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DeLay has a particular passion for making sure that Washington's business lobbyists, who grew accustomed to a culture in which Democrats controlled the House for 40 years, prove that they understand who is in charge now. Next to a Bible on his desk, DeLay keeps an up-to-date list of how much money each industry and interest group has contributed. He leaves it there as an implied threat to those who come calling. Such hardball tactics have earned him the nickname "the Hammer." Once when a Democratic lobbyist slapped DeLay on the back and suggested the two could do business, the whip shot back, "I don't get lobbied by Democrats. Tell your boss to send me a Republican."
In the aftermath of last month's elections, DeLay moved quickly to expand his influence and install a leadership team more beholden to him than any other member--including, perhaps, incoming Speaker Livingston. In exchange for supporting Livingston for the job, he got a larger budget for the whip's office, greater control over what issues come to a vote on the House floor and more responsibility for dealing with the party's friends in corporate America. He also helped install some of his allies in other leadership posts: he gave his tacit backing to J.C. Watts for conference chairman and helped put another colleague, Virginia's Tom Davis, into the job of congressional campaign committee chairman. That move was crucial because it gave Davis control of the money Congress hands out to prospective candidates, and there is no better way to build a power base.
DeLay's impeachment drive could lose steam if G.O.P. officials around the country make loud noises about how destructive this could be to the party, or if members are confronted in their home districts with new polls showing a public more adamant than ever about putting an end to the Beltway war. But DeLay and his conservatives are not listening to the polls. And even if he and his followers lose, there's a chance that the whip will emerge even stronger. That's the way it usually goes for the former exterminator from Texas.
--With reporting by Karen Tumulty/Washington