In fact, the Senate is evenly divided, with Vice President Richard Cheney available to cast the tie-breaking vote. Operationally, Democrats and Republicans in the Senate will share power, with equal committee ratios, budgets, and staffing. The jury is out on whether this arrangement will produce cooperation or gridlock. In the House, there is a changing of the guard at the helm of the Education and the Workforce Committee. Rep. Boehner has pledged to assist the new administration in getting its education agenda through the House.
Appropriations also has new leadership.
A senior member on the full committee, Rep. Regula is new to education, leaving the chair of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee because of term limits. Although education played a prominent role in the presidential campaign, it is unlikely to maintain the same high profile in the new administration. Taxes, social security, and defense are likely to overshadow education as the administration moves forward. Nevertheless, President George W. Bush has identified early reading and school accountability through testing reform as his top education priorities. He is not an opponent of bilingual education and has stated that he supports bilingual education programs that work.