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House Democrats are heading home from their annual issues retreat energized by a pep talk by President Barack Obama but facing steep odds of reclaiming the majority that delivered Obama his greatest victories first-term victories. In Baltimore on Thursday evening, Obama said the country is “doing a lot better” than when he took office, citing progress against Islamic State forces and curbing Iran’s nuclear program — as well as lower gas prices, 18 million people gaining health insurance and 5 percent unemployment. (Taylor, 1/28)

More than seven years into his presidency, Mr. Obama and House Democrats, led by the onetime speaker Nancy Pelosi, remain steadfastly united against Republicans who have seized control of Congress. ... The allegiance, however, has come at a steep political cost. The much-diminished House Democratic caucus is no longer able to force through major legislation, as it did when Ms. Pelosi used her majority to help a new president stimulate the economy, overhaul health care and impose new rules on financial institutions. (Herszenhorn and Shear, 1/28)