In Congress, trying to make lemonade from losses Associated Press Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Updated 2:54 p.m., Tuesday, November 13, 2012 Pelosi, the onetime House speaker and the first woman to hold the office, touted the diversity of her caucus, even though her quest to flip 25 seats and gain control of the House failed by two-thirds. What lay ahead looked to be a bitter end to a presidential and congressional election year that consumed $6 billion in campaign cash, bombarded voters with political ads and changed nothing about who holds the presidency or which parties control Congress. Winners and losers in those races are walking the same Capitol Hill hallways these next few, awkward weeks, as the freshmen attend orientation and those they defeated convene in a lame-duck, end-of-year session of Congress. The incoming lawmakers joined the look-ahead parade, many staying clear of the cut-it-or-shut-it cries of tea party insurgents who swept Republicans to power in the House two years ago. A Democratic president and Senate majority leader and Republican House Speaker John Boehner remain the prime power brokers over excruciating choices on taxes and spending. In 2010, a tea party-fueled wave, a recession and President Barack Obama's unpopular health care law helped flip House control from the Democrats to Republicans and forced the speaker's gavel from Pelosi's hand to Boehner's. Newly elected independent Sen.