Alphecca

The Vote: 65-31

Finally, some sensible tort reform passes the Senate. From the AP:

- The Senate voted Friday to shield firearms manufacturers, dealers and importers from lawsuits brought by victims of gun crimes, a measure opponents said had been ordered up by the gun lobby.

The 65-31 vote passed a bill that supporters said protects the industry from financial disaster and bankruptcy caused by damage lawsuits.

"This bill says go after the criminal, don't go after the law-abiding gun manufacturer or the law-abiding gun seller," said bill sponsor Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho.

This is really just a start, folks. Maybe Congress will start examining some of the other areas of manufacture that are being driven to bankruptcy by trial lawyers and try to reign in all the other frivolous lawsuits and outrageous "damage" awards that consumers windup paying for in the end. One reason healthcare is so expensive these days is because doctors have had to practice "defensive medicine" to stem the tide of lawsuits that beset the healthcare industry.

It's interesting to note that the vote on S397 was rather lopsided, with several Democrats voting for the measure. Every opinion poll of ordinary Americans showed support for the legislation, indicating that even people who don't like guns still believe in fairness, even to businesses.

However, a word of caution: Once this bill becomes law -- that doesn't end all lawsuits against gun makers and dealers. The trial lawyers will comb through the exemptions that are still actionable and simply change their tactics. The chief benefit of this legislation is that it will end the class action suits that claim that gun makers' products are creating a public nuisance or that try to recover gun-crime costs.

Update: Countertop Chronicles has the score on who voted how.