After running on a pledge to work with Republicans, President Obama is finding some of the biggest challenges to his ambitious agenda coming from his own party.
The leaders of the GOP, spoiling for a fight after heavy losses in the last election, are of limited menace to Obama with their diminished numbers and a lack of public support for their policies.
But Democrats, suffused with the power of majority, are already causing problems for the new administration. And Obama’s ability to get his party under control could determine the fate of his agenda.
Urging Washington’s famously nettlesome Democrats into a new spirit of bipartisanship is no small job. After Republicans complained they were left out of drafting the stimulus bill making its way through Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi remarked, “Yes, we wrote the bill. Yes, we won the election.”
Democrats in Congress may not respond well to greater discipline. The party is notoriously factionalized on the Hill, and has historically lacked the unity that helped Republicans muscle their agenda through when they were in the majority.
While many Democrats say they support Obama and want him to succeed, some already are opposing him on elements of his $850 billion economic stimulus plan, locking Republicans out of the process, and balking at one of Obama’s nominees.
“It’s happened a lot so far,” Republican National Committee spokesman Alex Conant said of Democrats getting out of line. “On the stimulus for example, I think everyone is in agreement that we have to do something to strengthen the economy and create jobs, but it’s not clear that what President Obama has outlined does enough to create jobs, and you’ve seen both parties raise that issue.”
The White House is looking to validate Obama’s campaign pledge of unity with a strong, bipartisan vote for his economic stimulus package.
“The American people deserve two political parties that can work together to address [their] most urgent and important needs,” said White House press secretary Robert Gibbs. “And that’s the definition by which we’ll measure success.”
But first Obama must contend with balky Democrats who oppose the tax cuts and other elements of his proposal, and spend time soothing the feelings of Republicans complaining they are being excluded from the process by Democrats.
Senate Democrats last week held up Obama’s nomination of William J. Lynn to be deputy defense secretary, over questions about his past work as a lobbyist for Raytheon Co.
Nan Aron, president of the Alliance for Justice and a longtime fixture on Capitol Hill, said Obama’s experience in the Senate will be useful in navigating his own party’s intrafeuding.
“This president already has those relationships,” Aron said. “He is very open about stating his justifications for voting for or against something. There are going to be disagreements — there always are.”
The new administration’s bumpy ride with its own party now could set a tone for future outings, as the heady unity of the inauguration fades and Democratic groups start pushing their own interests.
“It’s very obvious President Obama represents the heart and soul of this country at the moment and people love him,” said Rep. Lynn Woolsey, a California Democrat and leader in the Progressive Caucus. “But there will be places where we disagree.”
Progressive Democrats in Congress already are opposing Obama’s plans to send more troops and resources to Afghanistan, and will fight him on efforts to spend any more money on the war in Iraq.
Other potential trouble spots for Obama in Congress include the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition of Democrats, and the Congressional Black Caucus, long on the sidelines during the Bush administration.
Democratic leaders in Congress already have Obama on notice. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada stressed he will maintain independent authority and not be a rubber stamp for the new administration.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California has an uneasy relationship with White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, a former lawmaker who coveted her leadership spot.
Still, Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., said to expect disagreements, but that overall congressional Democrats will not stand in Obama’s way.
“All the Democrats want him to succeed,” McDermott said. “And we are going to find a way to work with him. For those people who want him to fail, they will begin to undercut him. There aren’t going to be any Democrats doing that.”
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President Obama falls short by nearly $200 million. They also want troops out of Iraq in a year, not the 16 months dictated by Obama, and they are not too keen on moving thousands more troops into Afghanistan. In addition, the progressives are seeking a repeal of the Bush administration’s federal wiretapping law, which Obama voted for last summer. While the progressives may not immediately challenge Obama on any of these issues, they lurk on the horizon as a potential threat to Obama’s agenda once the honeymoon wanes. How big a threat are they? With more than 70 members, the progressive caucus makes up a third of all House Democrats and hold the gavels on half of the 20 committees.
Barbara Lee, D-Calif.
As chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Lee is the voice of one of the most outspoken liberal factions in Congress. The 41 House members and one senator of the caucus may still be celebrating the presidency of former member Barack Obama, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be at odds with some of the more centrist proposals of his administration. The group that has been the voice for African Americans in Washington will also have to cope with taking a back seat to the first African American president. Obama was never really active in the group, and he is unlikely to fully champion its agenda. Lee, who is also a leader in the Progressive Caucus, along with House majority whip and longtime member James Clyburn, will be among the voices that Obama cannot afford to ignore. If he does, the two will make him pay closer attention.
Allen Boyd, D-Fla.
At the other end of the political spectrum within the House Democratic Caucus are the Blue Dogs, a group of fiscally conservative lawmakers who want to balance the budget, strengthen national security, and bring their party to the center. Boyd, a farmer and Vietnam veteran who is co-chairman of the group, could become a thorn in Obama’s side on any of the president’s spending proposals. If the Blue Dogs decide to team up with Republicans to defeat budget or defense legislation, it could be big trouble for the White House. The group, which was only 30 strong a few years ago, now boasts 51 members, many of them freshmen or sophomores from vulnerable swing districts where liberal politics don’t play well. The Blue Dogs already have the ear of moderate House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, of Maryland, and if Obama is smart, he will listen up, too.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
Majority Leader Harry Reid
It may seem like smooth sailing ahead for Obama since both the House and Senate are comfortably dominated by Democrats, but he is all but guaranteed to face roadblocks from legislative leaders determined to maintain their own independence and authority in their co-equal branch of government. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., have already sent messages via the media that they don’t plan to simply follow Obama’s marching orders. As if to drive home that point, Reid last week banned Vice President Joseph Biden Jr. (who is also Senate president) from attending the weekly Democratic caucus meetings. Pelosi has cautioned her former lieutenant, Rahm Emanuel — now Obama’s chief of staff — against meddling in legislative affairs.
