Equal Pay Not Everyone's Cup of Tea

Evidently, Republicans don't value women's work. At least some Republicans don't. Although female Republican Senators voted with Democrats to end wage discrimination towards women, many male Republicans didn't, including our very own Texas Senator John Cornyn.

Lilly Ledbetter brought this issue to the attention of the American Public when she realized that not only did she earn less money during her time working for Goodyear Tires, but she also received less retirement and social security benefits after her retirement. Why? Not because she worked less than the men or her work was of lesser quality, but simply because she is a woman.

Ms Ledbetter who worked for almost two decades for Goodyear, discovered that she had been consistently paid less than her male counterparts and given lower merit raises, despite getting good reviews. She filed suit in 1998 and was originally awarded back pay for all her years of service. Goodyear appealed to the Supreme Court and won by a sliver of a margin in a 5 to 4 decision. Justice Ruth Ginsburg was so incensed by the decision that she read a statement of dissent. She said, she spoke also for Justices Stevens, Souter, and Breyer, when she said that "In our view, the court does not comprehend, or is indifferent to, the insidious way in which women can be victims of pay discrimination."

Lilly Ledbetter did not give up. She approached members of the Democratic Party who took up her cause and in 2007 introduced the 'Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act,' championed by both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama during their election campaigns.

In 2008, Republicans defeated the bill, but it was re-introduced this month in our new Democratic House and Senate. John McCain who was originally opposed to the bill, rescinded his position and voted for it and with him several other Republican senators, including Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson. Our Texas-bred Senator John Cornyn, however, did not. Makes one wonder how he got his 50% approval rating, since he has aligned his views almost throughout with former president George W. Bush.

Cornyn is pro-war, pro-Patriot Act, and very much anti-environment. He vigorously opposes the Obama administration and tried to block the confirmation of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State. And now, as his newest act of defiance, he stands in the way of women's civil rights. Wow! What a winner!

The Lilly Ledbetter Act passed with a whooping 75% majority in the Senate and a 61% majority in the House. This morning, President Obama signed the bill into law with Ms Ledbetter present as well as Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi who worked tirelessly to promote this important bill. The President stated that this bill would no longer benefit Ms. Ledbetter, but would provide an equal opportunity for future generations of women in the workplace. He underscored that losing pay through discrimination didn't just affect women, but affected their families as well. He commended Lilly Ledbetter for her persistence and courage in the pursuit of justice and in her determination to write a wrong. Ms. Ledbetter received a standing ovation from the President and others present at the signing.

Links have been provided to the senate and house voting record and to an article in the Washington Post on John Cornyn's voting record.