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  Congressman [Chaffetz]: Stop horsing around with sports votes
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Last EditedImperator  Jul 23, 2010 02:31pm
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CategoryMinority Perspective
AuthorJIM ABRAMS
MediaWebsite - Yahoo News
News DateFriday, July 23, 2010 08:00:00 PM UTC0:0
DescriptionWASHINGTON – House Democrats and Republicans have put aside their differences this year to honor the likes of golfer Phil Mickelson, the Chicago Blackhawks hockey team, NASCAR driver Jimmy Johnson and the Penn State women's volleyball team.

But when it came time this week to memorialize the start of the 142nd season of the Saratoga race course in New York, one freshman lawmaker decided he'd had enough.

"It's an absolute embarrassment," said Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, announcing on the House floor a vow to vote against all future sports resolutions.

He worried that there were kids in the visitors' gallery who would go back home and, asked whether Congress was talking about war or debt, reply: "Oh no, they were honoring a race course."

"It's terribly frustrating," Chaffetz said.

The freshman Republican did appear to win a few converts: The bill passed by a mere 396-14, a high number of "no" votes for the kind of commemorative resolutions that often pass unanimously.
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