Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 8, 1995 TAG: 9502080088
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KERRY DOUGHERTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Long
Either that or the Democratic car dealer comes equipped with support hose and a bladder as big as a Volvo station wagon.
From 10 a.m. until after 5, Beyer was on his feet, swilling cans of Diet Coke while presiding over the state Senate.
He never sat down or took a break.
With the staccato rhythms of an auctioneer, Beyer led the 40 members of the Senate through votes on more than 155 items as the clock ticked away on the dreaded last day for each house to act on its own legislation (except the budget; that deadline is Thursday).
"The question is: Shall the vote pass? All senators in favor of the bill will vote aye. All opposed no. Have all senators voted? Does any senator desire to change his vote? Clerk will close the roll," Beyer chanted again, and again and again, as the day wore on, seeming never to draw a breath.
In the course of this session's longest legislative day to date, the senators voted on a mixed bag of bills and resolutions concerning everything from concealed weapons to child pornography to practicing dentistry without a license to welfare reform to the Virginia Music Licensing Fee Act.
Bills flew through the Senate.
So fast, in fact, that some the senators were somewhat less than fully informed about about what they were voting on. Fortunately, voting on bills doesn't require much original thought. Usually the senators just vote like their neighbors.
"What is this thing?'' Sen. Virgil Goode of Rocky Mount was overheard whispering to Sen Richard Holland of Arlington, even as Goode was pressing the electronic "yes" button on his desk.
"It has to do with telephone companies, it's a good bill," Holland assured him.
A few minutes later L. Louise Lucas of Norfolk exclaimed loudly: "Wait a minute, what was that we just voted on?'
Lucas was quickly reassured by her seatmates that whatever it was, she had voted the right way.
Earlier in the day, before the senators were numbed by nonstop voting, there were some spirited debates on the claret-colored carpet of the Senate floor. There were also some time-consuming parliamentary procedures.
Sen. Jane Woods from Fairfax finished a drag on her cigarette before dashing to her desk to propose a slew of amendments - which even she characterized as "unartful" - to the controversial concealed-weapons bill proposed by Goode.
Let's listen in as Woods asked the Senate to alter the bill:
"My goal is not to strike the strike," she began. "It's to strike the line that is stricken from the code."
As part of her mostly unsuccessful attempts modify the weapon bill, Woods suggested that one group of Virginians would really benefit from being able to carry a concealed weapon: nurses.
Nurses packing heat?
Then again, maybe a .44 magnum would allow nurses to perform some of those really uncomfortable procedures on reluctant patients with a lot less resistance.
After the excitement over weapons, the Senate went back to the assembly-line method of passing bills. The clock ticked, the room began to fill with carbon dioxide perhaps, and one Senate messenger appeared to lose consciousness for a while. So did Frederick Quayle, R-Chesapeake, who shut his eyes, rocked back in his red leather chair and appeared to doze off.
But he managed to bellow out a loug "nay" when a voice vote was called a few minutes later. He never opened his eyes.
One of the most acrimonious moments of the day came during debate over Senate Bill 1099, which concerns certificates of public need and other issues.
That didn't stop the loquacious lawmaker from Fairfax, Joseph Gartlan, from delivering a soliloquy on the importance of rejecting the measure, which he said was unconstitutional.
During Gartlan's speech, there were 14 vacant seats around him. Most of the remaining senators were engaged in conversations.
"I hope the members are listening," Gartlan said pointedly, glaring at the disinterested senators around the chamber.
Later, fellow Democrat Charles Waddell of Leesburg disagreed with Gartlan. The next thing you knew they were in each other's red faces, microphones off.
Gartlan could be heard bellowing a mildly profane epithet concerning fertilizer.
Had the senators been younger men, they might have exchanged blows.
The long day was taking its toll and the senators just seemed to want it to end.
When Senate Bill 968 concerning "sound reproduction devices on motor vehicles" came to the floor, it was criticized by several senators who wanted to effectively kill the bill by sending it back to committee.
The bill's patron admitted it wasn't a good law but urged the Senate not to let that stop them from passing it.
"It's not perfect," conceded Charles Colgan of Manassas. "But it's got one more house to go through. Maybe it will get a little better over there.'
These guys were tired. They passed the bill and never looked back.
Senate Bill 1088, which had something to do with sewage, was brought to the floor and Charles Hawkins, R-Chatham, offered to explain the bill.
"Sit down,'' came the reply as Senate Majority Leader Hunter Andrews and others gestured for Hawkins to take his seat.
Hawkins sat down. The bill passed.
Beyer was still on his feet.
Keywords:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1995
by CNB