LINCOLN, Neb. (KMTV) — Frustration boiled into anger at the Nebraska Capitol on Friday during a debate over a ‘constitutional carry’ bill.
It started Thursday when Senator Machaela Cavanaugh said she feared that people in the balcony, supporting the bill, may have concealed weapons.
Cavanaugh was not supportive of the legislation.
In response, bill sponsor Senator Tom Brewer said: if you can’t deal with who’s in the balcony, then you shouldn’t be in the unicameral and told her to do a gut check.
On Friday, Cavanaugh reacted.
“And to be mocked for my commitment to my children, as though I’m not fit to be in this legislature, is beyond disheartening. And for this body to tolerate that kind of behavior is disheartening,” she said. “It’s not the first time Senator Brewer has insulted me as a mother in this legislature and it is clear that he doesn’t think mothers are fit to serve in this legislature.”
This later led to a defense of Brewer by Senator Julie Slama.
“Some people, when I said I was going to respond, said ‘Let her just stomp her feet and whine like a toddler and eventually she’ll just wear herself out and take a nap,” said Slama.
She referenced Brewer’s two Purple Heart medals from wars in the Middle East and it turned into a bit of chaos on the floor.
After Slama said Brewer has done more for the U.S. than Cavanaugh will ever do, Cavanaugh rose and yelled "point of order" to get Slama to stop.
Instead, the chair hit his gavel, stopping Cavanaugh and letting Slama finish.
Soon after, the unicameral stopped debate to vote on whether to even continue the rest of the day. The senators largely voted to move on, but not before longtime Senator Steve Lathrop admonished the body saying personal attacks have gone on too long.
“What we’ve let this thing devolve into, devolve into, on our watch! On our watch. That is not acceptable,” he said.
Lathrop, who’s not running for a second term in what is his second stint in the legislature, said the lying and theatrics have become too much.
“Everything is decided before I get to the floor. This is choreographed. Somebody has a vote card, everybody knows what’s going to happen on every bill. And people stand up and say things that are personal attacks,” said Lathrop.
Other senators like Patty Pansing Brooks said the chair of the body should have stopped Slama from attacking Cavanaugh.
“And as a mom, I would have sent everybody to their rooms until everybody got back together and be kinder to one another,” said Pansing Brooks.
After all this, just enough senators voted in favor of the bill for it to go through. Then, three senators changed their previous votes to 'yes,' for a larger margin of 36 votes in favor of the bill.
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