At a Baton Rouge town hall this Saturday, a woman who identified herself as a rape victim confronted Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) over his vote against what’s become known as the “Franken rape amendment.”
“How can you support a company that tells a rape victim that she does not have the right to defend herself?” the woman asked, approaching Vitter after the event. She was talking about an amendment, introduced by Sen. Al Franken (D-MN), which aims to give rape victims their day in court. It was inspired by a young woman who was allegedly drugged, gang raped and held in a storage container while working for Halliburton subsidiary KBR.
Some of the 30 senators who opposed the amendment have said it was a political attack against Halliburton. They have been attacked for the vote by women’s groups and political opponents — and, perhaps, none more than Vitter.
Vitter told the woman that President Obama also opposed the amendment.
“Do you think he’s in favor of rape?” Vitter asked.
When the woman responded, “I’m asking you, Senator,” Vitter shook his head and walked away. She followed him, calling out, “What if it was your daughter who was raped? Would you tell her to be quiet?”
Outside the event, Vitter was met with protesters accusing him of pro-rape sentiment, according to a local news station.
When confronted again, Vitter replied, “I actually supported the Obama administration’s position on the amendment. They said it would hurt the efforts of our men and women in uniform.”
It’s true the Department of Defense and the White House opposed the amendment, which would prohibit the Pentagon from hiring contractors whose employees must sign contracts that require certain allegations — such as sexual assault and discrimination — be settled in private arbitration.
But the administration says it supports the intent of the amendment, even though it believes the language isn’t enforceable.
The amendment, part of the defense appropriations bill, is being considered by the Senate Appropriations Committee, and the White House says it’s working with the committee to make the bill more enforceable. But, reportedly, the committee may strip the amendment before sending it to the White House for a signature.
