Ted Gayer, vice president and director of Economic Studies at Brookings and the Joseph A. Pechman Senior Fellow, analyzes the top economic issues facing the United States in the upcoming year. Also in this episode, Molly Reynolds on what Congress left unfinished before their holiday recess and the additions of Senators Doug Jones (D-Ala.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) in our regular "What's Happening in Congress" segment, and Bill Galston answers a question from a listener. Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to [email protected], and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. The Brookings Cafeteria is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.