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A Majority Discovers That the Agenda Comes With a To-Do List
· New York time
Democrats won control of both the House and Senate in the midterm elections, giving the party control of the congressional agenda for the next session. CBS News' Arden Farhi examined what the result could mean for Washington as Democrats prepare to work with President Trump in the White House. A majority can choose committee leaders, schedule hearings and bring its priorities to the floor. It also gains responsibility for deciding which promises deserve scarce time and which must wait. Winning both chambers does not, however, give Democrats the president's signature on bills they pass. That distinction turns the celebration into a management exercise. Party leaders must assemble votes among their own members, negotiate with Republicans where necessary and decide how to respond when the White House objects. Oversight and spending decisions offer opportunities for a majority to exert pressure, but neither makes disagreement disappear. Opposition is an unusually comfortable job when every unfinished project belongs to someone else. Now Democrats have the keys to the congressional calendar and a public ready to ask why the appointment it wanted is not available until next year. Republicans, meanwhile, get to rediscover the pleasures of pointing at the calendar and insisting the other party has scheduled everything incorrectly. The gavel is a fine souvenir, but it comes attached to a very large inbox.
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