WASHINGTON: In sweeping both chambers of Congress for the first time in 12 years, Democrats have handed US President George W. Bush the biggest defeat of his political career and set the stage for a tumultuous two years ahead of the 2008 presidential election.
US news media reported late on Wednesday that Democrats took the last undecided race for the Senate, in Virgina, completing a rout of Bush's Republicans with a 51-49 margin in the upper house, following a momentous 229-197 takeover in the lower House of Representatives, with nine seat still undecided.
Already ahead of the Virginia outcome, Bush implicitly acknowledged that the election was a referendum on his leadership and the Iraq war.
“As the head of the Republican Party, I share a large part of the responsibility,” the US leader said at a press conference on Wednesday.
“If you look at race by race, it was close. The cumulative effect, however, was not too close. It was a thumping,” he said.
The decisive verdict could mean a major headache for the final two years of Bush's presidency if Democrats make good on their vow to use their new found power to hold hearings on the conduct of the war in Iraq, the slow response to devastating Hurricane Katrina last year, and other issues.
“The American people have spoken clearly and decisively in favour of Democrats leading this country in a new direction,” Senate minority leader Harry Reid said in a statement after news that Democrats had seized the upper chamber.
“From changing course in Iraq to raising the minimum wage to fixing the health care crisis to making this country energy independent, we're ready to get to work,” Reid said.
While some Democrats have called for impeachment hearings over Bush's handling of Iraq, senior party official Rahm Emanuel said early on Wednesday that the party would not try to impeach the president.
However, in control of the House of Representatives or the Senate, the Democrats would have the authority to hold hearings and investigations and to issue subpoenas compelling witnesses to testify, potentially embarrassing to the White House.
Besides taking the leadership of the two houses, Democrats will take over the powerful committees charged with reviewing and endorsing legislation, from the foreign relations to budget panels.
That will empower them to set the legislative agenda. However, they likely fall short of the votes to do anything on their own or overcome presidential vetoes, potentially leading to legislative stalemate.
Nevertheless, Democrats say they would quickly introduce long-stalled bills to raise the minimum wage for the first time in a decade, put new homeland security measures in place and control a runaway US budget deficit.
Democratic Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said in a speech last month at Washington's National Press Club that changes would start “immediately” when the new Congress reconvenes on Jan 3.
“You will have a process where committees will actually do their job, bring witnesses before them, and ask them the tough questions in an open setting,” Van Hollen said.
“I think that in itself is important to restoring accountability and credibility of the institution”. The congressional shake-up will bring a powerful new cast of characters running prominent posts.
Nancy Pelosi will make US history when she becomes the first woman Speaker of the House, which puts her third in line for the presidency. In the Senate, the new Democratic majority leader will likely be Nevada Senator Reid, a Mormon lawyer and one-time amateur boxer.
The impact of the election shift was already seen on Wednesday when Bush replaced Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who was increasingly blamed by both Democrats and Republicans for the quagmire in Iraq.
But pundits on Thursday said the Democrats face challenges of their own.
Former Bush aide David Frum, writing in the Wall Street Journal, said Bush could aggressively submit legislation to challenge the new Congress leaders and exploit divisions in the party.—AFP
