Via AFP:
US senators swapped gifts this week, but don't be fooled: Christmas spirit has evaporated in the once-chummy chamber, and bitter rancor will drag through the holidays and into next year.
The Senate did pass an all-important, bipartisan budget agreement Wednesday that will restore some stability and sanity to America's fiscal process.
And yes, the must-pass defense spending bill will clear Congress on Thursday night.
But the 2013 Senate calendar still carries the thorny issue of President Barack Obama's 10 executive and judicial nominations, including his pick to head the Federal Rese...
