Dems in Congress savor victory

WASHINGTON — Reveling in their indisputable hold on Congress, Democrats on Thursday cautiously embraced their Republican foes while conceding they now share the burden of governing.

"Our joy today will vanish if we can't produce for the American people," said Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the chairman of the Senate Democratic campaign committee.

At a raucous rally Thursday outside the Capitol, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada echoed the sentiment: "It's time for results."

But even as Democrats reached out to President Bush and the GOP they also cautioned them not to test the limits of their goodwill.

They expressed hope for Bush's stalled immigration bill but urged him to pick judicial nominees with care and suggested he back off from pressing for quick action on a contentious secret surveillance bill.

"My message to the president would be: Send us moderate judicial candidates," said Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois, the second-ranking Democrat in the Senate. "Don't send us extreme candidates, because I think the president will run into trouble if he does."

For Senate Democrats, it was a day to exult in their new majority when Republican Sen. George Allen of Virginia conceded his race, clearing the way for Democrat Jim Webb to claim his seat.

Webb, a former Republican and Navy secretary under President Reagan, was cheered by his supporters Thursday when he took his Marine son's battered combat boots from a bag and held them high above his head at a rally. Webb, whose son is fighting in Iraq, had worn the boots throughout what he called "an unnecessarily brutal campaign."

Allen chose not to seek a recount when initial canvassing of the results failed to significantly alter Webb's slim lead.

Two days after an Election Day rout of the GOP, Democrats and Republicans eyed each other carefully, arguing for bipartisanship even as they pressed their respective agendas.

Bush urged Congress to take advantage of a short lame-duck session this month to act on two contentious matters left over from before the election — legislation that would give the administration the ability to conduct some warrantless surveillance on terrorism suspects and the confirmation of John Bolton as U.N. ambassador.

Durbin shrugged off the request.

"For a Republican Congress to have gone forward for two years and produced so little, and then for the president to come up with a huge agenda for the next two weeks, you have to ask him, 'Why didn't you use some of the time you spent arguing on some less important issues before?' " Durbin said.

For Democrats, particularly those in the Senate, finding common ground with Republicans will be key to moving a successful agenda.

Between their promise to increase the minimum wage and their vow to seek a new direction in Iraq lies the difference over what is achievable and what might fall beyond their reach.