WASHINGTON, Nov. 6, 1992 (UPI) - Congressional Democrats, who have suffered the agonies of a Republican president for a dozen years, cannot wait for President-elect Bill Clinton's inauguration. They are positively giddy at the prospect.
From the top leaders right down to the back-benchers, Democrats are thrilled at the prospect of one of their own in the White House, who can bring an end to the gridlock that paralyzed Congress through the Reagan- Bush years.
They show no qualms that Clinton is a different, more centrist Democrat than most of them are; that he is an untested ''baby boomer bubba,'' without much of any experience in national or international affairs; that most of them shunned his candidacy until he locked up the nomination.
Or, for that matter, that Bill Clinton could turn out to be a taller Jimmy Carter -- a president who never understood there was a legislative branch and had pink-cheeked aides telling venerable House Speaker Thomas O'Neill how to run Congress.
No way, says Senate Democratic leader George Mitchell, telling reporters that in January 1977, ''I was not here, Tom Foley was not the speaker and Clinton is not Carter.''
Sen. Charles Robb, D-Va., who worked with Clinton when both were governors, agrees there is no Carter replay in the offing.
''I think you are going to find a relationship between a chief executive and a legislature that is very close to optimum in terms of, at least, the degree of cooperation, the degree of mutual assistance in trying to achieve common objectives,'' he said.
''And I personally think that the potential for having a productive four years is as great as any time in recent history,'' Robb said.
Democrats are convinced they can fashion a partnership with the outsider from Arkansas to begin solving the myriad problems facing the nation.
''We look to working closely with the administration,'' Mitchell said. ''We anticipate close cooperation on a legislative agenda and we will act promptly.'' Appearing on NBC the morning after the election, Foley said, ''I think there won't be any real problem in cooperation.
''We both have the same intentions in moving the country forward,'' he said. ''There will be, in fact, a Congress ready to act by the time the inauguration takes place, and you'll see early cooperation, early reaction from the 103rd Congress.
Rep. Vic Fazio, D-Calif., chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and vice chairman of the House Democratic caucus, also said, ''I don't think we have any problems on issues and positions, '' adding that Clinton's proposals have struck ''a very responsive chord'' with House Democrats.
Several Democrats, including Mitchell and Fazio, noted that Clinton has shown in 12 years as a governor that he can work with the legislative branch.
In addition, Mitchell noted that a president is a ''powerful factor in getting consensus'' and Fazio said, ''I'm sure he (Clinton) is going to use the power of the presidency and the force of his own personality to bring a lot of people to his side on tough votes, something we haven't seen, frankly, since Lyndon Johnson.''
And Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., said it was ''nonsense'' to believe Democratic liberals and moderates would wind up fighting each other, saying the factions showed ''exemplary cooperation'' in the past year.
Clinton is expected to set the agenda for the first part of his presidency and it dovetails with what congressional Democrats see as the most important.
''I believe Gov. Clinton has made that clear,'' Mitchell said. ''He has made it clear that economic growth and creation of jobs...that will be the first and highest priority, along with health care reform and reduction of the deficit.''
The Senate Democratic leader added, ''All these must be dealt with as a whole. He intends to act, and act promptly in this area.''
But Clinton's specific proposals will not be the only ones that go into the pot and then come out as the final piece of legislation.
''He is not king,'' Mitchell noted. ''It requires approval from both sides of Congress. He has shown remarkable energy and skill in dealing with the legislature in his own state.''
Cited as an example is the issue of health care, the reform of which Clinton, Democrats and almost everyone else agrees needs quick attention. But there are so many proposals flying in the air, a consensus has not been found and the president-elect is now a major player.
Mitchell, who has been in the forefront of health care reform, said it does not matter who the final bill is named after as long as ''we can adhere to the objectives, I don't care who writes the bill.''
Foley and Mitchell have made it clear that they will be open for business as soon Clinton takes the oath of office on the west front of the Capitol on Jan. 20 -- doing the necessary housework in December and early January.
If Clinton wants to signal the country that he wants a quick, not measured, start of his administration, Congress can help out.
Having control of the committees, Congress could rush through several bills that Bush vetoed last year and that Clinton would sign.
Among the most prominently mentioned are:
--The family emergency bill, giving workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave if there is a medical emergency that involves a relative.
--Legislation that would make it easier to register to vote by registering at the same time as applying for a driver's license.
--A quick re-authorization of the National Institutes of Health bill that would start several health research programs aimed at women, specifically one that deals with breast cancer but was vetoed because it allowed the use of fetal tissue from induced abortions for research.
One of the beauties of passing these bills is that they, with the exception of NIH re-authorization, cost the taxpayer nothing and do not add to the deficit.
Lost in all this are the Republicans. They have succeeded as a minority on Capitol Hill -- especially in the past four years -- because Bush loved the veto and knew how to make it stick. He vetoed 45 bills and only one - re-regulating cable television -- was overriden.
Now, however, the GOP will not have the veto nor White House persuasion and largesse and keeping a filibuster going may prove more difficult than it has in the past four years.
Senate Republican leader Robert Dole, now one of the two highest- elected Republicans in the country (House Republican leader Bob Michel is the other), said the Democrats' excuses for gridlock and bad legislation are over.
''They now have the heavy burden of leadership, and delivering their many promises,'' Dole said. ''If they fail, they are the problem, they are the gridlock. Blaming George Bush won't work anymore.''
Dole added, ''We're not going to obstruct. But we're not going to be stampeded.''
Michel said, ''Having experienced the four long years of the Carter administration, I know what it takes to do what will have to be done to fight for our principles.''
