Where Do Dems, GOP Stand as Campaign Season Begins?
A prime example of the Democrats' recent struggles is their loss of the 60-seat supermajority with Scott Brown's surprise upset in Massachusetts. On Thursday's "Washington Unplugged," the American Economic Institute's Norm Ornstein told CBS News Political Consultant John Dickerson that "Part of the reason we're talking about whether the Senate is in play is the nation's politicos being thunderstruck at what happened at the bluest of blue states."
Ornstein added, "The Democrats had 60 votes, but frankly getting all 60 together ranging from the socialist Bernie Sanders on the left to the moderate conservative Ben Nelson was not going to happen very often. It was miraculous that they did it on the health care bill."
Although President Obama has pledged for bipartisanship, there is more going on behind the scenes.
As Washington Post's Scott Wilson noted, "The White House Press Office is pushing back extremely hard, much harder than they did last year with much more of a rapid response. Publicly you still have a president who's approval rating is still around 50 percent -- much higher than that of Congress -- making these statements about civility and the need for bipartisanship. Underneath the radar it's a more aggressive White House in terms of pushing back on Republican partisan messages.
Watch the full discussion above, which also includes an interview with Curtis Roosevelt, the grandson of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
"Washington Unplugged" appears live on CBSNews.com each weekday at 12:30 p.m. ET. Click here to check out previous episodes.