The Arizona House of Representatives Tuesday failed to take a vote on the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) after a Democratic lawmaker’s motion was tabled.
Paradise Valley Democrat Kelli Butler, who supports the ERA, invoked the contribution former Arizona Senate Majority Leader and US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor has made to the amendment.
“At the time, Senator O’Connor stated, and I quote, ‘the Equal Rights Amendment recognizes the fundamental dignity and individuality of each human being and rests on the basic principle that sex should not be a factor in determining the legal rights of men or women,’” said Butler.
But, Mesa Republican Kelly Townsend asked if ratifying the amendment sets a bad example. “If we just ignore the fact that this ERA is expired, and want to push it through, do you understand the danger, the precedent you’re setting?” she asked.
The deadline to ratify the ERA was extended to 1982 by Congress.
But, according to the National Constitution Center the US Supreme Court would likely weigh in if Arizona approved it.
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