Emboldened conservative Republicans, who gained seats in both houses of Congress, may try to assert their power more, even if that means going against the agenda of President Bush, USA Today reports.
"This White House will have a more difficult time convincing conservative members to vote for more government," says Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., the new chairman of the conservative House Republican Study Committee. That could pose a problem for Bush, who wants to overhaul Social Security, the tax code and the legal liability system. Conservatives support those goals but may try to swap votes for other concessions.
Pence's group claims about 100 members, compared with 40 in the late 1990s. Many were dismayed when the federal budget surplus turned into a $422 billion deficit in Bush's first term, but they stood by him. No more. Now, "Congress needs to assert itself more," says Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn.
Some of the points of contention are over Bush's immigration plan, which many conservatives believe is an amnesty plan, as well as domestic spending cuts, Bush's education law, campaign finance reform, and the Medicare (which btw, is in a hell of a lot more trouble than Social Security is, again questioning the rush for reform) prescription drug benefit.
Personally, I think if Bush thinks he's gonna be running the show another four years he's got a big surprise ahead. The party is in control now, they will be calling the shots. They will decide whether Bush's SS and tax reform proposals live or die. Bush is there to fix Iraq and clear the way for the next candidate, and it won't be too long before the nominees start jockeying for the spot. Manuevers are already being made. And this is really good news for the Democrats. The farther right the Republicans try to take the country, especially when it goes against even what President Bush wants, the easier it will be for Democrats to attack the right-wing in the mid-terms and in the 2008 presidential race. Let's just hope we can live with the results in the meantime.
Monday, December 20, 2004
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I supposed the lame-duckedness of the 2nd term will catch even this president. Congressional Republicans made a great show of deferring to Bush in the midst of the campaign, but they're not up there to roll over to any president. In a way I support this; Congress needs to claim more power back from the presidency, and if it means squabbling between Republicans the better.
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