Gov. Timothy M. Kaine may have lost the bid to use federal stimulus cash to expand unemployment insurance to more Virginians, but his vetoes of legislation to expand eligibility for the death penalty survived the reconvened session of the General Assembly.
"In Virginia, we execute enough people," Kaine said after the one-day session.
His vetoes were upheld on the so-called "triggerman" bill, which would have allowed the death penalty to apply to participants in a capital murder who - did not actually pull the trigger.
Legislators also sustained his vetoes of bills to expand the capital murder statute to make people convicted of killing fire marshals and auxiliary police officers eligible for the death penalty.
Kaine's veto of a bill that would have allowed holders of concealed-weapons permits to bring hidden guns into bars also was sustained during the marathon session.
The vetoes all were sustained by the Democratic-controlled Senate. The Republican-controlled House of Delegates voted to override on the legislation, but two-thirds of lawmakers in each house must agree to override a veto.
After adjournment, the House noted that it voted to override six of Kaine's vetoes and reject at least a dozen of his amendments.
"So many of our major initiatives and, indeed, many of the high-profile bills the House approved this year were passed with strong bipartisan support," said Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford. "Considering that the 'short' session immediately precedes a general election, that result is an encouraging sign."
Only two of Kaine's 12 vetoes were overridden by the full General Assembly.
Lawmakers voted to override Kaine to allow retired law-enforcement officers to bring concealed weapons into bars and restaurants that serve alcohol.
They also overrode Kaine's veto of legislation to allow people to complete training to obtain a concealed-weapons permit online. The current law requires a written safety test. Kaine also failed to win approval for an amended bill to allow no-excuse absentee voting and jabbed Republicans for killing the measure without a vote.
"I can only conclude that the Rs want fewer people to vote, not more," Kaine said.
Contact Jim Nolan at (804) 649-6061 or jnolan@timesdispatch.com.
Contact Olympia Meola at (804) 649-6812 or omeola@timesdispatch.com.
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