The Violence Against Women Act saves lives, which is why the last two times it came up for renewal, it passed by a combined bipartisan majority of 981-5.
But last year, Republicans in the U.S. House dragged their feet playing ideological games for nine months before ultimately letting the legislation expire. Nine minutes is too long to wait for these life-saving protections to be renewed, but nine months and a failure is an embarrassment.
That's why in this new Congress, I'm again supporting legislation reauthorizing these crucial protections for Missouri women and families.
But last year's failure shows that we can't just leave this up to Washington to solve. You have to get involved.
The Violence Against Women Act enables important efforts throughout the country to combat domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. It’s a commonsense bill, widely supported by law enforcement officials, victims' advocate groups, and the public at large. It should be one of the least controversial and most bipartisan measures we consider.
But the U.S. House approach to this bill was shameful.
All women should be protected, and the notion that some women subjected to violence deserve to be protected while others do not is unacceptable.
As a former Jackson County Prosecutor, and more importantly, as a mom and grandmother, I only see one commonsense conclusion: Americans still need these life-saving protections, so we need to renew this legislation.
Saving the lives of women is and should be above politics. Thank you for joining me in support of this crucial legislation today,
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