Congress returns to work this week with every indication that both Republican and Democratic leaders believe that voters support their agenda.
Democrats especially are dismissive of claims that voters rejected their party’s agenda, including health care reforms, an economic stimulus and other programs, when they turned Democrats out of office in historic numbers Nov. 2.
“The reason the election results are what they are is because we have 9.5 percent unemployment in our country,” outgoing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said. “We didn’t lose the election because of me.”
Pelosi’s remarks, made to National Public Radio last week, echoed what President Obama has been saying since voters delivered control of the House to Republicans and narrowed the Democrats’ majority in the Senate.
Obama appeared to give tacit approval of Pelosi remaining as the leader of House Democrats despite losing the speakership, calling her an “outstanding partner” in passing his agenda. The president also praised Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who will retain his position after narrowly winning re-election in Nevada, as a “terrific partner.”
Some Democrats have called for a new leadership team — particularly a replacement for Pelosi — in response to what some see as voters’ repudiation of the party’s agenda. Obama suggested that any change in leadership would be evolutionary rather than immediate.
“I think that what we will naturally see is a whole bunch of talented people rise to the top as they promote good ideas that attract the American people,” Obama said at the G-20 summit in Seoul, South Korea.
Though a majority of voters told pollsters on Election Day that they disapproved of the job both the White House and Congress have been doing, neither has given any indication that it plans to do much differently when the new Congress convenes in January.
Republicans aren’t off the hook, either. Their priorities include repealing health care reform and slashing federal spending. They also have an intraparty battle brewing over earmarks, the practice of channeling money to lawmakers’ pet projects without public review.
Heading back to Washington for the year-ending, lame-duck session of Congress, Republican leaders said they believe voters rejected Democratic policies in favor of the conservative agenda.
“I think it’s important to listen to the American people,” said House Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio.
Even so, a new national survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press shows there’s also a general lack of public enthusiasm for the Republicans.
Just 48 percent of Americans are happy that Republicans won control of the House. Four years ago, 60 percent told Pew they were happy when Democrats won the House in the 2006 midterms.
The new survey found Republicans short of a mandate, with 41 percent saying they approve of Republicans’ legislative agenda, while nearly as many, 37 percent, disapprove.
The results underscore the prevailing theory of analysts after the election that the results showed voters didn’t like what Democrats were doing, but weren’t so enamored of Republicans, either.
Just 22 percent expect relations between the two parties will improve, according to Pew. Twenty-eight percent believe they will get worse, and 48 percent expect they will stay about the same.
“I think voters actually prefer gridlock right now,” said Matt Mackowiak, a Republican strategist. “They have seen what action brings, and they’re thinking maybe inaction would be good for a while.”
