michael, thank you. that is all of our time for this news hour, if you would like the latest on any stories with ehave covered just head over to our website inside story with ray swarez is next, on al jazeera america. >> they're back. 534 members of the house and senate will get back to work in congress. it's a new day in washington, and it's inside story. >> hello i'm ray suarez. the new congress starts work this week. a new senate majority takes up

work putting republicans at the legal ams of all the economies as chairs, and kentucky's mitch mcconnell in charge as majority leader. speaker john boehner of ohio will lead the large republican majority in the house of representatives, but there were two dozen members willing to stand as candidates against him or vote against him. since the democrats were soundly beaten in the 2014 midterm election speculation has been growing of what it would mean to have republicans back in charge of both chambers since 2006. it's a new year in washington, that means new jobs for 58 representatives. >> congratulations. you're now members of the 114th congress. >> and 13 senators. >> i'm going to ask you to please raise your right hand. >> it's the first time in decades the republicans have had this strong of a majority in congress. all but one of the new senators

sworn in tuesday were members of the g.o.p. >> we recognize the emorety of the task before us. we know many opportunities await. >> the first item on the docket is the keystone pipeline. many had set eyes on passing the proposed project that failed in the democrat-majority senate last year. >> there are two reasons this is the first bill up in the senate. two to reasons. this is about building the infrastructure that we need to build a comprehensive energy plan for this country. but there is another reason as well. it's about getting back to regular order in the senate. >> a senate energy hear something set for wednesday and a panel vote for thursday. president obama said he'll veto the bill. >> i can confirm for you if this bill pass this is congress, the president would not sign it

either. >> obama said he will work with republicans to break gridlock. but his immigration actions on cuba may have come under fire. some conservatives have threatened not to stand behind bane for boehner if he tries to appeal to a more centrist base. >> this is a frontier where words end and deeds begin. >> other agenda items for the congress tax reform including reviewing the tax. and trade and the affordable care act. republicans are looking to change the classification of full-time workers eligible under the law from 30 hours to 40

hours a week. >> we hope republicans will join us to achieve a better infrastructure and bigger paychecks for the working people of our country. better infrastructure, bigger paychecks. >> a new pew research poll found three-quarters of those surveyed felt the country would be hurt a lot if the two parties in congress don't work together. with deadlines like increase to the federal edit limit coming this spring, any spirit of team work will certainly be put to the test. >> there's lots in the new congress' inbox. issues begging for attention and assignments the surging republicans have given themselves. trade deals immigration i affordable care act. diplomatic relations with cuba, tax reform. plenty to deal with, and a lot depending on forking a working relationship with the president. former representative pete

hostra of michigan who served for nine terms. today he's a senior director at a law firm. and john cornyn of texas, and jim manly former senior communications adviser and spokesperson for harry reid of nevada. gentlemen, before we get to the nitty-gritty you've lived through many first days of session. a fun day on the hill? >> maybe for speaker boehner it was more tense than he wanted it to be. but maybe it worked out for the majority there was celebrations for republicans and democrats. i stopped by to wish debby dangle the wife of the former dean of the house john dingell who served more than 50 years. today is a day that everyone

gets along. >> nice to have your family there, to be sworn all that. >> absolutely. the family is there. it is a great experience, and for the new members coming in to the house and senate, just the absolute thrill of recognizing that the dream that you realized on election day in november has now actually come into play. >> tell what's it means that 25 members were willing to vote against the speaker. that is the most in a century. >> it's a dark cloud on the horizon. you know, i know a number of these members. they care passionately about their--about the issues. they care passionately about the leadership, and they want to make sure that this congress moves in the direction that they want it to move. i think that it's too early to read too much into it. i do know what john boehner will do. john boehner will be an individual who will not go back and hammer these folks. he will do everything that he can to earn their vote the next

