Rep. on this one I disagree.
The Federal mandates which create the grossly inequitable distribution of federal tax preferences and entitlements heavily favoring custodial over non-custodial parents (i.e., the Earned Income Tax Credit)creates a huge silent financial burden on what has become mostly non-custodial fathers or in other words, men.
All at a time when absent fatherhood is a national crisis.
That will never change unless those men who would otherwise have political power, in the form of a registration to vote, become a political threat. By operating as we do now with debtors' prisons for child support arrearages and then further eliminating the ability of those guys to vote, the Democratic Party doesn't have to worry about any men's issues and the Republican Party, who has trouble getting a majority women to vote for them anyway, loses their leverage. Eliminating any possibility of these men voting against the Nanny state agenda. Because they can't register.
They'll be singing the song,
"We don't need the Men."
I was present when you offered that amendment and saw it passed. And because it was attached to a "felons," only returning to society bill, I kept silent about its affect. But if this idea of eliminating the votes of for those with child support arrearages creeps past this stage, as the Democrats are so willing to agree to, then what needs happen is everything, and I mean everything else about supporting children and parenting rights needs to be made absolutely equal. And, right now there is nothing of the kind like that happening!
So, until you figure out a way to get those low resource men registered to vote for you, (because you are the one with enough colognes), to bring an equal parenting bill before a House subcommittee and get it passed. I am with the ACLU on this one.
Most former felons have very strong liberal leanings (I hear 90+% call themselves liberal)so I doubt I will lose many votes. If they want to change the system with their vote I think they should be current on child support. I think child support is a debt to society that a good citizen should work to pay be it male or female. The system may not be anywhere near perfect but it is the system we have and they need to work within the parameters of that system first if they wish to be able to change it later.
Then perhaps you need to define exactly how many dollars and for how long they have been owed, before one loses one's right to vote. Because right N.O.W. you'll be leaving that arbitrary decision up to House Children and Family Affairs Committee, who thus far havn't particulary responded favorably to other legislation of yours which I believe to be spot on target. As it stands now that amount could be simply one cent. In what is an otherwise conservative voting state liberals maintain control of the House. So it may be time to consider that the plan for coming up with the needed votes is flawed?
If they were to owe only one cent I would say they should pay the penny and it will not be a problem. If they owe thousands of dollars for years of non payment you have to ask if they are serious about their commitment to helping society.
Commenting by HaloScan
