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DISABILITY WRONGS

Republicans Defeat UN Disability Treaty

Opponent Rick Santorum argued it could allow his daughter to die

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by Mary Noble

Senior Editor t

Image: AP

The Senate has nixed a UN treaty protecting disabled rights, which was modeled on the Americans With Disabilities Act.

The treaty needed a 2/3 majority to pass, and it was stymied by 38 Republican "no" votes. You can see how each senator voted here.

Republican supporters of the treaty included 89-year-old Bob Dole, who was disabled in World War II and appeared in the Senate in his wheelchair, and Sen. John McCain.

"It really isn't controversial," said Sen John Kerry. "What this treaty says is...that you can't discriminate against the disabled. It says that other countries have to do what we did 22 years ago when we...passed the Americans with Disabilities Act."

Kerry's claim that there's no controversy isn't shared by partisans on either side. "Republican Lunatics Vote Against Rights of Disabled People - Heartless bastards do it again," proclaims liberal blog Little Green Footballs. "Matters of Life and Death: Senate Defeats Pro-Abortion UN Treaty," announces right-wing site World Net Daily.

Republican opposition was fueled by a fiery column from Rick Santorum, who alleged that the treaty would allow government to decide that his daughter Bella should die.

The most offensive provision is found in Section 7 of the treaty dealing specifically with children with disabilities. That section reads: "In all actions concerning children with disabilities, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration."
...In the case of our 4-year-old daughter, Bella, who has Trisomy 18, a condition that the medical literature says is "incompatible with life," would her "best interest" be that she be allowed to die? Some would undoubtedly say so.

Via the Miami Herald and World Net Daily.
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Should the Senate have signed up to the UN Disability Treaty?

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Comments (view in Forum)

  • DARSB
    !
    I see Sen Santorum is still using his disabled daughter as political ammo. Well, I guess being on World Net Daily's payroll will require him to do some pretty bizarre things in public (not to be confused with "Santorum," which is generally produced in private). Fortunately, he doesn't have a political future to screw up.
  • CanisCanemEdit
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    "I have said before and I will repeat again, I think people's families are off limits, and people's children are especially off limits. This shouldn't be part of our politics, it has no relevance..." Barack Obama

