Update at 10:02 a.m. ET. News Conference Set For 2 P.M. ET:
The White House just announced that the president will hold a news conference at 2 p.m. ET.
So, we've changed our original headline from "If Obama Takes Questions ..." to "When."
Note: The president's sessions with reporters often get started a little late.
Our original post picks up the story:
There some open time on President Obama's schedule today — between a late morning meeting with advisers and an early evening departure for a two-week vacation in Hawaii.
How might he fill that gap? Politico is among the news outlets speculating that the president will endure a "torturous rite of passage ... a year-end press conference."
The topics he would be quizzed about seem fairly obvious. They include: The troubled roll out of HealthCare.gov; the two-year budget deal; Edward Snowden and his leaks about the National Security Agency; the ongoing crisis in Syria; and strained relations with Russia.
As we wait to hear for sure whether the president will or won't be appearing before the White House press corps, we wonder:
What would you ask the president?
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