Dispatch:
Rep. Deborah Pryce, R-Upper Arlington, cited the problem of a congressional five-day work week and the resulting time away from her young daughter, Mia, when she explained Thursday why she would not run for re-election next year.....
However, then one of her staffers had to add this about those missed votes.
......A Pryce spokesman noted that many of the votes on Mondays are noncontroversial matters such as lauding sports teams and naming post offices.
"Yes, she missed some Monday votes, but on most of these Mondays, she was working here in the district among her constituents," said Rob Nichols, Pryce's spokesman. "And, thankfully, these post offices got named without her."
Other than your own personal illness or the illness of a family member, Pryce had no reason to miss those votes. Her constituents did not give her a pass on Monday votes. What kind of votes were on Mondays? Here is a sampling from the Washington Post:
1/16/07...Vote 24: H RES 61: Observing the Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., and Encouraging the People of the United States to Observe the Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Life and Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and for Other Purposes.
1/30/07...Vote 63: H CON RES 20: Calling on the United Kingdom to Establish a Full, Independent , and Public Judicial Inquiry Into the Murder of Northern Ireland Defense Attorney Patrick Finucane2/7/07...Vote 78: H R 365: Methamphetamine Remediation Research Act
2/7/07...Vote 80: H R 482: American River Pump Station Project Transfer Act
3/19/07...Vote 158: H R 658: Natural Resource Protection Cooperative Agreement Act
5/16/07...Vote 355: H R 1585: National Defense Authorization Act
5/22/07...Vote 398: H R 2264: No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels Act “Nopec”
6/22/07...Vote 548: H R 2771: Legislative Branch Appropriations for Fy 2008
7/16/07...Vote 630: H R 1980: To Authorize Appropriations for the Housing Assistance Council
7/16/07... Vote 631: H R 1982: Rural Housing and Economic Development Improvement Act of 2007
7/16/07...Vote 632: H R 799: Appalachian Regional Development Act Amendments
7/23/07...Vote 690: H RES 558: Providing for Consideration of H.R. 3074, the Departments of Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies, Fy 2008
8/2/07...Vote 816: H R 3161: Making Appropriations for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Programs for the Fiscal Year Ending September 30, 2008, and for Other Purposes.
By the way, there were only 4 Monday votes to name post offices in honor of famous Americans (2/13/07 (Vote 98), 4/23/07 (Vote 246 & 247), 6/18/07 (Vote 499). Pryce missed 70 votes. We'll do the math:
70 missed votes minus 4 post office naming votes equals 66 missed votes.
No matter how you add it up, Pryce just wasn't willing to work hard for her constituents. Which Ohio Republican will announce his pending retirement next? Hobson? Latourette?