Washington – On a day that even her Republican colleagues called welcome and overdue, the House of Representatives elected Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California as the first female speaker Thursday on the opening day of the new Democratic Congress.
Claiming the speaker’s gavel after 12 years of Republican rule, Pelosi promised to work “in the spirit of partnership, not partisanship.” But she quickly challenged President Bush to come up with “a new plan for Iraq” that would allow the U.S. to “responsibly redeploy our troops.”
Her comments were echoed by Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., the new Senate majority leader, who decried “this intractable war.”
Pelosi’s Democrats then pushed the first of a series of ethics and budget rules through the House over the complaints of Republican leaders, who griped that they had not been adequately consulted or given an opportunity to offer amendments.
When fully enacted, the new rules will ban gifts from lobbyists, tighten congressional travel requirements and curb budget deficits by enacting spending restrictions and limits on earmarked appropriations.
They are part of an aggressive agenda for the Democrats’ first 100 hours in charge that includes measures to raise the minimum wage, cut student-loan interest rates and pass the remaining recommendations of the 9/11 commission.
The Democrats have made a public commitment to respect the rights of the House minority, but “the resolution before us bears very little resemblance to their rhetoric,” said Rep. David Dreier of California, the ranking Republican on the rules committee. Instead of true bipartisanship, he said, “we have … a wink and a nod.”
In the Senate, where Democrats claimed power by a single vote, the prospects for real cooperation also were mixed. Republicans joined Democrats at a bipartisan caucus in the historic haunts of the Old Senate Chamber before convening in their current lair, and the new GOP leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, urged colleagues “to be daring” and to join together to reform immigration and bolster Social Security.
But because of the filibuster rule, which requires 60 votes in the 100- member Senate to cut off debate on most legislation, McConnell’s troops are in a much stronger position than their House counterparts and can insist on concessions.
Nor can the Democrats overlook the White House. Even in his weakened political state, if Bush opposes legislation, votes of two-thirds of both houses are needed to override his veto.
When it comes to tax, economic and energy policy, said McConnell, “we cannot go back on the gains we made” under Republican stewardship.
“I’m eager to work with my colleagues to find bold solutions to big problems,” said McConnell. “Yet, on some things, I will not yield.”
So it went, on both sides of the Capitol, as Democrats and Republicans, mindful of the public’s impatience with their bickering, sought to find a way, as several put it, “to disagree without being disagreeable.”
On one matter only was there uniform agreement: Pelosi’s election rightly has shattered what she and others called a “marble ceiling” that kept women from the top congressional leadership.
Before handing the gavel to Pelosi, the new House Republican leader, Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, noted how both parties “have always selected a man for the responsibility and honor of serving as speaker of the House. Always, that is, until today.”
“My fellow Americans,” Boehner said, “whether you’re a Republican, a Democrat or an independent, today is a cause for celebration.”
Celebrate the Democrats did. Families are allowed on the House floor on opening day, and Pelosi spent most of the long roll call accepting the congratulations of well-wishers with one or more of her five grandchildren squirming or napping in her lap.
“It’s an historic moment for the women of America, … a moment for which we have waited over 200 years,” Pelosi said.
Staff writer Anne C. Mulkern contributed to this report.
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