Reform group Change Congress launched a campaign yesterday to shame Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., for voting against legislation that would help ensure victims of rape have the right to bring their case to court. The government reform group hit cyberspace with an email asking people to sign a 'national expression of outrage.'
Citing $700,000 in campaign contributions from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the defense industry, Change Congress accused Burr of putting special interests before rape victims.
Introduced by Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., the legislation would stop federal funding for defense contractors who used mandatory arbitration clauses to deny victims of assault the right to bring their case to court. A protective measure inspired by the story of Jamie Leigh Jones, an American woman who was gang raped by her co-workers while working for a defense contractor in Iraq. Jones couldn't sue because her contract contained a clause which required her to arbitrate any disputes against her employer.
According to a poll commissioned by Change Congress, 73 percent of North Carolina voters disapprove of Burr's vote. Led by campaign guru Joe Trippi and Stanford law professor Lawrence Lessig, the government reform group advocates for increased public money in campaign finance to keep big money out of politics.
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