Balance of Power

As if on cue, Pelosi’s office put out a release claiming the process of writing the stimulus bill “has been far more open, inclusive, and transparent than has often been past practice.” Republicans have been able to offer amendments in the committees, Pelosi’s office said, and they’ll even get to offer some on the floor tomorrow.

The reception Obama got from Senate Republicans later in the day was much better. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said Obama and his advisers “seemed interested in looking at our suggestions” and was convinced Republicans will be able to offer amendments on the Senate floor next week.

And Minority Whip Jon Kyl of Arizona said the meeting was “the kind of respectful discussion the American people expect us to have.”

Substantively, House Republicans said Obama didn’t give any ground in the meeting. As Rep. Michael N. Castle of Delaware put it, “He made it clear that this was his bill.” And none of the Republicans expected any changes before the House votes on the stimulus bill tomorrow.

But they did get the sense that Obama might make some changes to include them in the process more in the future.

“I don’t know that he admitted to guilt or anything,” said Castle, “but he reiterated that we need to work through these things.”

And Upton said he was encouraged not so much by anything specific, but by the “tenor” of the meeting. He said Obama told the Republicans that “given the choice of being a two-term president and playing it safe or being a one-term president and addressing the tough issues, he’d rather be the latter.”

Still, given the margin of Obama’s victory in November and the fact that Republicans have been on the losing end of two “wave” elections in a row, there’s only so much they can expect out of meetings like this — as some Democrats were quick to point out.

“This is one third tax cuts. I think that’s very generous,” said Sen. Charles E. Schumer of New York, vice chairman of the Senate Democratic Conference. “He won the election. To have it 50-50 is not where the election was.”

As for whether Republicans should be allowed to offer a lot of amendments on the Senate floor, Schumer said that decision was up to Majority Leader Harry Reid. But “if we’re going to have a lot of amendments and they’re just going to vote against the bill anyway,” Schumer asked, “then what’s the point?”