Ridge was scheduled to spend much of Thursday on Capitol Hill, appearing first before the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee and later testifying at the House Government Reform Committee about the president's proposal for a Homeland Security Department.
Among the issues expected to come up are how the new agency will gather and analyze intelligence from the CIA, FBI and others; whether the huge reorganization will cost or save money; and how it might affect federal worker benefits and rights.
Up to now, Ridge has confined his briefings to groups of House and Senate members behind closed doors. The White House had rejected repeated Senate entreaties that Ridge testify, arguing that as a confidential counselor to President Bush he was not required to.
Bush's wish for congressional passage of his plan this year requires greater cooperation with lawmakers, something Ridge alluded to in an appearance earlier this week.
"I believe the most historic partnership that we need to forge, and I think we're well along our way, is the partnership between the executive branch and the legislative branches of government," he said.
His appearances followed House passage Wednesday of a resolution creating a bipartisan, nine-member committee of senior lawmakers to oversee the bill. The panel, chaired by Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas, is important because it will cut through the jurisdictions of multiple existing committees.
The special committee will be responsible for assembling the final Homeland Security bill before it reaches the House floor, after taking recommendations from several existing committees. Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., set an aggressive timetable for those recommendations to be made by July 12, with floor debate on the entire bill planned the week of July 21.
Despite broad support for the president's plan, some lawmakers question whether the House is moving too fast to transfer 100 federal entities and about 170,000 employees into a single Cabinet agency with important new intelligence analysis duties.
"I have great reservations about what I consider to be a rush to judgment on this issue," said Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md.
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