House Passes Expanded Hate Crimes Bill (Republicans complain)

[ProSense]

October 8, 2009

House Passes Expanded Hate Crimes Bill

By Carl Hulse

The House voted Thursday to expand the definition of violent federal hate crimes to cover those committed because of a victim’s gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability.

Democrats and advocates hailed the vote of 281 to 146, which put the measure on the brink of becoming law, as the culmination of a long push to curb violent expressions of bias such as the murder in 1998 of Matthew Shepard, a gay Wyoming college student.

“Left unchecked crimes of this kind threaten to ruin the very fabric of America,” said Representative Susan Davis, Democrat of California.

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Republicans said Democrats were essentially forcing through contentious social policy by tying it to a highly popular Pentagon measure that authorizes military pay, benefits, weapons programs and other essentials for the armed forces. Even Republican members of the Armed Services Committee who helped write the underlying legislation said they would oppose it solely because of the hate crimes proposal

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(emphasis added)

Group Of Psychos

[TlalocW]

1. I love pointing out to republican friends

That this bill isn't giving special rights to anyone. If you're beaten up by a group of people who are a different ethnicity than you, and they did it for racial reasons, you're covered. If a group of homosexuals beat you up, and it's because they don't like your being straight, you're covered.

TlalocW

[vaberella]

3. Hah...good come back. n/t

[Kdillard]

2. kick and rec. Glad it passed. Group of Psychos is right.