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    DARSB
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    @ST_Louie_Sue Sen Santorum exploits his sick child in order to criticize a treaty on rights of the disabled and I'm the bad guy? Maybe you should breather into a paper bag for a few minutes.
  • Ashstop
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    @ST_Louie_Sue
    Wish I could vote you up more than once!! You nailed it exactly!! People like this think if we get rid of babies and disabled it will leave a bigger piece of the pie for themselves!!
  • Bleeding_Blue
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    @Ashstop What a load. Republican leaders only care about "life" when it's an unborn fetus, or when it's convieniant for them to care. I.E. It will help their political career.
  • View all 59 replies >
  • jessejaymes
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    The USA needs to stop trying to legislate the world. You actually think you can pass a bill at the UN that will force the Sudanese to provide wheelchair access to every business? The UN can't even get Congo rebels (and they're all rebels at one point or another) to stop overthrowing their govts. What's next? You want a law that says disabled people in North Korea get health care, subsidized housing, food stamps and a check every month equal to California's disabled, Good luck with that. Total waste of time and money.
  • jessejaymes
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    @buckeyedeal That is correct. This should not be a news story of "Republicans voted against it" if in fact it hadn't come to a vogte in the USA however. At that point it become a USA issue. Right?
  • Thegrif
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    Totally agree. Why does America think it needs to fix the world. I say we should clean up our own back yard before we clean up someone elses.
  • Thegrif
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    @jessejaymes yea, like today I heard they want to make it so kids of illegals can go to college for half price tuition, not sure I understand why though.
  • View all 18 replies >
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    JackinVienna
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    Correct me if i'm wrong, but American's with Disabilities already is the law of the land here. What possible use would it be to sign a such a treaty? Signing it would only serves to let the most corrupt organization in the world into our country's business and lead us further down the road to losing our soverienty..
  • kirbstomp1
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    @Neo_NtheMatrix - very Christ like of you to throw disabled people under the bus. Also a majority of disabled are vets, so very patriotic of you to try to disregard them.
  • u
    crusader
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    Actuallu they spoke as they it would lead to euthanasia of the disabled. Also how would any U.N. treaty be enforced in the U.N. nations, it would not be except here in America. It would also lead to U.N. control of America and a one world government, is that what you really want? I certainly hope not.
  • jessejaymes
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    I often agree with you and mostly when I don't I just let it be but you are wrong here. We cannot enforce, nor can such a law be financed. It's a straw dog. There is no point in trying to pass laws that third world countries where the majority of the population is grateful for a tin roof, that we ourselves have. This is nothing more than grandstanding.
  • u
    captchaos69
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    First of all, your utter hatred of the GOP has blinded you again. As other posters and the article said...we already have ADA (Americans with Disablilities Act) which provides numerous provisions for disabled people. Second, I guess you weren;t around in 1995 when Al Gore (Democrat Vice President at the time) attended the UN conference on "Global Depopulation". It is falsely believed the conference was to find ways to curb population growth, but the term "depopulation" means one thing...GETTING RID OF PEOPLE AALREADY HERE. Get the UN out of the US before we become UNAmerican.
  • PNWest
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    @captchaos69 This bill got a majority of democratic vote and a minority of GOP votes. The tea bag wing of the GOP voted against it. It was supported by prominent republicans like Bob Dole, Dick Thornberg and Dick Lugar. Hardly an example of my so-called hatred of the GOP, just my hatred of the tea bag wing.
  • PNWest
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    @jessejaymes Regardless we should stand for the disabled as the majority of democrats did and as 126 other countries have.
  • View all 27 replies >
  • jessejaymes
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    Actually I would vote for Hilary before I would vote for Santorum and I can't stand Hilary. But I would like to know what this job with a white supremacist secessionist website is all about?
  • jessejaymes
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    @Keyjo Of course Santorium is a loon. He's worse than that. He's a religious zealot. But that doesn't change the fact it's a waste of time and money for our congress to be voting on bills that are UN bills. We have no business trying to legislate the world.
  • View all 8 replies >
  • ded
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    I'm impressed that your brain can compute the appropriate way to feel about 8 million distinct human beings whom you haven't met.
  • CATTLEPROD
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    @ded I used to have a solid opinion about new york and new yorkers. Pushy, arrogant, self-absorbed and I know what they think of us hicks, me and my kin in flyover country. After 9/11 that changed, but it has been reverting back.
  • Food4thoughts
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    A simple yes would of sufficed...another vote against common sense in the name of fear.. Way to go frightwingers! And you wonder why you can't get
    votes...amazing.
  • Jean
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    I applaud Rick Santorum for his efforts to protect the disabled. we have handicapped children in our family...my brother and sisters children. Rick is defending the innocent.

    SANTORUM / WEST FOR PRESIDENT 2016
  • u
    CommonSense
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    If they really believe what's coming out of their mouths then it's time we start having IQ tests as a qualification for public office. Killing someone for having a disability would be discrimination, so the treaty would OUTLAW that not cause it to happen like Santorum thinks.
    I don't believe for a second that all of the people who joined Santorum on this actually buy his argument. They are just voting with him because they don't want Obama to have anything new to add to get prestige. This is pure politics.
  • Dan_Tien
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    "In all actions concerning children with disabilities, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration." It takes a truth twisting, mind twisted politician to interpret that statement as evidence of the intent to euthanize disabled children. I didn't know much about Rick Santorum before, but I do now.
  • u
    commonsense51
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    Rick Santorum was the only presidential candidate with the common sense to tell us all that our main problem in America is our culture and our broken families. The left hates any mention of morals or responsibility so this is why they hate Santorum so much. The UN is one of the most corrupt entities in this world and for them to dictate to any nation is a pure joke. They were actually buying Oil form Saddam Hussein when we were suppose to be imposing sanctions on him. They are yet one more control group such as the likes of unions, Obama, etc.
  • o
    woodtick57
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    RickSantorum wants to tuen the US into a theocracy.(you know, like Iran, Saudi Arabia...you know all those fun places...) how moral are those places?!?

