UPCOMING CONGRESS HOLDS PROMISE, HURDLES FOR VALLEY LAWMAKERS
By Michael Doyle
McClatchy Washington Bureau
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Nov 26 2008
DC
WASHINGTON — San Joaquin Valley lawmakers are maneuvering amid
the fallout from the November election. They’re adapting their 2009
agendas to fit a new president, a reconfigured Congress and a chaotic
economy. They face a complicated political environment filled with
high hurdles, fresh openings and no guarantees of success.
"Nothing happens around here without obstacles," noted Rep. George
Radanovich, R-Mariposa.
Valley conservatives, including Radanovich, hope once more to revise
the Endangered Species Act on behalf of farmers and ranchers. This a
long shot, as similar efforts have collapsed since 1995. All Valley
lawmakers want to see an official Armenian genocide commemoration. That
has a chance, given President-elect Barack Obama’s stated support. And
every lawmaker has at least one pet project they want to pursue.
"With the new president-elect, it’s going to create an opportunity
for federal support for high-speed rail," Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno,
said when asked for his new year’s agenda.
High-speed rail illustrates how the post-election shakeout hits
on Capitol Hill and at home. It’s a longstanding love for Costa,
buttressed by California voters’ recent approval of a $10 billion
bond measure for what’s ultimately foreseen as an 800-mile, $45
billion project.
Congress, with more Democrats coming on board and with Obama’s
blessing, will now craft an ambitious economic stimulus package. Costa
wants high-speed rail funding included, and Obama sounds like he
could be sympathetic.
"Why aren’t we building high speed rail in America … putting people
back to work, saving on energy?" Obama said, encouragingly, while
campaigning in Michigan in September. "Why aren’t we doing that?"
The economic stimulus bill appears likely to total roughly $500
billion, providing lawmakers myriad opportunities to shovel in
other local projects as well. It will face conservative opposition
— Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Visalia, is already warning against a bill
"that’s just a grab bag" — but it also enjoys considerable legislative
momentum.
The economic stimulus bill, moreover, will be only one mark in the
new 111th Congress.
Within a few weeks of Congress returning on Jan. 3, for instance,
lawmakers anticipate the Senate will approve a massive public lands
bill that includes legislation to restore the San Joaquin River.
The bill will fund channel improvements and other work needed to
get water flowing below Friant Dam next year, with salmon being
reintroduced by 2013. Even opponents of the ambitious river restoration
bill now concede it’s likely to pass.
"That’s going to be done shortly, unless something happens between
now and January," Nunes predicted unhappily.
Another big San Joaquin Valley water push is expected in January,
when Costa said he and Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein will introduce
a bill targeting irrigation drainage on the Valley’s west side.
This complicated and inevitably controversial bill would turn the San
Luis Reservoir over to the Westlands Water District and forgive the
district’s multimillion-dollar debt to U.S. taxpayers. In exchange, the
water district would assume the expensive responsibility of cleaning up
the drainage. A bill like this could take a very long time to complete.
In still other cases, national priorities will be felt locally. Nunes,
for instance, anticipates a lot of work on health care, as a member
of the powerful House committee that oversees much of the industry.
Personnel shifts will shape agendas, though not necessarily in
predictable ways.
Obama never campaigned in the Valley, and neither Costa nor Rep. Dennis
Cardoza, D-Merced, endorsed him early when it might have incited the
most reciprocal loyalty. On the other hand, the Valley can claim some
hooks into Obama’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel.
Emanuel formerly served as political director for the Democratic
Congressional Campaign Committee under Merced County native Tony
Coelho. That was 22 years ago, so the thread may be slight, but Valley
representatives could still tug on it.
"He really learned politics in Tony’s shop," Cardoza noted. "He
understands the Valley."
The new White House liaison to Congress, Phil Schiliro, has a more
immediate California connection, through several decades of working
for Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Los Angeles. Cardoza was only half joking
when he said he knows at least the White House will now be returning
phone calls.
Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein expects to become the new chair of
the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, but none of the Valley’s
House members anticipate making committee changes or gaining new
chairmanships in the new Congress.
"I don’t think my role is going to change all that much," Cardoza
said, though "the speaker (of the House) has indicated there are some
projects she would like me to pursue."
Agendas, moreover, will be shaped by what others do. In a Capitol
Hill coup, Los Angeles Democrat Henry Waxman gained chairmanship
of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee. Waxman is an
aggressive regulator of industry.
"It signifies a turn to the left on issues of global warming and
energy," Radanovich predicted.