Senate leadership mantle passes to Democrats, courtesy of Jeffords

Overnight they had moved Senator Jim Jeffords's desk across the Senate chamber and nailed it to the floor surrounded by protective Democratic desks. And, courtesy of his defection last month to the rank of Independent, at 11 a.m. yesterday the mantle of the Senate leadership passed to South Dakota's Senator Tom Daschle and the Democratic Party.

The Senate balance now moves from 50-50 to 50-49-1, depriving Vice-President Dick Cheney of his crucial casting vote and propelling a Democrat into the presidential succession. Senator Robert Byrd (83) of Virginia takes over from Senator Strom Thurmond (98) as "president pro-tem", third in line to the Presidency after Mr Cheney and the Republican Speaker of the House, Mr Denis Hastert.

President Bush admitted to the New York Times that the political landscape had changed. "But still on the same continent," he added. "The same votes. The members haven't changed." He would press ahead with his agenda.

Mr Daschle stressed he would try to work in a bipartisan way. "I think we recognise the extraordinary gravity of the situation, the extraordinary opportunity it presents to the Senate," he said. "And I think now we have to recognise our responsibilities with this new historic opportunity." He noted that before this year, the Senate has never changed party control between elections.

Senators from both parties were meeting to hammer out an agreement on the crucial issue of committee procedures. "We are fully sensitive to the fact that the votes of the Senate haven't changed in terms of the personalities," Democratic Senator John Kerry admits. "We still have to build a 60-vote consensus on almost any issue."

Control of the committees will, however, allow the Democrats to prioritise some of their issues. After finishing the education bill next week, Democrats plan to bring up legislation, opposed by Mr Bush in its current form, to protect patients in managed heathcare plans. Although Democrats plan to bring up energy soon, they will have a bill of their own that emphasises conservation and efficiency, rather than Mr Bush's focus on production. Democrats also plan prompt action on legislation dealing with election reform, a minimum wage increase, a prescription drug benefit for Medicare recipients and hate crimes, Mr Daschle said.

The changes in committee chairmanships will in many cases be stark. On the Foreign Relations Committee, for example, an avowed internationalist and opponent of the National Missile Defence, Senator Joseph R. Biden is expected to replace Senator Jesse Helms, a strident opponent of US involvement in the UN.

Senator Pat Leahy, a noted liberal, takes over from conservative Senator Orrin Hatch on Judiciary, and Education falls to Senator Ted Kennedy. Mr Jeffords is being rewarded with the Environment.