As The American Prospect and Atrios point out, the House has passed a bill that would overturn the Supreme Court’s decision that pay discrimination claims must be filed within 180 days of the first discriminatory pay check. The Supreme Court’s decision reversed the practice of treating each individual pay check as a separate act of discrimination under the Civil Rights Act.

The bill overturns a poor Supreme Court decision, one of several decided by a margin of 5-4 in the most recent term. President Bush, once again flashing his “compassionate conservative” credentials, has threatened to veto the bill, if it even gets through the Senate. The media’s treatment of this issue, one which could potentially affect many working Americans, will largely decide the bill’s fate. Senate Republicans may very well use procedural tactics to keep the bill from passing with less than sixty votes - what the media formerly referred to as a filibuster.

This issue, which will probably pass quietly into that good night, would have broad support were the issues clearly laid out to the public. The Democratic Congress is doing some good things: hopefully they will come to fruition.

Cato