So does Sharron Angle really support domestic abusers?
Well, to be fair, that probably wasn't her intention. However, the reality of this is probably just as scary. Sharron Angle has no real understanding of the law... AB 581, as well as The US Constitution.
During the 2001 Nevada Assembly’s debate about the bill, AB 581, Angle asked Deputy Attorney General Nancy Hart whether documents would have to be presented to prove a restraining order, referred to as a “foreign protection order.” “Mrs. Angle requested clarification if there would need to be a document present, in order for the foreign protection order to be enforced,” read the Assembly’s minutes.
Hart, the record shows, explained that the bill’s provisions allow officers to “use discretion when presented with the document of the foreign protection order” and also “[allows] an officer to rely upon the statement alone of the victim, to assess whether there was a protection order in existence to be enforced.” Basically, cops should use their best judgement when responding to a call. Allow me to borrow from the Tea Party when I call this logic “common sense.”
It apparently made no sense to Angle, though: she and eight other Assembly members voted against the bill. Despite their nays, the bill ended up passing with a combined 79% of the Nevada Assembly and Senate’s support.
Clearer heads prevailed, and the law now reads, “[This is] an act relating to orders; making various changes concerning orders for protection against domestic violence; providing that certain orders for protection issued in another state are not subject to certain requirements to be given Full Faith and Credit in this state…” Those words “Full Faith and Credit” are integral to our nation’s unity, yet Angle ignores them completely. She has absolutely no faith in our Founding Fathers’ foresight, which they illustrated in Article IV of the Constitution: “Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State.”
Full faith and credit? Oh yes, that's right!
Full Faith and Credit is, in a nutshell, an honor system between states: if Ohio says someone has a restraining order against John Smith, then Nevada should respect their judgement to protect his intended victim. Angle’s nay vote on AB 581 reveals two faults that should worry voters: first, she distrusts the judgement of Nevada police officers, which explains why more than half-a-dozen Nevada law enforcement unions, including a Republican Sheriff, have endorsed Reid.
The second fault: Angle’s disrespect respect for other states’ judgement. Angle has been so blinded by an elementary understanding of “state sovereignty” that she’s trying to apply black-and-white ideology to a rainbow-colored world.
The Founding Fathers knew there would be tension between states. That’s why they constructed “full faith and credit,” a clause that builds symbolic trust and, as in the case with AB 581, can protect citizens’ well-beings. Angle’s opposition to such a concept erodes the essential camaraderie our nation’s states need to remain United. Ideological extremism should not be put above public safety.
It really comes down to Sharrontology's blind ideological "purity" and severely flawed judgment. For all her talk of "believing in The Constitution", she really has no idea what's actually in it. If Angle really did, she would have realized in 2001 that AB 581 was just the State of Nevada reaffirming the "Full Faith and Credit Clause" clearly found in Article IV, Section 1, of The Constitution, which calls for states to honor legal agreements made in other states. It's what keeps our country as "The UNITED States", and what prevents people from having to reapply for everything from marriage to bank accounts when moving across state lines.
Let's face it, domestic abuse is no laughing matter. And it's nothing to be taken lightly. But when Sharron Angle tried to dismiss AB 581 on Constitutional grounds, it revealed poor judgment. Not only was she willing to put people's safety in jeopardy for the sake of her own extremist ideology, but she also showed complete disregard for the very Constitution she supposedly reveres.
No wonder why Nevada law enforcement were baffled by her then, and are still baffled by her now.
So does Sharrontology support domestic abusers? No, I wouldn't say that. Rather, it looks to me like Obtuse Angle was more than willing to put victims of domestic violence at risk AND disregard The US Constitution's guidelines on state powers just to pay homage to her extreme views.
Angle does tout her endorsement from Concerned Women for America on her issues page, and that's indicative of support for their contention that the Violence Against Women Act creates a "Mafia" that suppresses men. CWA is closely related to RADAR which is blatantly an abuser's forum.
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