Once in awhile, a lawmaker gets caught with his pants down or in the presence of a stripper. Other times, they hop a bus for a "fact-finding" tour of area topless bars, as six Arizona state lawmakers did this week.
This in the wake of a pair of bills in the state legislature aimed at regulating exotic dancing and banning public sexual arousal. But the tour may have been symbolic in the end - the bills have been pulled off the legislative calendar for at least the time being.
"I really think it's pretty tame," says Rep. Christine Weason, a Phoenix Democrat, of the Hi-Liter show club in Phoenix. She tells the Arizona Republic she wasn't offended and saw no criminal activity in the club.
The tour was sponsored by a KTAR Radio talk host, David Liebowitz in a bid to poke fun at the two bills, the paper says. One other Democrat and four Republican lawmakers accompanied Weason on the tour.
Rep. Ken Cheuvront, who is gay, tells the Republic he wanted to stand up for "law abiding citizens who frequent these places."
Rep. Carolyn Allen was more reserved in her support. "I support their right to do what they want for a living," she tells the paper, "but the feminist in me is a little sad," says the Scottsdale Republican. "I wouldn't want to walk in here and see my granddaughter up there."
State Senator Randall Grant, a fellow Scottsdale Republican, also made the tour, as did Lake Havasu City Republican Linda Binder and Phoenix Republican Steve May.
