And not voting this week ... Washington Notebook

Lowell Sun Online - Ian Bishop: "Overlooked in the Ronald Reagan tributes on Capitol Hill were the details of two symbolic votes House lawmakers held in his honor. The first vote, taken Tuesday, expressed sorrow over his death. The measure passed 355 to 0. The second vote, held a day later, acknowledged Reagan's efforts to defeat communism and spread freedom to all corners of the globe. It passed 375 to 0. But here's the curious thing: Where the heck was everybody? There are 435 members of the House. Eighty members missed the first vote and sixty missed the second.

In fact, more members cast a vote earlier this year to wish the Air Force Academy a happy 50th birthday. Only 13 missed that one. For Republicans, this week afforded an open microphone to sing the praises of their presidential hero. To have 47 Republicans miss votes honoring the man didn't sit too well with the Republican's whipping operation. And of course Democrats were even worse, with 91 members missing at least one of the votes."

HEAD SCRATCHER: Washington's subway system, known as the Metro, had this puzzling display on its message boards Thursday: In remembrance of President Reagan, we will be operating on our normal schedule.