The Democrats Now Have Their Chance
This was the election Democrats called for a "new direction." This was the year they assailed Republicans for staying the course. This was supposed to be the election of change.
Well, they've got their chance. Democratic leaders waited all year – make that 12 years – to introduce a Democratic speaker of the House. They did that last night to the Rolling Stones' "Start Me Up" in a packed ballroom just steps from Capitol Hill with the Democratic faithful chanting "Nancy, Nancy" and "Speaker, Speaker."
House Speaker-to-be Nancy Pelosi of California said: "Today the American people voted for change and they voted for Democrats to take our country in a new direction, and that is exactly what we intend to do. The American people voted for a new direction to restore civility and bipartisanship in Washington, D.C., and Democrats promise to work together in a bipartisan way for all Americans."
Rep. Rahm Emanuel and Sen. Chuck Schumer, the two heads of the Democrats' election strategy, stood with Sen. Harry Reid and Pelosi, calling themselves a united party. They all spoke of the cornerstones of their Six for '06 plan: raising the minimum wage, rewriting the country's energy policy, making college tuition affordable, lowering the price of prescription drugs, and calling for a change of course in Iraq. Jim Manley, Reid's spokesman, said last week that "we'll be prepared to move quickly" and that the minimum wage bill, a Democratic mainstay for years, could be among the very first pieces of legislation the party pushes.
"The only way we can get anything done is for the president to throw away his tough talk," said Manley. "He is a lame duck and that is a fact."
With the latest results showing at least a 27-seat pickup for the Democrats, what was once a nail-biter to gain the 15 seats necessary to retake the House has become a much broader mandate. Control of the Senate still hangs in the balance, and if Democrats prevail in Montana and Virginia, the mandate could be much larger and the president's ability to pass his agenda further curtailed.
But a party known for intraparty melees isn't going to be all smiles for all that long. Many of the Democrats elected last night are moderate or conservative and could be expected to cross the aisle at times and vote with Republicans. Already brewing on election night was a fierce duel within the Democratic Party. Unless Pelosi can reach a last-minute compromise or quell the fighting, Democratic Reps. Steny Hoyer of Maryland and Jack Murtha of Pennsylvania will be competing for the No. 2 job in the House. Just before 1 a.m., Hoyer's office sent the first E-mail, titled "Hoyer Running for House Majority Leader." An hour later, on MSNBC, Murtha told Chris Matthews that he "absolutely" wants to be leader and that he is close to having the votes.
With Hoyer representing moderate Democrats and Murtha – who has called for withdrawing from Iraq – representing the more liberal wing of the party, the fight over the speakership could turn into "a battle for the soul of the Democratic Party," says John Fortier, resident fellow with the American Enterprise Institute.
There could also be a showdown between Emanuel of Illinois and Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina, the current chair of the Democratic Caucus, for the majority whip position. While Emanuel has not stated any leadership ambitions, some say he would be an ideal whip and should be rewarded for his chairmanship of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Yet Clyburn, a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, has seniority.
On the Republican side, there will be plenty of questions and blame to be shared. Outgoing House Majority Leader John Boehner and Speaker Dennis Hastert had their differences this fall over the Republican response to the scandal involving former Rep. Mark Foley. Boehner and Whip Roy Blount had been opponents for the leadership job earlier this year after Rep. Tom DeLay stepped down, but they had since mended fences. It's unclear what the Republican leadership will look like in the House, with some conservative sources reporting that Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana, the head of the 110-member Republican Study Committee and a powerful fiscal conservative, could run for minority leader. On Wednesday morning, Pence said: "Some will argue that we lost our majority because of scandals at home and challenges abroad. I say, we did not just lose our majority, we lost our way."
On the Senate side, with Majority Leader Bill Frist retiring, Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky and majority whip, is very likely to win the top Republican leadership position. Former Majority Leader Trent Lott of Mississippi and Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, though, could battle over who would be No. 2, because Rick Santorum, the Republican Conference chair who would most likely have sought the whip position, lost his Pennsylvania seat.
Whatever the leadership structure looks like – and that'll be decided most likely by the middle of next week – there already are some clear changes in committee structures. Powerful old Democrats such as Reps. John Dingell, Charlie Rangel, and Henry Waxman, who have spent 12 years as ranking minority members, are back as chairmen. Waxman, for example, has promised robust oversight of issues such as contracts awarded for Iraq reconstruction.
On some issues, like the environment, the results are mixed. While enviros are celebrating the defeat of Rep. Richard Pombo, they're mourning the loss of another powerful Republican: Sen. Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island. Chafee, like his father, was among the strongest environmental advocates in the Senate. During his re-election bid this year he had earned the endorsement of nearly every major green group, including the Sierra Club and League of Conservation Voters. He played a pivotal role from his seat on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, where Republicans held an 11-to-9 advantage. Chafee frequently voted with Democrats on such controversial issues as Bush's Clear Skies Act, which opponents say allowed more pollution into the air, and the Endangered Species Act rewrite. His vote deadlocked the committee at 10-10, which prevented the legislation from reaching the Senate floor.
"We owe him a lot," says Rodger Schlickeisen of the Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund. "He's a champion for us." Schlickeisen says that if Republicans retain control of the Senate, the loss of Chafee is "the worst of both worlds." Chafee, perhaps the most pro-green Republican in the Senate, is likely to be replaced by someone far less in tune with the environmental movement. Analysts suspect Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski will assume his seat. "She is very bad on conservation issues," Schlickeisen says. That could mean more legislation flowing through the committee and being battled out on the Senate floor.
With Danielle Knight and Bret Schulte