Washington Watches Pelosi's First Steps

Dec. 2, 2006 — -- Nancy Pelosi hasn't officially assumed her duties as speaker of the House of Representatives -- but that hasn't stopped Washington from taking a very close look at her performance so far.

Pelosi's latest move is her selection of Texas Rep. Silvestre Reyes to head the Intelligence Committee.

Pelosi was under pressure to choose one of two other Democrats -- California Rep. Jane Harmon and Alcee Hastings of Florida. Both have more seniority on the committee than Reyes.

Harmon especially has had a high profile on television, and she lobbied hard for the chairmanship. She persuaded big Democratic financial donors to urge Pelosi to choose her. She also had the backing of moderate Democratic members known as "blue dogs."

But Harmon and Pelosi have a rocky history, and no love is lost there. Harmon had also, in Pelosi's view, blotted her copy book by not being a severe enough critic of the Bush administration's Iraq and security policies. In the end, all Harmon got was Pelosi's promise that she will have some seniority and influence on the Energy Committee -- a small consolation.

The incoming speaker also had to deal with another kind of pressure -- from the NACCP and the Congressional Black Caucus, which wanted Alcee Hastings to get the job.

But Hastings would have come to the job with ethical baggage Pelosi did not want. As a federal judge, he was impeached in 1988 for bribery and perjury by the Democratic-controlled House on a 413-3 vote. One of the Democrats voting to impeach was Jane Harmon.

In this year's November elections, many Democrats promised that, if elected, they would change what they called the "culture of corruption" in Washington. Many Democrats warned that if Pelosi chose Hastings for the chairmanship, she and the party would be open to charges of hypocrisy. She decided not to take the chance.

Instead, Pelosi chose Reyes, an Hispanic with experience both in combat and as a border patrol agent. He opposed the Iraq war, and said that as the U.S. moves toward "getting out of Iraq," his committee will "do the oversight with the administration about how do we proceed and what are the options."

Pelosi Wounded by Murtha Defeat

Although Pelosi has not won unanimous praise for choosing Reyes, she has avoided the torrent of criticism that followed her decision to back a losing candidate for majority leader. That is a post all House Democrats vote on, and she decided to enter the fray rather than remaining neutral.

In a show of loyalty to someone who had long supported her, she endorsed Pennsylvania Rep. Jack Murtha.

But, like Alcee Hastings, there were questions about Murtha's ethics. Following a bribery investigation focused on several congressmen, the Justice Department named Murtha as an unindicted co-conspirator, but chose not to prosecute him. Like Hastings, Murtha proclaimed his innocence.

House Democrats rejected Murtha for the leadership post, and selected Rep. Steny Hoyer.

Murtha's defeat also was an embarrassing setback for Pelosi. Critics said she unnecessarily created division and unrest in her party at a time when it should have been united and focused on its 2007 agenda.

A veteran Democratic congressman who will head an important committee but did not want to be identified told ABC News, "Nancy has the talent and brains and personality to be a good speaker. But she should avoid fights she can't win. I hope she learned something from this debacle over Murtha."

Even Pelosi's critics acknowledge that any missteps so far are relatively minor, and that the real testing will come when she takes over the symbolic gavel next month from outgoing Republican Speaker Denis Hastert.

How she proceeds on big issues will determine whether she is seen as a strong speaker. And there are plenty of issues -- Iraq, homeland security, taxes, a higher minimum wage, ethical reforms for the House, health care and a host of others.

Will she be able to hold Democrats together as a cohesive, effective force just as Republican leaders did for most of their 12 years controlling the House? Many Democrats are tired of the old Will Rogers joke "I don't belong to any organized party. I'm a Democrat." They want to be organized. But it will not be easy reconciling the left and right of Pelosi's party.

Generational Divide

Beyond that, some believe there is a division based on age. Writing in Friday's Washington Post, veteran analyst E.J. Dionne said, "The key to Nancy Pelosi's success will be finding a way to bring the old bulls and young Turks together."

The younger House Democrats, in their 30's and 40's, do not always have the same objectives as those who have been in Congress for decades. They have differences, for example, over whether to try to reach accommodations with Republicans on such things as procedural rules that often affect the outcome of key votes.

Some of the older Democrats feel they were badly treated by the Republicans during their time in power, and that now it's payback time. Some younger members feel past grievances should be forgotten, and that the country wants an end to bitter partisanship.

One of the big decisions facing Pelosi is how far she should go in being confrontational with President Bush. She has already avoided one nasty fight by saying there will be no impeachment proceedings against Bush despite urgings from some liberals who feel he was dishonest as he led the country into war.

But some House Democrats are already promising investigations into the administration, including its ties to the oil industry and possible waste of taxpayer money, especially in Iraq.

Pelosi has long been a vocal and often harsh critic of President Bush. One way of gauging her stance toward the president in the future will simply be to listen to her. She knows her words will be scrutinized far more closely as speaker than they were during her time as minority leader.