As Sen. Strom Thurmond’s gavel fell on Nov. 20, the 107th congressional session came to an end, but questions regarding homeland security and the state of the economy remain.

The chairman of Iowa State’s political science department, James McCormick, said terrorism was at the top of the agenda throughout this session of Congress, and it often overshadowed domestic issues such as the economy and environment.

“Clearly the top item since Sept. 11 [2001] has been security matters and defense matters, whether it’s translated into homeland security or whether it’s translated into dealing with Iraq,” McCormick said.

He said the Senate’s decisive move to create a Homeland Security Department in November is an example of Congress’ willingness to work in a bipartisan way on major issues.

“It’s also interesting to note that all the senators up for re-election voted to support the Iraq resolution,” he said.

Bush’s high approval ratings frequently silenced members of Congress who questioned the scope or direction of the war on terrorism, McCormick said.

“The only other post-World War II president to have these kinds of ratings was Dwight D. Eisenhower,” he said. “Such a high level of support becomes a real club in the closet with dealing with Congress.”

James Hutter, associate professor of political science, said because of Bush’s high approval ratings, Congress has made some unwise decisions.

“9/11 has apparently overshadowed everything Congress did,” he said. “The Bush administration has used 9/11 as the reason for taking the country from a small surplus to a huge deficit in the budget.”

Hutter also cited the Senate’s Sept. 5 decision to allow pilots to carry guns in cockpits as a poor decision made in reaction to Sept. 11.

“The probability of a drunk deranged pilot with a handgun is far greater than a terrorist on a plane that needs to be shot,” he said.

However, Hutter said Congress did make strides in other areas.

One such change was the campaign finance reform bill, which passed through the Senate March 20. Hutter said the bill would be a striking reform of the way political candidates could fund their campaigns by eliminating soft money. However, he said the bill does not prevent people from spending money on their own outside of political parties.

“It seems to be a truly major change in policy,” he said. “Unclear, however, is who it helps and what impact it will have.”

Hutter said Congress also passed a bill reforming the voting system.

“One of the things now mandated is you have to be able to detect a ballot that is improperly voted before it is turned in so the voter has a chance to correct mistakes,” he said. Another change is that anyone who shows up to vote must be allowed to fill out a provisional ballot until it can be proven whether or not they are registered to vote rather than being turned away, Hutter said.

Hutter said the midterm elections in November, in which Republicans retook control of the Senate and added seats in the House, seemed focused more on presidential popularity than in the past.

“Midterm elections seem to have been extremely unusual,” he said, adding that midterm elections normally reflect how the country views the president. “They seem to be an affirmation of support for the president.”

McCormick said the elections indicate that the public still sees homeland security as an issue.

However, he said it’s overstated that Republicans can now pass any policy they want in Congress because rules in the Senate make it difficult to act without a majority. When the Senate reconvenes there will be 51 Republicans, 48 Democrats and one Independent.

Terrorism will continue to be on the top of the agenda next session, McCormick said.

“Iraq is going to be a critical issue,” he said. “The other issue is economic stimulus efforts.”

Hutter also said a potential war against Iraq will be an area of contention, although many Democrats appeared willing to follow Bush to war.

“Like a Wild West cowboy, G. W. Bush wants to ride into Iraq with his guns blazing,” he said. “The only thing that can stop him is the wave of public opinion in this nation or other nations of the world.”

Hutter said the resignation of Bush’s Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill and White House Economic Adviser Larry Lindsey may indicate the economy is becoming more of an issue for Republicans.

“It seems to be a place where there might be major conflict [in Congress next session],” Hutter said.

— CBSnews.com contributed to this story.