time he needs their vote. i voted against--i voted against john on ""no child left behind"" back in 2001. he was claire man of the committee. a number of years later on two occasions he appointed me to be the ranking member for the house intelligence committee. >> this varies from leader to leader. is he the kind of guy who is not going to use that to settle the score? >> john does not hold grudges. he'll look at it and say i didn't get your vote today, but i'm going to treat you in such a way that i'm going to do everything that i can to earn your vote the next time. >> jim manly, the new leader, mitch mcconnell jumped right into the breach, and they started work on the senate side. >> yes. >> has there been work going on pretty much since the dust was clearing on election day? >> oh, absolutely. i've been reasonbly confident

that the speaker boehner staff and speaker mcconnell staff has been working every day in the last few months on the bill that will look at aspects of obamacare. it'sthere is a big massive tax bill that they'll take to the floor later on in the year. say what you will about the two folks, but they and their staff get together very well. the single most relationship--most important relationship in washington for the next two years is going to be between speaker boehner and senator mcconnell. everything hinges on whether they can work together and compromise that will allow bills to get out to the president for his significant or veto. >> work goes on between the sessions but it must be particularly acute that feeling of moment when a chamber is changing parties. >> sure, there is a lot of

optimism right now monk republicans. it's a new day in the senate. you'll hear majority leader mcconnell talking about restoring the senate. what he means by that, he intends to bring a new fresh more robust, more open, free-wheeling debate to the senate. members will have a chance to put forward amendments for the first time in a long time, and regular order in the committees will be restored under his leadership. >> will they also be dealing with a president who is in an objectively different place now? final two years he'll never face the voters again knows what he has to deal with now with a national legislature that is in the hands of the other party. we've seen glimmers of that in the last couple of months. >> i think you'll see both sides try to work together where they can. certainly the past is the past, but it's a new day. i think that there is a commitment from at least the

republican leadership to try to reach out where there are areas of agreement. >> first order of business, jim manly, they announced a schedule for the debate of the keystone pipeline reintroduction, and josh earnest announced at the white house that it was going to be veto. >> did he announce the veto on the day that the new speaker was sworn in? yes, exactly. artfully timed i'll give him credit for that one. i'm pretty confident that the--that there are going to be the votes there to get the bill out of the senate. i think its difficult to imagine that senate will pass the keystone pipeline bill. the president has announceed that through josh earnest that he was going to veto the bill. the question is whether the republicans will work together, and try to work with democrats to find additional sweeteners to get the bill over to the 67 votes required under the constitution for a veto.

if they're serious about getting something done, they're going to try to work with democrats try to find some additional sweeteners to get it past 67. if not the first of a series of scoring cheap political points. >> well, let's talk about sweeteners. we just came out of a couple of years that anything that did manage to come out of the house had was bound to die in the senate. what about the sweeteners, and the recent past history between the two chambers. >> there is less of a mood in the house to do that initially but i think that if these bills make it over to the senate senate--mitch mcconnell will be more than willing to get to the 67 votes or reach an accommodation with president obama. you have to reach a trust and develop a relationship. that happens over a period of time. the last time we went through

this was in 1995 and 1996 with bill clinton when republicans took control of the congress. >> it took awhile to work out that relationship, but when we did it was very successful. bill clinton veto reform twice before he signed it, and you're not going to see this harmony and bipartisanship on day one. it will take time to work it out, and hopefully they do because there are things that really need to happen. >> are there constituencies that need to happen so that it compromises less. >> yes, as i said earlier i talked about restoring the senate, and bringing about more of a free-wheeling open debate and amendment process what you're going to see starting with the keystone bill is the majority leader allowing an open amendment process. that gives conservatives, that gives liberals and everyone in between the opportunity to have their day to have their vote on

a particular issue. >> we'll be back with more inside story after a short break. in a few weeks the congress will take up the appropriation for the department of homeland security. supported by both parties since it's founding, and the federal department central to enforcing immigration laws, stay with us.

