Leaving little doubt he intends to explore a bid for the White House, Rep. Richard Gephardt confirmed Thursday he would step down as Democratic House leader, giving a green light to the race for a new vision and party chief in Congress.
“I’m looking forward to the freedom to speak for myself and talk about my vision for America’s future,” Gephardt said, two days after his efforts and leadership failed for the fourth time to win a Democratic majority in the House.
“It’s time for me to personally take a different direction, look at the country’s challenge from a different perspective and take on this president and Republican Party from a different vantage point.”
While the Missouri Democrat will keep his seat in the House, senior advisers said he would scale back his role in Capitol Hill politics as he tries to build support to become the presidential nominee of his party.
Meanwhile, two leading Democrats jockeyed to replace Gephardt as House minority leader. The race between a San Francisco congresswoman and a Dallas congressman underscored tensions between factions of Democrats, who are struggling to regroup after their defeats in this week’s midterm elections.
Some party officials view Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California as the front-runner. As House Democratic whip, Gephardt’s top deputy, she is the highest-ranking woman ever to serve in Congress.
Pelosi, a liberal, said Democrats need to present a sharp alternative to Bush and the GOP.
“We must draw clear distinctions between our visions of the future and the extreme policies put forward by Republicans,” Pelosi, 62, said Thursday. She was elected to her eighth term in Congress on Tuesday.
Rep. Martin Frost of Texas also is vying for the post. Frost leads the House Democratic Caucus, making him the third-ranking House Democrat, and he is presenting himself as a centrist who would not cater to the party’s liberal wing as Pelosi might.
“I think that her politics are to the left, and I think that the party, to be successful, must speak to the broad center of the country,” said Frost, 60, who was elected to his 13th term this week.
House Democrats are to elect their new leader next Thursday. The successor to Gephardt, who has been in the post for eight years, will be charged with reviving, refocusing and rebuilding House Democrats, who have been in the minority since 1994.
The selection of a House leader is also critical for the national Democratic Party. While outgoing Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) hopes to continue leading Senate Democrats, the party is expected to undergo a wide change in overall leadership in the next two years.
By 2004, Democrats will likely have a new chairman, replacing Terry McAuliffe, as well as a presidential nominee to lead the party.
Pelosi opposed legislation authorizing President Bush to use military force in Iraq, while Frost supported it. The two also have disagreed on several other high-profile issues, including a campaign finance reform bill.
Gephardt told colleagues of his decision to step down from his leadership role during a private conference call and later made the announcement in a statement, remaining out of public view as he spent most of the day in his Washington townhouse with family members.
“The Democratic Party should be about building an agenda for future generations, not just for the next election,” Gephardt said in the statement. “Despite our having not achieved our goal of winning back the House, I believe our values are right for America, and we will ultimately succeed in moving our country forward.”
Stunned by Tuesday’s defeats, several top Democrats said they aren’t certain Gephardt and his contemporaries should remain at the forefront of the party. While Gephardt has long enjoyed strong support from labor unions and other core Democratic groups, not all sectors of the party warmly embrace his presidential ambitions.
“We are going to have a very competitive primary in 2004,” said Simon Rosenberg, president of the New Democratic Network, which represents the party’s moderate wing. “There will be a healthy process to produce the best nominee.”
By next month, at least six Democrats will begin sending firmer signals about their 2004 presidential intentions. Top Gephardt aides expect the 61-year-old Missouri congressman to jump into the race.
“We must speak to our future, to Americans’ dreams for building an even better nation,” said Gephardt, who also sought the party’s presidential nomination 1988. “These are new times and they call for new ideas and bold action.”
