As lawmakers departed Washington without progress on the so-called fiscal cliff negotiations, President Barack Obama urged members of Congress to "cool off" over the Christmas holiday and address a short-term solution to the looming deficit issue before the end of the year, even if a larger bargain remains out of reach for now.

"In the next few days I've asked leaders of Congress to work towards a package that prevents a tax hike on middle class Americans, protects unemployment insurance for two million Americans, and lays the groundwork for further work on both growth and deficit reduction," he said in a statement to reporters late Friday afternoon. "That's an achievable goal."

Obama said that Republicans and Democrats agree that tax rates on all but the top two percent of earners should not be raised by the cliff's automatically-triggered measures that will go into effect in just 10 days without congressional action.

"Averting this middle class tax hike is not a Democratic responsibility or a Republican responsibility," he argued. "With their votes, the American people have determined that governing is a shared responsibility between both parties."

His remarks came after the House failed to take action on a 'Plan B' measure to maintain Bush-era tax rates for all earners making under $1 million annually. That bill was opposed by the White House as well as by much of House Speaker John Boehner's own caucus, and Boehner was forced to pull it from the floor without a vote.

Related:  Boehner's fiscal path forward: 'God only knows'

Obama alluded to that turmoil in his remarks, as well as to some dissent within his own party about potential compromises on entitlements and spending cuts.

"The challenge that we've got right now is that the American people are a lot more sensible, a lot more thoughtful, and much more willing to compromise and give and sacrifice and act responsibly than their elected representatives are," Obama said. "That's a problem."

"Call me a hopeless optimist," the president near the end of his remarks, "but I actually still think we can get it done."

The House and Senate adjourned for the Christmas holiday today.  Following his remarks Friday evening, the president and his family departed for a holiday break in Hawaii.

Urging members to consider avenues for compromise, Obama asked members of Congress to get "perspective" during the Christmas holiday before returning to Washington to work on a short-term deal.

"As we leave town for a few days to be with our families for the holidays, I hope that gives everybody some perspective," he said. "Everybody can cool off, everybody can drink some egg nog, have some Christmas cookies, sing some Christmas carols, enjoy the company of loved ones. And I'd ask every member of Congress, while they're at home, to think about that, to think about the obligations we have to the people who sent us here."

Chuck Hagel, a former Republican senator and rumored top pick for the next Secretary of Defense, has apologized for his 1998 opposition to a ambassadorial nominee because he was "openly, aggressively gay."

"My comments 14 years ago in 1998 were insensitive," Hagel said in a statement. "They do not reflect my views or the totality of my public record, and I apologize to Ambassador Hormel and any LGBT Americans who may question my commitment to their civil rights.  I am fully supportive of ‘open service’ and committed to LGBT military families.”

Hagel's original comment came in response to the nomination of James Hormel, tapped by Bill Clinton to be ambassador to Luxembourg. At the time, Hagel questioned how an openly gay ambassador would be effective at "representing our lifestyle, our values, our standards."

LGBT groups have critiqued Hagel for the 1998 statement, as well as for his long-time support for now-repealed "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy towards gay military servicemembers.

The Human Rights Campaign, an LGBT rights organization, praised Hagel's apology in a statement.

"Senator Hagel's apology and his statement of support for LGBT equality is appreciated and shows just how far as a country we have come when a conservative former Senator from Nebraska can have a change of heart on LGBT issues," said HRC President Chad Griffin. "Our community continues to add allies to our ranks and we're proud that Senator Hagel is one of them."

The news releases arrived via email at almost the exact same time Wednesday. The liberal Campaign for America’s Future was screaming for “No Deal” and warning of a “Grand Swindle” of cuts to Social Security and Medicare should President Obama go wobbly in his fiscal cliff negotiations.

At the other end of the spectrum, the plea by the conservative Americans for Prosperity -- an organization backed by the Koch Brothers -- warned of House Speaker John Boehner’s position offering a “trillion dollar plus tax increase” in order to get some nebulous spending cuts down the road.

As the two men who must settle this get bombarded from their flanks, the fiscal cliff has become a mudslide.

“I hope he understands that we’re encouraging him and helping him do the right thing,” Tim Phillips, President of Americans for Prosperity tells NBC News, following Boehner’s inability to get enough members of his caucus to vote for Plan B, Thursday night.

Boehner’s income tax-centric idea would have let Bush-era rates expire on yearly income above $1 million or more. The speaker pointed out that was a fraction of 1% of American taxpayers.

Still, many Tea Party-aligned rank-and-file in the GOP caucus refused to go along with anything that could be construed as a tax hike, even if it was for a relative handful of the population, and with the increase being automatic as the Bush tax cuts expire.

Never mind that. Phillips says AFP let GOP members know “this was absolutely an important vote, and that we were going to be ‘key-voting’ these tax increase votes” when it comes to rating the legislators.

“We’re not saying we’re going to go out and primary [target] Republicans who voted for” Boehner’s measure. “But we were saying this is an important vote. Don’t walk away from the core values of not raising taxes.”

Since no vote was taken, it’s conjecture on how many Republican House members refused to go along with Boehner, but suffice it to say there would not have been 218 votes to get a majority in the chamber. Democrats were certainly not going to help.

But in the end, the caucus rabblerousing undercuts Boehner’s negotiating prowess with the president, since any eventual deal, if there is one that includes a whiff of tax increases, will now require Democratic votes.

Phillips recognizes the straitjacket Boehner’s now in, with his conservative base and the White House tightening the straps.

“But in these near-term negotiations, it does make it more difficult, frankly, to do what he shouldn’t be doing anyway, which is raise taxes.”

For Phillips, it’s a matter of preventing Congress from approving tax hikes, which are binding, while promises of spending cuts are fleeting.

