A divided GOP heads to year's end with unmet goals
Drill plan, Patriot Act met with opposition
WASHINGTON -- After starting the year full of grand promise, the expanded Republican majority in Congress is stumbling to the finish, with party leaders facing unexpected difficulty this week winning support for a raft of unfinished priorities, and major bills involving taxes, healthcare, and the war on terrorism appearing likely to get bumped into 2006.
GOP leaders threatened yesterday to keep Congress in Washington for a rare weekend session to get critical work done, and aides expressed hope that members' desires to head home for the holidays will push along compromises.
But the list of unfinished legislation underscores the deep divisions among Republicans that have stymied the party's broad goals for the year. For example, the proposal to drill for oil in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge -- the Bush administration's top energy priority -- is in danger of being shelved, with moderate Republicans who question its effect on the environment vowing to sink the entire budget if it is in the final bill.
At the same time, a bipartisan group of senators, mindful of an erosion of civil liberties, say they will filibuster a bill to extend the Patriot Act, with a showdown likely tomorrow that will pit Republicans against one another. Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, is locked in a standoff with the White House over a measure he added to a different bill that would prevent the administration from torturing prisoners.
Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers have abandoned hope of passing a one-year change to the Alternative Minimum Tax before the year's end, meaning millions of middle-income taxpayers will see a major tax hike next year if the issue is not addressed in early 2006. Republicans want to reaffirm their commitment to cutting taxes in advance of the 2006 congressional elections. In addition, disagreements between the House and Senate over tax cuts on dividends and capital gains and spending reductions on programs such as food stamps and Medicaid appear likely to leave the budget unfinished until at least February-- four months into the fiscal year.
''We're insane in this place sometimes," said Representative C.L. ''Butch" Otter, Republican of Idaho. ''We go right down to the wire, and we push back everything to deal with all at once."
Republican leaders have signaled diminished hope of finishing tax cuts and a budget-savings bill before the end of the year. Drilling in Alaska is the biggest sticking point in the budget; moderates have promised to torpedo the budget if ANWR drilling is included, and some conservatives said they will vote no if the proposal is dropped. GOP leaders have discussed putting ANWR on another bill -- perhaps one providing help to Hurricane Katrina victims -- but that raises problems for other bills. Given the divisions, House leaders did not seem to be in a rush to finish the budget before the holidays, said Representative Michael N. Castle, Republican of Delaware. ''I guess they can wait until they do a new budget next year," Castle said with a shrug.
Indeed, House and Senate leaders have downplayed expectations for the closing days of the 2005 congressional session. Acting House majority leader Roy Blunt told reporters Tuesday that lawmakers would get as much done as possible before Christmas, but any unfinished business can be picked up in the new year. ''The truth is, this is neither the end of the Congress nor the end of the world," said Blunt, Republican of Missouri.
Ron Bonjean, a spokesman for House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, said yesterday that leaders still hope for compromises that will allow the most significant bills to pass in the coming days. Bonjean said the House is finishing the year with a flourish -- passing the Patriot Act extension yesterday, voting for beefed-up border enforcement today, and looking to approve tax cuts and spending restraints by the end of the week.
''Republicans are committed to reducing spending and enforcing our border security," Bonjean said. ''We're making great strides toward getting it done, and our goal is to complete these actions before we leave town."
Republican leaders have long hoped to finish the year with legislative victories that would energize the party's base and give them momentum as they move into 2006, when all House members and one-third of senators are up for reelection. Many rank-and-file Republican House members are clamoring for final votes on budget matters this year, to show the party's commitment to fiscal discipline.
''To go home without completing our work would be a mistake," said Representative Paul Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican.
Senate leaders, however, are digging in on the Patriot Act, with Senate majority leader Bill Frist rejecting calls yesterday to extend the law for only one year. At least four conservative Republicans are prepared to join Democrats in a filibuster tomorrow to stop the bill from going forward without changes.
The late flurry of votes in Congress this year has opened Republicans to charges of aimless leadership. ''It's obvious that the Congress is not being run," said Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa. ''There's no guidance. There's no direction. There's no one running this place." 