Wednesday in politics: Obama news conference, and more

Phil Pruitt

President Barack Obama holds his first press conference at 1:30 p.m. EST since winning re-election last week. The economy and the "fiscal cliff" are certain to come up, but so is the Gen. David Petraeus scandal and what it means to national security.

Later in the afternoon, Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner will meet with business leaders to discuss how to keep the economy growing. Obama met with labor leaders on Tuesday to discuss the economy, especially the "fiscal cliff."

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Up on Capitol Hill, Senate Democrats, Senate Republicans and House Republicans are scheduled to meet to select the 113th Congress leadership. No surprises are likely. Sen. Harry Reid is expected to remain Majority Leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell Minority Leader and Rep. John Boehner Speaker of the House. House Democrats reportedly will not make their leadership decisions until after Thanksgiving. The question there? Will Rep. Nancy Pelosi stay on as Minority Leader.

Also worth noting Wednesday: Pelosi and House Democratic women will hold a press conference to highlight the number of women elected as part of the House Democratic Caucus.

And then there is this: Al Gore will lead "24 Hours of Reality: The Dirty Weather Report." It's a live online broadcast at climaterealityproject.org that begins at 8 p.m. EST and ends Thursday at 7 p.m. EST. The program will focus on global warming.

And this: Will the Petraeus scandal ensnare more people, or has it gone as far as it will go?

Sources: Yahoo! News, Associated Press