Inside Politics

Republicans Must Fight to Retain Majority in House

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

BERNARD SHAW, CNN ANCHOR: Congress won't reconvene until January 24, but the Republican leadership met today to announce its agenda for the year.

Our Bob Franken takes a look at the familiar issues that top the list.

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SHAW: The Republican leadership met today to announce its agenda for the year.

Our Bob Franken takes a look at the familiar issues that top the list.

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REP. J.C. WATTS (R-OK), CONFERENCE CHAIRMAN: A top priority for the House Republican majority is remaining the majority.

REP. DENNIS HASTERT (R-IL), HOUSE SPEAKER: The American people have a choice, of voting for a Congress and a party with new ideas and new energy, or going back to a Congress of old ideas.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This year's Republican ideas are last year's ideas, starting with...

DICK ARMEY (R-TX), MAJORITY LEADER: Tax relief for the American family.

FRANKEN: In fact, the first order of business for House Republicans will be another effort to repeal the marriage penalty. But coming out of two days of meetings may produce a new wrinkle in their tax strategy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You need to be honest with yourselves.

FRANKEN: GOP sources tell CNN the large majority in their party wants to avoid an all-encompassing tax cut, like the $792 billion proposal in last year's budget.

Instead, Republicans want to discourage another presidential veto by passing popular tax cuts one by one.

They also will emphasize trade, as well as high-tech legislation.

And fending off the Democrats.

REP. RICHARD GEPHARDT (D-MO), MINORITY LEADER: We're still aware of how much of our agenda from last year is undone.

FRANKEN: That means HMO reform again, gun control, prescription drugs for Medicare recipients, minimum wage legislation, as well as a new Democratic proposal to spend federal money repairing decrepit schools.

Democrats feel they have the upper hand.

GEOFFREY GARIN, DEMOCRATIC POLLSTER: Right now I would much rather be the Democrats than the Republicans looking ahead to the 2000 elections.

REP. TOM DELAY (R-TX), MAJORITY WHIP: The best part of this is to look over the last five years.

FRANKEN: It's five years since Newt Gingrich and Republicans wrenched control of Congress away from the Democrats.

(on camera): Now it's the Democrats storming the Capitol, and the Republicans trying to hold on to their precarious position at the top of the hill.

Bob Franken, CNN, Capitol Hill.

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