Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, August 4, 1993 TAG: 9308040098
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
Voting 51-48, the Senate turned back a bid by Sen. Don Nickles, R-Okla., to offer an amendment that would have banned abortion coverage for federal workers except when the woman's life was at stake or in cases of rape or incest.
The vote came on whether the amendment was "germane" to the House-passed bill at issue, a $22.3 billion spending bill to fund the Treasury Department and the Postal Service. The overall bill later was approved, 73-27, and sent to a conference to work out differences with a House-passed version that also contains no ban on abortion coverage for federal workers.
Of the Virginia senators, Democrat Charles Robb voted against the amendment; Republican John Warner voted for it.
Abortion-rights advocates contended that banning abortions from federal workers' health care coverage creates a two-tier system, because most private insurance policies cover a full range of reproductive rights.
Supporters of the ban say taxpayers don't want public money subsidizing abortion.
In a coordinated effort, women senators congregated at the front of the chamber and corralled their male colleagues as they walked onto the floor to vote on Nickles' measure. In case Republicans tried again, the women - taking turns each hour - stood guard on the floor until the bill was finished.
"We . . . will stand sentry until final passage," said Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., who made the motion that Nickles' provision was not germane because it was adding legislation to an appropriations bill.
Her motion, which shut off debate just as it started, came out of strategy sessions that the five Democratic women had held over the past few weeks.
By using a parliamentary move, Mikulski was able to pick up the votes of some senators who are sticklers about Senate rules, but aren't necessarily rock-solid on abortion-rights issues, such as Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va.
For that reason, Mikulski declined to call it a test vote on how the Senate would vote in future abortion battles.
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., called it a "momentary victory" and said there was work ahead.
"It's a step at a time. When you turn around a policy that's been in place for 12 years, it's very difficult," Boxer said, referring to past Republican administrations and anti-abortion policies they enforced.
by CNB