In the Headlines

"Obama Eyes $500 Billion in Stimulus; Paulson Weighs Ramping Up Aid Again" (Jonathan Weisman, Deborah Solomon and John Hilsenrath, Wall Street Journal) - Aides to President-elect Barack Obama and President George W. Bush are rushing to craft measures to shore up financial markets and prevent a policy vacuum from further harming the economy during the transition of power between the two men.

"U.S. Offers Citigroup Expansive Safety Net" (Neil Irwin and David Cho, Washington Post) - The government said last night that it will provide a multibillion-dollar backstop for Citigroup, revamping emergency efforts yet again to head off the failure of a company more deeply intertwined with the financial system than nearly any other.

"Initial Steps by Obama Suggest a Bipartisan Flair" (Jeff Zeleny, New York Times) - In the third week of his transition to power, President-elect Barack Obama is working to build a cordial relationship with Republicans by seeking guidance on policy proposals, asking for advice on appointments and hoping to avoid perceptions of political arrogance given the wide margins of his victory.

"Closing Guantanamo prison may be the easy part for Obama" (Julian Barnes and David Savage, Los Angeles Times) - President-elect Barack Obama's vow to close the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, cheered human rights organizations and civil libertarians, but could force the new administration to consider a step those groups would abhor.

On the Morning Shows

Morning Joe - Obama economic adviser Austan Goolsbee, on the Obama bailout figure: "It needs to be as big a number as it needs to be. ... We don't know what the state of the economy is going to be at that exact moment."