Sometimes in Congress, the physical size of the bill matters.
Senate Democrats on Tuesday unveiled a broad agenda for an end-of-session sprint that otherwise could be a whole year's worth of activity — including an arms-reduction treaty with Russia, a major immigration reform bill and legislation overturning the ban on openly gay military service members.
Coming off an election in which voters unleashed their fury over Washington's perceived inability to grapple with tough issues, lawmakers spent much of the first week of the lame-duck session going after low-hanging fruit while leaving a number of big-ticket items on the table.
A master of Senate procedure and federal spending, Sen. Robert C. Byrd died Monday at 92 after the longest congressional career in American history - and it's easy to see the mark he left on his beloved home state of West Virginia.
A 6-year-old girl is recovering after surgeons reattached her left hand, severed when it was caught in a loop of jump rope that had snagged on the axle of her mother's car.
FLORIDA
