A kinder, gentler, DeLay? Say it isn't so, Tom!
____________________________________
COVER STORY
The Evolution Of Tom DeLay
By Richard E. Cohen, National Journal
© National Journal Group Inc.
Friday, Nov. 14, 2003
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, and Rep. Jim Greenwood, R-Pa., are poles apart when it comes to federal policy on abortion. The moderate Greenwood is one of the few House Republicans who support abortion rights, a stance that DeLay and fellow conservatives traditionally haven't tolerated. So it may seem surprising that Greenwood sings DeLay's praises for his handling of this year's debate on the "partial-birth" abortion bill.
When the House had debated similar legislation in previous years, Republican leaders denied Greenwood and his allies the opportunity to offer an amendment on the floor permitting legal exceptions to an outright ban on the controversial abortion procedure. Early this year, Greenwood and moderate Rep. Nancy Johnson, R-Conn., took their plea to DeLay and reminded him of their party loyalty as senior members who have worked on other key issues. Recognizing that the request was vital to a small Republican cadre, DeLay acquiesced. He single-handedly overrode objections from other GOP conservatives and allowed House debate on the amendment.
"In rising through the leadership, Tom DeLay has recognized that he needs to keep the entire [House Republican] Conference on board," Greenwood said in an interview. "He has figured out how to be an outspoken leader of conservatives, and still represent all Republicans. I respect that."
True, DeLay's decision was made easier because he was confident -- and correct -- that the House would defeat the amendment, sponsored by Greenwood and House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md. But the key point is that even though other Republicans had routinely rejected the moderates' request, DeLay took it seriously. "He respects that I have had to make some tough votes [on other bills], and that I expect to be treated as a member of the team," Greenwood added.
Not long ago, DeLay, too, would probably have dismissed Greenwood's request. During eight years as House majority whip, from 1995 through 2002, DeLay made himself famous as a snarling, highly partisan enforcer, with little stomach for those who didn't share his conservative fervor.
But now that DeLay has served as House majority leader for the past year, it is apparent that he has undergone something of an evolution. He has polished his public image and taken pains to portray himself as a disciplined, measured leader who is responsive to all types of House Republicans as he sets the agenda, hones strategy, and brokers deals.
"He has grown and reached out to members," said Rep. Jennifer Dunn, R-Wash. Likewise, Rep. Ray LaHood, R-Ill., said that in DeLay's new role, "Tom's strongest point has been his ability to reach out to members, one-on-one." In his first year as House majority leader, Tom DeLay has gone from a snarling enforcer to a measured strategist. But The Hammer hasn't gone soft. He's positioning himself for the speakership.
Of course, for DeLay, "reaching out" used to mean cracking his whip -- using any means necessary to ensure that his party had sufficient votes to pass legislation on the House floor. But in the view of DeLay's chief of staff, Tim Berry, his boss's former whip duties helped to "increase his understanding of members' needs, and gave him credentials with conservatives, so that they take him at his word" now when he professes to protect their interests.
In a rare interview, DeLay acknowledged that he has changed to some degree since becoming majority leader. "I spend more time on planning, strategies, developing agendas, and making the trains run on time," he told National Journal in the November 6 interview. And DeLay said that because Republicans now control Congress and the White House, "I don't get up every day and put on my gloves to fight all day long. I get up every day to talk to this person and that person, and sooner or later, we'll work it out."
In the interview, DeLay made clear that he is keenly aware that Democrats are always ready to pounce on him. "I wear their attacks as a badge of honor," he said. "It's a concerted effort. They are trying to demonize me just like they did with Newt Gingrich." Yet, DeLay said, he has tried to minimize his lightning-rod status of late.
"The good thing that comes from [the Democratic attacks] is that I'm a lot more careful ... in what I say, how I approach things, the battles that I pick to fight," he said. "When I was a new member, I shot from the hip a lot.... But it doesn't slow me down in doing what I think is the right thing. I'm just as aggressive as I have always been."
