It doesn't have to work this way, even with a House controlled by Republicans and a White House and Senate controlled by Democrats. Recent history proves this point.

In 2006, after 12 years of GOP majorities, Democrats assumed control of the House and Senate. My colleagues in the House elected me to serve as speaker for the last two years of the Bush administration. No matter who occupied the Oval Office, Democrats in Congress knew we could not let partisan differences stand in the way of doing the work of the American people.