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Take That, Dick Cheney!
Last week, in his first successful piece of legislation, freshman Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) persuaded the Senate to approve a measure banning federal contracts with defense companies that use mandatory binding arbitration clauses in employment contracts that prevent sexual assault victims from suing. The measure not only proves once again that elections matter, but it also comes as a major rebuke to none other than former Vice President Dick Cheney.
The back story: Franken's bill was inspired by Halliburton/KBR contractor Jamie Leigh Jones, who was allegedly raped by her co-workers and held hostage in a shipping container by her employer in Iraq in 2005. Not only did the Justice Department and the military fail to investigate or prosecute her attackers, but as Mother Jones reported back in 2007, Jones was unable to sue the company, either, in no small part thanks to Cheney.
Cheney had been the Halliburton CEO who instituted a company-wide policy to include mandatory binding arbitration clauses in employment contracts. Jones was forced to sign such a contract before heading off to Iraq in 2005 and has spent four years fighting in federal court to void the contract. Jones wasn't the only defense contractor/sexual assault victim prevented from suing because of arbitration clauses.Franken was understandably outraged, and he gave a surprisingly compelling speech from the Senate floor, saying:
The constitution gives everybody the right to due process of law … And today, defense contractors are using fine print in their contracts do deny women like Jamie Leigh Jones their day in court. The victims of rape and discrimination deserve their day in court [and] Congress plainly has the constitutional power to make that happen.
Franken was so persuasive that even a few Republicans got on board; his amendment passed 68 to 30.
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Cheney Justice?
Why can't Jamie Leigh Jones, who says she was raped in Iraq by her coworkers at Haliburton's KBR, sue her former employer for damages? Ask Dick Cheney.
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Welcome to the Al Franken Decade
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Court Okays Halliburton Rape Trial
Jamie Leigh Jones says she was raped and imprisoned in Iraq. Now she gets to sue.
F-ing Repubs
How anyone with a trace of humanity could possibly vote against this legislation is beyond comprehension. And there are women who still vote republican. Any of you trolls who say demos and repubs are the same are hereby rebuffed.
Unimpressive
The sad thing is that Halliburton/KBR, a corporation which acheived its dominant position through political corruption, and which makes much of its profit by ripping off the government, getting caught, and paying a fraction of the stolen money back, can't be fired by a Democratic Administration for that reason. The rape of the taxpayer is a non-story compared to the rape of a pretty blonde woman to our elected representatives, just as it is to Fox News. Yay for Franken, but this is pretty sorry even as a start.
Let's see
Let's see- a White House and both houses of Congress are controlled by far left radicals and an anti-American clown gets some legislation passed and you think its a great victory?
Your comment is simply
Your comment is simply reprehensible and without any credibility.
Stop It!
As a far-left radical, I can't tell you how frustrating it is to see people actually believe the "radical" meme. Anyone worth my proud title would have burned Wall St. to the ground, forced through single-payer health insurance, and taken our troops out of the Middle East post-haste. Oh yeah, also EFCA and DADT and gay marriage and salary caps on financial services and the return of usury laws and open relations with Cuba.
You're absolutely right.
You're absolutely right. Today's Democrats, Obama included, couldn't be more moderate. As a far-left radical, I would do everything you said PLUS ban ALL guns above .22 caliber, including any automatic weapons. Then I would ban any mention of religion by any politician. Radical? Right-wingers have never seen radical liberals in office, and neither have I.
Excuse me?
Upholding the Constitution is anti-American? Why did it even have to come this far?
Let's see
Obviously you can't tell left from right nor conservative from neocon reactionary. Take a civics class and try again.
devil
you are the perfect example of a living devil.
Really?
So what is not credible? Do you deny that Chairman MAObama has appointed avowed communists and radical socialists to "czar" positions? Do you deny that the entire Black Congressional Caucus is a far left "victimology" clique and that the likes of Sanders (ostensibly an Independent but totally in the tank for the Democrats) Kucinich, Pelosi, Waters, Conyers, Moran etc are far leftists?
And I realize that calling the excreable Franken a clown is an insult to clownhood everywhere but he is clearly a radical leftist. - so what lack of credibility?
As for reprehensible- it is to laugh for someone who is a member of the party of Obammy, a man who always, as in always, blames America first, reprehensible.
