Senate committee hearing brings the feels, and we have Lauren Book to thank for it

TALLAHASSEE, FLA. 10/21/19-Sen. Lauren Book, D-Plantation, right, asks a question of Special Master Dudley Goodlette as the Senate Rules Committee works to decide if suspended Broward County Sheriff Scott Isreal should be removed from office, Monday at the Capitol in Tallahassee. COLIN HACKLEY PHOTO

There aren’t many “I’m not crying, you’re crying” moments in politics these days – at least not when it’s the kind of tears you have to choke back because you’re moved, unexpectedly, and left feeling … optimistic.

But that’s what happened today in Sen. Lauren Book’s Children, Families, and Elder Affairs Committee where seven members of the Florida Senate talked about grandparents.

It wasn’t just me feeling it – I swear. I got multiple messages to that effect from people who weren’t there expecting to really … feel … anything.

The cause was Sen. Jeff Brandes’ SB 1886, related to the ability of grandparents to petition courts for visitation with grandchildren in the aftermath of really, really bad, murderous situations. The bill was inspired by the 2014 murder of Dan Markel, whose ex-wife and her family are under investigation for his murder and who have denied his parents contact with their grandchildren. You can read my thoughts about all of that here.

Debate on the bill touched some of the expected – constitutional questions about access to courts and parental rights, presumptions of innocence, and expressions of sympathy for what the Markel family has and still is enduring.

Then it got more personal.

The president of the Florida Psychological Association, Dr. Thomas Bonner, testified about the long-term consequences on children when losing family supports in the wake of losing a parent; and Jeremy Cohen, a friend of the Markels, shared heart-wrenching images of two young boys surrounded by a loving family they’re not allowed to see.

Sen. Victor Torres shared the challenges and grief grandparents in his communities have felt when learning they have no rights when it comes to the grandchildren they themselves have raised; and Sen. Gayle Harrell lamented that “without this legislation there would be no opportunity at all for grandparents to be able to even approach the court.” Sen. Debbie Mayfield agreed, saying the bill could go even further to apply to children who have lost a parent, not just to murder – but more broadly.

Then, Sen. Aaron Bean (after “debating on whether I should debate”) kicked it up a notch.

Bean shared the impacts his own grandmother had on his life – running a paper route with him and teaching him life lessons in the process – instructing him to put half of his money in savings, which helped him go to college. Teaching him about customer service and how to keep change – a trait that no doubt has contributed to his deftness with Appropriations.

And then Sen. Book brought it home: “One of the things that I constantly thought about was Ruth and the Markels, that this may never help them have a relationship with their grandchildren. But one day, those two little boys will be able to go back and watch this hearing and see people who are fighting for them, and that those grandparents were fighting for them. Fighting for the opportunity to love them, and have that relationship.”

That’s constituent service, folks – hearing a bill not only for the possibility of improving a deeply flawed law – but for the creation of a record of the extent two grandparents and their allies have gone to ensure their grandsons won’t always believe they’ve been abandoned.

It’s true that grandparents have been on my mind a lot these days, watching my own daughter miss hers. But it turns out, the topic is close to a lot of people’s hearts – not just in the months following a loss – but for years. For a lifetime.

To quote Sen. Bean: “The benefit of that relationship with a grandparent is worth fighting for.”

It may have taken a Florida Senate committee hearing to illuminate – there is a place for heart in politics still.

And if you think you see something in my eye, that’s why.