WASHINGTON — The first item of business on the Senate’s calendar when it returns from vacation after Labor Day will be the bill to create a Department of Homeland Security and to restructure the executive branch for better coordination of the war against terrorism.
The work awaits the Senate largely because one man, Democratic Sen. Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia, employed his knowledge of arcane Senate procedures to thwart the White House’s ambition to have the measure passed during the last few days it was in session before its August holiday.
To judge from much of the commentary, this is just one more example of a stiff-necked Senate elder demonstrating the capacity of a single legislator to demand a ransom from the nation for allowing an essential piece of work to go forward. But there is much more to the story than that.
What Byrd understands — and said, in a series of speeches — is that the reorganization plan embodies an enormous grant of presidential power: control of 170,000 federal jobs and a big chunk of future budgets. The pending bill presents the best, if not the last, opportunity for Congress to assure itself that power is exercised responsibly.
That is not to say that what President Bush is seeking is wrong. It is worth remembering that the impetus for the new department was forming among thoughtful members of Congress of both parties even before Sept. 11 and well before Bush acknowledged last spring that it might be a good idea.
But because its mission is so important and its scale is so large, it is worth taking the time to get it right. Having the bill on the president’s desk by the symbolic first anniversary of the terrorist attacks is much less vital than making the design as careful as it can be. Realistically, the new department will take months to staff at the top and years before its component parts really mesh — if they ever do. A few weeks’ difference in the signing ceremony will be of little consequence.
The draft of the Senate version, introduced by Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, consumes 37 closely printed pages in the Congressional Record. Its 24 titles specify everything from the creation of an official seal for the new department to the requirements for its training programs and the provisions for compensatory time for employee travel.
The House of Representatives did yeoman work before passing the bill by a wide margin after two nights and one day of debate late in July. Crafting the bill engaged some of the most serious members of the House and some of the ablest staff members for over a month.
No one did more useful service than Republican Majority Leader Dick Armey of Texas, who is retiring this year. If Armey at times in the past has seemed petty or ham-handed, his handling of this assignment redeemed his reputation. He was fair to everyone, but he kept the process moving.
Armey was joined by some of the most skillful and experienced legislators in both parties, among them Republicans Rob Portman of Ohio, Chris Shays of Connecticut and Curt Weldon of Pennsylvania, Democrats Nancy Pelosi, Jane Harman and Henry Waxman, all of California, and Tim Roemer of Indiana, another soon to retire.
The amendments they debated were anything but frivolous; the theme was how to balance the need for efficiency with the assurance of accountability and the protection of employee and citizen rights. Partisan considerations certainly came into play: Armey was protecting the president’s position; the Democrats were listening to public employee unions. But the discussion was serious and some of the votes very close.
Because the debate was truncated by House rules and the hours were late, little of it reached the public. If the Senate spends some days on it, a broader audience will become aware of what is being planned. Even more than in traditional parts of the bureaucracy — say Treasury or State — the success of the Department of Homeland Security will ultimately depend on the understanding and support of state and local governments — the "first responders" — and the cooperation of individual citizens.
Sen. Byrd is right to say this is not an issue on which to rush. He has done the country a service by forcing the process to slow down.
David Broder can be reached at The Washington Post Writers Group, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, DC 20071-9200.
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