Earlier this morning, we wrote that -- after last night's House GOP failure to pass "Plan B" -- the White House and Congress essentially have three remaining options:

1. The White House and the Senate (both Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell) work on a quick fix -- like raising rates on income above $250,000 -- that they can force through the House.

2. President Obama still tries to strike a grand bargain, now holding more leverage.

3. We go over the cliff.

Going over the cliff -- which NBC's Mike Viqueira dubbed "the inertia option -- looks like the most likely option. In fact, here's what Viqueira wrote earlier this month:

For what it’s worth, I am in the camp that says they go over the cliff. I don’t see how Boehner puts a bill on the floor that raises rate on anyone. The party would explode, which might be what POTUS has in mind.

In Boehner’s mind, I think it’s better to come back after Jan. 1 and vote to cut them back to where they were, with the top earners going up. Inertia is a driving force in this scenario.

National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre defiantly blamed violent video games and movies, the media, gun-free zones in schools and other factors during the organization's first public statement following the elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn. last week. 

LaPierre, who was interrupted by Code Pink protesters twice during a statement (during which he refused to answer questions), said that the students in Newtown might have been better protected had officials at Sandy Hook Elementary been armed. He said that putting a police officer in every single school in America might make schools safer.

"The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun," he said, asking Congress to immediately appropriate the money to put a police officer in every single school in the country.

The NRA executive's statement was nothing short of defiant in the face of mounting discussion of the need for tighter restrictions on guns — including renewing a ban on assault weapons — in the wake of last week's shooting.

Protesters twice interrupted LaPierre, who will appear this Sunday exclusively on NBC's "Meet the Press," holding signs reading "NRA KILLING OUR KIDS," and screaming that the gun rights group has "blood on its hands."

Updated 1:19 p.m. — A path toward resolving the impending the co-called fiscal cliff was suspended in limbo Friday following a dramatic defeat for House Speaker John Boehner, whose own rank-and-file members refused to support his backup plan Thursday night.

After conservatives balked at Boehner's "Plan B," which would have preserved current income tax rates for those making less than $1 million, the nation's top elected Republican shrugged off questions about whether his job was in danger. And as Washington prepares for a holiday break, Democrats and Republicans are further apart than ever on a plan to avoid the combination of tax increases and spending cuts scheduled to take effect in just 11 days.

And the Ohio Republican emerged Friday urging President Barack Obama and Senate Democrats to re-engage in talks toward an overarching deal toward resolving the fiscal cliff, the combination of automatic tax hikes and spending cuts (which fall heavily upon the defense budget) set to take effect on Jan. 1.

"I'm interested in solving the major problems facing our country," Boehner said at a press conference on Capitol Hill. "And that means House leaders, Senate leaders and the president are going to continue to have to work together to address those concerns."

In the Senate, Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., demanded that Boehner allow a Democratic proposal to extend tax rates for income under $250,000 to come up for a vote.

"There's nothing preventing the speaker from taking up our bill," Reid said Friday afternoon on the Senate floor. Boehner did say the House would "certainly take a look" at that bill, if the Senate manages to resolve a procedural holdup that would bar the House from considering the legislation. (Reid called that excuse "phony.")

But the speaker's task has become more vexing than ever; conservatives sent a powerful signal yesterday that they would not approve any tax increase, even on millionaires. Obama's demand that tax rates be allowed to rise for the wealthiest Americans amounts to a seemingly intractable standoff with House Republicans.

Boehner said that many lawmakers still prefer broad reforms to the tax code, but he acknowledged the difficulty in reaching any consensus: "How we get there? God only knows."

The speaker seemed unconcerned, though, about the prospects for an uprising from fellow Republicans.

"No, I am not," Boehner said when asked directly whether he should be concerned about his position. "If you do the right things every day for the right reasons, the right things will happen."

Republican leaders dismissed House lawmakers for the holiday weekend after pulling the vote on Thursday evening. Boehner said they would be recalled to Washington "as needed." The Democratic-controlled Senate is currently scheduled to reconvene next Thursday, Dec. 27. 

"It's too bad Speaker Boehner wasted a week on this futile, political stunt," Reid said. "It's time for the speaker and all Republicans to return to the negotiating table."

The intervening time period might allow for Boehner and Obama to reach an agreement, though its final approval in the House would almost certainly involve the speaker turning to Democrats for votes. That would strengthen Obama's ability to insist upon tax rates, spending cuts and entitlement reforms that hew more closely to the plan on which he campaigned for much of this year. 

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Boehner has "done his part. He's bent over backwards." As an alternative, the top Senate Republican proposed extending tax rates for a full year with instructions to enact tax reform in the meanwhile. (Democrats rejected it out-of-hand.)

For their part, Republicans said they would look to Obama for action on a path forward.

"I don't want taxes to go up, Republicans don't want taxes to go up," Boehner said. "But we only run the House; Democrats continue to run Washington."

McConnell said: "It's the president's job — it's his job — to find a solution that can pass the Congress."

In the meanwhile, Boehner said he remained committed to working toward a deal, and said he was not interested in giving up his position as speaker. 

Updated 2:20 p.m. -- Saying that his new pick for the nation's top diplomatic job is "not going to need a lot of on-the-job training," President Barack Obama announced Friday his nomination of Senate Foreign Relations Committee head and onetime Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry as the next Secretary of State.

"I think it's fair to say that few individuals know as many presidents and prime ministers or grasp our foreign policies as firmly as John Kerry," Obama said at the announcement at the White House as Kerry stood at his side. "And this makes him a perfect choice to guide American diplomacy in the years ahead."

Kerry, who has been considered the overwhelming frontrunner for the job since U.N. ambassador Susan Rice withdrew herself from consideration, is likely to face few hurdles during his Senate confirmation.

First elected in 1984, Kerry served as a lieutenant in the United States Navy and became a famed demonstrator against the Vietnam War. Since his failed presidential bid in 2004, he has risen to prominence as the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, going on high-profile visits to Afghanistan and Pakistan and helping to negotiate an arms treaty with Russia.

