One of today's editorials calls out the U.S. Senate for its shameful inability last week to ratify a simple treaty that bans discrimination against the disabled.

This wasn’t just a slap in the face to the most vulnerable among us.

Thirty-eight Republican senators turned their back on their own party’s legacy of helping those who face mental and physical challenges.

The U.N. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was modeled after the American Disabilities Act of 1990, a measure championed by Dole when he was the Senate's majority leader. The veteran suffered permanent damage to his right arm during World War II.

For those reasons, he made a rare appearance on the floor of the Senate before the vote on Tuesday, Dec. 6.

Below is a screenshot of the chamber and Dole seated in a wheelchair on the right side of the photo, courtesy of CSPAN2 and the Associated Press.

As soon as Elizabeth Dole rolled her husband off the floor, the Senate fell five votes short of ratifying the treaty.

On Sunday, The Kansas City Star published a scathing column by Mary Sanchez that called out lawmakers for being "cowardly."

One reason for [Doles'] appearance was to emphasize how the Americans With Disabilities Act aids injured soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The senators voting no managed to let their fear make two strikes. They undercut America as a global leader of human rights.

And they disrespected Dole as an American war hero.

I couldn't agree more.

As it turns out, several newspapers have editorialized on this single issue. USA Today called the vote the result of "continuing influence of a fringe that gets frantic about anything involving the United Nations." The Lawrence-Journal World wrote of their popular former senator's ability to adapt and lead. "Let’s hope others now in the Senate but not yet capable of filling his shoes experience that growth as well."

Over at The Baltimore Sun, the editorial board opines, "This isn't controversial stuff on most of the planet, nor in most of this country. Only in the minds of extremists in one political party, who are loath to ever support the United Nations, let alone anything endorsed by President Barack Obama and the Democrats, does a call for human rights motivate such opposition."

For more perspectives on the effectiveness of U.N. treaties these days, check out this Dec. 6 "Room for Debate" feature from The New York Times' opinion pages.