House agenda labeled uncertain in midst of trial

On the heels of sending the fate of President Clinton to the hands of the Senate, the House of Representatives has been unable to settle down to legislative business since convening for its new term Jan. 6.

"It's hard to know exactly what the agenda is going to be for this Congress," U.S. Rep. Lynn Rivers (D-Ann Arbor) said yesterday, "because Washington is consumed with the impeachment. Every eye is riveted on that issue.

"It's really a strange Congress," she said.

"There is virtually nothing happening. There are a lot of words flying around, but there is no business being done."

Political science Prof. Vincent Hutchings said Democrats may use the impeachment proceedings as an excuse for inaction in Congress.

"It would be great if they could say this was a do-nothing Congress," Hutchings said.

"There may be a move on the part of the Democrats to adopt an obstructionist position," he added. "There is arguably a legacy of bitterness that has come about as a result of the impeachment."

If and when Congress does manage to get down to business, Rivers will address several major issues.

"I'm going to be working on Social Security," Rivers said.

"There is a deadlock with the President urging Congress to move forward ... and there is somewhat of an impasse about who will go first," she added.

Rivers indicated fields such as education, high-tech research, the environment and mental health as areas important to her.

"Education is something I spend a lot of time on," she said, adding her goal is "keeping higher education available to anyone who wants it."

But Rivers said the House has many pressing items to face before she can initiate anything of personal priority.

"We'll be talking about student loans. We'll be talking about tax credits for tuition," said Rivers - but only after resolving several other issues at hand.

She said questions representatives will be asking themselves could include, "Can we give a tax cut and keep a balanced budget? Can we do what we need to do with Social Security and keep a balanced budget?"

"Speaker (Dennis) Hastert (R-Ill.) says that those could happen, but I'm a little skeptical," Rivers said.

With the recent strikes against Iraq, Rivers said, the House will be pondering our nation's role internationally, including "whether the U.N. wants us to play the role that we'll have."

She also cited world economic issues as a concern, especially the financial crisis in Asia, "whether that will be contained, and whether it will affect us."

Once the Senate impeachment trial comes to a close, Rivers said, she hopes Congress can move forward quickly.

She said we can expect to see the impeachment proceedings "continue for at least a couple of weeks," after which it is not clear "when this Congress will engage.

"One doesn't know whether either side will be able to let go of the issue," she said.

Hutchings countered Rivers' attribution of Congressional inaction to the impeachment, saying "people have been arguing accurately that nothing ever gets done in this stage anyway."

01-12-99