Time takes a look at Congress's independent agenda for 2009: Much, of course, will depend on the whims and will of the president, but not all. The Children's Health Insurance Program, for instance, is likely to be expanded regardless of who captures the presidency. NCLB is coming for an overhaul one way or the other. With both Obama and McCain willing to sign energy legislation, the big fights over the shape of cap-and-trade legislation may well be between congressional powerbrokers, not, as we've grown accustomed to, branches of government. As a sort of general note on all this, Congress gets far less attention in the media than it deserves. Over at RealClearPolitics, the day's headlines include 12 articles about the presidential campaign, and only one about Congress. And the one about Congress is "Sex Trumps Corruption on Senate Sin List." You don't have to search long for the reason: The presidential race is far more dramatic than the backroom maneuverings of legislators. And so far as it goes, I'm part of the problem on this. But Congress really is important, and though liberals spent the last few years finding that the president stood in the way of their agenda, if Obama is elected, they'll quickly find that fissures and divisions internal to the institution are the primary roadblock to change.
