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CNN Live Sunday
How Will Senate Power Switch Affect Capitol Hill Agenda?
Aired May 27, 2001 - 17:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
STEPHEN FRAZIER, CNN ANCHOR: Many members of Congress have left capitol for a recess following their big tax cut yesterday a big decision that will shift political power in the U.S. Senate. A slightly pared-down version of President Bush's tax-cut plan cleared Congress yesterday. Two days earlier Senator James Jeffords of Vermont left the Republican Party to become an independent, and that shifted control of the Senate to Democrats.
More now on what lies ahead as a result of these major political developments from CNN White House correspondent Major Garrett.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, thank you all very much for joining me here.
MAJOR GARRETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Bush won the tax fight, but now faces divided government. Even so, there will be no change in the president's agenda.
ANDREW CARD, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: He campaigned on a series of issues that are very important, and he has an obligation to the people in America to follow through on the commitments he made during the campaign.
GARRETT: Despite the defection of Vermont Republican Jim Jeffords, and the democratic takeover of the Senate, senior White House aides say Mr. Bush will press ahead with these issues: education reform, defense build-up, free trade and a national energy policy.
Senate Democrats see it differently.
SEN. TOM DASCHLE (D-SD), MINORITY LEADER: We've had a lot of good battles we think my may be able to win on education, on a patients bill of right, on minimum wage, prescription drug benefits.
GARRETT: The only issue on both lists: education.
The president should have a bipartisan bill next month, but top White House advisers say Democrats like Ted Kennedy, soon to be chairman of the Education Committee, could drive the price tag much higher.
Republicans are gloomy about other White House priorities. SEN. DON NICKLES (R), OKLAHOMA: It's going to be a little more difficult now because Democrats will be setting the agenda.
GARRETT: The Jeffords' defection also leaves this question: Will other senators switch?
Democratic leadership sources confirm talks with Arizona's John McCain and Rhode Island's Lincoln Chafee about leaving the GOP. Also targeted: Maine's Susan Collins and Olympia Snow.
Right now it's just talk, but Republicans are nervous.
SEN. KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON (R), TEXAS: I think we all need to make sure that everyone who wants to be a Republican is welcome in our party. I think it's very important.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GARRETT: Although it's a long shot, Republicans will try to woo Georgia Democrat Zell Miller, Montana Democrat Max Baucus and Nebraska Democrat Ben Nelson.
Major Garrett, CNN, the White House.
FRAZIER: We're going to spend some more time on this change in the balance of power, now, with Roger Simon, who is chief political correspondent for "U.S. News and World Report."
Mr. Simon, welcome; thanks for joining us tonight.
Sounds like we had -- Mr. Simon, are you with us?
ROGER SIMON, "U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT": I am.
FRAZIER: Oh, OK, good; I got a little nervous there.
You heard that there's an awful lot of jockeying going on; and how much of that would matter outside the beltway?
SIMON: I think very little. I think the Jeffords switch was a great political blunder. it has the potential of great significance, but most people outside this town don't care; and they're probably right in the end.
We've seen recently a major tax cut bill pass because it got democratic votes. We've seen a major campaign finance reform bill pass the Senate against the wishes of the Senate leadership because it got bipartisan support.
So the players haven't changed. If you have the right piece of legislation, you're still going to get it through the Senate.
FRAZIER: Did you think that the president was surprised by the change by Senator Jeffords?
SIMON: I think he was surprised. I think he shouldn't have been surprised. I think White House had plenty of advance notice, and I think his political operatives ill-served him.
George Bush's nickname for Karl Rove, his chief political adviser, is the boy genius. Karl is 50, so we know he's not a boy, and now there appears to be some evidence that he might not be a genius either.
FRAZIER: You had dinner this week with Senator McCain. Interesting, now, how significant he will become, since he is a moderate and a maverick Republican. If this, in fact, as Senator Hutchison said, there is going to be a party that will welcome all, it's going to have to welcome him.
SIMON: And he made some very tough comments right after the Jeffords' defection -- right after he switched parties. And he basically blasted both the White House and Republican leadership for not treating the moderates in a fair and decent fashion. And the White House is very, very worried about John McCain, not just in the short term, but in the long term, in 2004.
Two things happened right after Jeffords -- it became clear Jeffords was going to switch: George Bush picked up the phone and, for the first time called John McCain up and invited him to dinner at the White House; and secondly, the McCain-Feingold bill, which will now be called the Feingold-McCain bill because of the switch in parties, had been held captive in the Senate. Even though the Senate passed it, Trent Lott would not send it over to the House. The day before the Jeffords switch was announced, Trent Lott sent it over to the House.
They're trying to be very nice to John McCain these days.
FRAZIER: Indeed; but a phone call and dinner at the White House -- would that be enough to make up for the fact that his own legislation was bottled up -- and it wasn't just a personal snub. The things he cares about were prevented from reaching the floor of the Congress.
SIMON: That's right. And I don't think John McCain is going to be bought off by a dinner by anyone.
And I think Jeffords saw what happened to McCain and took his lessons there. The lesson I think Jeffords took was that if his name was on a piece of legislation, the White House was going to oppose it, which is something that John McCain has found out. And John McCain tries to get around the problem by linking his legislation to democratic sponsors.
His bill on the patients bill of rights is cosponsored by Ted Kennedy; his bill on closing the gun control -- gun show loophole is cosponsored by Senator Lieberman. And he has learned that you can get around the White House if you can get bipartisan support.
FRAZIER: Final question: From where you sit, does it look like there are a lot of these moderate Republicans, who have been disaffected by the sort of conservative nature of the party?
SIMON: Oh, I think so. I think the moderate wing of the Republican Party, such that it is, located in the Northeast, has seen a slow and steady takeover of the party by Southern conservatives. And they have a real difficulty in following their national party line and serving their president and serving their voters back home, who are not in step with a national conservative agenda.
FRAZIER: It will be an interesting time ahead. Thank you for those insights as it begins, Roger Simon from "U.S. News and World Report."
SIMON: Thank you.
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