House GOP: U.S. Sovereignty or U.N. Dominance?

This is a philosophical battle that has divided the Republican Party at several critical junctures in the 20th century.

Carrying the battle for putting U.S. interests first is Rep. Henry Hyde, R-Ill., whose principled leadership of the House Judiciary Committee made Bill Clinton the first elected impeached president in history. The fact that the Senate shirked its duty and refused to convict the president (See "Sell Out," David Schippers, Regnery) will not alter the fact that Clinton remains forever impeached for his crimes. And Hyde had much to do with it.

The GOP-imposed term limits rule for House committee chairmen means that he must step down from the Judiciary chairmanship after serving in that post for three terms.

The fact that Hyde enjoys stature and the respect of his colleagues would, under most circumstances, make his bid to head International Relations almost a given.

But his fellow Illinoisan, House Speaker Dennis Hastert, is hearing from advisers who believe this is an opportunity for the House leadership to make friendly overtures to more liberal or "moderate" GOP members by turning instead to Rep. Doug Bereuter, R-Neb., who is backed by the internationalists of the party. Hastert is being told that if he picks more "moderate" committee chairmen, the so-called centrist GOP members will be supportive when he needs them. Conservatives argue this strategy works better in theory than in practice.

Rep. Jim Leach, R-Iowa, would also like to assume the helm at IRC. He has long been considered one of the more liberal Republicans in the House.

At a time when China poses a greater threat to U.S. security than ever before, Bereuter gets "credit" (or the blame, as conservatives see it) for crafting a compromise that resulted in permanent normal trade relations with the Chinese.

This measure was passed at the behest of the Clinton administration, whose partiality to the communist giant is regarded by many of the president’s critics as treason. Permanent normal trade relations means the administration no longer needs to come back every year and fight the politically costly battle of what used to be called "most favored nation" status for the Chinese.

That position did not sit well with blue-collar "Reagan Democrats," who helped elect the Clinton-Gore ticket in 1992, either by "coming home" or by voting for Ross Perot. Clinton did not want to alienate these people. And Doug Bereuter was right there to pull the president’s chestnuts out of the fire on this issue.

On the other hand, Hyde has said if he becomes chairman, the bipartisan Cox report, which was swept under the rug by the Clinton White House and much of the media, will be revisited. That volume fully documented Chinese espionage against the U.S., ironically including the nuclear laboratories at Los Alamos, N.M., and scene of the Soviet atomic spy scandal of a half century ago. That case resulted in the execution of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg.

From the standpoint of those in the party who put U.S. interests on the front burner, Bereuter has a "terrible record” (to quote one national security expert) in China and on missile defense.

He is also viewed as being on the wrong side of United Nations "family planning” schemes, i.e., paying for forced abortions overseas. That forcing people to have abortions hardly fits the dictionary term of "choice” matters little to advocates of the leftist agenda who are not bothered by questions of consistency.

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr., CEO of The Center for Security Policy, criticizes Leach as being "a Ripon Society Republican, a decidedly liberal lawmaker who has, during his 12 terms in Congress, proven unreliable on many of the GOP’s foreign and domestic initiatives.” The Ripon Society symbolizes the Eastern Seaboard "Rockefeller wing” of the Republican Party.

As for Bereuter, Gaffney defines him as "one of the Clinton-Gore administration’s most reliable allies on its globalist agenda in general and appeasement of China in particular.”

Hyde, by contrast, has "become widely recognized as one of the legislative branch’s most experienced leaders on foreign policy, intelligence and national security matters.” This would include his many years on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

Moreover, the veteran Illinois lawmaker has an inside track with the incoming Republican administration. He is a close ally of former Congressman and now Vice President-elect Dick Cheney.

"This is important,” says Gaffney, "since the new administration is going to need an ‘anchor to windward’ — a conservative conscience who cannot be ignored, despite the pressures from so-called ‘moderates’ and ‘centrists’ in and out of the executive branch who will be pressuring President Bush to perpetuate failed Clinton-Gore policies.”

That right there is a pivotal consideration. Past Republican presidents (Eisenhower, Nixon, and the elder Bush come to mind) surrounded themselves with policy-makers who fought out deep philosophical battles in the early years of their administrations. In all too many cases, the "moderates” won.

President Reagan had his "moderate” contingent too. But no one could take him off a steady focus on his long-range goals. A strong chairman of the House International Relations Committee could help nudge the new president in the right direction in a dangerous world.

A man of Hyde’s prestige and national reputation could help bring about an increasing awareness of the shocking fact that, going into the 21st century, America is without an anti-missile defense system. We are vulnerable to potential nuclear blackmail threats, thanks to the internationalists who preach the flawed doctrine that leaving ourselves open to attack will deter our enemies "once they see we mean them no harm.”

Henry Hyde, says Gaffney, "will not be deterred from removing (the ABM Treaty signed in 1972 with a country that no longer exists, the Soviet Union).” This treaty stands in the way of an adequate missile defense, and Hyde stands ready to remove it even if the Chinese, Russians or others object.

Here again, House Republicans have a choice before them that could determine whether the U.S. can undo the damage done to our national security in the Clinton-Gore years.

Although there was some effort to force a vote in this and other contested House chairmanship battles this past week, it was ultimately decided to put it off until Congress returns in early January. If the vote is taken after the race for the top leadership is determined, "that minimizes the opportunity for retaliation,” says a prominent House Republican.

The House Steering Committee makes the recommendation to the full House Republican Conference, where all the GOP members vote. But the conference usually follows the lead of the Steering Committee.

House Speaker Hastert has five votes on the panel. Majority Leader Dick Armey has two votes. Each of the other Steering Committee members listed below has one vote each.

You may wish to make your views known to these members during the holidays. This may be your last chance for input as to foreign policy in the early years of the new century.

Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill.

House Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas.

House Majority Whip Tom DeLay, R-Texas.

Deputy Majority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo.

Conference Chairman J.C. Watts, R-Okla.

Rep. Chris Cox, R-Calif.

Rep. Deborah Pryce, R-Ohio.

Rep. Barbara Cubin, R-Wyo.

Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va.

Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Calif.

Rep. Sonny Callahan, R-Ala.

Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mich.