House passes stimulus bill; now for the great Senate debate

“Democrats may have the votes to succeed, but we have a moral responsibility as a loyal opposition to express our honest concerns,” says Sen. Jeff Sessions (R) of Alabama. “This is a question of what direction America is going to take: Will we continue this spasm of spending the likes of which we’ve never seen before or will we show more restraint?”

At issue for Republicans is whether Democrats will use the nation’s current economic woes as cover for a permanent expansion of government.

Appealing directly to the new president, GOP lawmakers are urging the White House to enhance tax cuts and do more to solve the housing crisis, including providing that people facing foreclosure can refinance their homes at a 4 percent mortgage rate. They also call for zeroing out social spending that they say will not deliver quick stimulus to the economy.

Claiming as their watchword the phrase used by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in the last Congress, Republicans say that any stimulus must be “timely, targeted, and temporary.”

“We’re going to continue to try to encourage the majority here in the Congress to incorporate a number of our ideas,” said Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell (R) of Kentucky at a briefing on Tuesday.

“I’m pleased with the way the Senate has been operating on the floor, pleased that we’re getting amendments offered, laid down, and voted on. And my assumption is that that’s the way we’re going to operate the rest of this Congress,” he added.

In the end, the outcome in the Senate will likely turn on a few moderate Republican votes. Although moderate GOP ranks were diminished in 2008 elections, they still include Senator Grassley and Maine Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins.

“I’m not sure that we’ve yet achieved the right balance, the right mix between tax relief and spending programs,” said Senator Collins after a Senate GOP meeting with Obama on Tuesday.

“I’m also concerned that some of the provisions in the bill appear to be worthwhile programs but really have nothing to do with creating or preserving jobs or helping to turn the economy around,” she said.

But across the board, Republicans are praising the new president for contributing to a change in tone on Capitol Hill, including the prospect of an open debate.

“There may be a kind of meta-strategy here: That simply by lowering the volume of acrimony, the president will probably get enough Republican votes to get it through the Senate,” says Ross Baker, a political scientist at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J.

“Just by reducing the level of harshness, I think Obama feels that he can change the atmosphere of debate in Washington,” Mr. Baker says. “As long as he gets it through with even token Republican support, I think he can point to a better atmosphere in the future.”

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