WASHINGTON — Soon after Rep. Tom DeLay was forced to temporarily resign his position as the No. 2 leader in the House on Wednesday, Republicans announced that it would take three men to do the work he had done alone.
The process of dividing up the Texas Republican's job as majority leader became a confusing matter, ensnared in personal loyalties, grass-roots demands and the traditional Republican respect for the established chain of command.
After the dust had settled, an early front-runner to take DeLay's job -- Rep. David Dreier (R-San Dimas) -- was relegated to a lesser role in the power-sharing agreement, and Rep. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) inherited DeLay's title and a large share of his responsibilities.
Dreier will handle the committee chairmen, keeping them in line during DeLay's absence. In his new role, Blunt will also be assisted by Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.), the chief deputy whip, in shepherding legislation through the House and counting votes.
House aides said that Dreier was initially considered for the lead role, but that some lawmakers complained about bypassing Blunt, who as the No. 3 official in the GOP hierarchy was next in line to succeed DeLay. Hard-line conservatives opposed the 13-term Dreier as "squishy" on social issues, such as immigration and abortion.
The power-sharing agreement was meant to signal the confidence among House leaders that DeLay would overcome his legal problems, Republican congressional sources said, and return to his leadership post, as no one man would be able to consolidate power in that role while he was away.
But it also revealed a party in disarray. The force of DeLay's personality, energy and fundraising enforced a high degree of party discipline. And when it came time to replace him, the Republican-led House, like most entities with a dominating chief, had no clear succession plan.
"This is very uncharted territory for everybody," said Brad Smith, Dreier's chief of staff. "Everyone is just trying to figure out how this works from a logistic standpoint."
The end result puts the House in the hands of Blunt -- a 55-year-old Bible Belt conservative not unlike DeLay -- rather than in those of a 53-year-old urban Californian who is a reliable conservative vote on economic issues but who opposed banning same-sex marriages.
"Blunt is a standard partisan, more of a DeLay Jr.," said Jim Pinkerton, a former GOP White House aide who is now a fellow at the New America Foundation in Washington. "Dreier would have been a little bit daring for them, a little too thoughtful, too independent
