The U.S. Congress is fast approaching the end of its lame-duck session, and its weary members are anxious to return home for the season of good will. Now is a good time to survey the latest news to see where America is and where it might end up before federal lawmakers return early in the New Year.

Let’s start with some good cheer. This past week, seasoned political veterans of both major political parties came together in New York City to launch a movement called “No Labels.” They will focus on finding politicians “who are genuinely willing to work across party lines to solve problems.” Note the word “genuinely.”

Two of its founders are the skilled and experienced Washington insiders Republican Mark McKinnon and Democrat Nancy Jacobson.

McKinnon and Jacobson occupy the middle ground. They are but two of 1,000 founders who make up a long list of political “heavy-hitters.” Can this nonaligned movement replace the insurgent tea party Republicans? Time will tell.

One thing for sure is they’ve used their connections to attract an incredible array of political and celebrity endorsements, including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and retiring Indiana senator Evan Bayh. Rapper star AKON donated an appearance and performed a song he wrote: “No Labels.”

I hear the approaching sound of a thousand trumpets calling the hopeless to unite. Watch this one. They’ve been working low-key since last spring and are ready to beat to a nonpartisan roll call.

Next up: What’s the matter with the tea party movement? I warned, though many of you readers disagreed, that tea party candidates who ran as Republicans would have a price to pay. Now, those who won are indebted for party campaign funding and subject to the Republican leadership discipline.

The tea party patriots have found this prediction true. Before the clock strikes midnight Jan. 4, they will have circled the nation’s capitol, raising money from lobbyists seeking earmarks and other political favors.

Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank uncovered instances of tea party-elect congressmen and women, who ran on pledges of no “business as usual,” now making the pork-gathering rounds of powerhouse lobbyists’ holiday parties, or accepting party fundraising checks made payable to them but sent to a suburban address, not their home town. Hmmm.

Sweet irony. After two years of hard work to portray President Obama as a card-carrying socialist, and using that canard to justify their obstructions, the Republican leadership reaped their fruits: Obama had no choice but to agree to an extended tax holiday for the wealthy.

The rolling thunder from the conservative movement continues to paint Obama as simply “the other.” Yes, the other conservative preventing a tax increase on the middle class while ordering a pay freeze on federal workers’ salaries. Mr. President, just say no next time, and save the taxpayers from borrowing billions from China to keep your critics satisfied.

Meanwhile, card-carrying socialists are more than a little insulted by the Republican assertion that the president borrowed their agenda.

Billy Wharton, co-chair of the Socialist USA Party, told the Christian Science Monitor this summer that he not only would not call Obama a socialist, “I am not even sure he’s a liberal … “

Roger that, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

Republicans told the Democrats to remove repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” from the Defense bill, and they would allow an up or down vote on DADT. Well, they haven’t moved on it yet. Don’t believe anything the Republicans say. Now that they are close to getting an extension of tax cuts for the wealthiest 2 percent, they are still holding the New Start Treaty, The Dream Act, Paycheck Fairness Act for Women and a host of other bipartisan bills hostage.

http://www.htrnews.com/article/20101222/MAN06/12220801/Donna-Brazile-Watch-this-one