■ Comment by Clinton political aide Paul Begala about ’96—“The key to the re-election is the President’s record. It doesn’t matter who the operatives are”—brought hearty agreement from GOP Capitol Hill operatives. . . . Former Clinton congressional-relations chief Howard Pastor inadvertently confirmed that Dems fear Prez will be forced into politically destructive vetos if GOP Senate does not water down popular Contract with America measures already passed by House. In interview with White House Bulletin, Pastor predicted with satisfaction that Senate GOP liberals would kill much of Contract and smugly urged Majority Leader Bob Dole not to be “dictated to by the House.” . . . Refusal by Sen. Mark Hatfield (R., Ore.) to vote with his party—which killed Balanced Budget Amendment—has led Sen. Connie Mack (R., Fla.) and others to turn heat on GOP dinosaurs. Sen. Rick Santorum (R., Pa.) is reminding GOP liberals they would not enjoy their current power if 11 freshmen hadn’t gotten elected in strong proContract tide. . . . Dinosaurs include Sen. Pete Domenici (R., N.M.), who was ally of then White House Chief of Staff Jim Baker in trying to get Ronald Reagan to make similar pre-emptive surrender to Dems in early Eighties by raising taxes, and who now wants to gut House’s line-item veto bill; Sen. Bob Packwood (R., Ore.), who wants to obstruct tax cuts; Sen. Larry Pressler (R., S.D.), who favors a “stripped-down” (read: meaningless) version of hugely popular restrictions on greedy lawyers; and Sen. John Chafee (R., R.I.), who is opposing regulatory reform. . . . Chafee explains that former House members like Santorum just don’t understand Senate: “They see these things they believed in for so long happening overnight—zing, zing, zing, Balanced Budget Amendment, line-item veto—and everything’s swish, swish, swish. … I think they’ll come to appreciate that this is a different place. The tools aren’t there … It isn’t something where the Speaker says, We’ll finish this tonight, zing, zing.’ ”
■ Best quotes from Balanced Budget Amendment debate: Sen. Robert Byrd (D., W.Va.), complaining about GOP tactics: “This is no place for dealmaking, back-room huddles. No wonder people have such a low estimation of Congress.” And Sen. Ben High- horse Campbell (R., Colo.) on why he changed parties after back-room huddles with Dems pressuring him to vote against amendment: “I didn’t get elected to be a public doormat … if people think they’re going to insult me and yell at me and scream at me and cuss at me . . . and I’m supposed to take it under the guise of a thick skin, to hell with that. I won’t.”
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