In Today's Times:
President Obama plans to make gun control a higher priority in his second term in the wake of the Connecticut school massacre. Michael D. Shear reports that Mr. Obama has named Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. to lead an interagency effort to develop the White House's approach to curbing gun violence, and he plans to start sending proposals to Congress in January. Mr. Obama will also address the topic in his State of the Union speech next month.
Negotiations to avoid the automatic tax increases and broad spending cuts set to kick in next year appear closer to a deadlock than a deal after Mr. Obama and Speaker John A. Boehner of Ohio reached an impasse on Wednesday. Jackie Calmes and Jonathan Weisman writ e that with time running out, the House is set to vote today on Mr. Boehner's “Plan B,†despite Senate opposition and a veto threat from Mr. Obama.
A central player in the fiscal negotiations leads a double life as a top Congressional aide and a local councilman, Michael D. Shear writes. The aide, Steve Stombres, the chief of staff to Representative Eric Cantor, the Republican majority leader, has a reputation on the Fairfax City Council and on Capitol Hill that could bode well for the fiscal talks - he is know as an intense negotiator who is eager to reach a deal.
A scathing report on the security conditions that left a diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, vulnerable to attack has led to the ouster of four State Department officials. Michael R. Gordon and Eric Schmitt write that the report said officials' lack of leadership and a culture of “husbanding resources†contributed to insecurities at the compound, where Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans were killed on Sept. 11. Two deputy secretaries of state are expected to testify today on Capitol Hill about the attacks.
Around the Web:
Medicare officials began the formal steps to carry out a 27 percent cut in doctors' payments, as the possibility of a temporary patch to prevent the cut remains ensnared in fiscal negotiations, according to The Hill.
Happening in Washington:
Economic data expected today include third-quarter gross domestic product and weekly jobless claims at 8:30 a.m., followed at 10 by leading indicators for November, existing home sales for last month, and weekly mortgage rates.
William F. Burns, the deputy secretary of state, and Thomas R. Nides, the deputy secretary of state for management and resources, testify about the Sept. 11 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, at two hearings: an 8 a.m. session with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a 1 p.m. session of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
At 10, public viewing begins in the Capitol Rotunda for Senator Daniel K. Inouye of Hawaii, who died on Monday.
In the afternoon, the House is expected to vote on Speaker John A. Boehner's “Plan B,†a measure to raise tax rates only on incomes over $1 million, and another measure to replace automatic spending cuts set to kick in next year.
