A divided Congress began a new session on Wednesday. Democrats held onto their Senate majority, but Republicans took over the House. "We're at a very momentous time in American history," Sen. Bernie Sanders said Friday on The Thom Hartmann Program. "This is not your grandfather's Republican Party.  This is a new extreme right-wing party that in its heart of hearts wants to eliminate virtually every piece of domestic legislation that helps the middle class." For starters, House leaders laid plans to repeal health care reform, a step that would deny coverage to more than 30 million Americans and push up prescription drug prices for seniors while driving up deficits by a quarter-trillion dollars.

Congress Convenes As a newly-elected senators and representatives were sworn into office, Sanders warned in an interview with radio host Ed Schultz that Republicans want to "decimate" Social Security and Medicare and eliminate other programs, including the minimum wage and unemployment insurance, which help the middle class. "Look beyond their rhetoric at what they really want to do. These guys are very radical. They want to decimate every piece of legislation that has protected Americans for the last 70 years.  We've got to call their bluff. We cannot continue to be on the defensive."

Rx Drugs A provision of the health care law that took effect on New Years Day cuts the cost of medicine for many seniors. The provision helps those whose out-of-pocket expenses are not covered because of a gap in Medicare coverage known as the doughnut hole.  Under the new law, seniors with high prescription costs could save as much as $12,300 over the next 10 years. Senate leaders warned on Monday that the help for seniors would be cancelled if House Republicans repeal the health care reform law.

Health Care Repeal Price Tag Legislation proposed by House Republicans to repeal a new health care law would add $230 billion to the federal debt by 2021, according to an analysis released Thursday by the Congressional Budget Office. Click here for the report. House Republicans have slated for a vote for later this month.  Senate leaders pledged to block any repeal effort and President Obama said he would veto it should it reach his desk.

Red Ink Watch The move to repeal the health care law coupled with a new push to extend Bush-era tax cuts would add more than $1 trillion to the deficit over the next 10 years, according to the nonpartisan budget office and the Joint Committee on Taxation. In one of their first actions, House Republicans changed budget rules to allow tax cuts that aren't paid for by savings elsewhere. New spending would have to be offset with cuts elsewhere. Tax increases to fund new programs would be prohibited.

Economy Fewer jobs were created in December than economists expected, but the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in 19 months as more people in the work force found jobs. The Labor Department on Friday announced the jobless rate for December was 9.4 percent, the lowest level since May 2009. As the recession lingered, however, there still were about 14.5 million people who want to work but can't find jobs.

Food Safety A new food-safety bill was signed into law on Tuesday. It will make giant food processors strengthen food safety plans.  Sanders responded to concerns by Vermont farmers and added a provision exempting small, low-risk, on-farm food processors from the new regulations. "While this legislation gives the FDA new tools to protect American families from contaminated foods, we avoided placing unnecessary requirements on small farms in Vermont and elsewhere," said Sanders, a member of the Senate health committee.

White House Staff President Obama picked William M. Daley to be his new chief of staff. Daley, a former commerce secretary, spearheaded President Clinton's drive to win approval in Congress of the North American Free Trade Agreement. On health care reform, he said the White House "miscalculated" and asserted that "the election of '08 sent a message that after 30 years of center-right governing, we had moved to center left -- not left." On Wall Street reform, the Midwest chairman of JPMorgan Chase refused a White House request to support a new consumer protection agency. In a 2009 Washington Post op-ed , Daley wrote: "Either we plot a more moderate, centrist course or risk electoral disaster not just in the upcoming midterms but in many elections to come."