McCain the Women's Libber

McCain dismisses equal pay legislation, says women need more 'training and education.'

Today, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) skipped the vote on the Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which "restores the longstanding interpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act," overturned last year by a 5-4 Supreme Court ruling. …[He said] that instead of legislation allowing women to fight for equal pay, they simply need "education and training."

Are you totally surprised to hear that neither "education" nor "training" had anything to do with why Lilly Ledbetter, after whom the proposed act was named, was denied equal pay?

When denied equal pay by her supervisor, Lilly Ledbetter was doing the exact same job as her male counterparts and received numerous performance-based awards.

Huh. Imagine that!

And are you further totally surprised to hear that McCain's rationale sounds exactly like something you'd expect from a doddering old conservative wanker who hasn't updated his views on women since he formed them in 1952?

"They need the education and training, particularly since more and more women are heads of their households, as much or more than anybody else. It's hard for [women] to leave their families when they don't have somebody to take care of them."

Dude, what that has to do with a woman who is well-educated, well-trained, and doing the same goddamned job as her male counterparts, except better, not getting the same amount of money is beyond me.

Also, he didn't like the legislation because "it would lead to more lawsuits." And if there's one thing that annoys dudez like McCain about women's fight for equality, it's the lawsuits.