To be sure, suggesting that DeLay has undergone an evolution doesn't in any way mean that "The Hammer" has gone soft. He is still highly effective, steely, and determined. And he is fully capable of employing hardball, partisan tactics, particularly behind the scenes, to accomplish his party's conservative goals. But at 56, DeLay shows more savvy and maturity than before. Some insiders believe it is all part of DeLay's carefully calculated effort to groom himself for the speakership.
While plenty of Democrats continue to lambaste DeLay as evil incarnate, a few offer a considerable dose of praise for his consistent ability to get the job done. In their new book, Buck Up, Suck Up, Democratic consultants James Carville and Paul Begala assert that Democrats must emulate DeLay's model of discipline and persistence if they hope to regain political success.
Carville and Begala personally inscribed a copy of the book for DeLay. "For Tom DeLay, whose reputation for hard work is well deserved," the authors wrote. They added parenthetically, "Fear not: We'll be back to bashing you soon enough!"
Similar praise came from liberal Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., who said that while he objects to DeLay's occasional partisan excesses, the two chat from time to time about House business. "We have mutual respect for each other's seriousness of purpose," Frank said.
Mellow the Leader
The post of House majority leader came open in December 2001, when then-Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas, announced he would retire after the 2002 elections. At the time, DeLay moved very quickly -- within days -- to privately shore up support among his Republican colleagues for his bid to succeed Armey, even though the actual election was almost a year away. Democrats surely were licking their chops at the prospect of "Majority Leader DeLay" replacing former House Speaker Newt Gingrich as their new national villain.
Democrats surely were licking their chops at the prospect of "Majority Leader DeLay" replacing former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., as their new national villain. But DeLay lay low during 2002. He deliberately avoided public comment on his plans and stayed behind the scenes, in remarkable contrast to some other high-profile congressional leadership contests of recent years. When House Republicans elected new leaders after last November's elections, DeLay faced no opposition and won the No. 2 job by acclamation.
Even then, it was apparent that DeLay was becoming more inclusive within the Republican Conference. Shortly after the elections, the moderate Johnson told National Journal: "I have confidence in Tom DeLay, because he listens to the moderates. When you're in the leadership, you cannot run your own agenda. You have to run an agenda that reflects the views of the caucus."
When DeLay assumed his new post in January, it was obvious that he had undergone a bit of a physical makeover as well. At his wife's encouragement, he had his dentist cap his two upper front teeth to fill the small gap between them. And he took Dunn's advice and visited her Capitol Hill hairstylist to switch from his dated, wet look to a more professional, styled cut. "I wanted him to look like a majority leader," Dunn said.
DeLay then began to step into the well-worn cowboy boots of his predecessor, Armey, who was known for his folksy Texas banter during his regular briefings with reporters. Prodded by his aides, DeLay has sought to warm up to reporters this year, often opening his own briefings with a self-effacing comment or an outstretched hand. "Did you miss me?" he once asked reporters after spending several days in Texas. More recently, he noted that the briefings no longer seemed to be standing-room-only and asked, "Am I getting boring?"
While DeLay has raised his profile as a party spokesman on Capitol Hill, he has done it mostly on his own terms. He has carefully sought to avoid appearing on national TV or taking a prime legislative role that would open him up to Democratic attacks. In his weekly half-hour meetings with reporters in his office, DeLay bans television cameras, and his office does not issue a transcript afterward, as other congressional leaders usually do.
Meanwhile, the majority leader's staff has been publicizing another aspect of his "softer" side: DeLay has raised several million dollars in recent years for the construction of a huge facility in the Houston area for children in foster care programs. He and his wife, Christine, have fostered three kids in their home.
DeLay has also sought to round out his portfolio by increasing his focus on foreign-policy issues. He has given several high-profile foreign-policy speeches in recent years, including a well-publicized address at the Israeli parliament in August. In addition, he has continued his long-standing support for democracy in Taiwan and for anti-Castro Cubans.
A strong supporter of Israel in its conflict with the Palestinians, DeLay made waves when he pressed President Bush this summer not to force Israel to make difficult concessions as part of the internationally sanctioned "road map" to peace. The Houston Chronicle editorialized, "DeLay is in Israel trying to shove the Israeli-Palestinian peace process off the track." A front-page New York Times article about DeLay's trip noted that he had "emerged as a significant figure in Middle East policy, particularly since his ascension to the majority leader's post." The article added that DeLay, "by his presence, remind[s] the Bush administration to pay heed to its right flank as it seeks to make peace."
