Word: gephardts
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...acting very much like a man in charge. While partisans burned with each Florida ballot count, Hastert quietly phoned Democratic whip David Bonior and laid the groundwork for what he hopes will be a functional coalition Congress. He also spoke on the phone to minority leader Dick Gephardt for the first time in months and promised to work on their fractious relationship...
...Richard Gephardt used to hate the House of Representatives. It was disorganized, ineffective, boring. Even if you spent weeks whipping members into voting your way, the President could flush your work with a simple veto. And anyway, Gephardt wanted to be President. His mom Loreen has always said the Lord could open doors for him, maybe even the one to the Oval Office. But if God has a bigger plan for Dick Gephardt, he might want to unveil it now, before the minority leader returns to what could be the least effective, most disorganized chamber ever...
...Gephardt had hoped to return in January to run the place as Speaker. He sacrificed a lot in his effort to win the House for his party: to unify the ideologically diverse Democratic ranks, Gephardt downplayed his opposition to free-trade pacts without protections for labor, an issue dear to the Missourian's heart for years as he watched manufacturing jobs flee the Midwest. On corporate tax breaks, he started sounding like a Chamber of Commerce lackey in order to raise millions for his party from the technology industry. And he passed on running for President...
...payback? His struggle to win the House failed by a few thousand votes in a handful of districts. Under George W. Bush, he could be all but irrelevant, as the G.O.P. President ignores the Democratic leadership and personally lobbies conservative Democrats on tight votes. Under Al Gore, Gephardt would be a bigger legislative player but with little prospect for major accomplishments. What's more, if Gore winds up in the White House, Gephardt's chances of seeking the presidency would slip away again, perhaps until 2008, when he turns...
...bunch, a different breed from their counterparts on Capitol Hill. After he was elected in 1994, Bush forged a close relationship with the late Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock, a crusty Democrat with enormous power in Austin. But even a close Bush ally in Washington conceded last week that Richard Gephardt, the House Democratic leader, "is no Bob Bullock. [Bush] will reach out to Democrats, but they aren't going to reach back just because he's a nice...