The last time the Violence Against Women Act was up for reauthorization, Republicans held it up for nearly a year—and that was when President Barack Obama was in the White House and Democrats controlled the Senate. So you can imagine the threat the law faces now, set to expire in September with Donald Trump in the White House and Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress.
As in 2012-2013, Republicans would doubtless be happy to vote for a bill called the Violence Against Women Act. They just wouldn’t want it to do anything much—their problem is with a bill that improves protection of women, since that typically means putting limits on men in a way Republicans aren’t on board with. This year:
Among its provisions, the 2018 bill would provide law enforcement with more tools to remove firearms from domestic abusers who are not legally allowed to own them. Gun violence prevention groups say this is a critical area of focus, as firearms are the most commonly used weapons in domestic violence homicides. In the U.S., a woman is killed by an intimate partner with a gun every 16 hours. [...]
The bill would also offer improved protections for domestic violence victims living in public housing. Victims would be shielded from eviction, for instance, if their abuser breaks the law, and victims would be able to transfer apartments to seek safety without penalty.
Taking guns away from violent men who legally can’t own guns? Helping women in public housing? No wonder this bill has zero Republican co-sponsors in the House. They’d be more likely to support a bill that handed out guns to abusers and summarily evicted domestic violence victims (and everyone else) from public housing.
Last time around, the Republican desire not to be seen voting down the Violence Against Women Act was the strongest weapon women’s advocates have. Have Republicans lost even that modicum of shame in the age of Trump? The clock is ticking.