"Having served with valor in Vietnam, he understands that we have a responsibility to use American power wisely, especially our military power," Obama said of Kerry. "And he knows from personal experience that when we send our troops into harm's way, we must give them a sound strategy, clear mission, and the resources that they need to get the job done."

The former presidential nominee also served as Obama's stand-in for Mitt Romney for debate preparation during the 2012 campaign, a role Obama referenced in announcing Kerry's new assignment.

"John, I'm looking forward to working with you instead of debating you," he joked.

J. Scott Applewhite / AP

Senate Foreign Relations Chairman John Kerry, D-Mass., leads a hearing Dec. 20 on the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.

Rice, the president's reported original pick for the job, faced vehement opposition from some Senate Republicans who questioned information she presented in the immediate wake of the Benghazi consulate attacks in September. Faced with a bruising potential confirmation battle, she withdrew herself from the running for the Secretary of State post on December 13.

Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, who had been fierce critics of Rice’s potential nomination reacted warmly to the choice of Kerry Friday.  McCain said he has “confidence in his ability to carry out" the job while Graham called Kerry "a solid choice."

If confirmed, Kerry will replace Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has indicated she will step down from the post early next year.

Clinton was unable to attend the White House announcement, said the president, who noted that she is still recuperating from a reported illness but that she "could not be more excited" about Kerry getting the nod.

In a lengthy written statement, Clinton called Kerry "an excellent choice."

"President Obama and I have often asked Senator Kerry to undertake delicate diplomatic missions and to deliver difficult messages," she said in praising his past diplomatic and political experience. "He has forged strong relationships with leaders around the world.  As I have learned, being able to talk candidly as someone who has won elections and also lost them is an enormous asset when engaging with emerging or fragile democracies."

Assuming Kerry is confirmed and therefore resigns from the United States Senate, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick will appoint a temporary replacement for Kerry's seat before a special election held between 145 and 160 days from his resignation date.

Republican Sen. Scott Brown, who was defeated in November by Elizabeth Warren, is possible candidate in that special election, while several Massachusetts House members are also eying a run on the Democratic side.

Plan B goes down: A loss of leverage and leadership for the GOP… Three remaining options: 1) Obama, Reid, McConnell try to get a quick fix; 2) Obama still shoots for a big deal; and 3) we go over the cliff… Is Boehner’s speakership in trouble?... Does the White House try to save Boehner or break the GOP?... For the GOP, things probably will get worse before they get better… NRA holds news conference at 10:45 am ET… Booker isn’t making friends with Frank Lautenberg… Mitch McConnell vs. Ashley Judd?... And happy trails to you: Mark Sanford appears to be mounting a political comeback.

*** A loss of leverage and leadership: In covering politics, you always want to resist the temptation to overstate things. After all, what’s up one day can go down the next. But it’s difficult to see what took place in Congress last night as anything other than an unmitigated disaster and embarrassing blunder for House Republicans -- all over something that was viewed as a negotiating tactic or PR move. After being closer than ever before in striking a deal with President Obama to resolve the looming tax increases and spending cuts set to take place after Dec. 31, Speaker John Boehner and the House GOP leadership turned their attention to passing “Plan B,” a one-sided plan to raise tax rates on income above $1 million as a way apparently to gain more leverage over the Obama White House. The result: Unable to get enough GOP support, House Republicans pulled the vote and announced they were going home for the Christmas holiday. And now? By demonstrating that they’re unable to corral sufficient votes, they’ve lost any leverage they held in the debate. The biggest thing we’ve learned after last night: No one right now is capable of leading the House Republicans. Outgoing GOP Rep. Steve LaTourette might have put it best. "It's unbelievable, this is horrible," he said, per NBC’s Frank Thorp. "I'm angry, I'm sad for my friend the speaker, and I'm sorry for the country. We deserve better."

*** The three remaining options: So where do we go from here? There are essentially three options. One is that White House, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell do a quick fix -- maybe taking up the legislation raising tax rates above $250,000 -- and force it through the House. Two is that Obama controls the process, brings everyone together, and sees if he can try to get his big deal. As a Democratic leadership aide tells First Read, “Senate Republicans are probably nearing panic mode, and might break away to give 60 votes for either something similar to the president’s last offer, or a beefed-up version of the Senate bill -- 250K plus AMT, doc fix, UI, extenders etc.” And three is that we go over the cliff, with the possibility of fixing everything retroactively in the first three weeks of January, with Democrats holding more leverage, a stronger Senate majority, and a smaller deficit in the House. Here’s the thing to remember: There is still time to get something done. Then again, it will be interesting to see how the markets react today.

Yuri Gripas / Reuters

House Speaker John Boehner speaks to the media on a "fiscal cliff" on Capitol Hill in Washington, December 20, 2012.

*** Is Boehner’s speakership in trouble? That has become a legitimate question in the aftermath of last night. Because House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy were also stained by what took place, it seems to us that the only person who’s capable of toppling Boehner right now is Paul Ryan. But does he -- or anyone else -- want that job? But it’s also possible that Boehner could emerge from this wounded but not critically. So he seems to have three options, and none of them are good. One, he does what the Senate agrees to, even if that means bringing legislation to the floor that doesn’t have majority support from House Republicans. Two, he throws himself on the mercy of the White House. And three, he and his caucus stand their ground and do everything they can to not budge. But that’s about it. Indeed, conservative columnist John Podhoretz tries to cut Boehner a break. "The speaker’s doing what little he can with what little he has." The question is do other Republicans realize that? By the way, this Washington Post story might raise the question of whether leaks on both sides were part of the problem. Because of the tinderbox that is his conference, Boehner didn’t want his negotiating details to become public, but they did, leading to scrambling and “Plan B.”) And just announced: Boehner holds a news conference at 10:00 am ET.

