U.S. President Barack Obama, right, speaks as U.S. Vice President Joseph 'Joe' Biden looks on in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013. The House of Representatives passed legislation averting income tax increases for most U.S. workers after Republicans abandoned their effort to attach spending cuts that would have been rejected by the Senate. Photographer: Brendan Hoffman/Pool via Bloomberg