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By Michelle Cottle

Ms. Cottle writes about national politics for Opinion.

It has been a rough summer for the Senate. The Republicans’ push to pass President Trump’s big, fat bill was a contentious, exhausting odyssey that left even some in the majority bruised. There have been fierce clashes over confirmation votes, including Democrats stalking out of a Judiciary Committee hearing. And the Jeffrey Epstein drama got so spicy that the House fled town early to avoid dealing with it.