Ann Kirkpatrick: “In Arizona's First District, Native Americans make up about 25 percent of my constituents. Unfortunately, Native…”

“In Arizona's First District, Native Americans make up about 25 percent of my constituents. Unfortunately, Native American women are two and a half times more likely to be assaulted in their lifetime than other women. Reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act is important to my district. That's why I'm very concerned about the impact of sequestration cuts on programs supported by the Violence Against Women Act. More than $20 million in cuts are at stake. What does a $20 million cut mean? It means thousands more victims would be denied shelter and legal services. It means thousands fewer police officers, prosecutors, judges, and victim advocates would get specialized training. As a former prosecutor, I know we need to do all we can to keep victims safe and hold perpetrators accountable, and that means we need to do all we can to stop these sequestration cuts. {time} 1150”