*** Does the White House save Boehner -- or try to break the GOP? The Obama White House also seems to have two options: Do they try and save Boehner, or do they try to break the Republican Party. We saw mixed reactions coming from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. The statement from Press Secretary Jay Carney was conciliatory. “The President will work with Congress to get this done and we are hopeful that we will be able to find a bipartisan solution quickly that protects the middle class and our economy.” But on the other hand, the reaction on Twitter was a bit of gloating. If the White House wants a big deal -- and we think they do -- then saving Boehner could seem to be the safer approach. That said, there will always be the question whether the White House feels Boehner could deliver ANY votes for the big deal. But also don’t lose sight of Mitch McConnell. Even though he has strained relations with the White House, could he be a stronger partner on the fiscal cliff and immigration reform than Boehner? That’s something to chew on. The White House also has to restrain parts of its base -- there is blood in the water, and there are parts of the base who want to go for the kill. The president wakes up today with more leverage than he’s ever had, but he has to be careful how he uses that leverage.

*** For the GOP, things likely to get worse before they get better: Here’s a final point we want to make about last night, and it’s a point our colleague John Harwood made on Twitter: For a defeated party, things usually get worse before they get better. In fact, it’s more than likely that last night won’t be rock bottom for the GOP after its losses in November. As Harwood noted, “Political parties with losing hands don't change until they've absorbed lots of punishment. See Dems, 1968-88. GOP not done yet.”

*** NRA holds news conference: In other news today, the National Rifle Association is holding a news conference in DC at 10:45 am ET the wake of the tragic shootings in Newtown, CT -- which took place exactly a week ago today. Also, NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre will appear on “Meet the Press” this Sunday.

*** Lautenberg’s not-so-subtle slap at Booker: It doesn’t look like Cory Booker made friends with Sen. Frank Lautenberg, after Booker released a video yesterday saying he would explore the option of running for Lautenberg’s seat in 2014. Just check out this statement from Lautenberg’s office: "Sen. Lautenberg is focused on passing a critical disaster relief bill for New Jersey and addressing America's broken gun laws. The last several months and weeks have been a painful time for New Jersey and America, and the senator is working on the tough issues we face. This is not the time for political distractions and the senator will address politics next year." Paraphrased for you: “Unlike Cory Booker, I’m not focused on politics right now during these tough times for New Jersey and the country.” And consider this: Booker might have a better relationship right now with Chris Christie than Frank Lautenberg, and that’s a problem for a Democrat. Booker may very well become the next senator from New Jersey, but between this and the "hostage video," this is Strike Two for him on the national stage.

*** McConnell vs. Ashley Judd? Last night, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s office blasted out this Politico story last night. “McConnell’s campaign has polled some of Judd’s comments and found that the 27-year Senate veteran’s prospective lead in a head-to-head matchup increases from just four points to 20 points once voters understand her political profile, according to a memo provided to POLITICO. The poll found voters like Judd much less when they learn she lives in Tennessee and Scotland, her grandmother referred to her as a ‘Hollywood liberal’ and she suggested it was wrong to breed given widespread poverty in regions around the world.” What is more interesting here -- that McConnell spent money to test Judd, or that McConnell’s folks are going out their way to let us know they did? Don’t forget that this probably helps McConnell raise some money…

*** Happy trails to you… : Finally, NBC’s confirmed the news that former South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford -- of Appalachian Trail/Argentine mistress fame -- is planning to run for the U.S. House seat that Tim Scott (R) is vacating after being tapped to serve in the Senate. Folks, South Carolina continues to deliver as offering the best political stories in the country.

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*** Friday’s “MSNBC Live with Thomas Roberts” line-up: MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts interviews DE Attorney General Beau Biden, LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY), Fmr. RNC Chair Michael Steele, and Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK).  Also joining the show:   “One Million Moms for Gun Control” Founder Shannon Watts and NEA President Dennis Van Roekel.

*** Friday’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” line-up: NBC’s Andrea Mitchell interviews Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD), Atlantic Council President Fred Kempe, Politico’s Jonathan Martin and Glenn Thrush, USA Today’s Susan Page, The New York Times’ Mark Landler, The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza and NBC’s Kelly O’Donnell and Kristen Welker.

*** Friday’s “News Nation with Tamron Hall” line-up: MSNBC’s Tamron Hall interviews Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA), Fmr. Gov. Ed Rendell (D-PA), Democratic strategist Keith Boykin and Roll Call’s Shira Toeplitz.

*** Saturday’s and Sunday’s “Weekends with Alex Witt”: MSNBC’s Alex Witt interviews Jon Meacham, author of “Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power.” 

The front page of the New York Times with the photo of a sullen-looking Boehner: “Boehner cancels tax vote in face of G.O.P. revolt.” Its lede: “Speaker John A. Boehner’s effort to pass fallback legislation to avert a fiscal crisis in less than two weeks collapsed Thursday night in an embarrassing defeat after conservative Republicans refused to support legislation that would allow taxes to rise on the most affluent households in the country.”

The Washington Post: “House Speaker John A. Boehner threw efforts to avoid the year-end ‘fiscal cliff’ into chaos late Thursday, as he abruptly shuttered the House for the holidays after failing to win support from his fellow Republicans for a plan to let tax rates rise for millionaires.”

The L.A. Times called it “a stunning political defeat that effectively turned resolution of the year-end budget crisis over to President Obama and the Democrats.”

Politico’s lede: “Things were so bad for Speaker John Boehner Thursday night, support for his Plan B tax bill so diminished, the limits of his power with his own party laid bare, that he stood in front of the House Republican Conference and recited the Serenity Prayer. ‘God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.’ Boehner nearly cried.”

