Washingtonpost.com: Live Online

President Bush's show of strength in Tuesday's election shook up Washington yesterday -- shifting the balance of power, resetting the legislative agenda and ending the eight-year reign of House Minority Leader Richard A. Gephardt (D-Mo.).

Washingtonpost.com Chief Political Correspondent Terry Neal was online to take your questions and comments on the aftermath, the upsets, the landslides and other political news from the past week.

The transcript follows.

Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.

Terry Neal: Hello everyone. I hope everyone is rested and ready for a lively discussion. So here we go...

Charlotte, N.C.: With the GOP taking over the Senate, and Strom Thurmond leaving, who is the new president pro-tempore?

Terry Neal: I believe that would be Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska)

Arlington, Va.: What can we expect from Bush's news conference? Does he have something to say or is this simply gloating?

Terry Neal: Well, we'll know soon enough. It's scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. and I'll be covering it for the website. My guess is there will be no gloating, or limited gloating. The president probably realizes that that will gain him nothing. You may also have heard that he put out a "no-gloat" edict to GOP top leaders and operatives. I do expect that he'll talk about what happened on Tuesday as a demonstration of the mandate voters have now given the party on his agenda. And I'm sure he'll talk about how he wants to work with D leaders to accomplish pass important legislation for the country.

Lanham, Md.: So what do you make of Gephardts departure? Who do you think will fill the vacuum?

Terry Neal: I think Gephardt had to resign. I've said all along that none of the potential Democratic presidential candidates for 2004 had as much to gain or lose by what happened on Tuesday. If Dems had retaken the House, I think he would have shot right up to the top of the pack. But having lost seats, bucking the tide of history, it raises serious questions about his viability. Remember, Newt Gingrich resigned not only from his leadership position but from Congress too after his party's disastrous losses in 1998. I

Cambridge, Mass.: So what time did you get to sleep election night? What to you was the biggest shocker?

Terry Neal: I left the Post about 2:30 a.m. and got to bed about 4. I wrote the lead story that appeared on our website throughout the evening. I did about six or seven takes, constantly updating through the night. Basically, I wrote until the Post put up Dan Balz's story that would appear in the paper the next day. The biggest shocker for me was that the Democrats lost so many close races. I had predicted that they would lose seats in the House, but that the Senate would remain 50-49-1. I think the second biggest shocker was Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes losing to Republican Sonny Perdue. Nobody--and I mean nobody--even had that one on the watch list. Third shocker would probably be how badly Jeb Bush blew out Bill McBride. I thought Bush would win, but not by that much.

Arlington, Va.: What happened in Alabama's governor's race?

Terry Neal: There's a dispute that's still being sorted out. I don't know all of the details, but the final results were close, with the incumbent Dem. Don Siegelman trailing Republican challenger Bob Riley by about 3,000 votes. But Siegelman has charged that there some irregularities in one particular county and both sides have sent their laywers to investigate. Stay tuned...

Wheaton, Md.: Connie Morella was a very popular representative in Maryland's 8th District. Her defeat was a great loss for Montgomery County. Why do you think she lost?

Terry Neal: Redistricting, primarily. Md. Gov. Parris Glendenning (D) and the Democratic-led legislature redrew the lines with ousting Morella in mind. Her new district was more Democratic and more liberal. Van Hollen was also a strong candidate, who ran a good campaign and apparently convinced voters if they want a Democrat they should actually vote for one instead of voting for a Republican who usually votes like one (but also votes to keep Republicans in leadership)

New York, N.Y.: Any whiff of voting scandals anywhere?

Terry Neal: Well, there's Alabama, which I mentioned a bit ago. And just heard there's some brewing mess about uncounted votes in Broward County, Fla. (surprise surprise). There were also lots of reports on Monday in Maryland about a flyer being passed around black neighborhoods saying the election was on Nov. 6 and not to forget to bring two pieces of ID, and stuff like that. But at this point, I haven't heard anything close to rivaling what happened in Florida in 2000.

Arlington, Va.: Hello --
I haven't seen much comment on state legislatures -- they were at parity before the election, I believe. Did one party take the majority after Tuesday?

Terry Neal: Yes, Republicans picked up about 200 seats, which is great news considering the president's party usually loses an average of something like 350 state legislative seats in midterm elections. There's an interesting story you can see here: http://www.stateline.org/story.do?storyId=269992.

Boston, Mass.: It strikes me that Zell Miller has two choices -- switch parties and preserve his political viability or stay in the Senate minority and resist the in-state tide in 2006. Bush has shown a willingness to support candidates who oppose Democratic Senators who vote with Bush on things like tax cuts and Iraq. I don't see how staying a democrat, a minority in a minority, makes sense for Miller. I guess you have to take him (and several Congressmen like Hall and Stenholm) at their word -- that they will go down with the ship.

Terry Neal: Well, the advantage to staying a Democrat for him would be that he can be very influential with both parties as long as he stays a Democrat. Republicans will continue to seek him out and cater to him and Democrats will be forced to do the same. The same goes for Sen. Chaffee (R-RI). I bet you he gets a lot better treatment from his party than Jeffords did last year before he switched.

Arlington, Va.: I don't think that Connie Morella lost because a slither of Prince Georges County was added to her district. She did indeed lose Prince Georges but she also lost Montgomery. Van Hollen seems to be the policy wonk that Montgomery voters fall in love with.

Terry Neal: Yeah, well, as I said, Van Hollen also won because he was a strong candidate who ran a good race. He's well known in Montgomery County, having served there as a state senator for many years. And yes, you're right: He is a policy wonk and they love that in Montgomery Co.

