By J. Lyn Carl, GalleryWatch.com
Austin, TX – The debate on the state's budget bill (HB1) got off to a rocky start in the Senate today when Sen. Mario Gallegos (D-Houston) offered a motion to allow him to show a four-minute video on the Senate floor that he said featured statements from some of his constituents who will be affected by the proposed cuts in the budget bill.
Sen. John Whitmire (D-Houston) asked that the Gallegos motion be tabled. He said if a video were to be shown, the Senate would probably be better served if the video were shown outside the Senate chamber. "I do not believe it would be appropriate for us to allow spoken words by those other than state senators (on the Senate floor)," he said.
"This would be a major departure from Senate tradition, but from a practical standpoint if you allow a member to bring speakers from his or her district it would force some of the rest of us to do the same," said Whitmire, which he said might prompt constituents to want to testify in the Senate on a variety of issues and legislation.
Sen. Eliot Shapleigh (D-El Paso) pointed out that members of the Senate, as a courtesy and out of tradition, decline to offer floor amendments to the budget bill each session. "Each one of us has an individual right to amend this bill," said Shapleigh. "To give the dignity to the Senate, we individually gave up that right so we would have dignity on this floor," noting that members nonetheless shared heartfelt concerns about the lives that would be affected by the committee substitute being considered.
"If we're going to keep the dignity of the Texas Senate, we are going to afford each other (the courtesy that) makes this body special. We're going to silence a voice that wants to share just four minutes with his colleagues."
"This is a deliberative body where above all, sometimes more than rules, regulation and tradition, we use common sense, fairness, equal treatment," said Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos (D-Austin) as he supported the Gallegos motion.
Sen. Bill Ratliff (R-Mount Pleasant) opposed the showing of the Gallegos video. "These Senate traditions which we truly hold dear are in place for a reason. They didn't just evolve out of a slimy swamp somewhere," he said, but were put into place so the Senate could "function, and function properly."
"Testimony belongs in the committee," said Ratliff, and not on the Senate floor. He said if the video is allowed, "We will cease to have to be advocates among each other. We'll have battling videos. Whether or not it's in the rule, it's a bad idea. We have a tradition that we don't submit amendments to the budget on the Senate floor. That tradition is borne out of years of tradition. When you do that, this house can melt down like the one on the other end of the building."
"This is not a partisan matter," said Whitmire. "This has nothing to do with the work we did last week with the leadership and of our colleagues who just spoke regarding amendments." The discussion about amendments, said Whitmire, is not only to preserve Senate tradition, but to preserve the bill itself.
Whitmire withdrew his motion to table and Gallegos closed on his motion. The Houston Democrat said he wanted to show the video only as a means of allowing the people who elected him to have a voice because they will be affected by the budget decisions the Senate will make.
"The choice here is not a partisan one. It's not one of friendship. It's not one of common sense. It's not one people will perceive as not caring, but it's one that we must make," said Sen. Eddie Lucio (D-Brownsville).
Following the oratory, Gallegos withdrew his motion and the video was never shown.