Senate Democrats

WASHINGTON -- By most measures, congressional Democrats should have the political wind at their backs on the Iraq war. They swept to power in November because of the public's dissatisfaction with the conflict, and poll numbers indicate that most Americans want to bring the troops home. Instead, Democrats are struggling to find the best way to express congressional disapproval of the war and President Bush's troop buildup. They are wary of going too far and of not going far enough as they try to strike a balance that most Democrats, and perhaps some Republicans, can support.

WASHINGTON -- The White House stepped up its criticism yesterday of Senate Republicans for their handling of President Clinton's impeachment trial, as subpoenas were formally issued for Monica Lewinsky and two other witnesses and some ground rules were set for their depositions next week.Clinton's spokesman, Joe Lockhart, accused the Republican senators of needlessly prolonging the trial, even though an acquittal is all but certain. He asserted that they were insisting on videotaped testimony from Lewinsky and others to try to embarrass Clinton and force his ouster.

WASHINGTON -- Some of America's sophisticated military assets are in the Balkan skies, perhaps illustrating the problem of having the best ladder at the wrong wall. Still, Senate Democrats have become bellicose.Most of them opposed the gulf war, fought in response to an unambiguous violation of international law and in defense of vital U.S. political and economic interests in a strategically crucial region. During the climactic stage of the Cold War, many Democrats opposed aid to the Contras fighting a dictatorship aligned with Moscow.

WASHINGTON -- Buoyed by President Clinton's State of the Union performance, White House lawyers returned to the well of the Senate yesterday to launch a blistering attack on the House impeachment charges, concluding with an impassioned political appeal to senators to acquit Clinton."

WASHINGTON -- Firmly repudiated by the Senate, the House Republican prosecutors defended yesterday their prosecution of President Clinton, even as their leader, Rep. Henry J. Hyde, suggested that the president should not be criminally indicted for his offenses."

WASHINGTON -- With the political fate of President Clinton now shifting to the Senate for trial, some significant changes will occur in the deliberations, mostly in his favor.Most importantly, two-thirds (67 senators) is required for conviction. With 45 Democrats in the Senate, the prospect, at the outset at least, must be rated slim to none. If the 55 Republicans voted as a bloc, 12 Democrats would have to break with their party's president to remove him from office.The near-solidarity shown against impeachment by House Democrats for a president whose personal actions they readily condemned demonstrated how GOP partisanship had stiffened Democratic resolve.

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes of Maryland, a veteran of the Watergate impeachment hearings, is among a small group of senior Democrats who are quietly grappling with how best -- or whether -- to proceed with the expected Senate trial of President Clinton.Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota this week sought the counsel of Sarbanes, in addition to that of Sen. John B. Breaux of Louisiana, an influential lawmaker who has questioned the need for a Senate trial against Clinton; Sen. Byron L. Dorgan of North Dakota, a Daschle friend among party leaders; and Sen. Robert G. Torricelli of New Jersey, the head of a Democratic political action committee that raises money for the party's Senate candidates, Democratic Senate aides said.

IN A WORLD of political strife and confrontation, the Senate of Maryland has been an oasis of bipartisanship and collegiality.Until now, at least.With the defeat of two leading Republican moderates in last week's primary, Senate Democrats are worried that their smooth-running chamber could become a scene of confrontation and gridlock.Baltimore County Sen. F. Vernon Boozer, the minority leader, and Frederick County Sen. John W. Derr, the minority whip, had their long legislative careers ended by aggressive young challengers aligned with the Christian right.

WASHINGTON -- Senate Democrats blocked legislation yesterday that would have shielded small businesses from crippling product liability lawsuits, complaining that Republicans would not let them influence the bill even as GOP leaders were slipping in their own pet provisions.At the heart of the dispute were Democratic efforts to attach to the legislation a measure expanding the rights of patients in managed care companies -- a provision that Republicans oppose.Democrats were divided over the merits of the product liability bill, which would have restricted punitive damages in lawsuits over defective products and which had the grudging support of the White House.

WASHINGTON -- Trekking northward, President Clinton, Vice President Al Gore and about 40 fellow Democrats in the Senate will shift their political base today to Baltimore for the start of a two-day issues conference.Sens. Paul S. Sarbanes and Barbara A. Mikulski will play host to the conference, which comes coincidentally in the midst of intensive budget negotiations between the White House and Republican congressional leaders.Clinton and Gore will kick off the closed-door meetings with remarks this afternoon at the Harbor Court Hotel, where the two are to arrive at 12: 45 p.m. The senators will then break into groups for workshops today and tomorrow to discuss issues related to children, jobs, juvenile justice and education.

