On Notice

Congress Tries to Be Civil

Strikes bipartisan notes ahead of State of the Union.

Why not start every debate with “Kumbaya”? Members of Congress aren't backing down from their partisan goals, but they're trying to make at least a minor shift in the way they talk about it. House Speaker John Boehner has switched from "job-killing" to "job-destroying" when he talks about the Democrats' health-care reform law, and Senators Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said they would sit together at President Obama's upcoming State of the Union address. Schumer and Coburn also said they would work together on reviewing mental-health laws that could have prevented the shooting in Arizona. Lawmakers made clear in interviews Sunday that they know they are "on notice" with the public, and are expected to cool their usual fiery rhetoric for a while.