UPDATED 11:36 AM EST, December 28, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — Efforts to save the nation from going over a year-end "fiscal cliff" were in disarray as lawmakers fled the Capitol for their Christmas break. "God only knows" how a deal can be reached now, House Speaker John Boehner declared.
President Barack Obama, on his way out of town himself, insisted a bargain could still be struck before Dec. 31. "Call me a hopeless optimist," he said. Obama returned from vacation Thursday and called congressional leaders to the White House Friday in hopes of reaching a deal.
