Video: Rep. Jennifer McClellan Says President Joe Biden’s Assertion that the ERA Should Be Considered Ratified Is “an important first step,” “a capstone for [his] career as a champion for women’s rights”

Well said by Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-VA04):

• “Well, we really have no choice [but to fight to keep hope alive]. And as we’re going into the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, I am reminded how every time in American history we have made progress on civil rights, on women’s rights, there’s been a backlash. And the only way we continue that progress going forward is to double down and stay committed and building towards the beloved community that he gave his life for. So for me personally, while I am sometimes angry that I’m fighting the same fights that my parents, my grandparents and my great grandparents fought, I do it so that my children and their children don’t have to continue those fights, and I root myself in the joy and the love of making any progress and not letting anyone steal that joy as we face the backlash.”
• “Well, first of all, [declaring the ERA to be the law of the land] is a capstone for President Biden’s career as a champion for women’s rights, going back to when he was a senator and passed the Violence Against Women Act. And so it’s the perfect capstone for his career.  It is an important first step. I remind people it took 100 years after ratification of the 14th amendment for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to enforce it. And so while we can and should celebrate this moment, and I am proud to have played a part in making Virginia the 38th state to ratify the ERA, we know there are going to be legal challenges, and we know it is not self-executing, and we have got to make sure that Congress acts to enforce it.”

Check out the video, below, and a few more highlights after the video, of Rep. McClellan speaking yesterday on MSNBC’s The Katie Phang Show. As for the ERA, as this article makes clear:

“A senior administration official told CNN that Biden was not taking executive action but merely “stating an opinion” that the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was in effect. The National Archives — the federal government agency that is the official keeper of the Constitution — has stated for years that they cannot legally publish the amendment, because they’re bound by a Department of Justice holding that says they can’t. Plus, Donald Trump is about to take office and will likely express a different opinion.”

In other words, while the ERA *should have* been ratified many years ago, and while it *should be* the law of the land – and in the US constitution – the fact is, sadly, it is not. And who knows if/when it ever will be, but that will require, at the minimum, a pro-ERA Congress, president, Supreme Court and probably a bunch of state legislatures. In other words, none of the necessary conditions for the ERA’s ratification currently exist, and it’s hard to see if or when they WILL exist going forward. Something to aspire to, though, no question…

• “I am an eternal optimist, and so I am hopeful that this [the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas] is a breakthrough that will begin the process of restoring peace and stability in the Middle East. But we have seen where we have been close to a cease fire before, and how fragile a cease fire can be. We were in a cease fire when the October 7th terrorist attack happened. So this is going to require vigilance and attention to ensure that this cease fire leads to long-term peace.“
• “Weather allowing me to head up I-95…Yes, I will be there [at the inauguration].”