In reply to your delusions...
You have been watching way too much Glen Beck.
By the way, referring to the President of the United States, Barack Obama, as "Obammy" is not only racist, it's anti-American. But of course as a Republican Brown-shirt you already knew that, didn't you?
Who
I have never seen Glen Beck but I am ever grateful for the far left's predictability- when you are not playing the race card one can always count on the mentally challenged leftists (redundant) to call anyone who has a different opinion from the party line a brown shirt. - it is to laugh.
Wow, Irony at it best.
Wow, Irony at it best.
I came to the Mother Jones
I came to the Mother Jones web site to read the interview with Mark Johnson, as I am a huge fan of Playing for Change. I'm familiar with your magazine, which was considered the best liberal reading by my daughter, who is now 50. She first became a fan in college, circa late '70s, and i came to hold it in high regard. My comment is in response to the previous comments posted re your article. I am appalled at the level of discourse. First, why all the anonymity? Why don't you stand up and tell us who you are? Speaking directly of two comments: to refer to Sen. Franken as an "anti-American clown" is a personal attack on a man whom you obviously know nothing about. And while one of you may see this as pretty insignificant, it is highly unusual for the most junior of senators to even speak on the floor, let alone introduce and pass a bill. Damn fine, I say. And as for the person who seems to feel that only he/she carries the flag for the progressive or liberal wing of the Democratic party...excuse me, you describe yourself as a far-left radical. And what you would like to see sounds like a revolution. No thanks; as a progressive Democrat, I may be disappointed by the pace of progress in the past nine months, it is, non-the-less, progress in the proper direction.
Arbitration agreements aren't great either
Arbitration agreements need to be reigned in as a matter of public policy. KBR's must have said 'no matter what happens to you while working for us, you may never sue us, ever, no matter how responsible we are in what happened to you.' That's obscene.
This page is a microcosm of what is wrong
It is amazing that you can't have support across the board for this. Instead people come out of the woodwork to make this about "leftists" and the Obama administration. The problem right now with the country(politically) is that nobody can stay on point and discuss the true merits issue by issue. EVERYTHING has to be seen through the lenses of what party you support, or much worse, what cable or radio commentator has your ear. What book you read... There seems to be little real discourse or debate. Instead it has devolved into simply name calling for the most part. Everyone must pick a team and bash the other at every turn. We saw it with Bush as Hitler and now we have Obama as Hitler. Amazing. We are becoming a nation of people who have no personal constitution. We go with the wind. Maybe we are all programmed to be sold and jump onto a brand. But in this case the brand is political ideology. Where are the independents in this country? Where are the people who get behind a democratic senator on one issue and rail against them on another set of issues? How can someone stand against a bill that seeks to correct a flaw so obvious. That a private company can be above the law. This spits in the face of law and order, the constitution, victims of rape, and any sensible human. THERE WERE NO PIGGYBACKS ON THE BILL. That is actually kinda rare and I could see the arguments against the vote if there were riders. No riders as far as I have seen reported. Al Franken should be applauded regardless of where you stand.
I believe it was a
I believe it was a rider...please correct meif I'm wrong.
That being said...the Dec. Of Ind. listed a greivence as being denied access to court.
So this is obviously a no brainer as far as correcting a policy made by an administration who could care less about the Dec. of Ind. or the Const.
Uh-
So Pete - you did see the title that MJ gave to this article didn't you?????
YOU have "signed" a similar contract waiving YOUR rights too
Ahh, do you all realize that each of you has "signed" a similar contract waiving your right to a jury trial... and the courts will enforce that waiver. You have "signed" such a contract if: you are a member of an HMO, you have been admitted to most hospitals, own a credit card, or join a gym.
These clauses are everywhere!
Open Letter to Eric Holder
tagged as:- solution
I have published an Open Letter to Eric Holder, the US Attorney General, asking him to either properly investigate the 9/11 Attacks or charge me with libel for accusing Dick Cheney of murdering at least 175 innocent American citizens that fateful September morning. Please read the letter, and show your support by asking that the charges be filed against me if the government will not conduct an open investigation to find the true criminals responsible for murdering nearly 3,000 of our fellow countrymen.
http://www.BlandyLand.com
Thanks in advance for your help!
Daniel Edd Bland III
http://www.BlandyLand.com
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