This Week’s Agenda: The New Congress, Health Care, Unemployment

The 112th Congress begins this week, and with the House under Republican control while Democrats still hold a slim majority in the Senate, many are expecting gridlock for the next two years. Todd Zwillich, The Takeaway’s Washington correspondent, and Charlie Herman, economics editor for The Takeaway and WNYC, look at what’s in store for Congress in the upcoming days, weeks, and even years. They also discuss the obstacles President Obama’s health care plan may face this year: Will the plan as implemented look the same in 2012 as it does today?

And December’s unemployment numbers get released this week – what will they show, and will the new year prove to be better times for our nation’s economy?