Congress returns to deal with big issues, big goals

WASHINGTON (AP) — So far this year, Congress has done what it does best — spend a lot of money and make a lot of promises.

Now, as lawmakers return from a two-week spring break, comes the hard part, the actual crafting of legislation that will change how banks are regulated, health care is delivered and the nation consumes energy.

In the next five weeks, much of the action will come not in the full House or Senate, but in committee rooms.

The Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday conducts the first of several public discussions on the seminal issue of this congressional session, overhauling the health-care system. The House Energy Committee is expected to vote soon on climate change legislation that could include a cap-and-trade system for carbon emissions.

The House Financial Services Committee could vote in early May on far-reaching new rules aimed at averting a repeat of the financial meltdown, according to the chairman, Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass.

“We’re laying the groundwork for the expected battles to come on energy, education and health care,” said Jim Manley, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.

Over the first months of this session, the first in 14 years with Democrats controlling the White House and both chambers of Congress, Democrats gave President Barack Obama a $787 billion economic stimulus, package and a $410 billion spending bill for this budget year.