The Washington Post also says Boehner was “near tears.” From the story: “The failure of a grand bargain was the latest oh-so-close moment for Obama and Boehner, who have been dancing around a deal to cut the deficit for the better part of the past two years. And the collapse of Plan B set a new low in Boehner’s sometimes rocky relationship with a House Republican caucus that has long been uneasy about the speaker’s dealmaking with Obama.”

More from behind the scenes: “Having offered so much, Boehner hoped he could keep the details quiet long enough for him to get Obama to agree to enough spending cuts to satisfy his caucus — and so that his leadership team could make the case for compromise in person. But the details did not stay secret for long. Reports leaked out Saturday evening that Boehner had agreed to raise taxes on millionaires. That was followed by a more alarming leak Sunday evening that Boehner was also willing to grant Obama another increase in the federal debt limit. Home in their districts, unsuspecting rank-and-file Republicans were stunned. At that point, senior aides to those lawmakers began anxiously reaching out to GOP leadership staff wanting to know what had happened to the Boehner demand that every dollar in a debt ceiling increase would come with an equal cut in spending. Boehner’s staff scrambled to issue a memo to Republican aides and outside conservative strategists that explained his offer included $1 trillion in spending cuts — roughly the increase in the debt ceiling. But other leadership aides said that the damage had already been done.”

The Wall Street Journal: “Boehner's Budget 'Plan B' Collapses.”

Before you get your parachutes, National Journal’s Frates writes, “if politics is part theater – and God knows there’s been plenty of choreographed drama this week – then the House vote tonight marks the end of Act II with the all-important third act climax to come. There is still plenty of time, and opportunity, for Boehner and Obama to strike a deal. … The path to a deal remains. The only question is whether the speaker and the president can walk down it together.”

More: “[B]ehind the rhetoric there was a strategy at play. The plan appeared designed to move Obama toward the speaker’s position of smaller tax increases and larger spending cuts while helping conservatives wrap their heads around the idea of voting for a tax hike.” And: “Though Boehner couldn't get his caucus on record supporting a tax hike, his voter counters now have a much better idea of how many Republicans could get behind that approach. That's important because if Obama and Boehner strike a deal, he won't need to deliver all the votes himself. An Obama-blessed package will win support from House Democrats, who opposed Plan B. Most Republican insiders believe Boehner only has to deliver about half his members to keep his speakership.”

Just asking, why would Boehner negotiate terms with the president he already knew he couldn’t sell?

The speaker struggled to round up GOP votes for a package that only would have raised taxes on millionaires. If Boehner had trouble selling his own package, it sends a message to Obama that his position, raising taxes on people who make over $400,000, is going to be even tougher to pass.

Kansas Rep. Tim Huelskamp was on MSNBC’s Morning Joe and talked of getting something done, but when asked point blank if he’d vote for a tax increase on anyone, he said, flatly, no. He claimed Speaker Boehner always "dives left" and "conservatives are on the outside.” He said, “I disagree with John Boehner actually caving on taxes.”

Then the conversation went to gun control. Huelskamp initially said there could be a “conversation” on what the solutions to the problem could be, but then said, "It's not a gun problem; it's a people problem."

Buried: “Congressional Republicans on Thursday challenged the Obama administration's plan for correcting flaws exposed by the deadly attacks on the U.S. mission in Libya, pressing for an overhaul of its approach to security and probing to discover what Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other top officials knew before the attacks,” the L.A. Times writes.

“President Barack Obama says his administration has received an outpouring of support for stricter gun laws following last week’s elementary school massacre in Connecticut, telling respondents to an online petition, ‘We hear you,’” AP writes. “The president said in a video released Friday that he has been encouraged that many gun owners have said there are steps the nation can take to prevent more deadly shootings, ‘steps that both protect our rights and protect our kids.’”

The L.A. Times: “President Obama stepped up his public commitment to specific gun control measures Friday by asking a like-minded audience to rally around his efforts to pass them.”

“President Barack Obama plans to observe a moment of silence at the White House on Friday morning in honor of the victims of the Connecticut elementary school massacre,” AP notes. “The White House says the president will observe the moment of silence at 9:30 a.m. EST, about one week after the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.”

“In a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, it’s the message that appears to be the problem, not the messengers who are delivering it,” the Washington Post writes. “A majority of Americans (53 percent) say the Republicans’ problem is that they are overly conservative and unconcerned ‘with the welfare of the people, particularly those in the lower and middle income levels.’ By contrast, 38 percent say the bigger issue is that  Republicans ‘need a better leader to explain and win support’ for their policies. The Republican Party faced similar questions in 1949, after losing the previous five presidential contests. (Today, the party has lost the popular vote in five out of the last six elections.)”

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, wouldn’t shut the door on bringing up recommendations from Vice President Biden’s commission on gun violence in the House next year.

“We join the president in mourning the victims of the horrible tragedy in Connecticut,” Boehner said in response to a question from NBC News during press conference at the Capitol. “He's appointed Vice President Biden to lead a commission, and when the Vice President's recommendations come forward, we'll certainly take them into consideration.”

But the top House Republican wouldn’t commit, either, to allowing votes on specific gun control measures – like renewing the assault weapons ban or limiting ammunition magazines’ capacity – that Democrats have called for in the wake of last week’s elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn.

President Barack Obama tasked Biden on Wednesday with leading the task force on gun violence, which the president said he wanted to produce specific recommendations by next month. The panel was prompted by the tragic Newtown shooting, which claimed the lives of 20 children and 6 teachers at an elementary school.

"The president is absolutely committed to keeping his promise that we will act and we will act in a way that is designed -- even if as he says we can only save one life -- we have to take action," Biden said at a meeting Thursday with cabinet and law enforcement officials.

Boehner’s words Thursday mark a relatively open stance by the speaker, who enjoys an “A” rating by the National Rifle Association. Back in July, after the shooting at a movie theatre in Aurora, Colo., Boehner resisted calls for new regulations on guns saying: "The president has made clear that he's not going to use this horrific event to push for new gun law and I agree."

