WASHINGTON — As lawmakers head home this week for what remains of summer, one question transfixes Washington: Will Democrats lose control of the House and possibly even the Senate in November, or will they hang on to fragile majorities?
Whatever the outcome, though, another question looms large for the White House: What next?
Life will certainly be marginally easier for President Obama if his party holds on to the House (he won’t have to endure a spate of needling investigations, for one thing), but either way, the days of legislating through one-party governance are most likely coming to an end. If the president is to accomplish anything significant between now and the 2012 election, he will probably have to find the kind of deal-making adversary that Bill Clinton had after Democrats lost power in 1994 — a Newt Gingrich type who might bluster and brainstorm his way to compromise.
And this, perhaps, is where Paul Ryan becomes more significant.
Full Story: Waiting in the Wings to Be Chief G.O.P. Dealmaker – NYTimes.com
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