Politics: Small Victories

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Politics Small Victories Why Democrats are ready to declare a gun bill—any gun bill—a big win. By David Weigel Posted Thursday, Apr 11, 2013, at 10:47 PM ET Lori Haas nearly got kicked out of the Senate viewing gallery. The upper house was voting on whether or not to allow a debate on gun legislation. Haas' freshman senator, Tim Kaine, spotted her from the floor. He waved up. She waved back. That nearly violated the churchlike protocols of the Senate. But Haas negotiated with Capitol security to keep her seat and count out the votes, on her fingers, occasionally pumping her fist when a surprise Republican "aye" came through, stopping only when the vote came in—68-31 for cloture. "I was counting all the yes votes,' " she said, after she and fellow gun-bill advocates left the gallery. "I knew they'd gotten to 60, but I was afraid I'd counted wrong. I didn't want to get that wrong. This is very emotional for me. I've been working on this for six years." Six years ago, a Virginia Tech student who should have failed a background check turned two semi-automatic pistols on a classroom, killing 32 and injuring 17. Haas' daughter, Emily, was one of the 17; she took two bullets to the head and wondered whether she'd bleed out. Her mother became a full-time gun control campaigner. Like the other activists in the Senate Thursday—some of them Newtown family members who wept as senators spoke—she was calling the cloture vote a win. For gun-bill advocates, from the White House on down, any bill is a win. They haven't actually seen the ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Why Did Women Go to Kermit Gosnell Instead of Reputable Abortion Providers? Katniss Returns in Trailer for New, Possibly Improved Hunger Games Mad Men, Season 6	Advertisement
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