Waxman win has ripple effects

The fallout from the House Commerce chairmanship fight will ripple through Washington for years. But some lawmakers are worried about more immediate aftershocks. Chairman Henry Waxman has a handful of personnel decisions ahead, and those calls will be based on policy as much as personal politics. Democrats allow members to bid on subcommittee leadership slots, according to one senior aide. The Policy and Steering Committee, which voted to give Waxman the Energy and Commerce chairmanship, must approve these subcommittee posts. Dingell's subcommittee chairmen are already sending letters hoping to keep their jobs so they can have a hand in an aggressive environmental, energy and health care agenda Waxman is sure to pursue in coordination with the incoming Obama administration. Most members of the Energy and Commerce Committee backed Dingell in the race, so Waxman may need to tread lightly at the outset or risk losing support from the members he represents. On a more personal level, an army of aides and lobbyists owe their careers to Dingell - even House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) once worked for the Dean of the House. And this outcome could make life more difficult for many of them. But the job market is kind to anyone with a "D" after his or her name these days, now that a Democrat is taking over the administration and the party expanded its majorities in both chambers. Waxman's win was a mixed blessing for congressional Republicans. On the one hand, Republicans don't expect to work as closely with Waxman as they occasionally worked with Dingell. But the California Democrat makes an easy target for partisan attacks.