ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, September 29, 1996 TAG: 9609300072
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-7 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
TYPE: ANALYSIS
SOURCE: ALAN FRAM ASSOCIATED PRESS
AT TIMES BRUTALLY PARTISAN, the first GOP-controlled Congress in 40 years eventually bowed to pragmatism.
An exhausting 21 months after sprinting through a raucous first hundred days, the Republican-led 104th Congress is ready to limp home, its proud conservatism muted by political pragmatism and its record mixing bitter setbacks with bold achievements.
From opening day on Jan. 4, 1995 - when the House met until 2:24 a.m. and cast 15 roll-call votes - the first GOP-controlled Congress in four decades was brutally partisan. Members sometimes seemed a step from brawling as Republicans tried to impose their self-proclaimed ``revolution'' of cutting taxes and shrinking the government on recalcitrant Democrats and on President Clinton, who evolved from confused foil into formidable foe.
In 1995 alone, the House saw a tie-pulling incident, a shoving match and repeated name-calling contests. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., and House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, D-Mo., admit they have barely spoken for months.
``It's a continuation of a trend going on for about 20 years,'' said Eric Uslaner, a University of Maryland political scientist whose book ``The Decline of Comity'' traces congressional civility. ``But things have gotten a whole lot worse in the 104th Congress.''
It all reflects the stakes, pressures and egos of the GOP drive to win an agenda highlighted by the House Republicans' ``Contract With America'' 1994 campaign manifesto. The House used its first 100 days - and numerous late nights - to stage promised votes on tax cuts, regulatory changes and other ``Contract'' items: the period's confrontational tone never abated.
The tension escalated late in 1995, when GOP efforts to force Clinton to swallow Republican budget-balancing priorities helped prompt two federal shutdowns lasting a record 27 days.
This election year saw Republicans moderate their agenda to soften their image for voters, restoring money for many educational, environmental and other popular programs they tried cutting a year ago. But the rancorous partisan atmosphere persisted.
As usual, legislators saved major work until the end. Eager to adjourn for five weeks of pre-Election Day campaigning, the House was prepared Saturday to approve legislation tightening immigration laws and financing federal agencies for the coming fiscal year. The Senate will probably vote Monday and adjourn.
This was merely the final curtain for two eventful years. Before it ended, the House's 73 GOP freshmen had become a force by their number and their sheer conservatism, and Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, R-Kan., had departed to run for president, replaced by Trent Lott, R-Miss.
That's not the view of Democrats. They say the GOP failed to win its top budget priorities and was guided by extremism.
``It's a Congress that will be remembered for a government shutdown, not for what they got done,'' Gephardt said.
Good or bad, it was a busy Congress.
In unrelenting trench warfare with Clinton, Republicans were never able to get their ``crown jewel'' into law - a broad reduction in taxes for millions of families, businesses and investors.
Fissures between the House and more moderate Senate helped defeat other top priorities, including a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget and another slapping term limits on lawmakers.
Even so, the GOP compiled a list of achievements that analysts call impressive. Among them:
* Reshaping the 60-year-old welfare program, telecommunications law and farm supports.
* Giving the president the line-item veto, which takes effect next year.
* Cutting billions from domestic spending and erasing 270 mostly minor programs.
* Raising the minimum wage and making it easier for many Americans to get health insurance, Democratic priorities that Republicans embraced in an effort to produce achievements they could show voters.
* Applying worker-safety and other laws to Congress itself, while reducing staff sizes and services for members.
* Forcing Democrats to adopt longtime GOP economic principles that spending should be limited and the budget balanced, epitomized by Clinton's concession in January's State of the Union speech: ``The era of big government is over.''
LENGTH: Medium: 84 linesby CNB