Moderates Snub GOP Leadership

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0307/3089.html

Moderates Snub GOP Leadership

By: Daniel W. Reilly and Patrick O'Connor
March 13, 2007 02:34 PM EST

Republican Rep. Jim Walsh of New York, who holds a ranking appropriations post, has sided with Democrats on 14 of the 16 biggest votes this year. Remarkably, GOP leaders don't seem to care.

In one of the most significant strategic and tactical shifts of the new Congress, moderate Republicans such as Walsh are getting little pushback from their conservative leaders for voting with Democrats on major bills. In fact, 39 House Republicans have been with Democrats on 60 percent or more of major votes, according to a voting analysis by The Politico.

Welcome to life in the minority for the once-iron-fisted Republican Party, where election concerns now trump party loyalty in an uncertain drive to regain power. "There was a lot more pressure when we were in the majority and had to deliver votes," Walsh said of leadership's kinder, gentler approach.

In the past, GOP House leaders often punished members who strayed from their party. But that partisan discipline has given way to a new strategy: Hold members to just the few votes that really matter.

"We don't have Tom DeLay anymore," said Rep. Christopher Shays (R-Conn.), a frequent critic of the leadership who has voted with Democrats on 13 of 16 major votes this year. "We don't have leaders threatening us, intimidating members in order to vote a certain way."

But the upcoming votes over the Iraq war will provide the stiffest test yet of the new strategy. Republican leaders are expected to enforce strict party discipline if the House takes up a wartime spending bill that sets dates for U.S. troops to leave Iraq.

Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) vowed to oppose the package, if it includes -- as proposed -- dates for U.S. forces to leave the war-torn country or other benchmarks to force a withdrawal.

The Republican leader now must hold his moderates to have any chance to prevail in a standoff with Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) over the Democratic withdrawal proposal.


FULL article at link.

[billybob537]

1. It's time to force thier hand

Make them vote and use their vote to beat them in the next election. Get them on the record then get them out of congress.