WASHINGTON, Jan 4 (Reuters) - The 110th U.S. Congress convened on Thursday with President George W. Bush facing Democrats for the first time in control of both the Senate and House of Representatives.

Having swept Bush's Republicans from power in the Nov. 7 congressional elections, Democrats have promised to push for a phased withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, close the growing gap between America's rich and poor and clean up how the scandal-rocked Congress does business.

One of the House's initial votes will be to elect Nancy Pelosi, a liberal California Democrat, as the first woman to lead the chamber as its speaker.

AlertNet news is provided by

Delicio.us  |   Digg  |   NewsVine  |   Reddit                                                                                  Permalink