Daily Political Wire

George Wenschhof

Obama Greets Marines at Hawaii Base on Christmas - President Obama spent part of his last full day in Hawaii participating in an annual tradition for his wife Michelle and him: greeting Marines at the base near his vacation home here.

In short remarks, Obama, dressed casually in a blue button-down shirt and khakis, thanked the service members and their families – mostly Marines, but some Army and Navy as well - for enduring the challenges of military life.

“Not only do those in uniform make sacrifices but I think everybody understands the sacrifices that families make each and every day as well,” he said. NBC.com has more here.

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Obama Cuts Vcacation Short, Heads to D.C. - the deadline for reaching the "fiscal cliff" is under a week and President Obama will be arriving in Washington this evening with hopes an agreement can be reached on the budget impasse.  The Senate is scheduled to resume on Thursday and the House is expected to be back in action by the end of the week.  You can read more here.

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Grand Bargain Unlikely on "Fiscal Clift" - While the road ahead remains uncertain, the options have no doubt narrowed. Talk of a comprehensive deal, or grand bargain, has all but ceased, with all parties setting their sights on smaller temporary patches to avoid impending tax increases and spending cuts.
 
On Friday, Obama called on Congress to take up a narrow measure that would extend tax cuts only for those making less than $250,000 annually, extend unemployment insurance benefits and temporarily put off the $500 billion in sequestration cuts. RollCall.com has more here.

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GOP Polster Says NRA Out of Touch - Top GOP pollster Frank Luntz said the National Rifle Association's call for armed guards in schools shows it is not listening to the public response to the shooting in Newtown, Conn.
 
"The public wants guns out of the schools, not in the schools," Luntz said Wednesday morning on CBS. "And they are not asking for a security official or someone else." TheHill.com has more here.

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Gillibrand Shifts on Gun Control - popular N.Y. Democratic Representative Kirsten Gillibrand, had received an “A” grade from the NRA, has become a vocal advocate of tighter gun control in the wake of the mass killings at Sandy Hook Elementary School earlier this month.  Politico.com has more here.

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