How Waxman won out over Dingell. Dingell was a stubborn mule.

[Robbien]

The NY Times has the background story on just how Waxman beat John Dingell for chairmanship of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. The turning point was Dingell's rejection of a truce that Steny Hoyer tried to broker

Hoyer asked Dingell if he would accept a deal: serve two more years and then out. Emphatically, no, Dingell said. If Waxman, of California, the darling of environmentalists and the liberal wing of the party, wanted the Energy and Commerce crown, he was going to have to take it by parliamentary force.

. . .

"One member who voted against him told me if Dingell had said, 'Give me two years, and I will happily hand the gavel to Henry Waxman,' he probably would have won," said Representative Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania

Mike Doyle of PA tried to round up votes for Dingell but had a rough time getting votes because of Dingell's policy of not compromising on auto emission and mileage standards

But it was not all Dingell's failure. Waxman played a good game:

Mr. Doyle said many of the new members had received direct campaign contributions from Mr. Waxman, who had obviously been contemplating a challenge to Mr. Dingell for many months before he went public the day after the November elections.

"You bumped into a lot of freshmen who said Mr. Waxman was very good to them," Mr. Doyle said. "The freshman and sophomore class didn't know John or had never served with him."

In the closing paragraph, the article has a bit of good news for Progressives.

The Obama transition office also announced this week that Philip Schiliro, Mr. Waxman's chief of staff, would be the White House director of Congressional relations. "That's a direct line to the White House," said an aide to one of Mr. Waxman's supporters. "Don't underestimate that."

Not a bad article.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/23/us/politics/23waxman.html?_r=1

[mucifer]

1. I'm very excited about Waxman having more responsibilities.

[Robbien]

2. Me too. I am a bit worried about the sub-committees though

But it seems as if Waxman has put some thought into the substructure also.

Dingell hanger-ons may be a problem. Especially that Rick Boucher of Virginia who is an ally of Dingell's. Boucher recently said "It doesn't change my substantive work. I think it has little, if any, effect because I will be in the thick of the action working on behalf of our region, whether as subcommittee chair or some other role."

"I will continue to have a leading role in formulating energy policy and in assuring that the climate change legislation enables a future growth in the coal industry, and that will be true whether I chair the subcommittee or I serve on the subcommittee as a senior member, in which event I will be chairing some other subcommittee."

The fight goes on but I have a lot of faith in Waxman.