Good Tuesday morning. Washington gets a welcomed break from the blistering cold today and will be watching these stories...

The Transition
President-elect Obama and Vice President-elect Biden are scheduled to meet with former VP Al Gore today in Chicago "to discuss energy and climate change and how policies in this area can stimulate the economy and create jobs," according to the Transition team. Obama listed alternative energy as one of the core areas of job creation in his proposed economic recovery package. Gore is not interested in a cabinet position, though Obama has said previously that Gore's voice on energy and the environment would be welcomed in an Obama White House.

The Big Three
"Congressional Democrats and the White House yesterday settled on a plan to rush $15 billion in emergency loans to the cash-strapped Detroit automakers and were working into the night to resolve final disputes over the conditions the government should attach to the money," the Washington Post reports.

On "Meet the Press" on Sunday, Obama cautioned that the U.S. should not be interested in nationalizing the auto industry, the New York Times reports. "But what Mr. Obama went on to describe was a long-term bailout that would be conditioned on federal oversight. It could mean that the government would mandate, or at least heavily influence, what kind of cars companies make, what mileage and environmental standards they must meet and what large investments they are permitted to make -- to recreate an industry that Mr. Obama said 'actually works, that actually functions.'"

As the L.A. Times reports, a government-appointed "car czar" wouldn't have complete control of the industry. "Under the proposal, the monitor's authority would stop short of the near-complete operational control some critics wanted the new "car czar" to have. But the official, to be appointed by the president, would negotiate far-reaching plans for restructuring General Motors Corp. and Chrysler by March 31. Ford Motor Co., which is in better financial condition, apparently would not be part of the initial outlay."

The Elections
The man responsible for knocking indicted Congressman Bill Jefferson (D-La.) out of the House -- Anh "Joseph" Cao -- continues to receive extensive publicity, including a profile of the man in the Sunday edition of the New York Times, as well as a front-page story in the Washington Post today.

This hype was initiated by the GOP itself, with House Minority Leader John Boehner distributing a memo Sunday night titled, "The Future is Cao." Politico delves into this phenomenon in a story today.