Democrats take control of the House amid government shutdown

Democrats will take control of the House on January 3, as the US stretches into day 13 of a partial government shutdown. House Democrats, led by incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have a plan to reopen the government, but it’s not clear whether Republicans will get on board, and President Donald Trump is not backing down on his demands for $5 billion in funding for the border wall.

Once Democrats are in power, they have a lot on their to-do list, including passing universal background checks for gun purchases, strengthening voting rights protections, and lowering prescription drug prices.

But their first priority is a massive anti-corruption bill, HR 1, which does three main things: institutes campaign finance reform, cracks down on lobbying, and expands voting rights in the country through efforts like automatic voter registration.

The party will also use its new congressional oversight powers to push back on the Trump administration, which has received a two-year free ride from the GOP. That means we could see investigations into everything from potential Trump-Russia collusion to Trump’s business dealings to the family separation policy at the border and the response to Hurricane Maria.