ago (Lowell - 9/13/2006 7:00:51 PM)
End of story.


Interesting Voting Record from Perspective of Eagle Forum (PM - 9/13/2006 5:00:15 PM)
George Allen gets high ratings from the Eagle Forum – 93% in 2003, 100% in 2004, 75% in 2005.  The Eagle Forum is, of course, the property of Phyllis Schlafly, crusader against the Equal Rights Amendment, monetary supporter of Allen (Eagle Forum PAC in 2000) and author of such quotes as these:

"Sex education classes are like in-home sales parties for abortions."

RE: The firestorm surrounding Harvard University President Larry Summers’ recent remarks about the place of women in science-- “The outburst by feminist professors simply confirms the stereotype … that they are too emotional to handle intellectual or scientific debate.

“The flight from the home is a flight from yourself, from responsibility, from the nature of woman, in pursuit of false hopes and fading illusions.

What’s interesting is that Schlafly goes utterly ballistic on the issue of women in the military, as can be seen from her 2004 article at
http://www.humaneven...  Here are a few choice quotes:

The picture of female U.S. Army Pfc. Lynndie R. England holding a leash and collar around the neck of a prone and naked Iraqi male prisoner, like a dog, is a worldwide public relations disaster.

Just as humiliating for Americans is allowing the world see the depths reached by a gender-integrated U.S. military.

***The pictures are stark illustrations of the gender experimentation that has been going on in the U.S. military. The images have lifted the curtain on a subject about which the public has largely been kept in the dark.

When he was still in office, Former President William Jefferson Clinton made clear his contempt for our military, but the Clintonista feminazis were more focused in their disdain. They were determined to give us a gender-neutral military or, as one of their representatives said, an "un-gendered" military.***

Adopting coed basic training for all the services except the Marines lowered the standards to the physical capabilities of women. This was often disguised by gender-norming, the deceitful practice of scoring women higher than men for the same performance and then pretending that women are performing equally.

***
The result is a breakdown of military discipline and a dramatic coarsening of women and of men's treatment of women. This has caused a critical diversion of time and energy away from the essential task of teaching men to be soldiers and into dealing with the problems caused by the powerful factor of sex when lonely, scared young men and women are crowded together in an environment where moral standards have been abandoned.

So, I wonder how Allen's sudden embracing of gender equality will play with his conservative base?

It is clear from your good digging, Lowell, that Allen's sudden embrace of gender equality reflects some sort of new found love.



So, I suppose (Walker Keith Armistead - 9/13/2006 6:32:45 PM)
Rather than even attempt to refute Webb's own words in the comments on your previous post, you throw up the "but he did it too!" defense.

And to top it off, you have yet to use Allen's own words.



Oh, Lowell, I can smell your pants from here, (I.Publius - 9/13/2006 6:33:26 PM)
after you crapped in them today.  You are so freakin' predictable.

A respected black state senator endorses Allen, specifically pointing out Allen's work for black colleges, so what do you do?  You put up a post about how awful Allen's record is on black colleges.

Webb gets creamed in the press today by five female USNA grads, who accuse Webb of fostering an atmosphere of sexual harassment... and this news is accompanied by several very unflattering quotes about how Webb views females in the military, and what do you do?  You put up a post about how horrible Allen's record is about women (and you toss in minorities for good measure.)

Y'all are in a purely reactive mode now, and it's becoming great sport to watch. 

Enjoy your slow slide with candidate Webb into irrelevance.



The women grads (Kathy Gerber - 9/13/2006 10:38:38 PM)
It looks like they were all former students of Allen's vet guy, Galanti. It couldn't have been too hard for him to pull them together.  I wonder who paid for their plane tickets?
 


That's true (I'm Not Emeril - 9/13/2006 6:47:46 PM)
I.Publius.
What's next, is Lowell going to try to fall back on the "Ethnic Ralley" again?

Whoops, I see he already has.

Purely reflexive defense mode is fun to watch.



You guys are really confused (Lowell - 9/13/2006 7:02:31 PM)
Eric posts something, and it magically turns into "Lowell."

Greg posts something, and it magically turns into "Lowell."

The Webb campaign press office puts something out, and it
magically turns into "Lowell."

Are you guys obsessed with me or what?  Very strange.



It's your site. (I.Publius - 9/13/2006 7:06:25 PM)
Captain is responsible for everything on his ship.

I know it's tempting for you libs, since y'all do it all the time, but you can't get away with passing the blame to someone else.



For the 20th time, this is a GROUP blog (Lowell - 9/14/2006 5:01:17 AM)
and also a COMMUNITY blog.  You think I'm responsible for what YOU write?  Ha, now THAT is funny!  Also, I'm not the "captain" of this blog.  Eric, Brian, Josh, and several others are co-equals.  As the shrinks would say, why do you want to give me so much power?


Hmmmmmm.... (phriendlyjaime - 9/13/2006 7:11:37 PM)
I can never tell if it's jealousy of Lowell, or an obsessive crush.

Either way, it smells desperate.

I also LOVE how the "usual suspects" save the ever present I. Publius have been super quiet for weeks until today.  It's pretty hilarious. 



LOL (Kathy Gerber - 9/13/2006 10:40:30 PM)
Well I'm just glad this isn't a ship.  I don't want someone I've never met to take responsibility for me.


Accepting responsibility (libra - 9/13/2006 8:45:00 PM)
"Captain is responsible for everything on his ship."

Sez I Pube.

Tell it to the President, why don't you?
9/11.
Iraq quagmire.
Afghanistan sliding into ditto (wtf is Osama???).
Trying to pull the rug from under the elderly (Social Security to be privatized as soon as maybe), the poor (cuts to all programs which might -- God forbid -- give them half a chance) and the young (No child Left With a Mind Act) -- an equal opportunity screwing up of society, no less :).
Save the flag; burn the Constitution instead.
Support the richest, so that they can screw you even better.

It all happened on the "Captain's" watch... With his little helper -- Allen -- doing the best he could... So, OK, I'll excuse Allen -- he was "only following orders" (Nuremberg trials, anyone?) -- but what about the Captain-in-Chief? When is he going to take responsibility for his actions (prompted by gut-reactions)?

You're a good spinner, sir, but a poor human being.



Before I Pube got me all riled up... (libra - 9/13/2006 9:00:53 PM)
I was gonna comment on Lowell's:

As a delegate in 1986, Allen was one of seven members to vote against allowing Fairfax County to establish a Human Rights Council to "prohibit discrimination in housing, employment, public accomodations, credit and education on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, or disability."

I don't think it shows that Allen's discriminating against women in particular; I think he's an equal opportunity discriminator -- race, color, religion, sex, national orgin, age, marital status, disability... -- makes no diff. IOW, it's perfectly OK to discriminate against a gay Shinto "macaca" in a wheelchair, whether it's female or male (and we'll make sure it ain't married).



Why would someone be against human rights? That's crazy. (Kathy Gerber - 9/13/2006 9:57:12 PM)
That is ridiculous.  I just fail to see the rationale.