Congress pledges to act swiftly on new federal agency

WASHINGTON -- Both Democrats and Republicans pledged Friday to move quickly toward creating the new Department of Homeland Security sought by President Bush, but challenges were emerging from employee unions and from lawmakers reluctant to give up clout.

For House Republicans, meeting the president's goal for passage this session is "our top priority for the rest of the year," said John Feehery, spokesman for Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill.

Yet even before the details were out, one senior Republican, Rep. Don Young of Alaska, served notice that he has no intention of relinquishing oversight of the Coast Guard and the just-created transportation security agency. Young chairs the House transportation committee.

A prominent Democrat, Rep. John Conyers of Michigan, criticized the president's plan over immigration issues -- saying a homeland security agency might exclude too many immigrants -- and for the secret way the proposal was drafted.

"I am concerned that this is a damage control document" intended to divert attention away from pre-Sept. 11 intelligence failures, Conyers said.

Democrat Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, sponsor of a similar homeland security measure that is already moving in the Senate, said in an interview that White House officials told him Friday to expect a detailed legislative proposal within two weeks. Lieberman said the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee he chairs probably will begin hearings before then.

House GOP leaders are considering a special committee to put the legislation together in an effort to avoid jurisdictional fights among existing panels. Yet that could have partisan repercussions and could spark jealousies between lawmakers chosen to serve and those left out.

'A significant battle'

Bush's proposal to transfer some 100 federal entities into a single Cabinet agency threatens the power bases of senior committee chairmen, who will be loath to loosen their grip. Lobbyists and interest groups also might resist change.

"This is going to involve a massive rearrangement," said Norman Ornstein, congressional scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. "You're talking about a significant battle to determine which one goes where."

Bush acknowledged the dangers of congressional and bureaucratic turf fights Friday.

"This is going to be a tough battle because we are going to be stepping on some people's toes. ... We're just going to have to keep the pressure on the people in the United States Congress to do the right thing," the president said.