Good Monday morning. Our email inbox is surprisingly quiet just a week after press releases were coming in every three seconds. All the easier to clean out said mailbox, we suppose. Here's what Washington is watching today:

-- President-elect Barack Obama owes one man a debt of gratitude for his winning the presidency, and today he'll get the opportunity to offer thanks when the two meet. Obama is headed to the White House, where the Illinois Democrat with sky-high approval ratings will meet the Texas Republican with approval ratings in the tank. It could be an awkward meeting, writes the New York Times' Sheryl Gay Stolberg; during the campaign, if there was a shot to be taken at President Bush, Obama took it. Bush and Obama have met before, Fox News' Bill Sammon writes, and their first encounter was less than pleasant. Still, today's meetings have upsides for both men: Obama can look more presidential and Bush is actually being praised by Democrats for his work on the transition.

-- Obama will kick off his administration with a bang as he considers using executive orders to reverse Bush Administration policies on stem cells, drilling and other issues, the AP's Stephen Ohlemacher writes. Obama is going through Bush's executive orders in the hopes of having an immediate impact while Congress works more slowly on his other priorities, transition chief John Podesta said on morning shows yesterday.

-- Meanwhile, expect some of Obama's first cabinet appointees to be rolled out this week, as the president-elect spends his political capital to fill important posts dealing with the economy and security first. Obama's economic advisers are split between former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and New York Fed president Tim Geithner, the Wall Street Journal writes today. Washington insider types are backing former U.S. Attorneys Eric Holder and Jamie Gorelick for Attorney General, as others suggest Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano or Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick would be better suited for the AG post, Politico's Chris Frates writes.

-- But some names aren't likely to change any time soon. An Obama administration will still include Admiral Mike Mullen, who chairs the Joint Chiefs of Staff until late next year; Ben Bernanke, who is still at the helm of the Federal Reserve Board and FBI director Robert Mueller, the Washington Post's MacGillis and Tyson write. Buzz around Washington is that Obama would like to keep Defense Secretary Robert Gates at the Pentagon, as well. Then again, has anyone asked Gates whether he'd be interested in staying?

-- The new administration hasn't even been named and already preparations are being made for 2010. Not happy with Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman Chris Van Hollen's decision to step down as House Democrats' top campaigner, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has successfully talked the Marylander into serving for another cycle, the Post's Chris Cillizza writes. Van Hollen also gets a more prominent role of coordinating policy communications between House Democrats and the White House, a more prominent role that could be compensation for not getting the Conference Chairman's position vacated by Rep. Rahm Emanuel.

-- In the Senate, Democrats have picked up at least six seats, with races in Minnesota and Alaska still to be counted. That's giving Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid an excuse to cut the number of seats the minority GOP gets on committees, The Hill's Alexander Bolton writes. Republicans will lose one seat on most committees and two seats on some prominent committees including Appropriations. Reid's plans aren't final, according to a spokesperson, especially given the two outstanding races, but Democrats are modeling their efforts on the 103rd Congress, the last time the party held 57 seats. (Side note: No one's losing their seat on Approps, though; even after chopping two seats, at least three and perhaps four Republicans on the panel stepped down this year, meaning as many as two younger members get a shot at the prestigious committee)

-- Meanwhile, Reid is also dealing with an increasingly delicate situation surrounding Homeland Security and Government Affairs chairman Joe Lieberman, the bane of his existence for the past year. Lieberman's support for John McCain and GOP senators Norm Coleman and Susan Collins have not won him friends or influence in the Democratic caucus -- even after giving a little over $200,000 to the DSCC -- and he's going to have to fight for his chairmanship. Reid wants to keep Lieberman in the Senate, but given the hard feelings among many in the caucus, that may not be possible. "Joe Lieberman votes with me a lot more than a lot of my senators," Reid said on Late Edition yesterday. Lieberman will face the Democratic caucus in a few weeks and plead his case.

-- Finally, it's not only the House and Senate contests and structure that are shaking out this week. Buzz is actually beginning around the 2012 presidential race as well. Close associates of former Speaker Newt Gingrich have told Republicans that Gingrich would chair the Republican National Committee if asked, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes today. The news comes after a weekend float from Bob Novak suggesting Gingrich will be a likely White House candidate.

-- Party Of The Day: While Gingrich considers mounting his own comeback, other possible 2012 contenders are making their own first forays into the pool. Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee dips his toe in this week with a return to Iowa for two book tour stops, while Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, the GOP flavor of the moment, will keynote the conservative Iowa Family Policy Center's annual dinner this month, KCCI-TV first reported back in October. Mitt Romney spent the weekend on a cruise sponsored by National Review, while other incumbent governors will head to Florida this week for an RGA meeting. Thought you were done with the presidential contest? The next round is just starting.