December 26, 2002 - Hartford Courant: RPCV Chris Shays next in line to preside over the House Government Reform Committee

Peace Corps Online: Peace Corps News: Headlines: Peace Corps Headlines - 2002: 12 December 2002 Peace Corps Headlines: December 26, 2002 - Hartford Courant: RPCV Chris Shays next in line to preside over the House Government Reform Committee

By Admin1 (admin) on Thursday, December 26, 2002 - 11:51 am: Edit Post

RPCV Chris Shays next in line to preside over the House Government Reform Committee





Caption: Congressman Chris Shays of Connecticut (on left) served in the Peace Corps in Fiji from 1968 to 1970.

Read and comment on this story from the Hartford Courant on RPCV Congressman Chris Shays who is next in line to preside over the House Government Reform Committee, an important 44-member panel that oversees and investigates government agencies where the outrages are aired and solutions to government problems are sought, and where the homeland security agency legislation was crafted this year.

Although Shays, 57, is widely respected for his independence by Washington media, interest groups and Democrats, that does not endear him to the Republican leadership. It's a reputation the congressman began to build as far back as the 1960s, when he was a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War, serving in the Peace Corps. What has irked Republican regulars most was Shays' relentless push for campaign finance reform. His bid threatened to undo a system in which Republicans had prospered, and it coated colleagues with the taint of corruption.

We salute Congressman Shays as one of the independent thinkers in Congress and support his bid to head the House Government Reform Committee. We are proud that he is a fellow RPCV. Read the story at:


Shays' Course Extends Uphill*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Shays' Course Extends Uphill

Maverick Ways Likely To Hurt Congressman's Bid For Powerful Post

December 26, 2002

By DAVID LIGHTMAN,

Washington Bureau Chief

WASHINGTON -- After 15 years in Congress, it should be Chris Shays' turn to become a power broker. But because the reputation he's carefully crafted is that of a maverick with a history of embarrassing his own Republican Party, he may never get that chance.

With Rep. Dan Burton, R-Ind., stepping down, Shays, R-4th District, is next in line to preside over the House Government Reform Committee, an important 44-member panel that oversees and investigates government agencies.

It's where the outrages are aired and solutions to government problems are sought, where the homeland security agency legislation was crafted this year.

"I'm next in line to be chairman. I've been the most hard working member, the most faithful to the committee principles. Case closed," said Shays. "But no, not case closed."

Not only is he carrying the weight of his words and acts throughout a career that stretches back 28 years to the Connecticut legislature, but he also has two formidable challengers for the job: Virginia Rep. Tom Davis, a darling of the GOP who, as leader of its congressional campaign committee, oversaw the effort that increased Republican seats in the 2002 election, and California Rep. Christopher Cox, who is highly regarded in conservative circles.

Although Shays, 57, is widely respected for his independence by Washington media, interest groups and Democrats, that does not endear him to the Republican leadership. It's a reputation the congressman began to build as far back as the 1960s, when he was a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War, serving in the Peace Corps.

It was further enhanced in 1985 when, as a state legislator, he briefly went to jail after refusing to leave the witness stand during a hearing on misconduct charges against two lawyers.

Shays won a tough special election in 1987 to replace the late Rep. Stewart B. McKinney, and immediately rocked the staid congressional system by publicly complaining about his committee assignments.

The pattern began. He helped Democrats investigate irregularities in President Reagan's housing department. He told colleagues that unless the leadership brought up legislation to reform lobbying and ban gifts to lawmakers, "I will not run again."

He was one of four Republicans to vote against all four articles of impeachment against President Clinton in 1998, after holding a nationally televised town meeting in Norwalk to gauge popular opinion.

But what irked Republican regulars most was Shays' relentless push for campaign finance reform. His bid threatened to undo a system in which Republicans had prospered, and it coated colleagues with the taint of corruption.

Shays' very public demand for action isolated him from the leaders whose help he now needs. The incoming House majority leader, Tom DeLay, arguably now the most powerful person in Congress, was particularly hostile, prompting Shays to say, "The one good thing I can say about Tom DeLay is you know where he's coming from. If I get a sword it's in my belly, not my back."

The ugliest blow came when Shays helped a drive to bring the legislation to the House floor with a "discharge petition," a rarely used device that allows the House to bring up bills against leadership wishes. Shays succeeded, the first time in nine years the device had been successful.

When the bill finally did reach the House floor last winter, Republican leaders did all they could to agitate Shays, delaying the final vote on his bill with so many minor amendments, it did not win approval until 2:45 a.m. Feb. 15.

The sting still lingers in the leadership offices. "The very act of signing that petition puts Shays in the negative column," said Michael G. Franc, vice president of government relations at the Heritage Foundation and former aide to outgoing Majority Leader Dick Armey. "By doing that, you're essentially handing the gavel to the minority."

Yet Shays' drive for a committee chairmanship still has some hope.

Those close to him know him as a warm, smart, serious legislator who was close to former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. When Gingrich became mired in ethical trouble, Shays was one of his earliest and most outspoken defenders. Similarly, when Republicans were searching for a Gingrich successor in 1998, Shays was one of the first to hit the phones on behalf of current Speaker Dennis Hastert, who won.

Shays has been an important team player on the government reform committee, presiding over its national security subcommittee, often regarded as a legislative backwater, a place to stick members who don't conform to leaders' wishes or who don't want the rigors of figuring out money bills or foreign policy.

Shays, though, has always liked the committee and made its work his top priority. Long before Sept. 11, 2001, Shays' panel held a lengthy series of hearings on terrorist threats in this country.

"You can't question my work as a team player," he said. He argued his work on terrorist issues, and his expertise on how to organize the homeland security agency, could make him an important player. "The one thing I will explain is that I've put my time in. This is where my love for the House is. This is where my skills are apparent," he said.

Shays' fate officially will be determined by the House Republican Steering Committee Jan. 5 , but it's really up to the speaker and other top leaders.

They might be inclined to stick with him for some non-quantifiable reasons: By making him part of the leadership team, it could be harder for him to cause mischief, and by skipping over him, leaders risk angering the other committee members who would be passed over in favor of Davis, who is far below Shays in seniority, or Cox, who isn't even on the panel now.

Shays puts the odds of his winning at 50-50, but veteran observers warn this choice is so secret, so private that no one may ever know how the drama unfolds.

"It's hard to make the case Shays has been a disloyal Republican," said American Enterprise Institute political analyst Norman Ornstein, "and a lot of people are wary about going against the seniority system."

On the other hand, he said, "if Republicans are annoyed with Chris for his role in campaign finance, rewarding Tom Davis is a convenient excuse."
Read these other stories about RPCV Congressman Chris Shays



Read more about RPCV Congressman Chris Shays and his wife Betsi Shays who served with him on Fiji and currently works at the Peace Corps as Director of the Center for Field Assistance and Applied Research at:




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