WASHINGTON (By Nitya
Venkataraman, ABC News) November 29, 2006 —
With the contentious battle for majority leader behind her,
Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi soon faces another: appointing the head of the
House Select Committee on Intelligence.
The Blue Dog Coalition -- a now-powerful
bloc of centrist Democrats in the House -- delivered a letter in support of
Rep. Jane Harman of California, a Blue Dog California Democrat and the
Intelligence Committee's ranking member.
Pelosi's choice for the Intelligence
Committee isn't clear.
Rep. Alcee Hastings of Florida is in the
running. He's served the committee for seven years and comes with the strong
support of the Congressional Black Caucus. Hastings' political baggage --
complete with his impeachment from federal judgeship -- could hinder his
chances.
Unlike the leadership battle that took
place between Majority Leader-elect Steny Hoyer of Maryland and
Pelosi-endorsed Jack Murtha of Pennsylvania, the Intelligence Committee
decision is Pelosi's choice to make. And whoever gets tapped doesn't need to
be confirmed by the party.
The Blue Dog Bite
But in the 110th Congress, the Blue Dog
bite could be just as bad as its collective bark: The pack is 44-strong
post-election, accounting for about 20 percent of the House's Democratic
majority.
"We don't want to be obstructionists, but
we don't want to be a rubber stamp," said Rep. Mike Ross of Arkansas, the
Blue Dog Coalition's communications director. "We want to bring the party
back to the middle."
And on the issues, the middle is generally
how the Blue Dogs describe themselves -- they tend towards social
conservatism, but their focus is fiscal, striving for independence from
party leadership.
Where the Blue Dogs Come From
The Blue Dog Coalition was formed 12 years
ago during the 104th Congress, as a means for conservative members of the
Democratic party to have a unified voice and a vote of power.
The name stems from early in the caucus'
history, back when the Blue Dogs were just puppies. Members used to meet in
the offices of former Reps. Bill Tauzin and Jimmy Hayes, both of Louisiana.
The representatives featured the artwork of George Rodrigue in their
offices, a Cajun painter well-known for his paintings of blue dogs.
Others maintain that the
moniker implies a moderate voice choked blue by party extremists.
A Power Bloc
The Blue Dogs will be difficult to choke
come January. In a Congress where the difference between red and blue is
under 40 seats, their bloc promises to hold tremendous clout.
Leadership on both sides of the aisle have
made friendly overtures to the Blue Dogs since election day, a sign of the
caucus' steadily growing power.
Ross describes the message voters sent
Washington on election night as a clear one.
"The majority of the American people are in
the middle, in the center, which is where the Blue Dogs are," Ross said.
