By Trish Turner
Santa Claus came to town early this year -- in "secret" fashion -- spreading good tidings of great joy in one unlikely place -- the U.S. Senate.
Most gift-givers would probably give lawmakers lumps of coal at this point -- and the black gem actually did surface in Monday night's mystery gift exchange so common to many workplaces.
But senators participating in the "Secret Santa" exchange kept it mostly safe this season, sticking to their inner circle in a bipartisan manner that seemed to vanquish the partisan Scrooginess -- however fleetingly -- that has haunted the corridors of the Capitol all year.
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