THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, February 17, 1997 TAG: 9702170072
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: 139 lines
Here's how area members of Congress were recorded on major roll call votes in the week ending Feb. 14.
Term limits: The House rejected a constitutional amendment limiting congressional terms. The tally of 217-211 fell short of the two-thirds majority - 290 votes - required for approval of the measure (HJ Res 2). It sought to limit House members to six terms (12 years) and senators to two terms (12 years). It was to affect lawmakers elected after its ratification by the states. A bid to extend it to today's lawmakers was defeated (next issue).
Bill McCollum, R-Fla., said term limits would ``end the careerism that exists and has existed in Congress for the last few years. . . . the tendency of too many of our members to vote for every interest group that comes along because they want to get re-elected. . . . Better than 70 percent of the American people still believe that we ought to limit the length of time members of the House and Senate serve.''
Henry Hyde, R-Ill., said: ``Just think of the statesman. . . lost to America if term limits had been in the Constitution: John Quincy Adams, Henry Clay, Arthur Vandenberg, Everett Dirksen, Sam Ervin, Hubert Humphrey, Henry Jackson, Barry Goldwater, Bob Dole, Robert Byrd, Bill Natcher, Lee Hamilton. . contract the voter's choice.''
A yes vote was to limit congressional terms.
Bateman No Pickett No
Scott No Sisisky No
Clayton No Jones Yes
Retroactive limits: By a vote of 152-274, the House rejected a term limits constitutional amendment identical to HJ Res 2 (above) except that it applied to current lawmakers. Without retroactivity, the measure allowed today's members up to 19 more years in Congress - up to seven years during state ratification of the amendment and then their allotted 12 years.
Bateman No Pickett No
Scott Yes Sisisky Yes
Clayton No Jones Yes
Family planning: The House voted 220-209 for an early release of $385 million earmarked for international family planning and population control. This affirmed President Clinton's order that the U.S. Agency for International Development start distributing the money in March rather than July. This vote sent the measure (HJ Res 36) to the Senate. The funds in question were appropriated for the fiscal year that began last October. But they have been delayed by a dispute over U.S. support of global programs that promote abortion as a means of protecting maternal health and slowing population growth.
Susan Molinari, R-N.Y., said: ``Family planning has clearly proven to save the lives of women and infants. Sadly, 1,600 women die every day - one woman every minute - of pregnancy-related causes because they don't have access to reproductive health services including family planning. . . . To delay the release of funds until July will result in increased abortions, unintended pregnancies, the further spread of AIDS and the death of thousands of women. .
Jim Bunning, R-Ky., said: ``The question before us today is not whether we should support international family planning and education programs, but whether or not this nation and this body supports the use of abortion as a means of family planning. . . . We should not allow abortion to become our next major export.''
A yes vote was to release $385 million for global population programs four months ahead of schedule.
Bateman No Pickett Yes
Scott Yes Sisisky Yes
Clayton Yes Jones No
Abortion: By a vote of 231-194, the House sent the Senate a population control measure similar to HJ Res 36 (above) but tougher on abortions. It, too, allowed the early release of $385 million for international population programs. But it prohibited any funding of an organization that advocates or performs abortions. This would revive the ``Mexico City Policy'' that was in effect during the Reagan and Bush administrations but repealed by President Clinton.
A yes vote was to reinstate a U.S. policy that bans financial support of any global population control program that promotes or performs abortions.
Bateman Yes Pickett No
Scott No Sisisky No
Clayton No Jones Yes SENATE
Balanced budget: Voting 64-35, the Senate killed an attempt to soften a balanced budget constitutional amendment (SJ Res 1). At issue was how difficult it should be for Congress to allow deficits during economic hard times. The amendment requires a three-fifths majority votes by both houses to waive the balanced budget requirement in a given year. The measure killed by this vote sought to lower the hurdle so that simple majority votes could allow deficit spending for priming the economy.
Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said the softening attempt ``would drive huge loopholes into the balanced budget amendment and make it basically useless, because almost anybody could claim any type of event as an economic emergency.''
Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., said: ``The fundamental problem with the (constitutional) amendment is that it requires a balanced budget even in . . repeatedly cut federal spending and raised taxes, trying to keep the budget in balance. This amendment could easily condemn us to repeat that unacceptable history.''
A yes vote was to require three-fifths majority votes, not simple majority votes, in both houses to permit deficit spending for priming the economy.
Robb Yes Warner Yes
Faircloth Yes Helms Yes
Defense: Voting 64-36, the Senate killed an attempt to change wording in a balanced budget constitutional amendment (SJ Res 1). At issue was how to define national security threats that justify deficit spending for military preparedness. The constitutional amendment permits deficits when war is declared or America is ``engaged'' in conflict posing an ``imminent and serious'' threat to national security. The measure sought to ease the test by removing the word ``engaged.''
Larry Craig, R-Idaho, said ``the debt is a threat to defense'' because interest payments totaling nearly 16 percent of federal spending crowd out other programs. ``The balanced budget amendment is the best friend our national defense could have.''
Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., said: ``The Constitution should not be used as a straitjacket which has the effect of throwing into doubt our ability to perform this most basic of our duties (national defense).''
A yes vote opposed more broadly defining military threats that warrant deficit spending for national security.
Robb Yes Warner Yes
Faircloth Yes Helms Yes
Dairy policy: By a vote of 83-15, the Senate urged the Agriculture Department to change the formula that determines federal support of milk prices. The non-binding measure (S Res 55), sponsored by Pennsylvania's senators, asks the department to ``de-link'' milk prices from the bulk cheese prices set by the National Cheese Exchange in Green Bay, Wis. Supporters of the measure said this would help correct a recent steep decline in national milk prices.
A yes vote was to approve the resolution.
Robb Yes Warner Yes
Faircloth Yes Helms Yes ILLUSTRATION: Photo