Norton pulls voting rights bill
By: Michael Neibauer
Examiner Staff Writer
June 10, 2009
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D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton on Tuesday pulled the D.C. Voting Rights Act from consideration by the House of Representatives, as it became clear supporters did not have the votes to reject a pro-gun amendment attached in the Senate.
Norton, a Democrat, made the decision to withdraw the measure after meeting with key players over the weekend, including House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, according to an e-mail she sent to key voting rights backers. The bill would have expanded the House by two seats, one for the District and the other, temporarily at least, for Utah.
“All agreed that there were good reasons to wait — for now,” wrote Norton, D.C.’s non-voting delegate. “Please understand that we are holding the bill for now, not giving up on voting rights.”
The bill, which had suffered defeat twice before, is unlikely to return before the next congressional session.
All efforts to reach a compromise on a National Rifle Association-backed amendment eviscerating D.C.’s gun registration and possession laws failed, Norton said. The language was attached to the bill by Nevada Republican Sen. John Ensign. As they did in the Senate, numerous moderate House Democrats were prepared to vote for the bill with the amendment attached. Norton was forced to pull the legislation as Hoyer, D-Md., was unwilling to go forward without consensus, and President Barack Obama did not involve himself in the fight.
The “onerous and dangerous nature of the Ensign amendment ... perhaps makes this delay a necessary step for now,” D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray said in a statement.
“It is supremely frustrating that D.C. residents are forced to wait on voting representation because of the NRA’s boldfaced attempt to impose its view of the Second Amendment on District residents,” said at-large Councilman Phil Mendelson, chairman of the public safety committee.
Ilir Zherka, executive director of D.C. Vote, said the “fight is far from over.”
“We will do everything in our power to pass the D.C. Voting Rights Act in this Congress,” Zherka said. “But, it’s obvious that we’ll also need to take our battle on guns to the next level.”
