BY LARRY WHEELER
Gannett News Service
WASHINGTON -- As the House debated the Clinton impeachment resolution Thursday, the hallways outside the historic chamber filled with the din of conversation, jumbled and amplified as it ricocheted off tiled floors and vaulted ceilings.
But no echo was more pronounced for many than that of the ghost of Watergate.
The specter of the 1974 impeachment proceedings against President Nixon were everywhere, as lawmakers tried to put President Clinton's troubles in perspective in floor speeches and as tourists tried to make historical sense of the constitutional spectacle.
To Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., the liberal who was a member of the 1974 Judiciary Committee that brought articles of impeachment against Mr. Nixon, there was little to compare.
"This isn't about impeachment," said Mr. Rangel. "They couldn't impeach Clinton if they wanted to. This is about hounding the president for an additional two years."
Rep. Joseph McDade, R-Pa., also was in the House during the Watergate proceedings. Standing in the crowded Speaker's Lobby just off the House floor, Mr. McDade compared then and now.
"Watergate was highly contentious but not as personal as this," said Mr. McDade, finishing his 18th term.
Despite the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal's personal nature, it still involves some of the same allegations leveled against Mr. Nixon -- abuse of power, lying under oath and obstructing justice, Mr. McDade said.
"There have been three impeachment proceedings in our nation's history, two of them during my tenure in Congress," Mr. McDade said. "Never in my wildest thoughts did I think that would occur. Both of them have been earth-shaking, and both go to the root of our democracy and the question of whether those roots have been rotted." With debate rolling inside the chamber, other members made their way out to the lobby, a long, narrow room lit by chandeliers and cluttered with wingback chairs, mahogany tables and ashtrays.
"It's a sad day for America," said Rep. Bill McCollum, R-Fla., a member of the Judiciary Committee. "Every day we move closer to impeachment of a president is a sad day."
Rep. Charles Stenholm, D-Texas, among 31 Democrats to vote for the Republican-crafted impeachment inquiry resolution, fretted that his constituents and others may not understand what Thursday's vote was about.
"This vote, pure and simple, was about whether the Judiciary Committee should continue to look into this," Mr. Stenholm said. "People at home do not understand that. They think it's a vote for impeachment."
Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., who was elected to Congress in a special election the week the House voted to proceed with the Watergate inquiry, found little to compare.
The misdeeds of Mr. Nixon and those Mr. Clinton is accused of couldn't be more different, he said. "I can't believe all the money and time being spent on something that doesn't look like it will rise to an impeachable offense," Mr. Murtha said.
In the visitor galleries above the floor, a group of senior citizens were among the first allowed in to witness the start of debate. They appeared impressed at their opportunity to witness history. But their personal opinions were as split as those expressed below. In Statuary Hall, a tour group listened to a guide explain the chamber's origins as the first hall of the House until 1857. But the momentous debate taking place just a few steps away wasn't far from anyone's mind.
"I think the president is getting what he deserves," said Wes Langley, 63, a retired electrical engineer from Fresno, Calif. "I just hope they do it in a just and dignified way."
Nearby, more than 50 students, teachers and chaperons from Fairlawn School near Sidney, Ohio, waited for their opportunity to hear a portion of the political speeches. Many of the students thought Mr. Clinton should step down.
"He's not setting a very good example," said Andy Vondenhuevel, 13. "He's brought shame on the U.S."
In what might have been one of the oddest scenes of the day, Internet gossip columnist Matt Drudge could be seen chatting casually with a group of Republicans just outside the third-floor press gallery. "This is great theater," said Mr. Drudge, whose Drudge Report brought the Clinton-Lewinsky allegation to the public's attention. "On the Democrats' part, it's high drama -- not for love of country but for love of manipulating the media."
Mr. Drudge said he felt no particular sense of responsibility for the impeachment inquiry now in full swing. "It's in their hands now," he said. "I just report the stuff I'm told."
