Divided they stand

By Thomas Gorguissian
When George W Bush's election victory was officially declared and confirmed by Congress last Saturday, the Black Caucus voiced their various protests over what they view as serious and extensive vote-counting irregularities in the State of Florida, and then swiftly exited the chamber. During the session, presided over by defeated Democratic candidate Al Gore, the turmoil and conflict of the previous weeks and months was reflected in the tense atmosphere. There is no doubt that the final, official acceptance of George W Bush as victor, although in a meeting for the most part simply ceremonial, marked a watershed in the history of the United States.
The Senate is split 50-50 between Democrats and Republicans, and the House is almost as neatly divided. However, after 20 January the Senate Republicans will have the opportunity to break the tie when Vice President Dick Cheney makes his casting and therefore decisive vote. This is the first occasion in the chamber's history that the two parties have been evenly matched without the presence of a third party or independent senators.
The incoming president and the Republican leadership immediately have to face the challenge of deciding which policies to approve and then try to implement. To do so, they will have to overcome a great many ideological differences, meaning each group will have to work hard at gaining sufficient support and establishing common ground within their rival's camp. The coming hearings to approve nominated Cabinet members will give a taste of the political season to come.
Initial reports suggest that lawmakers of both parties implied there is little chance that any of President-elect Bush's Cabinet choices will be blocked. However, last week there were repeated attacks on Bush's choices of John Ashcroft for Attorney General and Linda Chavez for the post of Secretary of Labour.
Both their hearings will be tough.
Organised labour, coordinating efforts with various civil rights, Hispanic and women's groups, have in effect declared war on Chavez.
"I think our chances of defeating Linda Chavez are better than our chances of defeating anyone else," remarked one of the labour leaders.
The Senate, in an attempt to sail as smoothly as possible, announced a "framework for bipartisanship" last Friday. The pact, according to press reports, was negotiated under great strain over the past month by Republican leader Trent Lott and Democratic leader Thomas A Daschle. It gives both parties an equal share in most aspects of the Senate's operations and enhances the Democrats' ability to challenge President-elect Bush and his legislative programme.
This pact will be tried and tested during the coming weeks. It is, "if not miraculous, at the very least historic," Daschle commented. As Thomas Mann of the Brookings Institution remarked, it's no guarantee of bipartisanship; but the absence of an agreement would surely have initiated some early bloodletting in the Senate. In this sense, it's important more for what it avoided than for what it is likely to achieve.
There is no doubt that, besides the expected partisan confrontations, Washington will witness fights among Republicans themselves about which issues to prioritise. And, as is always the case on Capitol Hill, there will be very loud voices raised.
Newly elected Senator Hillary Clinton was the star in the showy opening of Congress. The ceremony involving her taking the oath attracted scores of reporters and onlookers. President Clinton was there, too, with their daughter Chelsea. Clinton was wearing a "Hillary" campaign button on his lapel and could barely contain his excitement. Later, he told reporters that he was "ecstatic."
A record number of women, 13 in total, are among the 107th Senate's one hundred members, while the House of Representatives now has 59 female members. Hillary Clinton's presence has drawn attention to these female groups.
"Well, she certainly is going to get extra attention because she is, after all, the first lady, the first one ever to be in the Senate," said Trent Lott, the Republican leader of the Senate, who suggested only a few months ago that he would "put Mrs Clinton in her place" once she was in Congress, and more recently (and more cryptically) invoked the possibility of her being struck by lightning.
"But," Lott now concedes, "under the rules of the Senate, we are all equal."
Hillary took her chair in the Senate, and her place in history, while Washington (and especially the "Clinton haters") were gossiping about her reported book deal, worth some $8 million, and her purchase of a $2.8 million Washington mansion. Both of these events have raised speculation about the future of the Clinton family as a unit, and Hillary's independent role in politics.
The question of what happened in Florida remains a hot issue, and is unlikely to go away in the near future. Well-known pollster John Zogby noted that, "George W Bush enters the presidency with substantial percentages of key constituencies -- African Americans, Hispanics and Democrats -- who claim that he has no legitimacy. That's the main obstacle he must try to overcome."
In order to govern successfully, observers agree that he has to move closer to the centre ground.
"That does not mean that he appoints a Colin Powell and a Condoleezza Rice, or a Mel Martinez, and says, 'I'm diverse, just like America,'". Zogby explains. "It means he's got to look at the issues and build some bridges in order to get at least some of those groups off of his back. They could make it very difficult for him. Also, he has to attract enough voters from the centre so that he can build a governing majority."
Related stories:
The Republican takeover 4 - 10 January 2001
Who is the most Zionist of all? 9 -15 November 2000
© Copyright Al-Ahram Weekly. All rights reserved
Send a letter to the Editor