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Hastert prepares to assume House speakershipBy Bob Franken/CNN
January 4, 1999 WASHINGTON (January 4) -- As members of the 106th Congress convene in Washington this week, some are actually preparing for the day when Congress is no longer preoccupied with impeachment. "This Congress has to go to work," Rep. Dennis Hastert, the probable new speaker of the House, declared Monday.
As the man who bubbled up from the impeachment cauldron to replace the man who would have been speaker, Bob Livingston of Louisiana, after Livingston, in turn, replaced the man who stepped down as speaker, Newt Gingrich, Hastert was hard at work two days before his official anointment by the new House. He called key committee chairmen to be ready with a legislative agenda. "We have to start to produce good things that the American people want, the policies that address the needs of the American people," the Illinois Republican told reporters. "And that's our first and most important step in restoring America's faith in this U.S. House of Representatives." Hastert, who personifies the term "low key," still must lead the way in setting priorities. "He's not a rah-rah kind of guy. He's not a Newt Gingrich. He's not a Bob Livingston," says GOP Conference Chairman J.C. Watts of Oklahoma. "I think he will be who he is, and that's someone who will manage effectively and methodically the House of Representatives over the next two years." The 105th Congress left a lot of unfinished business for the 106th. On Social Security reform, the White House is making sounds like a deal may be possible. The same could be true for beefing up the defense budget. As a Gingrich lieutenant, Hastert loved increased defense spending. "He's really a good ol' boy," says conservative columnist Arianna Huffington. "Responsible, just to mention one thing, for the $250,000 in the defense budget that went into studying caffeinated gum as a way to keep troops alert." These days the defense deliberations are about a lot more than $250,000. The Clinton Administration plans to propose a $100 billion increase over the next six years. Republicans want a lot more. Hastert and his fellow Republicans will also be juggling health maintenance organization reform, education proposals, campaign finance reform, fast-track trade policies and, of course, the perennial Republican agenda item -- tax cuts. "We believe our top priority going into this session of Congress, for families, should be to eliminate the marriage tax penalty," says Rep. Jerry Weller (R-Illinois). The issues are the same from the 105th to the 106th Congress, but the style will be markedly different. "I will be me," Hastert said. "And I'm not going to try to emulate ... Newt or anybody else. I think everybody's made their contribution. But one of the things that I want to do is to open the possibilities for this House to work together and we need to work together ... on a bipartisan basis." Up until now, given his low profile, Hastert has been better known as "Dennis who?" Soon it will be "Dennis what?" -- as in "what" Speaker Hastert and his fellow Republican who control the Congress actually accomplish, which could well determine whether they continue that control in the next Congress. MORE STORIES:Monday January 4, 1999
• Senators remain divided over trial plans • Hastert prepares to assume House speakership • Democratic donor to plead guilty to illegal contributions • Elizabeth Dole resigns Red Cross post, may test presidential waters • Clinton proposes tax credit for long-term care of elderly, disabled • Sen. Smith to announce presidential bid • First lady's mom says Hillary doesn't discuss her marriage • Q & A: An impeachment primer • U.S. Mint distributes new quarters • Ventura becomes Minnesota's governor • Ashcroft may not get in 2000 race | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