Up to His Elbows
In the interview with National Journal, DeLay said he feels the pressure of increased public expectations from the all-Republican government. "It is expected that you get things done. (The people) know ... there is a Republican Senate, a Republican House, and a Republican president, and you ought to be able to get something done."
"It is expected that you get things done," he said. "You can't go home and explain that there is only a one-vote margin in the Senate, and a filibuster, and we had to massage this bill a little bit, so that it's not as good as you would like, to get it through the Senate. You can't explain that to people. All they know is that there is a Republican Senate, a Republican House, and a Republican president, and you ought to be able to get something done."
By and large, DeLay has gotten things done this year, at least in the House. Those close to him say that his strength lies chiefly in his role as strategist. "He takes [members] where they don't necessarily want to go, but where they need to go," Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, said.
DeLay has taken far more of a hands-on approach to legislation than Armey did. DeLay has held weekly meetings with committee chairmen, for example, a change from the more sporadic schedule that Armey maintained. DeLay's aides also hold a weekly session with committee chiefs of staff. These meetings have been "very effective in reaching out and informing members of leadership activities," LaHood said.
On many issues, DeLay's goal has been for the House to pass the most-conservative bill possible, sometimes even adding its own imprint to proposals from Bush. When the president used his State of the Union message to propose a $15 billion initiative to fight AIDS in Africa, for example, DeLay immediately praised the plan. But he moved to add a conservative flourish by requiring that one-third of the funds be allocated to sexual "abstinence" programs.
Despite opposition from some flanks, this provision increased enthusiasm among many conservative House Republicans who don't routinely support AIDS-fighting initiatives. The Senate made little change before approving the House-passed bill in May. Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Joseph Biden, D-Del., even praised DeLay's support during the Senate debate.
DeLay has also been at the center of numerous crucial conference committee negotiations this year between the House and the more-moderate Senate. During the springtime conference on the annual budget resolution, DeLay urged reluctant House Republicans to accept the Senate's insistence that the 10-year cost of this year's tax cut not exceed $350 billion; the original House budget called for more than twice that amount. As it turned out, however, DeLay had been privately consulting with House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas, R-Calif., who later unveiled a clever plan to "sunset" most of the tax cuts after several years to appear to keep the cost down. But the total tax cuts, if extended for the full decade, have been projected to exceed $1 trillion.
This fall, DeLay has played a prominent role in the conference on Medicare prescription drug benefit legislation. Even though DeLay has never served on a committee with jurisdiction over Medicare, House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., named him as one of the five House Republicans on the conference committee. According to several sources, the primary reason was to reassure many dubious House conservatives that the final version of the legislation would not create escalating federal entitlement costs.
"He knows what conservatives need, and he's making sure that it happens," said Brady, a Ways and Means Committee member. At the same time, according to a DeLay aide, the majority leader has deliberately refrained from public meetings or statements about the issue that would permit Democrats to make him the "face" of Medicare reform.
On energy legislation, DeLay has participated more actively, in part because he has considerable experience with the energy issues that are vital to his Houston-area constituents. When Bush proposed energy legislation two years ago, DeLay headed a task force that coordinated the several House committees that have jurisdiction over the measure.
"Tom deserves a lot of credit for the House's ability to produce a bill," said House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Billy Tauzin, R-La. "His expertise is not in the management of details, but in developing the strategic policy and message."
Tauzin also credited DeLay with giving vital assistance on a provision to phase out the petrochemical fuel additive MTBE, which is being replaced by the expanded use of corn-based ethanol. "He helped to make sure that it was a balanced compromise," Tauzin said. He contended that DeLay "ranks with [former Speakers] Tip O'Neill and Jim Wright as a dominant figure indispensable to the House."
Still Throwing 'Em Red Meat
At key moments this year, DeLay has pointedly sought to serve as the congressional Republican leader who is the quickest and harshest in defending Bush from Democratic attacks. Although conservatives concede that they have not won everything they wanted this year, they applaud DeLay's takeover as majority leader.
After Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., criticized the Iraq war as a "fraud ... made up in Texas," for instance, DeLay called on Democratic leaders "to have the courage to tell their hero Ted Kennedy that he went too far." When Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean told a rally that Attorney General John Ashcroft "is not a patriot," DeLay called Dean "a cruel and extremist demagogue." And DeLay declared before a Heritage Foundation audience, "The blame-America-first hate speech of the American Left has infected the Democratic Party's national leadership to a dangerous degree."
Talk like that sounds like the old Tom DeLay, and it delights the conservatives who make up the majority of the House Republican Conference. Although conservatives concede that they have not won everything they wanted this year -- and that the verdict is still out on the success of the 108th Congress -- they applaud DeLay's takeover as majority leader.
"Tom has represented conservative interests," said Rep. Sue Myrick, R-N.C., who chairs the House Republican Study Committee, a powerful 90-member bloc of conservatives. "He's toned down his rhetoric a bit because his job has changed. Now, he has to take the big picture into consideration. But it hasn't changed him. We work together closely with him and with Speaker Hastert."
Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, said that despite the lack of a conservative working majority in the House, "we have done a good job in passing a conservative agenda. Tom DeLay has played the key role on that." Hensarling was a top aide to then-Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, and has emerged as an outspoken GOP freshman. He said he has had reservations about voting for certain bills, such as the budget resolution and Medicare reform, but he has deferred to vigorous persuasion from senior Republicans, notably DeLay. "He's been here 20 years, and I've been here 10 months," Hensarling added.
As leader of the conservatives, DeLay has quietly pursued a broad agenda, and in the interview with National Journal, he said that more is to come. "This is just the start," he said. "Hopefully, we come back after 2004 with a larger majority in the Senate and in the House. We will start talking next year about doubling the size of the economy in 15 years.... You start with Republican values: a major overhaul of the tax code, regulatory reform, redesigning the government, redesigning the Congress."
DeLay also continues to be a prolific fundraiser for his party, employing pioneering and often controversial techniques through his leadership political action committee, Americans for a Republican Majority, or ARMPAC. The organization contributed more money to congressional candidates in each of the past two cycles than did any other leadership PAC, said Jim Ellis, who has been its executive director since 1998. Although the 2002 campaign finance law has shut down some of ARMPAC's soft-money operations, pending the Supreme Court's decision, Ellis said that other programs are raising record sums.
While DeLay has won wide praise from across the GOP, he can still show a few rough edges in dealing with party members. Some Republicans who sit on the House Appropriations Committee, including LaHood, bristle that GOP leaders increasingly have adopted a top-down style. "The speaker, the majority leader, and their staffs really dictate a lot of what goes on in appropriations, especially when bills are in conference committees," LaHood said.
Moreover, sources close to both the White House and DeLay privately concede that he is not on close personal terms with the president, despite their mutual efforts to depict harmony. And while DeLay seems to have close, complementary relationships with Hastert and with the No. 3 in the GOP leadership, House Majority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo., even those relationships have been marked by occasional ambiguities and tensions this year.
Early on in his speakership, Hastert was sometimes depicted as DeLay's puppet, because it was DeLay who first tapped Hastert for the leadership track by selecting him as chief deputy majority whip in 1995 and then supported him for speaker in December 1998. That was a tumultuous time for House Republicans. In July 1997, DeLay confessed that he had actively encouraged the unsuccessful Republican coup against Gingrich; the two had a history of bitter clashes in past leadership races. Then House Republicans faced setbacks in the November 1998 election, and shortly afterward, Gingrich resigned under pressure. Amid President Clinton's impeachment in December 1998, Speaker-designate Bob Livingston, R-La., also stepped aside after revelations that he'd had extramarital affairs.
Through the turmoil, DeLay survived and prospered as whip. He pushed Hastert to the fore for speaker and tapped Blunt as chief deputy majority whip. DeLay himself held back, saying in the interview, "I did rule out being speaker when Newt Gingrich stepped down." In an interview, Blunt recalled that DeLay "decided because of impeachment and other matters that the House wasn't ready for him as speaker."
