From PRI, Public Radio International and KCRW Santa Monica, this is To the Point.

Chaos continues on Capitol Hill.

Hello again, I'm Marvin Olney, and this is To the Poet from Public Radio International.

A daily look at the issues Americans care about most.

The lame duck session of

Congress is hard to keep track of. Today's sure thing is old news by tomorrow and nobody knows how long

it's going to go on. The tax bill and the omnibus spending package were dealt with last night,

but what about don't ask, don't tell, the Dream Act and the Stark Treaty? Is Barack Obama

triangulating with Democrats and Republicans just like Bill Clinton?

Is he abandoning principles or finally getting real?

And what are the prospects for next year when Republicans will take over the House?

Will it be time to get down to business or the start of the next campaign?

On reporters notebook later on, an ATM machine that dispenses gold.

First, here's the news.

Support for To the Point comes from subscribers of KCRW Santa Monica and from the Public Radio

International Program Fund, whose contributors include the Ford Foundation, the John

D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation,

and the Skoll Foundation, supporting social entrepreneurs around the world, uncommon heroes dedicated to

the common good. Learn more at scowl.org. Hello again, Warren Alney, back with To the Poet. As the lame duck

Congress lurches along, what are the signals for next year when Republicans will take over the House?

Is President Obama changing his strategy to deal with new political realities and prepare his campaign for re-election?

On reporter's notebook, a gift that keeps on giving, gold, dispensed by a new ATM machine in Boca Raton, Florida.

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