Montana Congressman Denny Rehberg held a conference call with reporters last week in what was billed as an opportunity to discuss priorities in the upcoming lame-duck session. The Republican, who trounced his Democratic opponent Dennis McDonald with more than 60 percent of the vote, mostly stuck to three main issues: budgets, taxes and wolves. Meanwhile, what Rehberg’s individual future holds is far less succinct.
First, to those legislative priorities. Congress reconvened this week with a Democratic majority that just got shellacked at the polls and a Republican majority waiting to take over the House in January – this is an especially lame duck. Every politician has his or her own agenda as to what should be accomplished over the next few weeks, but most would agree with Rehberg’s assessment that the budget and tax cuts loom largest.
Congress has failed to pass any of the dozen bills required to fund discretionary programs in fiscal 2011. If it doesn’t take action before Dec. 3 it could lead to a government shutdown. That would be fun.
Then there’s the so-called “Bush tax cuts,” which have divided Republicans who want to extend them all and some Democrats, including President Barack Obama, who want to extend them only for individuals earning less than $200,000 and families making less than $250,000 annually.
Rehberg said he would like to see “all of the tax cuts extended and would like to see that done permanently.” If a deal can’t be reached between the two parties, just about all of our taxes will increase next year. If a deal happens, Congress still has to find a way reduce the deficit, a prime concern of Tea Party and conservative voters who are largely responsible for the Republican sweep.
Rehberg said he would like to roll back spending to 2008 levels and push for “spending reform” that scrutinizes more closely government programs. But if the deficit reduction commission’s latest proposal is any indication, getting a handle on the budget, regardless of method, won’t be easy. So far, the report has received tepid support from party members on the left and the right.
Finally, there is the issue of wolves, which a federal judge returned to Endangered Species Act protections earlier this year, and is certainly more of a regional priority than the two others. Rehberg supported a resolution introduced by Democratic Congressman Chet Edward that would prohibit wolves from being considered threatened species. But Edwards, like a number of so-called “blue dog” Democrats, was defeated on Nov. 2. The loss of moderates is one of the reasons Rehberg predicts when the balance of power shifts in the House “what you are going to see is probably a fairly contentious Democrat minority.”
Rehberg, himself, is never one to withhold criticism of his political opponents and may also have earned some political capital entering his sixth term. But when asked about committee assignments and leadership roles, Rehberg argued that he would have more clout remaining a member of the powerful House Appropriations Committee than to chair an obscure subcommittee.
So, what does his future hold? There’s the 2012 Senate race. Bozeman businessman Steve Daines has declared he will challenge Democratic Sen. Jon Tester and said he had talked to Rehberg about it. But in an interview with Lee Newspapers, Rehberg refused to rule out a run for that seat or any other.
“If I feel I’ve done as much as I can in the House and there’s more I can do somewhere else, I’m not going to rule anything out,” he said. “If I talk to Montanans and I say the governor or senators of Montanans aren’t doing their jobs, I hope they’ll listen to me as well.”
For now, Rehberg is leaving all his options on the table. And among state Republicans, he certainly has the most.