Bigger office, bigger voice

Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2006 | 7:08 a.m.

WASHINGTON - After slugging out a career in the minority party as a junior member of Congress, Rep. Shelley Berkley returns to Washington next year with new clout.

As Nevada's senior member of the House, she gets a bigger office - California Republican Mary Bono's old place - and a better opportunity to influence policy. And being friends with Senate Majority Leader-elect Harry Reid won't hurt.

"Shelley will emerge as a significant legislator," said one longtime Nevada lobbyist. "She will be enhanced herself - just because of her ability to place a phone call to Harry Reid I think Shelley is poised to do very well."

Berkley said Tuesday that her agenda starts with pushing back the Bush administration's plans to try to claim hundreds of millions of dollars from federal land sales in Nevada. Currently, those proceeds remain in the state for conservation, education, water and other uses.

She said she plans to reintroduce legislation, which languished in the Republican Congress, opposing nuclear energy and an Internet gambling study bill that went nowhere this year.

Berkley said she also plans to use her position to forge a better relationship among Nevada's House members - Republicans Jon Porter, an incumbent who represents suburban Las Vegas, and Dean Heller, a newcomer whose district encompasses most of the state outside Southern Nevada. Nevada lawmakers tend to work together on local issues, despite their party differences. But they never had strong rapport with Rep. Jim Gibbons, now the Republican governor-elect.

House members working together can have more influence on behalf of the state, she said.

"While nobody is happier than I am that Harry Reid is in that position, we all have to step up to the plate," she said.

Berkley, however, does have a little baggage now that California Democrat Nancy Pelosi is to become House speaker. Berkley supported Pelosi's opponent in a leadership race some years ago and is still working to mend relations.

Porter will have a tougher time in the new Congress.

In winning a third term, the congressman had been poised to start capitalizing on his loyalty to House Majority Leader John Boehner. But then came the party's reversal in the elections.

Porter has no ally in Reid. He put himself in Reid's cross hairs earlier this year when he attacked the Senate majority leader-elect over donations from clients of disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Then he ran a bruising re-election campaign against Reid's former press aide.

After winning his seat by less than 2 percent of the vote, Porter may no longer be safe enough in his district to work as a Republican go-to guy - as he was when he changed his position on the House floor a few years ago, handing Republicans a victory. Porter still hopes to win a coveted seat on the Ways and Means committee - as does Berkley.

Porter faces a career juncture, political observers said. He can stand with the Republican leadership or maneuver around fractures in the party .

"Maybe it's time to take a chance," said Eric Herzik, a UNR political science professor. "If he rolls into 2008 as just a straight party-line guy and the dynamic doesn't change very much, that's going to be a problem."

Porter said in an interview Tuesday that he understands voters "are not happy with business as usual." But he does not agree with the view of his past role in Congress. "I've always been independent," he said. "The only thing I see changing is titles of leadership."

Both he and Heller said they are willing to consider Democratic agenda items such as increasing the minimum wage - if it comes with protections for small businesses. Porter said closing the Medicare gap as Democrats propose has been one of his priorities.

Heller is still sorting his views on the Democratic agenda. But he said he knows one thing for sure - his party has "lost its way" on core issues such as fiscal discipline and ethics.

"My job the next couple of years is to do as good a constituent work as I can and keep an ear open," said Heller. "I think the key for me is to do a lot of listening rather than a lot of talking."