That president is going to put forward a new set of priorities. And members of the opposite party in Congress just as certainly are going to try to capture attention for themselves and their agenda. Conventional wisdom says it's time to engage in those few battles and otherwise sit back and see what develops. Reactive, not proactive, measures are thus the order of the day. Besides, conventional wisdom continues, policy is mainly made during the first year or so of a new administration.
Excitement is in the air.
Campaign promises need to be fulfilled. And just fulfilling those promises and hanging onto the victories could fill up much of a president's tenure. Ambitious politicians and political aides add to the early excitement as they push and shove to try to get a position in the new administration. In those early days is when the action is, it is believed. By the last year of an administration, even the political scientists tell us that the president is on his last legs.