President Obama’s promise to purge Washington of partisanship is giving way to a more familiar reality. To push his stimulus proposal, he has been forced to cobble together support from just a few Republican moderates in Congress and the handful of governors and mayors.
So far the exclusive club of congressional Republicans willing to work with Obama is limited to just two other members, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine and Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania.
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“[Obama is] running up against a long and nasty history of partisanship that isn’t going to change overnight,” said Ross Baker, a professor of political science at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J.
Not that Obama, 47, hasn’t tried. Since taking office Jan. 20, he has sought to woo congressional Republicans with meetings, phone calls and even cocktails to gain support for the stimulus package. It passed the House last month without a single Republican vote, and was approved by the Senate this week with just three: Maine’s Olympia Snowe, Collins and Specter.
That tactic of relying almost exclusively on Democrats may not work for other elements of Obama’s agenda. He will need broader Republican support for his plans to overhaul energy and health care policy as well as his financial bailout measure, which will involve sacrifice as well as dole out largesse.
That support so far has been scant. Last month, Snowe, Collins and Specter were among the nine Republicans who voted in favor of expanding a federal children’s health care program; they also were among five of their party members who backed Democrat-drafted legislation designed to make it easier for victims of pay discrimination to win lawsuits.
Asked at a news conference this week whether he underestimated his ability to attract Republican support, Obama said his courting of those lawmakers, including a visit to the Capitol to meet with them, wasn’t intended to yield immediate results.
“They were designed to try to build up some trust over time,” Obama said. “As I continue to make these overtures, over time, hopefully that will be reciprocated.”
The outreach included an invitation to Specter to watch his home-state Pittsburgh Steelers play in the Super Bowl.
Specter, 79, said he has been impressed by Obama’s overtures. The Pennsylvania senator met privately with the president Feb. 3, and was asked to the White House for both the Super Bowl and the personal meeting within just a few days.
“Two meetings in four days is pretty extensive,” Specter said.
Specter, the top-ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, is in a position to help Obama as he tries to move judicial nominations through the chamber. He also will be a pivotal player in any efforts to recast policies on warrantless surveillance of suspected terrorists.
