Maine’s Moderate Republican Senators Stand By Centrist Position
WASHINGTON—Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine always have been considered “moderate” Republicans who at times disagree with their more conservative Senate colleagues. But since the start of the 108th Congress in January, so closely divided that the Republicans have a mere two-vote majority, Snowe and Collins along with a small group of centrist Republicans have gained the considerable power to determine the outcome of Senate votes.
The centrist Republicans– Snowe, Collins, George Voinovich of Ohio, Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, John McCain of Arizona and Norm Coleman of Minnesota-add an element of drama and unpredictability to many Senate votes and were largely responsible for slashing President Bush’s proposed tax cut.
The Republican moderates have wielded a significant amount of power since the GOP took control of the chamber this year. Because Republicans have a razor-thin majority – there are 51 Republicans, 48 Democrats and one independent – and because they usually need 60 votes just to get a bill to the Senate floor, the centrists easily can derail legislation or have a significant impact on its content.
Along with Voinovich and Chafee, Snowe joined Senate Democrats in voting 51-48 to halve Bush’s proposed $726 billion tax cut to $350 billion. Though criticized by her Republican colleagues for breaking with the party, Snowe has stood her ground, maintaining that the $350 billion was a good compromise and would do much to “cushion the cost of the war” in Iraq.
Snowe, who chairs the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee and is also a member of the Senate Commerce and Finance committees, declined to be interviewed for this article. Her spokesman, Dave Lackey, said siding with the other party “can be difficult sometimes….But the ultimate goal is to lead from the middle to pass legislation that makes a difference for the American people.”
He said Snowe was concerned the larger tax cut would lead to a double-dip recession and a slow economic recovery. The senator sees the smaller tax cut as a short-term stimulus that would “encourage growth in the economy without ballooning long-term federal deficits.”
Snowe has come under considerable pressure from fellow Republicans – including Bush and Vice President Cheney – as well as from conservative journalists. Bush and Cheney called Snowe and Voinovich into the Oval Office last week, in an attempt to change their minds on the tax cuts. A Wall Street Journal editorial, meanwhile, called the three who sided with Democrats “Daschle Republicans,” referring to Senate Minority Leader Thomas A. Daschle (D.-S.D.).
Sen. John Breaux, a moderate Louisiana Democrat and one of the tailors of the $350 billion compromise in the Senate, praised Snowe for holding her ground.
“A lot of people were not able to resist the pressure she was under, with calls from the president and vice president,” Breaux said in a statement. “By sticking together, it shows how you can be vital and influential.”
Collins, who had previously been critical of the size of the tax cut, eventually voted for Bush’s $726 billion tax proposal, saying it was impossible to determine how to stimulate the economy without seeing what effect the war in Iraq will have.
Collins, who chairs the Governmental Affairs Committee, also was not available for an interview. Collins said in a statement that she felt that her centrist colleagues are not “wedded to a specific ideology” and that allows them to forge consensus by working with members on both sides of the aisle.
Aides to both Snowe and Collins said the senators look for ways to make Congress work efficiently, and that “leading from the middle”-that is, being a moderate force in the Senate-is one way to do so.
“Sen. Snowe is one who has always believed in the philosophy of making government work,” Lackey said. “There are probably as many economic plans and ideas as there are senators in Congress, but at the end of the day, she would like to see one that reflects the majority of the Senate, that will keep Congress on a prudent course.”
Stephen Hess, an expert on Congress at the Brookings Institution in Washington, said the power yielded by the moderate Republicans is “true of course, but it is also a power to be used awfully cautiously.”
Republican moderates are using their newfound power “very gingerly,” Hess said, “but it is definitely happening.”
President Bush certainly is not happy when fellow Republicans vote against him and
Hess said that Bush is a “president who knows how to crack the whip.” But, he added, Bush also needs to know how to “treat moderate Republicans with more sensitivity” in order to win them over.
Published in Foster’s Daily Democrat, in New Hampshire.