Updated 1:53 p.m. - Republicans, confident that they would have the votes to be successful, said they would push ahead with their alternative plan to resolve the "fiscal cliff," even as Senate Democrats said the GOP proposal would never even be allowed a vote in their chamber.

GOP leaders said they intended to follow through with their vote to pass a pair of bills which would preserve tax rates on income less than $1 million and approve new spending cuts in place of the automatic cuts -- many to defense -- set to take effect on Jan. 1. 

"Absent a balanced option from the president, this is our nation's best option," House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., told reporters on Capitol Hill. "And Senate Democrats should take up both of these measures immediately."

President Barack Obama has promised to veto the legislation; it is virtually dead-on-arrival in the Senate, where Democrats oppose the proposal.

"Until Republicans take up our bill in the House -- the one that passed here -- there's nothing to discuss," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. "We're not taking up any of the things they're working on over there now." 

The partisan standoff devolved into protracted gamesmanship that appeared to move Democrats and Republicans no closer to a deal to resolve the fiscal cliff just 12 days before its onset. Much of Thursday's action in Washington, represented in a series of dueling press conferences throughout the day, seemed to have more to do with positioning each party for the possibility of failure than reaching the kind of agreement that has eluded lawmakers for so long. 

"After today, Senate Democrats and the White House are going to have to act on this measure," Boehner said at an afternoon press conference. "If Senate Democrats and the White House refuse to act, they'll be responsible for the largest tax hike in American history." 

With less than 12 days until the tax hikes and spending cuts which compose the "fiscal cliff" will snap into place, Republicans remain locked in a stalemate with Obama over the extent of the expiring tax rates they should extend, as well as how deep of cuts should be made -- and to which programs. 

Republicans' Plan B proposal, on which the House will vote this evening, came after the White House offered a deal in which no taxes would go up on income under $400,000, along with changes as to how Social Security benefits would be allowed to grow in coming years. But the administration views the plan as a non-starter, meaning that today's vote serves little more purpose than to posture the GOP for the final stages of negotiations (or, for the political fallout that would result from going over the fiscal cliff.) 

J. Scott Applewhite / AP

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., second from right, walks to a Republican strategy session with Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2012.

"I've done my part," Boehner said about the state of negotiations. "They've done nothing." 

A handful of conservative Republicans, who oppose tax increases in virtually every instance, have said they would vote against their leadership on Plan B, making House Speaker John Boehner's, R-Ohio, task in approving the bill more difficult. Boehner can suffer only 24 defections from fellow Republicans if no Democrats break ranks and support the plan. 

Cantor, on Thursday, confidently predicted the bill would have adequate support when it reaches a final vote, tentatively scheduled for this evening. 

"We're going to have the votes to pass both the permanent tax relief bill as well as the spending reduction bill," he said. 

At the same time, Democrats ridiculed Republicans' strategy as a waste of time given Obama and Senate Democratic leaders' stated opposition to even allowing for consideration of the plan. 

But the speaker said he wasn't convinced his backup proposal really was dead in the Senate. "I'm not convinced at all that when the bill passes the House today, it will die in the Senate," he said. 

The impending Christmas holiday -- along with some congressional leaders' travel to Hawaii this weekend for the funeral of the late Sen. Daniel Inouye, D -- means there are few working days left for Republicans to resolve their standoff with Democrats and Obama. 

Reid said that senators would be asked to return to Washington next Thursday, four days before the fiscal cliff. 

Cantor said that the plan -- as of now -- was for lawmakers to stay in Washington following tonight's Plan B vote.

"We do not intend to send members home after this vote," he said. "We want to stay here, we want to avoid the fiscal cliff from happening." 

Boehner also said the House would stay in Washington past tonight's vote, though he would not say for how long.

Updated 3:40 p.m. --   Newark Mayor Cory Booker will pass on a challenge to New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie, instead exploring a bid for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Democrat Sen. Frank Lautenberg in 2014.

In a video posted to Booker's YouTube page, the mayor cites the need to "finish the work we have begun" in his decision not the challenge the state's popular governor.

"Let there be no doubt: I will complete my full second term as mayor of Newark, New Jersey," Booker says in the 3 minute video. "And as for my political future, I will explore the possibility of running for the United States Senate in 2014."

Booker's choice comes as no surprise to many observers, who have noted that Christie's popularity has surged to all-time highs in the wake of his response to Hurricane Sandy.

A spokesman for Lautenberg said Thursday afternoon that the senator will not address the 2014 election yet.

"This is not the time for political distractions and the Senator will address politics next year," said spokesman Caley Gray in a statement.

Lautenberg, who was first elected to the Senate in 1982, will be 90 years old in two years when his term is over. The 88 year-old New Jerseyan underwent treatment for a cancerous tumor in his stomach in 2010.

The news was first reported by WNBC.

Is Boehner walking away -- again -- as House votes today on “Plan B”… But after the White House’s concessions on taxes and Social Security, doesn’t Boehner owe the White House a counteroffer?... Or is the White House pouting?... Obama promises post-Newtown proposals by January… NRA’s LaPierre to appear on “Meet” this Sunday… And more Benghazi fallout.

*** Is Boehner walking away -- again? In July 2011, at the height of the White House-GOP talks over the debt-ceiling debate, House Speaker John Boehner walked away from the negotiations. His side argued that President Obama and his team moved the goalposts; others have pointed out that House Majority Leader Eric Cantor told Boehner that he and the GOP caucus couldn’t support any more counteroffers. But the bottom line is that Boehner walked away from the grand-bargain talks, and the White House let him walk. Now history seems to be repeating itself. After Boehner compromised last Friday to raise tax rates on income above $1 million, and after Obama compromised even further by raising his income threshold to $400,000 and putting Social Security cuts on the table, Boehner and House Republicans retreated to focus on “Plan B” -- a one-sided effort to raise rates above $1 million that Democrats NOW adamantly oppose. The House vote on the measure will take place today. "Tomorrow, the House will pass legislation to make permanent tax relief for nearly every American, 99.81% of the American people," Boehner said yesterday. "And then the president will have a decision to make: He can call on Senate Democrats to pass that bill, or he can be responsible for the largest tax increase in history."

