In the past few weeks, two proposed United Nations treaties failed to advance. The small arms treaty failed at the UN while opponents of the Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST) amassed enough votes to block it in the U.S. Senate. Now, South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint says another UN treaty threatens American sovereignty. It’s called the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. Proponents, including many Republicans, claim it will help to expand rights and opportunities for disabled people in all nations, but DeMint isn’t buying it. The senator says the U.S. is by far the most accommodating nation in the world for people with disabilities and he sees no need to sign this or most other UN treaties because it can only erode American sovereignty. DeMint says the language of the treaty suggests it will promote abortion and chip away at parental rights – particularly the rights of homeschooling parents. DeMint explains what he thinks supporters of the treaty are missing and hos he thinks a Senate vote on the treaty would go if it were held today.
