Defense News reports that “the Republican-controlled Congress and Democratic President Barack Obama have a shot at working together on defense issues, but experts caution against expecting quick results.”  

“When the next Congress is seated in January, Republicans will have at least 52 seats. But that’s still well short of the 60 votes required in the chamber to end debate on legislation such as annual Pentagon spending and authorization bills and then move to a final vote. So the two parties will have to agree on thorny issues, while keeping in mind what it will take to avoid Obama’s veto pen.”  

“Daniel Franklin, a political science professor at Georgia State University, said the midterm wave ‘needs to be viewed in the context of what usually happens to the party of the president in second term, midterm elections: No matter who the president is, their party generally loses and loses badly.’”