Senator Warner Returns to Work
posted 2:37 pm Fri October 05, 2007 - Richmond, Va.
"They went in, got it straightened out. It took two days of processing. They run wires up you and work the electrical circuits of the heart," he said in a telephone interview.
Speaking in a strong voice, Warner said he'd had mild occurrences of atrial fibrillation over the years.
"When they occurred, the physicians said `Don't worry about it. Quite a few people in Congress have it,"' Warner said. It did not influence his decision to retire, he said.
The latest episode of arrhythmia came after a busy work day Monday that lasted long into the night.
"I got ramped up here with an awful lot of work," he said, and on Tuesday morning, "it just sort of kicked up on me a little bit."
While he underwent two days of procedures to correct the problem at Inova Fairfax Hospital, President Bush vetoed a $35 billion, 5-year expansion of a popular children's health insurance program that Warner joined congressional Democrats in supporting.
"My father was a doctor and he had many children as patients, and look at the wonderful health treatment I got in the last 72 hours and I hate to feel that other people can't access comparable services," he said.
"So at the moment, I'm pretty well fixed in my position," he said.
The Senate has the required two-thirds vote to override Bush's veto, but an override vote in the House would fall about two dozen votes short.
While the bill to expand medical coverage for children of the working poor prompted Warner and some other Republicans to break with the White House, most congressional Republicans side with Bush, citing the cost and size of the program and calling it a step toward socialized medicine.
Warner's decision to retire opens a seat that Democrats believe they can win in next year's elections.
Democratic former Gov. Mark R. Warner has already announced his intent to run for the seat, while U.S. Rep. Thomas M. Davis and former Gov. Jim Gilmore are interested in seeking the GOP nomination.
The senator and Mark Warner are not related.
Not a member yet? Click Here to sign up.
Please leave your comments below:
Messages that harass, abuse or threaten other members; have obscene or otherwise objectionable content; have spam, commercial or
advertising content or inappropriate links may be removed and may result in the loss of your posting privileges.
Please do not post any private information unless you want it to be available publicly.
Never assume that you are completely anonymous and cannot be identified by your posts.
© 2007 WJLA-TV
© 2007 The Associated Press
All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
The 'RUNNING MAN' icon is a registered trademark of America Online, Inc.
ABC 7 News to leave comments on news stories.