Influence Alley

It was one of the best-received bits of news on Sunday, a day that saw little progress in talks to avert the fiscal cliff: Congress may yet avoid the “dairy cliff.”

It was 10 days ago that House Speaker John Boehner declared that “God only knows” how Congress would resolve the fiscal cliff. It’s still not clear. But with lawmakers still shy of an accord, Senate Chaplain Barry Black has taken to opening the Senate’s session each of the last two days with some pointed words of wisdom and requests for divine inspiration for the deadlocked chamber.

The incoming Congress has big challenges ahead. But don’t be distracted by the bright shiny objects that are tax reform, entitlement reform, and maybe even gun control. There are some important issues for the U.S. economy and U.S. industries that could pop to the top of the agenda in 2013 and have widespread implications for Washington and the country.

With fiscal cliff negotiations stalled, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell has called his old dance partner Vice President Joe Biden in from the sidelines.

On a decisive day in the fiscal cliff talk, President Obama used his appearance on NBC's Meet the Press to remind Republicans that he'll use all the pulpits at his disposal to bully them into accepting a deal and, failing that, blame them for sending the nation over the cliff. 

OK, the fiscal cliff jumping prospects are looking mighty grim, but here's something: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell says there's time to avoid what we've all been told to dread. Maybe.

It's official: the House will be back in session Sunday, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor announced Thursday.

Democratic Rep. Edward Markey of Massachusetts will be running for the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. John Kerry, whom President Obama tapped to be secretary of State, The Boston Globe is reporting. 

Hawaii’s Senator-to-be Brian Schatz arrived in Washington prepared.

Wearing a brand new overcoat shortly after stepping off of Air Force One, Schatz said he’s ready and eager to work toward preventing a year-end austerity crisis.

It seems that everybody -- your barista, for instance -- has  got somethin' to say about the fiscal cliff

President Obama is sending a scaled back fiscal cliff measure to Capitol Hill today, CNN's Dana Bash is reporting citing two unidentified sources. But that was news to some congressional Democrats. A senior Senate Democratic aide told the Alley that White House hasn't notified Democrats of the plan.

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson is stepping down, The New York Timesreports.

Heidi Heitkamp—the Democrat who surprised everyone and beat her Republican challenger Rick Berg to win the North Dakota Senate seat in this year’s election—will be an important leader in a growing group of moderate Democratic senators hailing from energy-rich states.

President Obama will soon soon be on his way back to Washington as the fiscal cliff looms, but House GOP leaders are looking to Senate Democrats to make the latest move.

The death of Democratic Sen. Daniel Inouye of Hawaii has left an open seat in the upper chamber, which could be filled as early as this week.