Foley Low-Key : Likely Next Speaker Seen as ‘Mr. Clean’

“Tom Foley sees three sides to everything,” retired Speaker Thomas P. (Tip) O’Neill Jr. once said of the man who appears destined to be chosen next Tuesday as the 49th Speaker of the House.

The son of a judge and a lawyer who had early ambitions of his own to be a jurist, 60-year old Thomas Stephen Foley (D-Wash.) is best known in Congress for his judicial temperament--a trait that has earned the burly, white-haired politician a reputation as a consummate consensus-builder during his 25-year ascent from freshman congressman to his current position as majority leader.

Appears Slow to Act

And, although his tendency toward circumspection sometimes makes him slower to act than his critics would like, most House Democrats believe that Foley is precisely the right man to rescue them from the quagmire of partisan wrangling and muckraking that has dragged down the current Speaker, Jim Wright (D-Tex.).

“I do not think there is anybody who’s better suited to the job of Speaker under these circumstances,” said Rep. Leon E. Panetta (D-Monterey). “If there’s one man who can repair the damage, it’s Tom Foley.”

Not only is Foley viewed by his colleagues as “Mr. Clean” on the issues of financial ethics that prompted both Wright and Majority Whip Tony Coelho (D-Merced) to announce their resignations in the last week, but his thoughtful, low-key personality makes him infinitely more popular than Wright among Republicans as well as Democrats.

Moreover, his many admirers think that Foley’s skill in television interviews will enable him--working with Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell (D-Me.)--to make a much stronger case for the Democratic Party in response to issues raised by President Bush.

“Mitchell and Foley give us two spokesmen . . . who will be as good for our party as the President is for his,” said Rep. Norm Dicks (D-Wash.).

No one is more familiar with Foley’s famous cautiousness than the news reporters who cover him regularly. Although he is always willing to talk freely with reporters on virtually any subject, Foley almost always insists on anonymity whenever he is quoted. For this reason, his name is probably not as well known as those of some other House leaders.

And, in private meetings with his House colleagues, Foley is slow to draw conclusions and painstakingly explores every facet, every option. He is so methodical, in fact, that some House members clearly get frustrated with his methods.

“Tom Foley has too many hands,” a congressional aide complained. “He’s always saying: ‘On the one hand, on the other hand.’ ”

Mixes Freely

But others see Foley’s cautiousness as a strength, particularly in contrast to Wright’s well-known tendency to make decisions precipitously without consulting his colleagues. And, unlike Wright, who is something of a loner, Foley mixes freely with colleagues on the House floor and in cloakrooms, listening to their problems and ideas on legislation.

“His secret is listening,” an aide said.

That and other skills were on display last year when Foley played a central role in contentious budget negotiations between Congress and the White House.

As an aide recalled: “Foley would sit around until 2 o’clock in the morning, trying to get an understanding of what people really needed. Then he perceived what their bottom lines were and created solutions.”

Sen. Pete V. Domenici (R-N. M.), who has been on the other side of the table facing Foley in many of these negotiations, said that the Washington congressman always seems to be perfectly “in tune” with the sentiment of his fellow House members.

‘Real Asset’ to Party

Panetta, who as chairman of the House Budget Committee also worked closely with Foley during several budget negotiations, sees his careful analysis of the issues as a “real asset” to the Democratic Party as it attempts to develop a legislative agenda.

“To get something done, you’ve got to be able to analyze the way Tom Foley can,” Panetta said. “People who think you can slam-dunk issues don’t get much done.”

Foley’s colleagues say that much of his caution has been forced on him by the difficult assignments he been asked to carry out in recent years--especially in negotiating a compromise with the Republicans on the Gramm-Rudman budget-restraint legislation in late 1985.

One House Democrat, who asked not to be identified, said that Foley managed to save many social programs from deep cuts under Gramm-Rudman because he rejected the advice of liberals who opposed any compromise with the Republicans.

“A lot of hot-bloods who wanted to rush in and fight to the death would have ended up with something much worse,” he said.

Moreover, a few Democrats are predicting that Foley will be more assertive as Speaker.

“He was deferential as (majority) whip but more assertive as (majority) leader,” said Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.). “I expect that, as Speaker, he will be much more vigorous. He’s a man of strong conviction and vision.”

And, if some Democrats find Foley too cautious on occasion, Republicans find his style more appealing than what they viewed as the ruthlessness of Wright. Clearly, the House GOP leadership is hoping for a new era of consultation and more considerate treatment under the Foley regime.

