Texas: Brady wins Ways & Means. US Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) was elected chairman of the uber-influential House Ways & Means Committee, defeating US Rep. Pat Tiberi (R-OH). Brady had the support of House Speaker Paul Ryan, the out-going committee chair, reports The Hill ……. North Carolina: CBC, Ryan to cooperate? US Rep. G. K. Butterfield (D-NC), chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, told newly elected House Speaker Paul Ryan his group wants to work with him. “I told him that the Congressional Black Caucus looks forward to working with him. And he acknowledged it – said he looked forward to working [together]. And I believe him,” reports The Hill ……. Blue Dogs: A precipitous decline. The Blue Dog Coalition, a group of moderate-to-conservative Democrats in the House of Representatives, had 54 members in 2010, but only 15 today. They still try to make their mark, however, reports the Washington Post’s Dana Milbank, noting that US Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN) voted for Colin Powell for House Speaker, over Nancy Pelosi, and that US Rep. Gwen Graham (D-FL) voted for Cooper …….