>> among the grievances 69 future of the house is john boehner's failure as they saw it to move aggressively against the president's executive action on immigration, effectively dropping people who are living and working in the country illegally to the bottom of the list of deportation. now will they move to block the president in 2014? excuse me, 2015. >> i think you'll see an opportunity arise in the next month. we have until the end of february. you'll see an opportunity for republicans, for conservatives to raise their voice and pass potentially legislation that would curtail the president's ability to carry out his executive order. >> because it's dhs is there some risk inherent in holding up the money for that department? because there might not be for

others. >> absolutely. you've already seen republicans make a commitment to not shut down the government over this issue. >> are there pitfalls from both sides? >> not as far as i'm concerned. there are a heck of a lot of pitfalls for republicans. i'm not sure there thanksgiving there are any for democrats. as far as i'm concerned they have zero leverage when it comes to this debate. they're destined to fail. the idea that they're going to hold hostage the homeland security to their immigration policies is doomed to failure. this is the first of a series of deadlines that will come up throughout the year ending with the debt limit in june and july when we're going to have a chance to see whether these guys are serious or not. hope springs eternal. >> you've got steve king, louie gomert ted cruz who seemed ready to do battle on this one

even if it means to hold up the funding for homeland security? >> i doubt it. they may hold up the bill or slow it down, but i can't see part of the government shutting down over immigration. they'll have other strategies, other tactics. those are still in formation. the republicans may be on the department of homeland security and funding bills maybe don't have a lot of leverage, but there are other places where they can make their influence felt. >> can they push back against executive action broadly speaking? even if they can't necessarily plant that flag on immigration? >> they can but they may pass some legislation whether it's on epa or some of these other things. the problem is the president will just veto that legislation. at that point in time they will not have enough votes to over side the veto. at that point in time they will be scoreing political points but they won't be getting things

done legislatively to change it. >> if the economy continues to heal and the president is marginally more popular is he in a better position when it comes to changing the way we deport people for the rest of his presidency? >> i got to tell you ray i think it's fair to say that he had a pretty good lame-duck session, starting with the issuance of the executive order and then ending up with the end of the year on a pretty good note. throw in the fact that the economy is getting better, as you suggested and that his approval numbers are slowly but surely heading up north wards. i think's in a pretty good position not a great position, but again, he will still always continue to have the threat of a veto and that's how he's going to stay relevant. >> the choice, as mitch mcconnell put it, as he's getting ready to take charge of

the a senate, was being a part of theparty that was not scaring people or choosing maximum confrontation. if there are some members who are eager for the second, and some who seem value for the first, how do you work that out? your old boss john cornyn is why leadership. >> yes, i think it looks at how they stand in the senate. like lee of utah, who is now the member of the majority leader's mcconnell's extended leadership team. you have rand paul, who is another staunch conservative, who is also an ally of the majority leader. so you've got i think a group of members who are willing to work together on occasion. they're not always going to agree, but i think you will see republicans rally around each other in order to look competent, in order to get

things done ahead of 2016. >> is the fine art of picking your battles different when you've got a president on the ropes versus one who has had a couple of good ones? >> sure, i think particularly in senator cornyn's case, he said often, and he is a really- really-credentialed conservative it's not over policies but tactics. but those are things that can be worked out. with the more free-wheeling open amendment process on the senate floor there is going to be an opportunity for conservatives as there is an opportunity for liberals on the other side, to put their ideas forward and have their day. >> i just realized you are an immigrant. >> yes, i am. >> you were born in another country. came to this country as a little boy. have we really had the family conference that we need to --family conversation in this country of how to do this?

until now? >> no, i think its time for a mature discussion on immigration. my parents immigrated in 1956. europe was still a bleak place 11 years after world war ii. america was the land of opportunity. then 28-30 years later they were able to see their son sworn into congress. it's a fantastic place, a fantastic opportunity. immigration has always been good for america. it grows the economy. it makes us stronger. that's the kind of discussion that we have to have about how we reshape this. i think we can have a mature discussion. and it's all about the willingness of this president and the leadership. they have the skill. they have the background were reid to mcconnell boehner pelosi hoyer. they've done this. they know how to do this. now they have to figure out how willing they are to make these changes in recognizing yes they will take flack from the extremes, but over all at the

end of this process america is going to be doing better, and they as a party will be doing better. >> we'll be back with one more quick break. when we return new senate north leader mitch mcconnell told reporters in the last few days it would be a good idea for his caucus not to be scary. what does that mean? what does it--as the senator calls it--a responsible right of senate right of majority look like?

