Obama Plans on Health-Care Delay

Obama gave himself a "B-plus" for his performance during his first year in office, and he's already looking toward the future. Unfortunately for the president though, the health-care bill likely won't be passed in time for his first State of the Union speech. The White House expects the final negotiations to linger into February, due to disputes over abortion and the congressional winter recess. However, Obama and the Democrats see a health-care deal as inevitable now that House Democratic leaders have signaled that they are inclined to accept the Senate compromise bill. After settling health care, Politico reports, the White House will do a "very sharp pivot" and begin pushing for a new jobs bill that will focus on creating jobs, particularly jobs in the energy sector. Deficit reduction measures will also likely figure big next year for Obama after this year's bailout spending spree.