Balance of Power

    The question is not whether some lawsuits are frivolous—they are.

    The question is not whether litigation burdens your businesses—it does.

    The ultimate question, simply, is whether ordinary people who are injured deserve their day in court.

    And that, regrettably, is the most basic question Senator Harshman—and his leader, Senator Fasano—have failed to address.

    Watching, Fasano tried to detach himself as Palmer had, to study his opponent as one professional appraising another. Kilcannon's gift for confrontation and edgy rhetoric, Fasano believed, was a distinctly twoedged sword, creating both fervent admirers and dedicated detractors by the minute. But Kilcannon was skilled at turning on a dime from confrontation to conciliation, with a persuasive power which might beguile many of those listening. And he had another strength, just as disconcerting. Unlike some politicians, whom television tends to flatten to a single dimension, Kilcannon was as vivid on the screen as he was in person. All of which made Fasano's knowledge of what was coming even more unpleasant.

    Although Senator Harshman also failed to mention this, Kilcannon continued, I'm quite sympathetic to your concerns. But we have to find a balance. That's why I proposed tort reform legislation which would cap attorneys' fees, and limit the punitive damage awards which can be so catastrophic to your businesses.

    Your own leaders favored such a compromise. But Senator Fasano refused to

support it . . .

    "I imagine," Palmer observed wryly, "that he's about to tell us why."

    Fasano smiled. "I'm sure he'll be at least as kind to me as Paul was to him."

    The reason is simple, Kilcannon went on. Buried at the heart of the Civil Justice Reform Act supported by Senator Fasano is a provision immunizing gun companies from lawsuits.

    I asked that it be stricken. Your officers agreed. Senator Fasano refused. So you may want to consider whether the Republican leadership's priorities are your priorities. And then, perhaps, you might ask Senator Fasano why the gun lobby's wish list takes precedence over your much broader core concerns.

    " 'Because,' " Palmer answered dryly for Fasano, " 'the right of patriotic Americans to bear arms should be sacred to you all.' "

    It's a curious thing, Kilcannon was saying with a glimmer of amusement. Senator Fasano and his colleagues are fervent defenders of states' rights and local control. Yet they propose to rewrite the laws of

all fifty states, to wipe out all future lawsuits against gun manufacturers by the victims or survivors of gun violence. Gaze sweeping the hall, Kilcannon added in a soft, ironic tone, They even propose to wipe out suits which have already been filed, whoever the plaintiff and wherever the lawsuit may be found . . .

    "I wonder," Fasano remarked, "if he has any particular plaintiff in mind."

    "Why not?" Palmer answered. "The SSA does."