Senate Democrats prepare to take over

Senate Democrats are preparing a busy new legislative agenda that they will try to implement once they take power--thanks to the decision last week of Vermont Sen. James Jeffords to leave the Republican Party to become an independent--while Republicans capitalize on the waning days of their majority to try to move key legislation and nominees for President Bush.

Meanwhile, behind the scenes, leaders are looking ahead to high-level negotiations over a new organizational resolution that will set new committee ratios, as aides keep an eye out for any fault lines or leadership jealousies in the GOP that might be activated by the stunning loss of the Republican majority.

Now that Democrats are poised to take control, bills that were once confined to stale talking points delivered at pep rallies are slated for priority floor action.

Incoming Majority Whip Harry Reid, D-Nev., told reporters that the party's agenda for the summer will include a focus on healthcare issues such as managed care and prescription drugs. Incoming Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., has said Democrats will return to education reauthorization as their first priority after taking power, followed by managed care.

Reid also mentioned energy issues--a top priority for the Bush administration--although the legislation that comes to the floor will now reflect Democratic priorities, rather than the President's.

"We can no longer ignore California," said Reid--a reference the energy crisis that has drawn divergent solutions from the parties ranging from price limits (a Democratic idea) to new drilling in Alaska (a Republican one).

Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass, poised to become chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said prescription drugs were "in play now," and vowed to bring up a clean bill to raise the minimum wage.

He said it would be "shameful" to use the wage bill as a vehicle for more tax breaks--the procedure on which Republicans have been insisting.

But Republicans, while resigned to their new minority status, continued to act like a majority Thursday--thanks to a pledge that Jeffords apparently made to Bush and Senate colleagues not to officially bolt the party until final action is completed on the president's tax cut.

According to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., Jeffords said he would become an independent by June 5 or whenever the tax bill passes, whichever is later--providing Republicans with a crucial window of control.

Once Jeffords switches, the Senate will have 50 Democrats, 49 Republicans, and one independent, which will prompt the parliamentarian to recognize Democrats as the majority party.

In a surprise move, Lott last week used a procedural tactic provided in the 50-50 power sharing resolution that allowed him to discharge to the floor the controversial nomination of Theodore Olson to be solicitor general. The resolution passed 51- 47.

Because of the terms of Jeffords' party switch, Democrats said they are resigned to the inevitability of the tax cut, passed by the Senate last week. Democrats have characterized the cut as a GOP attempt to starve government programs for a generation, and predicted the cuts could grow by trillions of dollars.

"There was no stopping it without the votes," said Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., who soon will chair the Budget Committee. "We're not in the majority until he makes his change effective."

Lott and Daschle--who spent many weeks negotiating the power sharing resolution that Daschle has now called "null and void"-- will once again have to come to an accommodation.

The current agreement provides for equal party representation on committees. Once it disappears, committees will resume their composition from the previous Congress--the 106th.

That gives Democrats leverage, according to Reid, since Democrats have lopsided majorities on some panels because of Republican defeats in the last election. Freshmen would temporarily lose committee assignments until the Senate passes a new agreement.

Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, said Democrats will have to accommodate Republicans in order to get a new resolution through, although Majority Whip Nickles said he is "very reluctant" to filibuster the committee resolution.

Nickles, as well as aides to Daschle and Lott, all said they expected a one-vote Democratic majority on committees. The Daschle aide said individual committees will decide whether to meet that ratio by expanding or contracting, and said individual panels will also decide whether to change committee funding ratios.

Reid said there are "a number of senators who are concerned about committees being too big" and mentioned the Commerce and Appropriations panels--a sign that some Republicans may have to relinquish prized seats.

Senate precedents entitle Democrats to two-thirds of panel funding, but some panels, like the Budget Committee, have agreed to an equal share for the whole Congress.

Democrats generally choose chairmen by seniority.

Attention has focused on Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., who ranking member on the Foreign Relations Committee and a senior member of the Judiciary Committee--and could chair either panel.

Biden said he was still informing colleagues of his decision, and declined to say which panel he would head.

Biden also said Kennedy--who is senior to Biden on Judiciary-- has "no interest" in giving up his presumed chairmanship of the HELP Committee for the Judiciary panel.

If Biden were to take the Judiciary Committee, it would leave Sens. Paul Sarbanes, D-Md. and Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., next in line to chair the Foreign Relations Committee. Sarbanes held a press conference Thursday to discuss his plans as the incoming chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.

Reid, who played a key role in negotiating Jeffords' switch, said there was "no quid pro quo here" and said he had not offered to give Jeffords the chairmanship of the Environment and Public Works Committee--saying there was "no guarantee." Nevertheless, numerous sources confirmed that the offer has been made and accepted.

Charlie Mitchell contributed to this article.