WASHINGTON — Bowing to pressure from within their own party, House Republican leaders last night appeared to clear a path for House passage of the Senate's broadly bipartisan reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act.
The House Rules Committee, an arm of leadership, approved a bifurcated process to consider the legislation, which would broaden the landmark 1994 law. The House will vote on a Republican version on Thursday that contains provisions that weaken a Senate version that empowers Native American courts to prosecute non-Indians accused of violence on tribal land. The House version also does not explicitly extend programs to prevent domestic violence and treat its victims to members of same-sex relationships.
If that version fails to win passage, the House will take up the Senate-passed version — at this point the likely outcome. That would ensure a swift White House signing ceremony.
The Senate passed that version earlier this month, 78 to 22, with 23 Republicans voting yes, up from 15 last year.
House conservatives maintain that the Senate provision on tribal courts is a dangerous and unconstitutional expansion of tribal power, and they preferred to keep the bill silent on same-sex couples. But the pressure, especially on the tribal issue, was bipartisan. Republican Representatives Darrell Issa of California and Tom Cole of Oklahoma, himself a Chickasaw, pressed hard to toughen the tribal-courts language. Mr. Cole said on Sunday he would try to bring the House bill down if he did not prevail.
Ultimately, it is likely he will. Democrats are united against the Republican version, and Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia, the House majority leader, has committed to passing a bipartisan version in the House or none at all.
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