Analysis: Democrats Win Some Fights

AP on Yahoo ^ | 12/23/05 | David Espo - ap

[NormsRevenge]

WASHINGTON - The Republican-controlled Congress is staggering home for the holidays. Democrats, demoralized after last year's election losses, have a spring in their step after outmaneuvering President Bush and GOP congressional leaders in a series of session-ending clashes.

"This has been the saddest day of my life," Alaska Republican Sen. Ted Stevens (news, bio, voting record) lamented at one point, mourning the demise of legislation to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling.

The drilling issue has been a crusade of the 82-year-old Alaska lawmaker for more than a quarter-century. It was a White House priority, as well, and Bush made its enactment part of a first-term energy policy.

Stevens and other supporters had a shaky majority for the legislation, but critics skillfully used their political leverage and arcane congressional rules to thwart passage. Efforts to include it in a broad deficit-cutting bill were abandoned at the insistence of House GOP moderates, who made its removal a price of their support for changes in Medicare, Medicaid and the student loan program. The leadership agreed reluctantly, deciding in effect that saving the deficit cuts was a higher priority.

Next came the decision to attach the oil drilling legislation to a bill for defense spending. Which in turn gave Democrats a new opportunity to attack it, and also permitted a filibuster that eventually killed it.

"Our military is being held hostage by this issue," said Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid.

In control of the agenda, Republicans had their share of success in the year-end drive for adjournment.

Democrats had to accept legislation that will mean less spending than a year ago across hundreds of social programs. House conservatives won a 1 percent across-the-board cut in federal spending, only veterans' programs exempted.

And Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist prevailed over strong Democratic protests on legislation giving broad protection against lawsuits to vaccine manufacturers. That was part of a measure to prepare for a possible outbreak of avian flu.

But Republican and Bush — who was buffeted by controversy over warrantless spying — faltered at other points.

They were forced to accept a short-term extension of the Patriot Act they had insisted was unacceptable.

" I made it very clear that I oppose a short-term extension," said Frist at one point, not long after a Democratic-led filibuster blocked passage of a renewal of the anti-terror law.

"The president will not sign such an extension," he added at another.

With Bush struggling in the public opinion polls, GOP lawmakers made it clear they thought the issue would work to their advantage politically.

Sen. Jon Kyl (news, bio, voting record), R-Ariz., noted the partisan breakdown of the vote on ending the filibuster. "If 90-plus percent of the Democrats vote against...and 90-plus percent of the Republicans vote for.... it is hard to argue it is not partisan," he said.

Any political concerns harbored by Senate Democrats were muted, and four conservative Republicans played a prominent role in blocking passage. "We need to be more vigilant," said Sen. John Sununu (news, bio, voting record) of New Hampshire, who said the White House-backed bill failed to protect civil liberties sufficiently.

In the end, Frist retreated, agreeing to a six-month extension.

Republicans "tried to play a game of chicken, and they lost the game of chicken," exulted Sen. Russ Feingold (news, bio, voting record), D-Wis.

If Democrats were pleased, not so Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis. The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee single-handedly blocked the six-month extension in the House on Thursday, insisting on legislation that will expire on Feb. 3 instead.

Why?

"The fact is that a six-month extension, in my opinion, would have simply allowed the Senate to duck the issue until the last week in June. Now, they came pretty close to wrecking everybody's Christmas. I didn't want to put the entire Congress in the position of them wrecking everybody's Independence Day."

The Senate agreed to the one-month extension and sent it to Bush.

Another GOP priority, legislation to cut nearly $40 billion from deficits over the next five years, passed the Senate on the final full business day of the session. But only after GOP leaders made a series of expensive concessions, and only after Democrats forced minor changes that will require a new vote in the House — next year.

In a long weekend of negotiations among Republicans, a provision to save $1.9 billion from Medicare spending on oxygen equipment was jettisoned in what aides said was an effort to satisfy Sen. George Voinovich (news, bio, voting record), R-Ohio.

Sen. Norm Coleman (news, bio, voting record) of Minnesota won a change to benefit sugar beet farmers. Sen. Larry Craig (news, bio, voting record), R-Idaho was instrumental in altering a provision that would have affected industries harmed by unfair trade practices.

In the end, the savings in the bill amounted to $39.7 billion over five years, $4 billion or so less than when the weekend began, according to Republicans involved.

Even then, five Republicans defected and Vice President Dick Cheney had to fly back early from overseas to cast the deciding vote.

The House earlier vote was 212-206, and the two Democratic leaders, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi, achieved a rare feat — not a single member of their rank and file voted for the GOP legislation.

_____

Eds: David Espo is AP's chief congressional correspondent.

