(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-03-06 22:37

Shift in Congress

In Congress, attitudes toward the presidential hopefuls in their midst have shifted as the campaigns progress.

Congressional Democrats had initially favored Clinton of New York, wife of former President Bill Clinton, for their party's 2008 presidential nomination.

As the first former first lady ever elected to the Senate, she took office in 2001 and quickly won praise on both sides of the political aisle as an effective and hard worker. Outside the Senate, she remained a popular yet polarizing figure.

Many Democrats in Congress backed Obama for president after the former Chicago community organizer began to win state-nominating contests earlier this year while preaching "hope and change" in Washington, long paralyzed by partisan bickering.

Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin was the first Democrat in Congress to back Obama. He did so after helping persuade the freshman senator to run for president.

"I saw in Barack special qualities. His speaking ability, his energy, his optimism, his ability to connect with people," said Durbin, who like Obama, is from Illinois.

"I told him, 'You can't pick the time. The time picks you. Don't think sitting around here casting another 1,000 votes will make you a better candidate for president,"' Durbin said.

Rep. Ray LaHood, an Illinois Republican, has endorsed McCain for president, but speaks well of Obama, too.

"Two days after he (Obama) was elected to the Senate, he called me and said, 'I want to sit down and talk with you about how we can work together for your district and our state,"' LaHood recalled, saying they joined forces on legislation.

"He believes in trying to bring people together. It's not a phony campaign slogan. This is genuine," LaHood said.

As for McCain, LaHood said: "People respect him. He's an independent-minded guy. Maybe he has blown his stack once in awhile. But John's gotten things done."

Many congressional Republicans, though, were wary about McCain's White House bid because of his temper and willingness to cut deals with moderate and even liberal Democrats.

But as he emerged as the frontrunner, they rallied behind him, including one he swore at last year.

Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas was the object of a McCain tirade at a meeting about a measure that McCain had helped draft to revamp US immigration laws.

"He apologized shortly afterward," Cornyn said. "John is passionate. I don't begrudge him his passion. He's a maverick. That's part of his charm."

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