Sen. Clinton Steals Spotlight in Newcomers’ Day at Capitol

With her teal suit in the sea of gray-clothed men on the Senate floor and her VIP husband beaming from above in the first row of the gallery, the new junior senator from New York stood out Wednesday in ceremonies that began the 107th Congress.

But Hillary Rodham Clinton, the first presidential spouse to win elective office, is just one of a record 72 women now serving in Congress--59 in the House and 13 in the Senate.

The net addition of seven female lawmakers, including Sen. Clinton and three other Democratic senators who helped push the party balance to an unprecedented 50-50 split with Republicans, is a milestone in the evolution of the face of power on Capitol Hill.

“It’s a day I’ve worked for all my mature life,” exulted Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.).

Said new Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.): “We need to be not only at the kitchen table but also at the decision-making table.”

Whether the growing ranks of women will reshape the legislative process in a fundamental way remains to be seen.

But the 10 Democratic women and three Republican women in the Senate already have met once as a group, and they could become a valuable cross-aisle link as a closely divided Congress gropes for bipartisanship.

Besides the new prominence of women, there are also more ethnic and racial minorities in Congress than ever before--63, up one from the previous Congress, plus the first quadriplegic to serve in the House, Rep. Jim Langevin (D-R.I.).

There were six new House members from California, five of them Democrats, the largest state bloc of freshmen in Congress. California’s 31 House Democrats outnumber the total delegations, including Republicans, of every state except New York. One more Democrat is expected to be elected soon from Los Angeles to fill the vacancy created by the recent death of Democratic Rep. Julian C. Dixon.

And there was a remarkable number of seasoned political veterans among the 41 new representatives and 11 new senators, in contrast to some first-year classes in the 1990s populated heavily with self-styled citizen lawmakers who had a steep legislative learning curve.

Wednesday’s “newcomers” included three former governors, two offspring of governors, a governor’s widow, 20 former state lawmakers and six former House members, including Rep. Jane Harman (D-Rolling Hills), returning for a second tour in the lower chamber.

Sen. Clinton was the focus of attention from the moment she strode into the Senate chamber shortly before noon and took her seat in the back row on the Democratic side of the center aisle. A gold Senate membership pin was affixed to her left lapel. She was cheered on by President Clinton; their daughter, Chelsea; a nephew, Tyler; and her mother, Dorothy Rodham.

Vice President Al Gore, as president of the Senate, administered the oath of office to Mrs. Clinton and 33 others elected to the Senate in November or appointed afterward. As she raised her right hand, Mrs. Clinton held in her left a Bible given to her at the start of her husband’s presidency eight years ago by leaders of the United Methodist Church.

Moments later, she was met by Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.), the longest-serving senator and the oldest at age 98, who put two hands on her waist in an enthusiastic embrace. And she got warmly cordial handshakes from the two men who will lead the Senate after Republican George W. Bush moves into the White House on Jan. 20--Sens. Don Nickles of Oklahoma, the assistant Republican leader, and Trent Lott of Mississippi, the top Republican.

Shortly after 1 p.m., the Clintons met for pictures with Gore in the Old Senate Chamber. Gore inscribed the new senator’s Bible with best wishes. The president, who held the book for his wife, pronounced himself “ecstatic” and joked that he would soon be just an “errand boy” for her and the Democrat now destined to be known as the other senator from New York, Charles E. Schumer.

The first lady was hardly the only newcomer soaking up the moment.

Democratic Sen. Jean Carnahan, widow of Gov. Mel Carnahan of Missouri, represented another remarkable story. She was appointed to fill the vacancy created when her husband defeated a Republican incumbent less than a month after dying in a plane crash. Before she was sworn in, Carnahan sat pensively at her desk twirling a ring on her finger. Senators from both parties walked up to greet her.

“I never thought I would do this,” Carnahan said afterward with a rueful smile. “I always thought I’d be an observer in the balcony rather than a participant on the floor.”

Across the Capitol, all 434 House members were sworn in to a chamber controlled by Republicans with a 221-211 majority. There are two independents and one vacancy. In the view of some, the effective total of Democrats was 210. The minority party’s leaders were irate when Rep. James A. Traficant Jr. (D-Ohio) voted for Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) as speaker.

Republicans gave Traficant a standing ovation--and then Democrats followed suit as if to say, “You can have him.” Democrats afterward vowed that Traficant, who describes himself as an “independent Democrat,” would no longer caucus with their party.

It was a day for photos, handshakes, hugs, family and vows--probably sincere, perhaps ephemeral--of bipartisanship.

It was all done with assembly-line precision. New Rep. Susan A. Davis (D-San Diego) was scheduled for 5:09 p.m. She showed up with nearly a dozen family members.

“My husband, my son, his wife, my niece, my cousin, my cousin, my sister, my brother-in-law, my sister-in-law . . . ,” Davis said.

Davis, a former state assemblywoman, said that she spent much of the morning reacquainting herself with former colleagues from Sacramento. Three other new California lawmakers served in the state Legislature. In the morning, Davis chatted with Rep. Gary G. Miller (R-Diamond Bar), a former state legislator, and Rep. Wally Herger (R-Marysville), whose daughter once worked for Davis in Sacramento.

Like a lot of newcomers, Rep. Mike Honda (D-San Jose), a former state assemblyman and the only Asian American in the freshman class, got lost in the maze of underground Capitol tunnels on his first trip to the floor from the Cannon House Office Building. He wandered all the way to the Senate and back.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Glendale) said he took his daughter, Alexa, 2, to the House floor. “She lasted from A to about C on the roll call and then I had to give the emergency SOS signal to my wife in the gallery.”

He added: “It’s just a thrill to be here. Just to step out on the House floor. I hope I never lose that sensation of awe.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Makeup of New Congress

The 107th Congress, which convened Wednesday, has seven more female members and one more minority member than its predecessor. Overall, there are 11 new senators and 41 new representatives.*--*

House Senate Republicans 221 50 Democrats 211* 50 Independents 2 None Average Age 53.4 59 Men 375 87 Women 59 13 African Americans 36 None Latinos 19 None Asia-Pacific Americans 4 2 Native Americans 1 1

California Delegation (House and Senate members combined) Republicans 20 Democrats 33 Independents None Average Age Not available Men 17 Women 36 African Americans 3 Latinos 6 Asia-Pacific Americans 1 Native Americans None

*--*

*Note: There is one House vacancy, expected to be filled by a Democrat, due to the death last month of Rep. Julian C. Dixon (D-Los Angeles), an African American.

Sources: Congressional Research Service, House and Senate caucuses.

*

Times staff writer Janet Hook contributed to this story.