Heller, Reid on same side of domestic violence bill

An unusual occurrence, Nevada's senators find themselves on the same side as the Senate begins to take up a bill to reauthorize federal programs that combat domestic violence and sexual assaults.

Democrat Harry Reid and Republican Dean Heller both have come out in favor of renewing the Violence Against Women Act.  Heller's announcement last month was noteworthy in that he became the 60th co-sponsor of the bill, ensuring it would have enough votes to overcome a filibuster.

The bill now has 61 co-sponsors and while it is expected to pass, it is not totally noncontroversial.  It has provoked some debate over immigration-related provisions added by Democratic sponsors.

Heller said in a speech this morning his support comes against a backdrop of sad numbers for Nevada. He said the Centers for Disease Control in a survey released last November "found half of all the women living in my home state ... had experienced domestic violence at some point in their lifetime.

"Women and children often feel powerless to escape abusive or dangerous situations, which too often end in tragedy," Heller said.  "My home state knows this sad reality all too well. Nevada ranks first in the nation for women murdered by men in domestic violence,  Sadly our state as appeared in the top three states in this horrific category in the last seven years."

Reid, the Senate majority leader, recalled handing domestic relations cases back when he was a Las Vegas lawyer, long before the federal assistance law was passed in 1994.

Back then, "It was very difficult to find ways of helping these women," he said in a speech on Tuesday.  A privately funded domestic crisis center where women and children could be sheltered from abusive partners helped ease the problem somewhat.

Soon after he reached the Senate in 1986, Reid held a hearing on spousal abuse.

"Maybe things have changed over the years — and I hope they have," Reid said.  "There are better counseling programs. But one thing we learned during those hearings many decades ago was that the main thing that helped a man stop abusing his wife was to put him in jail. Maybe things are better now."

According to the Senate Judiciary Committee headed by Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the bill's chief sponsor, the annual incidence of domestic violence has dropped by more than half since the law was enacted.  The reporting of domestic violence has increased, and every state has strengthened laws on rape and stalking.

While it may have the votes to pass,  the Senate bill to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act still is expected to be debated.

While supportive of the bill's aim overall, some Republicans are protesting provisions to grant more visas to illegal immigrants who are victims of domestic abuse, and to expand protections for gay and lesbian victims.

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, is preparing an amendment to delete portions of the bill, saying it should not be a vehicle "to expand immigration law or give additional benefits to people here unlawfully."

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said "there is very strong bipartisan support" to reauthorize the programs, and Republicans "are happy to work with (Reid) to facilitate passage."