The DeLay-Hastert alliance has been a symbiotic relationship in which they serve as close partners. They have very different styles, however, with Hastert widely known as a "fair and good-hearted soul," in Hoyer's words, and the wily DeLay known as something else entirely.
As this year began and DeLay was set to become majority leader, even close allies noted that Hastert and DeLay, plus their chief aides, had some reservations. "There was an issue in Speaker Hastert's mind of how Tom's strong personality would fill that role," said Berry, DeLay's top aide. But Berry and Hastert's chief of staff, Scott Palmer, "discussed this at length," Berry said. "Tom is very deferential to the speaker. And he helps make the House run smoothly." Indeed, the two leaders seem to have benefited from their extensive collaboration and have managed to keep any differences largely under wraps.
The DeLay-Blunt relationship has entered somewhat more-troubled waters. GOP insiders said the tension began when Blunt bypassed more-experienced candidates suggested by DeLay and instead chose second-term Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., as his chief deputy whip. As the months passed, it became clear that Blunt's whip style was more low-key than DeLay's had been, and that the contrast was a source of some conflict between them. "DeLay likes to be feared, and he plays to win," said a House GOP source not linked to either camp. "Blunt likes to be liked, and he plays not to lose."
Perhaps most troubling of all was a front-page article in The Washington Post on alleged special-interest pleading by Blunt on behalf of Philip Morris USA in last year's bill creating the Homeland Security Department; the firm is a large employer in his district. Some Republicans contend that the article was planted by DeLay's camp as a shot across the bow at Blunt, but DeLay allies firmly deny the charge. Still, tensions between their two staffs have been evident.
Blunt praised the "great political and team-building skills" of DeLay, with whom he meets weekly, and dismissed the speculation of personal conflict. "I clearly have a huge advantage, that the two leaders above me have been my predecessors. They know just what needs to be done," Blunt said. "That creates a logical but not unhealthy tension. Most of the time, we reach the same conclusion."
Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde?
While DeLay's intense partisan drive draws plaudits from most Republicans, Democrats are still gnashing their teeth. Hoyer has blasted DeLay for "destroying the enemy outside the rules." Another veteran House Democrat contended, "DeLay has destroyed the House as a representative body." While DeLay draws plaudits from most Republicans, Democrats are still gnashing their teeth. Whether their hits over DeLay's alleged bullying will resonate with the public and the media remains to be seen.
Hoyer and Rep. Martin Frost, D-Texas, the ranking member on the House Rules Committee, have led the attack on DeLay for creating in the House a closed process that leaves virtually no room for bipartisanship or participation from the minority, and that punishes Democratic constituencies and programs. The Democrats' prime focus in recent weeks has been the effort by Republican appropriators to bar "earmarks" for the Democrats who voted in July against the appropriations bill for the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education departments.
Republican allies dismiss what they regard as the Democrats' obsession with DeLay. "[The Democrats] are the consummate generals fighting the last war. They are stuck in the 1980s," said Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie. "Personally, I feel badly for Tom. But, for the party, I can think of no one tougher" to take the Democrats' hits.
Whether the Democratic hits over DeLay's alleged bullying will resonate with the public and the media remains to be seen. But Democrats were able to shine a negative light on DeLay this year over his heavy involvement in Texas redistricting.
DeLay waged a highly controversial backroom effort to urge the GOP-controlled Texas Legislature to pass a new congressional redistricting map, even though Texas, like other states, had just completed redistricting following the 2000 census. If ratified by the Justice Department and federal courts, as Republicans fully expect, the final Texas congressional map could result in as many as seven new Republican seats, at the expense of incumbent Democrats.
Although state and national Republicans emphasize that DeLay did not write the actual details, there is widespread agreement that he placed redistricting on the table in Austin and that he overcame numerous obstacles to win the enactment of a new map last month. In the final stages of negotiations among Republicans in the Texas House and Senate, DeLay engaged in shuttle diplomacy between the two sides for three days.
Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas, called DeLay "the manager of the new map." Rep. Thomas Reynolds, R-N.Y., who chairs the National Republican Congressional Committee, said, "If Tom DeLay hadn't been there, it wouldn't have happened." Likewise, Brady, who was by DeLay's side during the final negotiations, echoed Reynolds's sentiment.
