President Obama hosted Republican leaders at the White House on Tuesday for their first meeting since the midterm elections. The two sides announced a bipartisan group to resolve an impasse over extending the Bush-era tax cuts for U.S. households earning over $250,000. The Obama administration has signaled it is willing to compromise to extend the cuts. The meeting also covered the stalled nuclear arms reduction treaty with Russia, the extension of unemployment benefits, and the funding of government operations. Obama hailed the talks as a sign of bipartisan cooperation.

President Obama: “I think everybody understands that the American people want us to focus on their jobs, not ours. They want us to come together around strategies to accelerate the recovery and get Americans back to work. They want us to confront the long-term deficits that cloud our future. They want us to focus on their safety and security and not allow matters of urgent importance to become locked up in the politics of Washington. So today we had the beginning of a new dialogue that I hope, and I’m sure most Americans hope, will help break through the noise and produce real gains.”

Extended unemployment benefits for nearly two million Americans begin to run out today.