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U.S. President Barack Obama comes off a swing through the Asia-Pacific region punctuated by a series of foreign policy victories only to return to a more deeply entrenched opposition in Washington.

After eight days spent locking in trade and climate agreements with China, trying to reassure allies about the U.S. commitment to their interests and pushing along the democratic transition in Myanmar, Obama he said he would try and leverage goodwill from the trip in service to his domestic agenda.

If you ask me Id say thats a pretty good week, Obama said after he ticked through a list of accomplishments at a news conference yesterday, shortly before departing Brisbane, Australia. The American people can be proud of the progress weve made and I intend to build on that momentum when I return home.

Obama arrives back in the U.S. with major issues on his plate and a limited window of time to deal with them. Democrats are in their final weeks as the majority party in the U.S. Senate. Spending and tax bills are being negotiated. Lawmakers are debating legislation to approve the Keystone XL pipeline over his repeated insistence that the review process at the State Department be allowed to play out.

He also faces a decision, as soon as this week, on what executive actions hell take on immigration -- such as easing deportations for some categories of undocumented immigrants -- that will set up a confrontation with Republicans.

While Obama was in Myanmar, House Speaker John Boehner told reporters in Washington that Republicans will fight the president tooth and nail if he follows through on his plan. Congressional Republicans have raised the prospect of legal action or even a government shutdown to try and stop him from acting unilaterally on immigration.

Obama yesterday dismissed the threat of shutting down the government by holding up spending measures to keep operations going. The political pain for both parties resulting from a partial government shutdown was too intense to repeat.

We traveled that path before, Obama said. Besides, Obama added, Kentucky Republican Senator Mitch McConnell, who is set to become majority leader when the new Congress is seated in January, said the day after the midterm elections that there would there would be no closing down the government.

I take Mitch McConnell at his word, Obama said.

Some Republicans in Washington have suggested Obama may be underestimating how far lawmakers are willing to go to block him on immigration. McConnell and Boehner have warned that Obama risks poisoning relations at the Capitol.

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Obamas Asia Momentum to Run Into Capitol Hill Reality