Senate Democrats pushing health care legislation received a boost Wednesday from congressional budget experts, who estimated that a bill being debated by the Senate Finance Committee would substantially expand coverage and lower the federal deficit. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office calculated that the legislation, written by Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), would cost $829 billion by 2019. But because that tab would be offset by spending cuts elsewhere and by new revenue, the panel's health care bill actually would lower the deficit by $81 billion over the next decade - and potentially even more in later years - the budget office concluded.

Not right time for Palestinian state The Baltimore Sun's editorial "Israel's twin dilemmas" (April 26) argued that "Progress on an independent Palestine would ... frustrate Iran-backed terrorists." I'd love to see the editors explain that claim. And whether or not such progress might strengthen Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority in the short run, doesn't Palestinian independence also top Hamas' wish list? Many in America and Europe may dream of a two-state solution incorporating a moderate Palestine, with Hamas magically either transformed or out of the picture.

WASHINGTON - New Hampshire Sen. Judd Gregg, who has emerged as the front-runner for commerce secretary, has assured fellow Republicans that he won't take the job unless he's certain his replacement will line up with the GOP caucus, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said yesterday. President Barack Obama is expected to announce Gregg's nomination as early as today. When Obama's interest in Gregg became known Thursday, it created a little Republican angst: Democrats are tantalizingly close to gaining a filibuster-proof majority.

WASHINGTON - As the new Senate opened for business yesterday, it offered more story lines than a nightly telenovela. In one corner stood Sen. Joe Biden, who soon will resign his Senate seat to assume the vice presidency. Not far away sat Sen. John McCain, who lost to Biden and the man at the top of the ticket, President-elect and former Sen. Barack Obama. On the other side of the room sat Sen. Hillary Clinton, vanquished by Obama in the Democratic primaries but now likely to leave the Senate soon to serve as his secretary of state.

WASHINGTON -- Unwilling to compromise with Republicans on a two-year, $204 billion economic stimulus package, Senate Democrats failed last night to add aid for millions of senior citizens, disabled veterans and out-of-work Americans. Democrats might have to settle for only some of the spending if they want to augment a smaller stimulus package that easily cleared the House last month. That measure is a combination of tax rebates for the middle class and incentives for business investment.

WASHINGTON -- Backed solidly by the Bush administration, Senate Republicans said yesterday that they would block a $157 billion economic stimulus package championed by Senate Democrats, who said they would have no choice but to quickly adopt a cheaper, more streamlined plan approved this week by the House. Democratic Senate leaders said they still hoped to secure changes to the House plan when they voted on it next week. They said they remained on track to get the plan, a portfolio of tax rebates and business tax breaks aimed at jolting the economy, to President Bush for his signature by Feb. 15. The Democrats also said the efforts over the past two days to shape the stimulus package to reflect their economic priorities had allowed them to lay out an agenda that they would pursue in the months ahead and use to bolster the case for electing a Democrat as president and widening their majorities in Congress.

WASHINGTON -- The Senate opened for 22 seconds yesterday, the first of two planned sessions each this week and next to keep President Bush from making so-called "recess appointments." The "faux" sessions are part of a rare gambit by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada. Presidents use recess appointments when a nomination is in trouble in the Senate. "It's unfortunate that we have to do this, but we couldn't run the risk of the administration ramming through some of their highly controversial appointments while we were in recess," said Jim Manley, the Democratic leader's press secretary.

WASHINGTON -- For the seventh time this year, Senate Republicans blocked a measure yesterday to change U.S. policy in Iraq, beating back the latest Democratic proposal to set a timeline for withdrawing troops. Democrats fell eight votes short of the 60 votes demanded by Republican leaders for an amendment to the defense authorization bill being debated in the Senate. Four Republican lawmakers joined Democrats, ending a round-the-clock session orchestrated by Democratic leaders Tuesday night to highlight what they alleged was Republican obstructionism.

WASHINGTON -- By most measures, congressional Democrats should have the political wind at their backs on the Iraq war. They swept to power in November because of the public's dissatisfaction with the conflict, and poll numbers indicate that most Americans want to bring the troops home. Instead, Democrats are struggling to find the best way to express congressional disapproval of the war and President Bush's troop buildup. They are wary of going too far and of not going far enough as they try to strike a balance that most Democrats, and perhaps some Republicans, can support.

ARLINGTON, Va. -- Before political correctness, a person who gave someone a gift and later took it back was called an "Indian giver." This is what a majority in the House did last week when they "gave" their support to American forces fighting to stabilize Iraq and defeat our enemy and then promptly took it back. How else should one interpret this nonbinding resolution when Part One said, "Congress and the American people will continue to support and protect the members of the United States Armed Forces who are serving or who have served bravely and honorably in Iraq," but Part Two negates that: "Congress disapproves of the decision of President George W. Bush announced on Jan. 10, 2007, to deploy more than 20,000 additional United States combat troops to Iraq."