“President Clinton and the Republican Congress, 1995-2000: Vetoes, Veto Threats, and Legislative Strategy”* Richard S. Conley Assistant Professor Department of Political Science University of Florida 234 Anderson Hall P.O. Box 117325 Gainesville, FL 32611 (352) 392-0262 x 297
[email protected] * Paper prepared for delivery at the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, August 30-September 2, 2001, San Francisco, CA. Bill Clinton’s attempt to coordinate bold domestic initiatives with a Democratic majority in Congress during the first two years of his presidency was as arduous as unified government was short-lived. When Republicans captured both chambers of Congress in 1994 the direction of the policy agenda on Capitol Hill shifted dramatically to the right, necessitating a fundamental reorganization of his legislative strategy. The GOP’s Contract with America, and the breakneck speed with which House Speaker Newt Gingrich sought to pass the policy program, eclipsed the president’s modest legislative successes in the 103rd Congress (Gimpel 1996). Clinton quickly found his continuing domestic agenda relegated to the sidelines of congressional and media attention. Halfway through the “100 days” of the Republican legislative onslaught of 1995 the besieged president was confronted by a reporter curious about his prospective strategy for fending off deep cuts in domestic programs outlined in the Contract. The “Comeback Kid” responded lightheartedly yet poignantly as he struggled to remind the press, and the new Republican majority in Congress, of his enduring importance to the legislative process: Well, near as I can tell, ma’am, we’ve been here fifty days under this new regime, and they’ve only sent me one bill…I mean, congressional committees can vote whatever they want; the House can pass whatever it wants.