GOP Focus for Congress: Cut Deficit, Don’t Stumble

It's the first Republican-dominated Congress to confront President Barack Obama.

GOP leaders plan to focus on bolstering the economy and cutting the budget.

And avoiding self-inflicted calamities that make Americans wonder if the party can govern competently.

When the new Congress raises the curtain Tuesday, Republicans will run both the House and Senate for the first time in eight years.

GOP leaders want to showcase their legislative priorities, mixing accomplishments with showdowns with Obama that do not devolve into government shutdowns and other chaotic standoffs.

Another priority is to minimize distractions such as the recent admission by No. 3 House leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana that he addressed a white supremacist group in 2002.