by J. Jennings Moss
Originally published November 11, 1994 in The Washington Times.
The 104th Congress already was shaping up to be a more conservative place, but a close look at the 71 Republican freshmen entering the House shows it is likely to take a leap, rather than just a step, to the right.
“Let’s hope the 104th Congress comes back with the agenda of what’s going to be best for the American people. The American people are tired of wishy-washy Republicans and Democrats. You’ve either got to stand for something or fall,” said Jon Christensen of Nebraksa, an insurance executive who defeated Democratic Rep. Peter Hoagland.
The American Conservative Union reviewed its ratings of the returning members of Congress and found that the average score for House members increased from 46 to 48 on a scale of 1 to 100, said ACU legislative director Bill Pascoe.
But with the large number of GOP freshmen and the relatively small number of new Democrats – 13 – the average score for the 104th Congress should climb, Mr. Pascoe said. The Christian Coalition already has determined that 44 of the Republican freshmen are considered pro-life and pro-family.
“While somebody may not be with us on 100 percent of an issue, I think what you’re likely to see in this class is an attitudinal change. The guys who were elected in the 1990s are much more aggressive than the older bulls,” Mr. Pascoe said.
The new GOP class has eight women and 63 men. It also has the House’s second black Republican in the past 50 years, J.C. Watts, a former college football star and member of the corporation commission in Oklahoma. Rep. Gary Franks of Connecticut, the House’s first black Republican since 1934, won a third term Tuesday.
“Most of them come from the private sector, from the real world with real-world experience. They’ve experienced the oppressiveness of our government and they are the soldiers in the revolution,” said Rep. Tom DeLay of Texas, who is running to be House Republican whip.
Rep. Duncan Hunter of California, who hopes to become chairman of the House Republican Conference, said the freshmen all live by the message the American people sent with the election – government is too big and spends too much.
“If we heed that message and cut down the size of the federal government, then I think that the American people will allow this message to endure. If we don’t do that and we emulate the Democrats . . . then we’ll be back on the streets in the next two years,” he said.
In interviews yesterday, several of the incoming GOP freshmen said their top priority is to follow the 10-point “Contract With America” that will dominate the first 100 days of the new Congress.
Beyond that, the future lawmakers said fiscal issues take precedence over everything else. Reforming the way Congress does business and acting on a conservative social agenda also are priorities.
“There’s the sentiment to open up the windows, do a genuine housecleaning to make it more of a deliberative body where you have different points of view debated, where you have open rules for legislation and you just really listen to the people,” said J.D. Hayworth of Arizona, a broadcaster and businessman who defeated Democratic Rep. Karan English.
Steve Stockman, the Texan who ousted one of Congress’ longest-serving Democrats – Rep. Jack Brooks – said conservatism would have a new twist.
“The policy of less government is just as much a policy of more government. If you advocate a free-enterprise approach to education through vouchers, that’s less government but it also makes for a more efficient school system,” he said.
Some analysts are looking out for a conflict between the conservative majority within the Republican Party and some of its more moderate members, but several of the freshmen said the party should not get bogged down in a fight.
“If a majority of the Republicans coming in and the new Republican House do not consider that this [election] mandate was for a cry toward conservatism and away from big government, then I think we’re all going to pay a price for not being much different from the Democrats,” said David Funderburk, a former U.S. ambassador who won election to an open seat in North Carolina.