[NormsRevenge]

Yeah, I'm counting up all their wins for the American people... on one hand, No, make that on one finger. ;-)

[NormsRevenge]

Monica Conyers sits with her husband, Democratic U.S. Rep. John Conyers at a Labor Day rally in Detroit, Sept. 5, 2005. Monica, a city councilwoman-elect, has been involved in a bar fight. A spokesman for Monica Conyers confirmed Friday, Dec. 23, 2005 that she was involved in an altercation early Tuesday at a party at the Crossroads Lounge in Detroit. But he said Conyers merely defended herself after being attacked by another woman. The other woman involved, Rebecca Mews, told WDIV-TV in Detroit that Conyers threw the first punch and that she never hit back. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

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Call for the Impeachment of a wartime President.

Now, that's a winner if I ever saw one.. ;-)

[NormsRevenge]

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D. N.Y., right, talks with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., on their way to voting on the Deficit Reduction Act on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2005 on Capitol Hill in Washington. On Wednesday, Jeanine Pirro pulled the plug on her struggling campaign for the Republican nomination to challenge Clinton's 2006 re-election bid and said she will run instead for state attorney general. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke)

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You packin'?

Always.

[TXBSAFH]

They did win some figths. But that was because of a weak and useless leader like Frist and the rinos. If Frist thinks he is hte man for 2008 the past few months are a good example of why he had gone as far up the ladder as he should. In fact maybe a rung or tow too far.

[NormsRevenge]

Sen. Jon Corzine, D-N.J., right, talks to reporters on Capitol Hill Thursday, Dec. 15, 2005, after Senate Democrats met with Rep. Robert Menendez, center. Menendez will succeed Corzine, New Jersey's newly-elected governor, in the Senate. (AP Photo/Dennis Cook)

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A semi-win.. We got Corzine out of the Senate. :)

[Darkwolf377]

WASHINGTON - The Republican-controlled Congress is staggering home for the holidays. Democrats, demoralized after last year's election losses, have a spring in their step after outmaneuvering President Bush and GOP congressional leaders in a series of session-ending clashes.

Yep, the Dems are overjoyed that Bush's approval rating just jumped and the economy under him is booming.

[dropzone]

This has been the saddest day of my life," Alaska Republican Sen. Ted Stevens"

What a drama queen. ANWR will be drilled eventually.

[caisson71]

I am absolutely disgusted with Republicans in the Senate. It appears that a majority doesn't translate to forwarding the Republican agenda, watered down as it is.

[fortheDeclaration]

Yes, the Democrats won, but America lost.

[jmaroneps37]

Ted Stevens is now a dangerous weapon of mass rat destruction. He will surprise the evil donkey as they have not been surprised before. The congressional rats are dead and both they and the senate rats will lose seats. Merry Christmas to all Republicans and happy sectarian winter festival to all democrats.

[jokova]

Frist is totally worthless. He could have forced the ANWR issue further, but surrendered faster than the French on it. Too bad he's a gutless wonder. If the Republicans in the Senate were led by someone like Delay, ANWR would have passed.

I thought Lott was the worst. Boy was I way off on that one.

[fhlh]

I wrote Frist a letter asking him to grow a pair....
sure.. it was inmature, but am I asking too much :)

[Eagles Talon IV]

How many voters do you really believe are paying attention to this? My guess is less then 5% at this particular time of the year. This is small stuff compared to the good news from Iraq and the attempt by the libs to portray the president as being wrong to pursue terrorists in this country by all possible means. The rise in his poll numbers speaks to how effective the libs have been.

[elcid1970]

Oh no. You did it. The MSM was warned years ago, NEVER photograph Hillary Rodham Clinton below the waist! Your attitude is noted.

There WILL be consequences.

[manwiththehands]

Democrats, demoralized after last year's election losses, have a spring in their step after outmaneuvering President Bush and GOP congressional leaders in a series of session-ending clashes.

Should read: "Democrats, demoralized after last year's election losses, have a spring in their step after outmaneuvering President Bush and GOP congressional "leaders" in a series of session-ending clashes.

Fixed it.

[winner3000]

(Republicans "tried to play a game of chicken, and they lost the game of chicken," exulted Sen. Russ Feingold (news, bio, voting record), D-Wis. )

Within one year the Democrats solidified their reputation as unserious about national security for yet another generation. They would rather defend terrorists than defend Americans. Any more of these pyrrhic victories and there won't be a Democrat party any more.

[Zack Nguyen]

Efforts to include it in a broad deficit-cutting bill were abandoned at the insistence of House GOP moderates, who made its removal a price of their support for changes in Medicare, Medicaid and the student loan program.

Arrogance. They won't stop spending my money until Social Security and Medicare go bankrupt.