Silver Spring, Md.: Terry, aren't we really in the same situation as we were in January 2001 -- Republicans in control of both houses of Congress and the White House? What difference do you see between January 2001 and January 2003?

Terry Neal: The big difference is that the president is a lot more popular now than he was then. He can use that popularity as political capital in a way now that he couldn't use in 2001, coming off the nasty Florida debacle.

Reston, Va.: Does anybody know anything about Sonny Perdue and why he won in Georgia? Roy Barnes struck me as a seasoned and inclusive politician who in many ways, was the embodiment of the 'new South.' Perdue, with his stance on revisiting the state flag controversy, seems to be a blast from the past. Is that accurate and if so, what does that say about the Georgia electorate that swept him into office?

Terry Neal: I don't know a lot about Sonny Perdue or why Barnes lost. He was considered a rising star in the Democratic party and a potential presidential contender one day. My guess is this: The Republican base in Georgia was very motivated and got to the polls, primarily to vote drawn by the nasty Senate contest between Sen. Max Cleland and Saxby Chambliss (R). Add to that the fact that Bush made several highly publicized visits to campaign for both Chambliss and Perdue. I think both things served to excite the GOP base, which was not going to split its ticket.

Springfield, Va.: Ralph Reed seems to be the forgotten force in what happened in Georgia. How much of his grassroots campaign on the ground factor into the Republican takeover on all levels? Is Reed really that good? It might help to explain the decreasing influence of the Christian Coalition since his departure.

Terry Neal: No question. Ralph is good. And smart. And yes, absolutely, he was the force behind the Christian Coalition. You don't have to like guy, but you have to give him credit for being one of the smartest operatives out there. He is now chairman of the Georgia Republican party and there's little question that his extensive grassroots expertise was one of the elements that helped Chambliss and Perdue win.

Baton Rouge, La.: It is obvious that the Democratic Party's vision for the future was poorly defined and pitifully articulated during the campaign. A life-long Democrat, I found myself unenthused about the candidates, even though I voted for them anyway.

What do you think the party should do to create and convey a winning message? What should that message address?

Terry Neal: I think Democrats are going to have to find their version of George W. Bush. By that I mean, Bush is basically a conciliator in the GOP. He is well liked by conservatives and moderates in the party. It's difficult to slap a tag on him. Democrats, I think, need to obsess less with who is a liberal and who is a centrist and find someone who can bridge that gap, first of all, but also put together a clear, compelling agenda that people can look to and say: OK, I know what they stand for. It makes sense. I like it.
Now that's a lot easier said than done, and I'm not sure I see anyone out there in the party just yet who can do that.

Washington, D.C.: In Louisiana, there were some three Republicans on the ticket, and now there is a runoff in early December. Don't they have a primary?

Terry Neal: Louisiana is different. Basically, they through all the candidates on the same ballot general election ballot and the candidate who gets more than 50 percent become the nominee. If no one gets more than 50 percent, the top two go into a run-off a month later. It's strange. But hey, this is Louisiana what do you expect?
(Just joking, no hate mail from Louisiana please!)

Washington, D.C.: Sincw Gephardt is stepping down, who do you think will be selected to be the next House Minority Leader -- if Pelosi and Frost are "duking it out." Will they select Pelosi, the more liberal and less concilatory one, who will try to question the Republican agenda, or will they select someone who is more moderate, like Frost, to work to bring everyone to the middle?

Terry Neal: I don't know. I really don't. There is a real intraparty battle raging right now between those who think Dems lost on Tues. because they were too liberal and those who believe they lost because they were too centrist and didn't fire up the base. Needless to say, the outcome of this contest between Frost and Pelosi will say a lot about where the party is headed right now and will probably have fairly significant ramifications for the 2004 presidential election as well.

Miami, Fla.: Do you see the Democrats moving to the center or the left after being so soundly defeated?

Terry Neal: Well, first of all, think what happened on Tuesday was historic and President Bush must be given credit for reversing the historic trend of the party in the WH losing seats in mid-term elections. But I think "historic" and "mandate" are two different terms. I think while it's fair to say many Dems are freaking out, there's another group who basically says, we did not get soundly defeated. Republicans hold 51 percent of Senate (after a net gain of two senators) seats, 52 percent of House (after picking up four or five reps) seats and hold (depending on what happens in Alabama) either 50 or 52 percent of governors seats (after losing three or four governors). I think once all the hand-wringing is over, Dems will conclude they're not in horrible shape and will get right back to what they were doing before--fighting over the direction of the party, with no one side gaining a clear advantage before the 2004 presidential primary.

Alexandria, Va.: Will the election results hurt the Clintons' influence in the party, given McAuliffe's performance and the seemingly little beneficial effect from the former President's campaigning for candidates? Or are they too valuable as fundraisers to be made to pay a price?

Terry Neal: I believe the Clintons will continue to be forces in the party. But Bill Clinton, in particular, will continue to be more of a force behind the scenes anything else. The real question is what happens with Hillary. There are some who swear she's planning to run in 2004. I don't buy it. But with Gephardt and Daschle damaged by what happened on Tuesday, does Hillary's stock rise? I'm not sure.

Terry Neal: Well, folks...I've got to jump off the machine and turn my attention to the president, who should begin speaking shortly. As always, I enjoyed our time together and I'm sorry I didn't have time to answer all of these very good questions. Until next time, take care.

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