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Lawmakers who were
elected back in November officially entered Congress, with the new
Republican majority in the House of Representatives gunning immediately
for President Barack Obama’s signal achievement — the overhaul of the
U.S. healthcare system.

“I and a lot of my
fellow freshmen ran on repealing Obamacare,” said Republican
Congressman Joe Walsh. “The folks in my district told me month after
month they wanted this thing repealed.” The health plan aims to provide
medical insurance to nearly all Americans. Republicans consider it a
complicated and costly burden on the country — but their battle to kill
it probably won’t draw blood.

They do control
the House and have scheduled a repeal vote for Wednesday. But the Senate
and White House remain in Democratic hands. No law can be passed or
repealed without their approval.

Obama suggests
that the Republicans will simply try to impress their supporters with
the effort and then abandon it “I think that there’s going to be
politics,” he said. “That’s what happens in Washington.” But the
Republicans have other ways to oppose and annoy the administration. In
the weeks to come, they plan a wide range of investigations, exercising
American lawmakers’ traditional role of overseeing government
operations, with the traditional accompanying opportunities to embarrass
the party in power.

One committee of
House lawmakers has already announced plans for public hearings on no
less than six separate issues. There’s no telling how many more
committees will come forward with their own ambitious agenda.

But the biggest
minefield of all could be a vote on whether the U.S. government can keep
borrowing money above its currently approved “debt ceiling.” The
Congress has only authorized total borrowing of up to $14.3 trillion.

The government’s mounting debts are already approaching $14 trillion and will grow more in the months to come.

Republicans who want to shrink the government and reduce its spending have suggested they’d vote against additional borrowing.

Administration officials say the unprecedented prospect of Washington
running out of money would rattle financial markets worldwide. The
Republicans and Democrats can obviously avoid conflict if they want to.
But the prospects aren’t entirely promising. It does look like war — and
the shooting is about to begin.