*** Does Boehner owe the White House a response? So House Republicans -- for a third-straight day -- are focused on passing legislation that will never become law. They argue they have to do something, however, so the Senate can send a response; they are very aware that what they pass today will NOT be the law but a framework for a fallback. But it’s uncertain that Plan B is going to get enough Republican votes to clear the House today. Consequently, per NBC’s Frank Thorp, House GOP leaders will vote on a separate measure today to restore the automatic defense cuts in the sequester and cut an additional $200 billion in spending as a way to get more GOP support. Yet such a move will only further alienate Democrats and the Obama White House. Here’s the reality of the situation: It’s Boehner’s turn to offer a counterproposal. Boehner compromised on the $1 million level, and Obama compromised even further by raising his threshold to $400,000 and putting Social Security (“chained CPI) on the table. But then talks stopped?

Joshua Roberts / Reuters

House Speaker John Boehner walks from a meeting with House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) on Capitol Hill in Washington December 19, 2012.

*** Or is the White House pouting? The White House is telegraphing the fact that it wants to keep negotiating, but Republicans claim that’s purely for show and that behind the scenes the White House has refused to reach out since Boehner announced his Plan B. The big reason Boehner walked away to focus on Plan B -- the White House’s refusal to lower their revenue target from $1.2 trillion. Supposedly, if the White House got closer to $1 trillion (even $1.1 trillion) and included 1-to-1 spending cuts BEFORE counting interest, Boehner would agree. Folks, if they are really thisclose and not thatfaraway, then it does seem silly they can’t bridge this gap. Still, one has to be realistic and put themselves in Boehner’s shoes and ask just what is the political upside for him to cut a deal? It’s actually not that evident.

*** Will Obama and Boehner see each other today? As we wrote yesterday, there is so much speculation over the motives of Plan B. Is it to gain more leverage over the White House? To kill the grand bargain? Or to make a point to House Republicans -- if Plan B doesn’t pass -- that they don’t have a better option than Obama’s last counteroffer. Whatever the rationale, the optics for Boehner don’t look good. Still, there’s a chance that the House speaker and Obama see each other today. (One potential opportunity could be when both men pay their respects to the late Sen. Daniel Inouye on Capitol Hill today.) But if they don’t see each other today? Well, brace yourselves for going over the cliff.

*** Obama promises post-Newtown proposals by next month: Besides the debate over the fiscal cliff, the other big story out there is Obama’s announcement yesterday that he has created a task force in the wake of the tragic Newtown shootings. And the president promised this wouldn’t be your ordinary slow-walking commission. “That’s why I’ve asked the vice president to lead an effort that includes members of my cabinet and outside organizations to come up with a set of concrete proposals no later than January -- proposals that I then intend to push without delay. This is not some Washington commission. This is not something where folks are going to be studying the issue for six months and publishing a report that gets read and then pushed aside. This is a team that has a very specific task, to pull together real reforms right now.”

*** LaPierre to appear on “Meet”: Speaking of Newtown, NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre is set to appear on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. This appearance will come after the NRA’s scheduled press conference for tomorrow.

*** More Benghazi fallout: Lastly, two of Hillary Clinton’s deputies are testifying on Capitol Hill today -- before the Senate Foreign Relations and House Foreign Affairs committees -- regarding the new independent report on the Benghazi attack. Clinton IS NOT appearing due to illness and a concussion she sustained. However, as NBC’s Andrea Mitchell has reported, Clinton is expected to testify on Benghazi next month, although that testimony is dependent on the congressional schedule. Meanwhile, NBC’s Catherine Chomiak has noted that four State Department officials resigned or were relieved of their duties in the wake of that Benghazi report. Heads had to roll.

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*** Thursday’s “The Daily Rundown” line-up: House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) on the fiscal cliff negotiations… NBC’s Kelly O’Donnell with the latest on this morning’s Benghazi hearing in the Senate… NBC’s Mike Viqueira, former DNC spokeswoman Karen Finney and The Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin join the Gaggle on the fiscal fight and the gun debate.

*** Thursday’s “Jansing & Co.” line-up: MSNBC’s Chris Jansing interviews Molly Ball, Dana Milbank and Rep. Chris Van Hollen on the dwindling days for a fiscal cliff deal; Prof. Adam Lankford compares the minds of mass killers with those of terrorists; Michael Steele and Gov. Ed Rendell weigh in on the gun debate; CNBC’s Mandy Drury on the retail push for last minute holiday shopping; NEA’s Mary Kusler on unions’ expectations for a fiscal cliff deal; and McKenna Pope, the teen who got Hasbro to man-up its Easy Back Oven.

*** Thursday’s “MSNBC Live with Thomas Roberts” line-up: MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts talks with Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), Rep. Ron Barber (D-AZ), and Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-KS). Today’s Power Panel includes:   Democratic Strategist Jen Psaki, Republican Strategist Chip Saltsman and TheGrio.com’s Perry Bacon.

*** Thursday’s “NOW with Alex Wagner” line-up: Alex Wagner’s guests include Bloomberg Businessweek Editor Josh Tyrangiel, Newsweek/Daily Beast Special Correspondent Megan McArdle, New York Times Editor Sam Sifton, Politico Sr. White House Reporter Glenn Thrush, Fmr. Asst. Secretary of State P.J. Crowley, and NBC’s Luke Russert.

*** Thursday’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” line-up: NBC’s Andrea Mitchell interviews Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI), Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY), Sen.-elect Chris Murphy (D-CT), Ambassador Nicholas Burns, NBC’s Kelly O’Donnell and The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza and Michael Gerson.

