Freshmen Learning the House Rules

There is a former Golden Gloves boxer. A dress shop owner. And a runner who held the world record in the mile. Six dozen in all, they hail from places like Niangua, Mo., Sparks, Nev., and the San Fernando Valley.

They are the newest members of the House of Representatives and they are here this week for a crash course in Congress, one that covers far more ground than how a bill becomes a law. From the intricacies of ethics rules to the offerings in the House gym, there is clearly a lot to learn.

When not sitting in daylong seminars, the newcomers--Republican James E. Rogan of Glendale and Democrat Brad Sherman of Sherman Oaks among them--have toured the maze-like Capitol, searched out living quarters, met their classmates and hired the all-important aides who will burn the midnight oil on their behalf.

The freshmen range in age from Generation X to the golden years, yet they are quickly distinguishable from the many other suited folks ambling around Capitol Hill. Besides their disoriented expressions, each wears a big badge--printed in red, white and blue--declaring them members-elect.

For Sherman, elected to replace retiring Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Woodland Hills), the most surreal moment of freshman orientation may have come when House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who might be viewed as slightly thick around the middle, lectured the congressional newcomers on the virtues of physical fitness.

“Newt doesn’t look like he’s in better shape than I am and I’ve lived on pizza for the last 10 months,” said Sherman, a member of California’s State Board of Equalization. Still exhausted from his campaign, Sherman said he was listening to everything but taking some advice--such as Gingrich’s fitness tips--with a grain of salt.

Rogan, a California assemblyman who is replacing Rep. Carlos J. Moorhead (R-Glendale), had a different first impression of Gingrich.

As the GOP freshmen introduced themselves one by one and talked about the hot issues back home, Rogan noticed that Gingrich scribbled on a legal pad throughout and had filled 14 pages by the time the four-hour caucus was done. The lesson: A voting bloc of 74, no matter how junior, is not something to be taken for granted.

The Class of ’96 is full of overachievers, high school class president types, ambitious people who reach out, grab one’s hand and squeeze it with all their might. Surveying those around him, Sherman said he feels right at home.

“Basically, the average member of the freshman class is a white guy in his early 40s or mid-40s with some government experience and some private experience, wearing a blue sports coat and a red tie,” said Sherman, who happens to be a white guy in his early 40s with some government experience and some private experience who was wearing a blue sports coat and a red tie.

Appearances aside, the newcomers come to the job with varying backgrounds. Sherman, for instance, has never boxed, owned a dress shop or run a sub-four-minute mile like his new colleagues, Rod Blagojevich (D-Ill.), Julia Carson (D-Ind.) and Jim Ryun (R-Kan.).

And although Sherman and Rogan’s districts lie just miles apart, the two Southern Californians sit at quite different points on the political spectrum--Sherman over to the left and Rogan over to the right.

In the congressional hierarchy, however, the contrasting backgrounds and ideologies do not change the fact that all the newcomers are freshmen--as low as one can go in the seniority-based House.

That means few of them will likely be satisfied when the committee assignments are doled out, beginning today. Rogan is pushing for seats on the same committees--Commerce and Judiciary--that Moorhead used to represent his district’s entertainment industry. Those panels, however, are among the most sought after in the House.

Sherman, a tax lawyer by training, says his expertise would fit best with the Banking, Commerce or Ways and Means committees, all popular panels as well.

“If I’m not on one of those three, then my experience is not being fully utilized,” Sherman said. Yet realizing that he may not get any of his top picks, Sherman has some alternatives in mind.

Each newcomer has a different relationship with the man or woman he or she is replacing. Among the five new Californians, three knocked off incumbents in tough election battles while Sherman and Rogan replaced similarly minded retirees.

Do not expect to hear Democrat Loretta Sanchez raving about the job that outgoing Rep. Robert K. Dornan (R-Garden Grove) did. Or Democrat Walter Capps heaping praise on defeated Rep. Andrea Seastrand (R-Shell Beach). Or Democrat Ellen Tauscher going out of her way to plug Rep. Bill Baker (R-Danville).

But Sherman and Rogan cannot seem to say enough about those who came before them.

“On most issues I plan to follow in his footsteps,” Sherman said of Beilenson. “It will be a long time before I fill his shoes.”

Rogan said he feels similarly about Moorhead, the dean of the state’s Republicans.

“He may not have gotten his name in the paper as much as others. He may not have gotten his face on C-SPAN or ‘Crossfire,’ ” Rogan said. “But he leaves a legacy just the same.”

How well all the new and diverse personalities will mesh is anybody’s guess.

Unlike the furiously partisan freshmen of the 104th Congress, these newcomers appear to be a different breed. After huddling in the cold one morning for their freshman class picture, the Democrats and Republicans could be seen chatting amiably among themselves, shaking hands and essentially ignoring the Rs and Ds on their name tags.

The harmonious session ended abruptly, however, when lawmakers hustled off to their party caucuses--the Democrats in one building, the Republicans in another.

“I think this is going to be an exciting two-year period,” said Rogan, who was known for reaching out to Democrats in the state Assembly. “There is a lot of energy in the class on both sides. What I’m hearing is people want to work together. We’ll see.”