DEMOCRATS WARILY LOOKING AHEAD.

Byline: Lisa Friedman Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON - Weary and disappointed after the recall election, the Southland's congressional Democrats said Wednesday that they would hold Gov.-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger accountable for fixing California's problems, but would not support another recall if he falls short.

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein was among the leading Democrats who said a cycle of political retribution following the recall of Gov. Gray Davis would only hurt California, already battered by the the no-holds-barred campaign.

``Virtually every action in this arena brings a reaction,'' Feinstein said. ``One of the problems is hyper-partisanship.''

But state Democratic Party spokesman Bob Mulholland warned that Schwarzenegger had already outlined an ambitious agenda for his first 100 days in office, and said the clock has started ticking.

``If Schwarzenegger doesn't fix all of California's problems in 100 days, then clearly that anger (by voters) could be directed to him,'' Mulholland said.

While stressing that the Democratic Party is not planning a retaliatory recall, Mulholland did plant the seed of possibility.

``It's the voters' option if they don't think the guy is doing a good enough job,'' he said. ``It's up to the people of this state.''

During Davis' concession speech Tuesday night at the Biltmore Hotel, his first mention of Schwarzenegger's name drew a chorus of boos from his supporters. And when aides and volunteers started chanting ``Recall (Arnold),'' Davis waved them down.

Democrats, Davis said, must ``put the chaos and division of the recall behind us and do what's right for the state of California.''

That message was echoed Wednesday by Democrats in Washington.

``Now we've got to look forward,'' said Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Pasadena. ``We accept the decision by the people of California.''

As to the possibility of another attempt to yank a sitting governor from office, Schiff said, ``I hope that was the first and last time we ever see a recall used in California.''

``I think cooler heads should prevail,'' said Rep. Howard Berman, D-Van Nuys.

Southern California Republicans, for their part, acknowledged that Schwarzenegger's honeymoon will be brief. But they also scoffed at threats of another recall.

Rep. Elton Gallegly, R-Thousand Oaks, said if Democrats wanted to recall Schwarzenegger, ``they had a chance to do that last night.''

Democrats also remain concerned about last-minute allegations that Schwarzenegger sexually harassed more than a dozen women, but don't think it's a smart political move for the party to push the issue.

``I don't think the Democrats should try to emulate the way Republicans dealt with Bill Clinton. They made Clinton stronger,'' said Berman.

Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Sherman Oaks, said unless the matter is taken up criminally, momentum on the allegations will likely fade.

And the GOP continued to stand solidly behind Schwarzenegger, questioning the truthfulness of the women's claims.

``If in fact he did these things, he's wrong. He should change his ways and apologize,'' said Rep. Gary Miller, R-Diamond Bar. But, he added, ``If they are in fact true, why didn't they do something about it when it happened?''

Lisa Friedman, [phone]

lisa.friedman(at)langnews.com