The Foreign Service Journal, February 2007

a political buzzsaw, however, partic- ularly in the Senate, where they have just a one-seat margin. The recent health concerns of Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., have shown just how tenuous a grip on power they have there. Even in the House, where Democrats will have a 233- 202 edge, their majority may be vul- nerable on some issues. Lantos, the House veteran, con- cedes Democrats will have plenty of work ahead just to reach agreement among themselves. “Our goal is to be as united as possible. It’s quite obvious it will not be 100 percent; it never will be with [233 Democratic] members,” he adds. It’s also far from certain that the Bush administration, including Rice, will heed the advice of lawmakers, partic- ularly because Congress seems unlikely to force the exec- utive’s hand by withholding spend- ing. (This is particularly true when it comes to the Iraq War.) Indeed, the White House has already proven its readiness to lock horns with Democrats. After a group of lawmakers traveled to the Middle East to encourage diplomatic talks with Syria in December, the Bush administration criticized several senators for conducting “freelance diplomacy” and reiterated that it has no plans to resume talks with Damascus. Still, it seems indisputable that the newly ascendant Democrats plan to make full use of their authority to conduct oversight, hold hearings and examine the views of Bush administration nominees. So at a minimum, the White House will have to take con- gressional views more seriously than hitherto. F O C U S F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 7 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 27 Sen. Joseph Biden maintains that the November elections show that “the American people rejected the Bush administration’s failed policy in Iraq.”