The 108th Congress, in which Republicans control both chambers, was convened on January 7, 2003. After the traditional swearing in and opening ceremonies, the Republicans flexed their legislative muscle and passed an unemployment benefits package that the president wanted on his desk by the end of the week—in short order, he got it. In the Senate, under the tutelage of Sen. Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.), the Senate’s acknowledged guardian of tradition, precedent, and procedure, Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), delivered his maiden floor speech as the new majority leader and promised to work with the Democrats. In the House, with considerable hoopla, Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) was elected to his third term as speaker and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was installed as minority leader.
With the Republicans in firm control, a few of the House rules were amended. The changes included abolition of the rule that was once insisted on by Republicans that placed an eight-year limit on the term an individual could serve as Speaker of the House. On a strict party-line vote (221 to 203), ethics rules were also softened. Charities can now pay for travel of lawmakers to golf resorts and other local events, provided the net proceeds of a charitable event attended by the legislator go to the charity. The House also adopted a so-called “pizza rule,” a new rule that allows lobbyists to cater meals to offices of members.
The next day, House Republicans and Democrats doled out plum committee assignments. California representatives, in particular, fared well in the House. Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Calif.), who in 1998 headed a select committee that probed into whether China stole U.S. nuclear and military technology, was tapped to head the newly created House Select Committee on Homeland Security. Cox will be an important player in the ongoing effort to establish a history office in the new Homeland Security Department.
Rep. Richard W. Pombo (R-Calif.) beat back efforts by several more senior committee members to head the House Resources Committee. Pombo succeeds Rep. James V. Hansen (R-Utah), who retired. Within the jurisdiction of the Resources Committee is virtually all legislation pertaining to the National Park Service (NPS) and historic preservation. Pombo is renowned as an ardent proponent of property rights and multiple use of federal lands. In the 107th Congress he spearheaded an effort to amend the “National Heritage Areas Policy Act of 2001” (H.R. 2388) to require the NPS to secure written consent from all landowners within the boundary of a proposed National Heritage Area and identify on a map all landowners who wished to “opt out” of the designation. Pombo’s views on historic preservation are less controversial. In his statement accepting the coveted position Pombo promised to “work with all my colleagues to enact legislation of which we can all be proud.” Perhaps anticipating battles in the future with his Democratic colleagues on the committee, he added. “There are too many areas of agreement for us to get bogged down in partisan battles.”
Congress has a full agenda in the weeks ahead—an economic stimulus package proposed by the president, Medicare and prescription drug benefit reform, a proposal to permit drilling in the Arctic National Refuge, and (in the Senate) judicial nominations. Of particular concern to the historical and archival communities is seeing that the 11 outstanding appropriations bills left over from the 107th Congress are enacted quickly.
On January 9 the Senate approved a measure to keep the federal agencies operating through the end of January, thus giving Congress time to work through a looming spending impasse. House Republicans and the White House want to see $9 billion in spending reductions in the appropriation bills currently pending before Congress. Word on the Hill is that the House leadership is calling for an $800 million cut from the fiscal 2003 interior appropriation, a similar cuts are being advanced for other domestic agencies.
The proposed interior department cut raises concerns about the fiscal 2003 provision for the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Park Service, and other agencies funded out of the Interior bill. It is unclear how fast Congress will act on the outstanding bills—Republicans hope that agreement can be reached by January 28 when the president delivers his State of the Union address. Federal agencies have been strapped for cash for months now and the quicker Congress completes its work on the fiscal 2003 budget, the more time it will have for consideration of what promises to be even more controversial—the fiscal 2004 appropriations proposals.
