As President Obama addressed the NAACP in New York, the US Senate was busy passing the most sweeping hate crimes bill in 40 years. Supported the president, the new legislation l would expand hate crimes definitions to include physical disability, gender, gender identity, and sexual orientation if also passed in its current form by the House.
That said, there are other very real potential pitfalls though it passed with more than the necessary 60 votes to end discussion. Democratic Senate leader attached this hate crimes legislation to the "must pass" Defense spending bill that President Obama has said he will veto. Also opposed by the pentagon, the administration struck an alliance last week with Republican Senator John McCain and made clear it's intention to veto defense spending if it included further funding of the f-22.
Democrats continue to defend the necessity of attaching hate crimes expansion to other legislation in light of the consistent and long term foot dragging by Republican colleagues that have held back attempts to pass the popular legislation named for Matthew Shepard.
Not done yet…
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