*** Thursday’s “News Nation with Tamron Hall” line-up: MSNBC’s Tamron Hall interviews Sen. Kent Conrad, Rep. Bill Pascrell, Politico’s Lois Romano, Reuters columnist Zachary Karabell, Time magazine’s Bobby Ghosh, and American Prospect blogger Jamelle Bouie.

The Boston Globe’s Johnson yesterday: “The spirit of public comity that followed last week’s mass murder of first-graders in Newtown, Conn., ended today with a pair of dueling news conferences by President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner in Washington. While both men had previously said the national trauma of seeing 26 people gunned down in the Sandy Hook Elementary School was enough to put politics in its place, each quickly fell back into the type of political rhetoric that preceded the shooting.”

USA Today: “Both sides sharpened their rhetoric Wednesday, suggesting they may be at loggerheads with hundreds of billions in tax increase and budget cuts set to be triggered in 12 days.”

“Boehner, R-Ohio, responded to Obama with a defiant tone. In an appearance before reporters that lasted under a minute, Boehner called on Obama to offer a deficit-cutting plan balanced between spending cuts and tax increases and predicted that the House would pass his backup plan,” the New York Daily News writes.

Politico: “Obama and Boehner hit their lowest point yet during a day of sharp words and legislative confusion — and the outlook significantly darkened for reaching a deficit-reduction deal before the new year. The talks are stalled, and Boehner is scrambling to muscle his own bill through the House — a proposal the president has already promised to veto.”

The Hill: “Fiscal-cliff talks deteriorated into dueling press conferences on Wednesday as Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) scrambled for enough Republican votes to pass his backup tax plan over a presidential veto threat.”

The New York Times: “Hopes for a broad deficit-reduction agreement faded on Wednesday as President Obama insisted he had offered Republicans ‘a fair deal’ while Speaker John A. Boehner moved for a House vote as early as Thursday on a scaled-down plan to limit tax increases to yearly incomes of $1 million and up, despite Senate opposition and Mr. Obama’s veto threat.”

Roll Call: “With both Democrats and hard-line conservative Republicans vowing to tank his “plan B” bill that would allow tax increases on millionaires, Boehner’s test Thursday will be to show the White House and Democrats that he has some control over his unruly conference as time to produce a deal averting tax hikes and automatic spending cuts runs out.” More: “Behind the scenes, however, members were asking that spending cuts be part of any legislative package, including the speaker’s plan B. And leadership aides said the final package was still up in the air. House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and his team were hard at work trying to sell Boehner’s plan, but by press time, no one but Boehner had expressed total optimism that the legislation would be successful.”

A CNN poll finds: “53% say the GOP should compromise more, with 41% saying the Democratic Party should give up more of the proposals it supports to develop bipartisan solutions.” And a majority say the Republican Party’s views and policies are too extreme – 53%-43%. Democrats are seen as having mainstream rather than extreme policies by a 57%-37% majority.

John Boehner only gets a 34%/52% approval in how he’s handling his job as speaker. Yet by a 51%-43% margin, people say it’s good for the country that the GOP is in control of the House. By 49%-31%, people say they have more confidence in the president than Republicans in Congress to deal with major issues facing the country.

“Declaring the time for action overdue, President Barack Obama promised on Wednesday to send Congress broad proposals in January for tightening gun laws and curbing violence after last week’s schoolhouse massacre in Connecticut,” AP writes.

The head of the NRA, Wayne LaPierre, will be on Meet the Press this Sunday.

AP: The assault weapons ban “and other U.S. gun laws wouldn’t have prevented his mother’s purchase of the powerful assault rifle or the especially deadly ammunition that he used to kill 26 people. A generation of U.S. gun laws — and the inherent compromises intended to balance constitutional gun rights and public safety — reflects the intricacies of applying government policy to stem acts of mass violence.”

USA Today: “President Obama's new call for proposals to deter gun violence — and his pledge to push those proposals through Congress — sets up the prospect of an intense debate over gun rights and the Second Amendment next year.”

“Cerberus Capital Management founder Stephen Feinberg’s father lives in the Connecticut town where 26 schoolkids and staffers were slaughtered with a Bushmaster — and the dad, Martin Feinberg, said the massacre was ‘devastating,’” the New York Daily News writes. (The Daily News, by the way, is running an online petition drive to ban assault weapons.)

“It makes sense that President Obama would choose Joe Biden to craft new policies to address gun violence,” USA Today writes. “The vice president is a longtime advocate of stricter gun control measures and was the architect of the 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act that temporarily banned assault weapons. During his time on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which he chaired from 1987 to 1995, Biden focused primarily on crime legislation.”

“Obama is scheduled to take off for his family's annual holiday vacation to Hawaii on Friday, but aides on Wednesday told reporters that they would be surprised if it works out that way for the president, as fiscal cliff talks have gridlocked,” per USA Today.

The president gets a 52% approval in a new CNN poll.

“The hurdles begin with the House, where anti-regulation Republicans still dominate, and continue into the Senate where, in addition to Republican opposition, vulnerable Democrats up for re-election in 2014 have not openly supported any change in the law,” USA Today writes, adding, “While several prominent Republicans have publicly said there needs to be an examination into what cultural and policy failures have contributed to the recent spate of mass shootings, few have said they would support renewing the ban on assault weapons or limiting high-capacity magazines.” More: “Among Republicans in the Senate, only Sen. Susan Collins of Maine has said she would support renewing the assault weapons ban, according to National Journal.”

National Journal: “Collins is unusual among Republicans in stating outright that she supports some types of weapons bans. Other Republican senators either ran away from reporters or waffled when peppered with questions about it on Tuesday.”

Outgoing Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA) is now in favor of a federal assault-weapons ban, but he likely won’t vote on any gun congressional measures.