Democrats complained that the results blatantly violated civil-rights and election law, and they griped about strong-arm tactics by federal and state agencies during the lengthy battle in the state Legislature. "In Austin, senior Republicans sent all kinds of signals that they didn't want to do redistricting," said Frost, the chief redistricting strategist for Texas Democrats. "DeLay's success shows a reckless kind of strength."
Most of the large Texas newspapers editorialized against DeLay's redistricting efforts, as did other major papers across the country. "Texas wasn't just gerrymandered," The New York Times said in an editorial last month. "It was Hammermandered." The Times added: "Black and Hispanic voters are complaining of being electorally ghettoized into fewer districts. They have a strong case to make.... The redistricting plan's zigzags, and nips and tucks, chart a partisan willfulness that should come to haunt Mr. DeLay in the next elections."
Rep. Charles Stenholm, D-Texas, said that both Democrats and Republicans in his region are angry about DeLay's maneuvers and that he already has determined his election plan. "I'm running against Tom DeLay and what he has done," Stenholm said. "A legitimate issue for November 2004 is, Does West Texas want Tom DeLay's version of conservatism, or Charlie Stenholm's? I have great confidence."
Bring 'em on, replies DeLay. "To run against me is to run against the Republican record," he said in the interview. "The polls in Texas show that I am very popular.... I am very confident about the election."
What's Next for Tom DeLay?
For now, DeLay appears secure as the North Star of the House majority, its most constant and influential presence. But the frequent chaos in the House GOP's nearly decade-long rule suggests the unpredictability of his future. DeLay's fate could hinge on various factors, including the outcomes of redistricting in Texas and of Bush's legislative programs in Congress, and the results of the presidential election. The next obvious step for DeLay is the speakership. But he won't need to make that decision until the 61-year-old Hastert creates a vacancy.
The next obvious step for DeLay is the speakership. But he won't need to make that decision until the 61-year-old Hastert creates a vacancy. In January, House Republicans abolished their eight-year limit on the speaker's term, and Hastert has appeared intent on holding his post. "As long as I can achieve something," Hastert told National Journal during an interview in May, "I'll do this job." Some of those close to Hastert say he will not step down before Bush departs, given their close relationship.
But other House Republican insiders suggest that Hastert is "tired." They point to his announcement this summer that he will publish his memoirs early next year as a signal that he might step down within the year. Another camp contends that he might leave after one more term, possibly to take an ambassadorial post.
The talk about Hastert's plans, of course, generates extensive private speculation among other senior House Republican members with leadership ambitions. Some, such as Reynolds, are allied with DeLay; others, such as LaHood or former Republican Conference Chairman John Boehner of Ohio, who now chairs the Education and the Workforce Committee, have clashed with DeLay or his allies. Others mentioned as possible speaker candidates include GOP Conference Chairwoman Deborah Pryce, R-Ohio; Rep. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who chairs the Republican leadership; GOP Policy Committee Chairman Christopher Cox, R-Calif., who also chairs the Select Committee on Homeland Security; and Rules Committee Chairman David Dreier, R-Calif.
"This is more about personality than ideology," contended one House Republican who has leadership ambitions and who is skeptical of DeLay's prospects. "They don't want another Gingrich." Another House Republican, who has served several terms and is not interested in running for speaker, complained that DeLay remains a "polarizing" figure and does not listen to members as much as Blunt does, for example.
That sentiment suggests that DeLay has more work to do before his colleagues truly consider him speaker material. But many other Republican members interviewed for this story, from the party's moderate and conservative flanks alike, gushed about him.
For his part, Blunt said he will defer to DeLay if Hastert steps down as speaker. As was the case when the speaker's job was last open, in 1998, "Tom will know before anyone else if it's the right time," Blunt said.
Indeed. In the interview, DeLay was largely unresponsive when asked about his ambitions and qualifications to be speaker. "I don't make that decision," he said. But he also suggested that he will move when the timing seems right. "All my life, I have been taught to do the best job in the job that you have, and that if you do that, opportunities always will present themselves," DeLay said. "Then, you make a decision whether you want to take those opportunities."
nationaljournal.com |
