The Paycheck Fairness Act, supported by Democrats, failed to get the 60 votes it needed to get past a Republican block in the Senate, in what the A.P. is calling "a choreographed showdown." The bill would have increased protections for women filing gender discrimination lawsuits and created a federal program to help women improve salary negotiating skills. Laudable goals, but this is an election year, which means "choreographed showdowns" that allow parties to promote their messages will have to suffice. None of the Republican opponents of the bill said they were in favor of pay inequality because, you know, what politician would come out in support of that. Rather, according to The Hill, Republicans said during the debate they just didn't think the law addressed the issue. And so the bill was defeated in a procedural vote with 52 votes in favor and 47 against along party lines. (Ah, the Senate, the logical land of the supermajority.) Meanwhile The Atlantic Wire had its own, slightly different worries about whether the bill would address the issue pay inequality last week, when we noted that employees have helped companies by keeping our salaries secret from one another for years.

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