>> you're watching inside story in al jazeera america. shortly after the senate got to work in what it likes to call itself the world's deliberate body majority harry mcconnell

has spoken about the keystone pipeline. time matters as we approach the close of the second affordable care act enrollment period is it too late to withdraw it. peter hokstra matt johnson and jim manly. jim manly since you've been so statesman like the whole program you get to open this segment by giving your republican colleagues some advice. they've got the ball. now what do they do? >> if you're at all serious about trying to get something done, you have to realize that the senate democrats need to be reckoned with. once again the house will fail

to move anything they want under the house rules and send it over too the senate. the real crux of the matter is what will happen there. if they play their cards smart depending on the issue including keystone, and revised tax, there are going to be the democratic votes to get them out of the senate. beyond that if you want to get something done, you have to work harder to pick up the democratic vote. s. because 60 votes is 60 votes and 60 votes plus the threat of the president's veto as well. >> peter hokstra people have insurance under the affordable care act. many are happy. some are unhappy but the bill is a really thing and people are living under it. does it get harder with every month that passes with each enrollment period that passes to really pull it up by the roots? >> it gets harder, although there is something on the horizon called the supreme court reviewing whether the law allows

for states that have not set up exchanges for people in the states to actually get the subsidies. i think you're going to get bipartisan support on obamacare and then wait for the supreme court to rule. the supreme court will rule out those subsidies for roughly 36 states. at that time it's a whole new ballgame and healthcare reform is back on the table. the president will have to negotiate. the republicans will have a golden opportunity to move some of their initiatives and watch the supreme court this spring or summer whenever that ruling comes out. >> i wonder, matthew johnson i'm not a politician. i just watch how people make the decisions they make in life, but there are so many people with a 24-year-old at home with a part-time job. people with pre-existing conditions people who were self employed and used to find it much more difficult to buy

insurance, and all these little pods of people who don't necessarily talk with each other, but cumulatively there are a lot of them. isn't there a risk of going head on after the affordable care act that people aren't really talking about? >> as the congressman mentioned there might not be a choice here. the supreme court might throw this issue back in the hands of congress if they invalidate the subsidies for the federal exchanges. that's a reality that the governing majority may have to deal with whether they like it or not or whether the politics are right or not. >> i know they go to bed hoping that's the case, but now you have a constituency for this law that arguebly you didn't have when it passed. >> i think you may. but if the supreme court acts, the president will have to sit down with congress to figure out a way to transition and make this work or not. >> and obviously that con sit wentcy stayed home last fall. >> you bet. >> they didn't come out--the

healthcare, whoever likes obamacare, clearly they did not speak this november. >> gentlemen thanks for coming by. great to talk to you all. that brings us to the end of this edition of inside story. thanks for being with us. the program may be over for now but the conversation continues. we want to hear what you think about today's issues or any day's program. log on to our facebook page. send us your thoughts on twitter twitter. or follow me @ray suarez news. we'll see you for the next inside story in washington. i'm ray suarez. >> coming up at 6:00 p.m. eastern on al jazeera america. both houses of congress, what do democrats hope to accomplish in the new session. we'll talk with democratic lawmakers. also has president obama met with his counterpart in mexico to discuss immigration trade

and cuba. 43 missing students were on the minds of protesters. and cyber security is a big topic at the consumer electronic show but does it go too far? that and more coming up at 6:00 >> i think it's incredibly important not to sexualize the female characters in entertainments that are made for very little kids. there is not good reason why you will. >> the actor found the institute that represents female representation on screen. >> unless a character is having sex with somebody else in the movie, most times it doesn't