Texas Senators John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison joined with other fellow Republicans today in voting down ratification of an international treating protecting the rights of the disabled. Ratification failed 61-38. It needed 67 votes to pass. Talking Points Memo describes the treaty:
“The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities essentially makes the 1990 Americans With Disabilities Act a non-binding international standard. It requires no change to U.S. law.”
Former Republican Senate Majority leader Bob Dole joined with a handful of longtime current GOP senators — including John McCain and Richard Lugar — and a host of other political leaders in calling for ratification of the treaty. (Dole himself is disabled because of injuries he suffered in World War II.) But many Republican senators joined with right-wing groups like Eagle Forum to denounce the treaty as a threat to American sovereignty and, well, home-schoolers. Yeah, go figure. Here’s what Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe said:
“I do oppose the CRPD because I think it does impinge upon our sovereignty. Unelected bureaucratic bodies would implement the treaty and pass so-called recommendations that would be forced upon the United Nations and the U.S. … This would especially affect those parents who home-school their children. … The unelected foreign bureaucrats, not parents, would decide what is in the best interests of the disabled child, even in the home.”
And no, we don’t understand what in blazes he’s talking about. Maybe Senators Cornyn and Hutchison can explain it.
The folks at RightWingWatch.org explain how “unhinged rhetoric” sank the treaty. Michael Farris of the Home School Legal Defense Association claimed, according to RightWingWatch.org, “that the treaty would prompt the United Nations to ‘get control’ of children with glasses or ADHD and remove them from their families.” Read the whole post — there’s much more from Farris.
I think I will not live long enough to understand the mindset of these people…what a poor example for other countries!
Serious lack of empathy but I shouldnt be surprised
I’m so confused that I don’t want to bother reading the article. I’m pretty sure it still wont make sense.
Tis the fruitcake season indeed.
Sad….
It beggars belief that any senator would vote against this innocuous and very sensible treaty. The treaty places no obligations on the U.S. and in fact is modeled after U.S. law, the ADA. What this shows is that Republican brains are hardwired to be contrary, emotional, irrational, illogical–in a word, crazy. Is it any wonder we have such dysfunctional government in every instance in which Republicans have the power to make decisions unilaterally or obstruct decision-making by others.
It’s not about Home Schooling. It’s about Forced Vegetarianism.
The vote by Sen Croyn should backfire on him in 2014 when he comes up for re-election. We need to hold “his feet to the fire”.
The bigger picture in all of this is to undermine the public school system. If we don’t educate the general public about the general welfare of everyday people, families and how they are systematically being destroyed under the guise of “the right thing to do” in their opinions, we will lose the public school system as many of us pre “no child left behind” obtained our education from. School should be free and excellent for all children, void of religious ideology and misinformation. Private schools do not have to adhere to the ridiculousness of the cirri ulum now being forced in place in the public school system but hey money gets you everything theses days. If one doesn’t have it, we grow generations of children that grow up ignorant and unable to cope in a world designed to see them fail. Are you thinking yet? Are you mad yet? What are you willing to do to make it right? Thank you TFN for your amazing efforts in keeping us informed and fighting for those rights ALL Americans should have in education for our children and young adults and the tools to make it happen.
Just ’cause they’re paranoid- doesn’t mean we’re not out to get ’em.