President Obama met with majority leaders today to discuss the fiscal cliff crisis that takes effect three days from now, and in a press conference immediately following said he was "modestly optimistic" that the crisis could be averted. Should negotiations between Republicans and Democrats prove ineffective in the next few days, President Obama has tasked Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., to place a bill before the House and Senate that allows an up-or-down vote. The bill would seek to extend unemployment benefits to unemployed Americans with income less than $250,000, decrease spending in "responsible" ways and increase taxes on those making $250,000 or more ...