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From this Monday's Andrea Mitchell Reports, Rep. Marsha Blackburn did her part to make sure that the Republican party remains the "stupid party." I don't think remarks like this are going to help them much with making inroads with women and minority voters.

GOP Congresswoman: I Opposed Domestic Violence Bill Because It Protected Too Many Groups:

Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) on Monday openly admitted that she opposed the latest reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) because it included protections for LGBT, Native American, and undocumented victims of domestic violence.

In an appearance on MSNBC, Blackburn pointed out that the latest iteration of the law protects “different groups” and thus dilutes funding for straight, non-Native American women with the proper documentation:

When you start to make this about other things it becomes an “against violence act” and not a targeted focus act… I didn’t like the way it was expanded to include other different groups. What you need is something that is focused specifically to help the shelters and to help out law enforcement, who is trying to work with the crimes that have been committed against women and helping them to stand up.

Domestic violence is domestic violence, period. And there is no way to justify Blackburn’s suggestion that some victims of this violence are more deserving than others. Read on...

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In a Tuesday speech on the Senate floor, Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) was moved to tears as he spoke about the need to pass the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).

At the conclusion of his speech, Franken recalled his friends, former Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-MN) and Sheila Wellstone, who died in a tragic 2002 plane crash.

"Sheila Wellstone isn't with us today," Franken said, his voice cracking. "Sheila and Paul and their daughter, Marsha, were tragically taken from us too soon, but Sheila's example is with us. Her legacy is with us and her words are with us."

Wiping his tears, the Minnesota senator offered the following 1995 quote from Shiela Wellstone:

We really have to look at the values that guide us and that we have to work towards an ethic that respects every individual, to be physically and emotionally safe. That is ultimately what our goal is: to understand that no one, regardless of age, color, gender, background, any other factor, deserves to be physically or emotionally unsafe. We need to do everything we can to respect that safety, and everything that we can to protect it.

In a just society, we pledge to act together to ensure that each individual is safe from harm. In a just society, we support individuals in systems that are working to protect victims and to prevent the violence. In a just society, we support the professionals who are trying to stop the violence. In a just society, we come together with a common goal of making sure that everyone is safe. In a just society - I think we have to say this over and over and over - we are not going to tolerate the violence.

"The VAWA reauthorization bill is another step to a just society as Sheila described it," Franken concluded.

(h/t: Talking Points Memo, Mediaite)