GOP Reaches Supplemental Deal

The split between House and Senate Republicans broke wide open late Wednesday, as Senate GOP leaders reached tentative agreement with Senate Democrats and the White House on how to craft a disaster relief supplemental spending bill.

"This is the Senate coming to agreement," Senate Majority Leader Lott said Wednesday night after meeting with Senate Minority Leader Daschle. Lott and Daschle made it clear that House Republicans are not part of the deal, but that the White House has agreed to the outlines of the measure. Under the agreement, the Senate would pass a scaled-down version of the disaster relief bill.

Lott and Daschle said the exact funding level has not been set, but that staff will be working into the night to ensure that the bill would provide sufficient disaster relief funding and money for the Bosnia mission. In addition, the agreement calls for the Senate to vote on separate legislation for an automatic continuing resolution lasting about 45 days in the event Congress does not complete work on the 13 appropriations measures by the end of the fiscal year.

Lott said Democrats and the White House can accept the CR language. Daschle said aides were still working on census language he believes the White House can accept. Lott said the Senate will consider the bill today and if the House does not agree to it, the Senate will not go to final passage until the House acts.

The Senate deal came as the first public opinion polls made clear that those surveyed blame congressional Republicans, and not the Clinton administration, for blocking disaster relief legislation.

A CNN/USAToday/Gallup survey released Wednesday said 55 percent of those polled blamed Republicans for the disaster aid impasse, while 25 percent blamed President Clinton, CNN's AllPolitics reported. Only 8 percent blamed both Clinton and congressional Republicans.

The survey of 651 adults Tuesday has a 4 point error margin.

Lott said Senate leaders will "take another look" at the deal this morning to make sure it is acceptable. He said the funding level is still being worked on, contending that "there's a lot that has been added that is not even disaster or Bosnia money."

Lott added that "the question is how much money is needed."

Daschle clearly was pleased Wednesday night. "We've really made a lot of progress," he told reporters. "We're going to get the job done on this side and hope the House will work with us."

On the House side, aides had no comment on the Senate decision Wednesday night.

However, GOP leaders faced a possible revolt from some Republican members.

Several Republican moderates made it clear that if GOP leaders do not agree to pass a "clean" supplemental spending measure, the moderates would be willing to vote with Democrats to defeat the previous question on some measure to force a smaller, clean bill to the floor.

Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Mo., said, "Bottom line, it's time to put people before politics," adding that "I feel very strongly about it."

House Appropriations Chairman Livingston said he agrees that a bill bogged down by side issues could face a revolt. "Anything short of a clean bill risks a floor fight," he said.

Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., who has called for a clean bill, added that Republicans are "on the verge of losing this issue. They can't hold their troops anymore. Something is going to happen either at their direction or in spite of it."

Meanwhile, there was some partisan rancor within the Senate as well.

Senate Commerce Chairman McCain has been accused of playing politics with the disaster aid bill because he inserted automatic CR language in the bill, language Clinton cited in his veto.

McCain Wednesday told the Arizona Republic: "If you want to interpret it as blaming me, that's fine with me. It won't be the first time."

In an appearance on CNN's "Crossfire" Tuesday night, Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., charged McCain was depriving North Dakotans of needed relief.

Also appearing on the program, McCain fired back, accusing Conrad of supporting "pork" in the supplemental bill. McCain later apologized for the incident.