Maybe he wants to be able to sleep well at night after he retires this year. Whatever, Ohio's Republican senator voted against an amendment that would have allowed gun owners to carry their weapons across state lines. He was one of only two GOP senators to do so; the other 38, in zombie-like mode, voted with the NRA, hoping that the organization would be generous to their re-election coffers.
Perhaps his years as mayor of Cleveland helped focus his conscience on the disaster of some gun-nut from Vermont walking down the streets of New York City with a loaded gun because he has a 'permit' from Vermont.
This was his second sensible senate vote in the same week. A few days ago he bucked his party again in voting against the obscene $1.7 billion funding of the F-22A fighter. He also voted against his party on the DeMint Amendment to require the completion of at least 700 miles of reinforced fencing along the southwest border.
Last year, however he voted with the GOP against the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009. Naturally, during the Bush years, he voted for every military appropriations bill and war-funding bill that the GOP proposed.
He's got a few more important bills to vote on before he retires in January. One can only wonder if he will vote for the American citizens or for the Republican Party.
