| Sen. Al Franken's (D-MN) anti-rape amendment to the Defense bill may be in danger. The admendment would end contracts with defense contractors who force employees into binding arbitration and deny employees the right to file sexual assault charges. This amendment passed 68-30. The only Senators opposing it were Republicans from the south.
The danger comes from an unlikely source, Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI). Rumors abound that Inoye is getting lobbied hard and heavy by defense industry lobbyists. Inouye chairs the Appropriations Committee and has the power, as Chair, to do things like this.
Multiple sources have told the Huffington Post that Sen. Dan Inouye, a longtime Democrat from Hawaii, is considering removing or altering the provision, which was offered by Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and passed by the Senate several weeks ago.
Inouye's office, sources say, has been lobbied by defense contractors adamant that the language of the Franken amendment would leave them overly exposed to lawsuits and at constant risk of having contracts dry up. The Senate is considering taking out a provision known as the Title VII claim, which (if removed) would allow victims of assault or rape to bring suit against the individual perpetrator but not the contractor who employed him or her.
"The defense contractors have been storming his office," said a source with knowledge of the situation. "Inouye either will get the amendment taken out altogether, or water it down significantly. If they water it down, they will take out the Title VII claims. This means that in discrimination cases, they will still force you into a secret forced arbitration on KBR's (or other contractors') own terms -- with your chances of prevailing practically zero. The House seems to be very supportive of the original Franken amendment and all in line, but their hands are tied since it originated in the Senate. And since Inouye runs the show on this bill, he can easily take it out to get Republicans and the defense contractors off his back, which looks increasingly likely."
(Huffington Post)
I spoke with Lori Hamamoto, Sen. Inouye's Press Secretary. She said that Inouye voted for the amendment and continues to support it. Lori has no idea where these rumors originated and reassured me that Sen. Inouye would not be weakening or removing Franken's amendment.
UPDATED
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