    reality is fun!
  • Russell797
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    I dislike Santorum because he demonstrates a very strong irrational tendency. Religious zealots in leadership roles frighten me. The left is just as moral and responsible as anyone else. Religion is not a prerequisite for a moral compass. The UN exists for the benefit of all nations, not only to support the US in everything it does. You want it all your way or no way at all.
  • u
    commonsense51
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    @woodtick57 Hogwash, Santorum does not want to turn America into a theocracy. Do you like scaring the ignorant people? Are you working for Obama? Obama is the one to fear. He is absolutely turning America Socialist.
  • View all 6 replies >
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    WattheTyler
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    So let get this straight. Rick Santorum joins a racist white nationalist website that claims Obama is Kenyan born Muslim homosexual. That's where they are taking their advice on how to vote for this treaty? A treaty that DOESN'T CHANGE US LAW AT ALL. So Republicans should we kill all disabled? Throw them in the streets and die? Is that your solution? Because there was no other reason to vote against this bill other than you are a bigot.

    All 38 Republican senators who voted against this treaty deserve to lose their seats. Republicans aren't far right wing. They are insane and driving the USA into the mental institution.

    This is one of the saddest things I've ever seen.
  • hankf68
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    I agree wholeheartedly, it is a blatant disgrace and makes me feel embarrassed and ashamed as an American and fellow human being...only good I can see is that the sinking boat called the GOP is doomed, what a bunch of idiots, too blind to see the writing on the wall, go figure... keep up the good work, the majority has already voted in support for where we wish the direction of our country to go, next election won't even be close if they keep up this idiocy of attempted governing in our modern world...btw, in no way am I supporting a "one world government", but last I checked, we are all human beings (frail in that we are alone as a species, maybe we should have been nicer to the Neanderthals), the same all over, living on one planet (our mother Earth, if we don't destroy her too that is) together and until we figure this out, I fear we too are doomed, just like the GOP...
  • Capt_Morgan02
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    Article 18, Section 2 states that all “children with disabilities shall be registered immediately after birth.”

    Why the hell would people with disabilities need to be registered? It makes no sense. We shouldn't be ratifying treaties that have vague language and nonsense requirements.
  • falco_alba
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    The ADA registers people who are disabled in order to provide documentation for various reasons, including insurance. In this case, they would be registered under this proposed act.
  • Capt_Morgan02
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    @falco_alba in the United States people are protected under our bill of rights. The UN is not held to such a high standard. Given that Agenda 21 has so many unknown implications I don't like the idea of a registry of all the worlds disabled for govts to use.
  • u
    Litdes
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    @MarkJM or ever. For the love of mike, they lack the military presence to perform meaningful peacekeeping. Much less perform a coup d'etat.
  • u
    Litdes
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    @MarkJM Anyone who can see the US would not simply cede sovereignty. The UN is not a terribly powerful organization, those who think it could perform and kind of global power grab really aught to have their heads examined.
  • MarkJM
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    @Litdes I'm not saying it's realistic, far from it actually. But that's not to say the UN would try anyways. You should also pay attention to their "internet forum," where they want to impose a degree of censorship on the web through all countries (to include the USA). It's just another shining example of an organization to which we (the taxpayers) fund the majority of and they continue to try and bite the hand that feeds.
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  • MarkJM
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    If the UN wants to adopt the ADA, then that is fine. But we who originally passed and enacted that law don't need a bunch of blowhards from the UN telling us how to enforce our laws. Good job GOP for shooting this down. The UN (for which we fund the majority of anyways) can stay the Hell out of our business.
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