“He is a thoughtful, bright guy who does not seek out confrontation for the sake of it,” said Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-Redlands), chairman of the House GOP caucus. “That is yeast from which comes compromise.”

Democrats, too, are counting on Foley to persuade members on both sides of the aisle to abandon the desire for revenge in the wake of the bitter quarreling brought on by the Wright affair. “Frankly, what we need is a healer, and Foley is a healer,” Dicks said.

Foley’s best tool in quelling partisan controversy has always been his wry sense of humor and his ability to ease tense situations by telling jokes. Friends say that Foley’s keen story-telling ability ranks him in a class with Tip O’Neill, another glib Irishman.

Nevertheless, despite his reputation as a conciliator and a squeaky-clean politician, even Foley has not completely escaped muckraking. Twelve years ago, Foley was one of 27 members and former members of Congress cited in a federal indictment of Tongsun Park, a millionaire rice dealer and covert agent of the South Korean government who was accused of trying to buy influence with legislators.

The indictment said that Foley received a $500 campaign contribution from Park in 1970, then was asked to make a telephone call to Administration officials for Park and to write two letters at Park’s behest. Foley refused to write the letters and contended that the $500 contribution was legal because he did not know that Park was a foreign government agent prohibited from making such contributions.

Eventually, he was cleared by the Justice Department and the House Ethics Committee. And even two of Foley’s former political opponents back in his hometown of Spokane, tire dealer Duane Alton and City Councilman Jack Hebner, told The Times Wednesday that they knew of nothing in Foley’s personal character or financial background that would not bear close scrutiny.

As Speaker, however, Foley is likely to come under fire for the enormous amount of campaign money and honorariums that he has received from special interest groups.

Although Foley won reelection last November with 77% of the vote, his campaign treasury received more than $555,000 from the political action committees of corporations, trade associations, labor unions and other groups. Only one other House member hauled in more PAC money last year.

In addition, PACs donated $143,000 to a special fund that Foley used to help the campaigns of 74 Democratic congressional candidates, many of whom are now about to vote on his election as Speaker.

The PACs’ interests ranged across the economic spectrum, but particularly noteworthy was $42,000 that Foley received from the PACs of scandal-ridden commodity futures exchanges now under investigation by the House Agriculture Committee. Foley, who represents a wheat-growing district in eastern Washington state, once headed the panel and is regarded as the most influential House member on farm issues.

Faced Tough Elections

Foley’s record of accepting their money appears to contradict his oft-expressed support for legislation setting limits on PAC gifts and in support of public financing of congressional campaigns. But his colleagues noted that the Washington congressman has encountered several tough election challenges in recent years, forcing him to accept money from all available sources.

In fact, Foley has told a number of his colleagues that he intends to make campaign finance and ethics reform his top priority after becoming Speaker next week. Like others, Foley is said to think that such legislation would help to remove the ethical black cloud that lingers over the House in the wake of the Wright and Coelho affairs.

It is not entirely clear from Foley’s legislative record what other priorities he might bring to the Speaker’s office. As a former chairman of the Agriculture Committee, he has shown interest in farm issues as well as in related subjects, such as food stamps.

Foley has also demonstrated an intense interest in foreign policy. He not only wrote a controversial amendment several years ago that prohibited the Ronald Reagan Administration from sending U.S. troops to Central America, but he has developed a special expertise in U.S.-Japanese trade problems during many trips to Japan.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d be a very strong Speaker in foreign affairs,” Domenici said. “He understands the world very well. He knows the Asian rim and he understands the change the United States has undergone in relations to the rest of the world.”

Jobs Fell in Lap

Foley, who first won election in 1964, has had powerful House positions essentially fall into his lap. He was elected head of the Agriculture Committee in 1975 when the House Democratic Caucus dumped a chairman viewed as autocratic.

In 1982, he was appointed by then-Speaker O’Neill as Democratic whip after the incumbent was defeated for reelection. That paved the way for Foley to be elected majority leader in 1986, when Wright succeeded O’Neill. And now he will become Speaker as a result of Wright’s unprecedented resignation.

In his private life, Foley likes to read books--he is currently into a biography of Winston Churchill--and listen to Bach and Mozart.

He tries to lose weight by dieting and by occasionally riding a bicycle to work from his cross-town home. He sits on the boards of several colleges and cultural groups, including the Bicycle Federation of America.

But Foley has precious little time for a personal life, and thus his office in the Capitol serves as a home away from home. His wife, Heather, manages the office without pay, and their dog, Alice, a 16-year-old Belgian shepherd, is always around to greet visitors.