As Congress arrives at a budget agreement and avoids sending the U.S into default right before the August 2 deadline, we're examining the broader, long-term political and historical impact of the the debt crisis. How will it affect the credibility of the U.S. government? What does it tell us about President Obama, and how will the crisis shape next year's election?

President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner both addressed the nation last night, explaining where each of their parties stand on the current debate over the debt ceiling. What impact did the speeches have?

President Obama will resume talks today with top House and Senate leaders, in an attempt to reach an agreement over deficit reduction. Obama met with leaders from both parties for an hour and fifteen minutes last night, but little progress was made. The president continues to vie for a bold package that would require new taxes and entitlement cuts, while Republicans insist on a more modest plan and oppose tax increases. They're aiming to reach an agreement by August 2.

Tomorrow, the Obama administration will shuffle its top civilian military position when Leon Panetta, 73, replaces Robert Gates as the secretary of defense. For a nation stretched thin by three ongoing military engagements, the new Secretary of Defense is going to have little time for on-the-job training. Instead, he can hope to learn from the example left behind by his out-going colleague.

The troop drawdown in Afghanistan is scheduled to begin in July, but we don't yet know how many will be taken out of the country. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that a slower drawdown is needed when he spoke from Afghanistan on his farewell visit to troops before his retirement. David Sanger, chief Washington correspondent for The New York Times analyzes the situation. He says we haven't yet heard from the new Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta. It is likely, says Sanger, that President Obama do what he did in Iraq, essentially setting a date for the ultimate drawdown and leave the pace of the withdrawal up to the commanders. 

President Obama made a subtle, rhetorical shift in his Libya policy on Wednesday in London. After nearly three months of stating that U.S. priorities were to protect civilians from massacres, The President now says the goal is to make sure that the Libyan people will be "finally free of 40 years of tyranny,” at the hands of Col. Moammar Gadhafi. The President spoke to British Parliament at Westminster Hall, and in a joint press conference with British Prime Minister David Cameron. For more on what this means for transatlantic relations, we turn to David Sanger, Chief Washington correspondent for The New York Times.

In his speech on the Arab world on Thursday, President Obama evoked images of the American Revolution, the Civil Rights Movement and the Fall of the Iron Curtain to parallel American values and the Arab uprisings. The speech comes nearly six months after the uprisings began in Tunis, and the state of democracy in Tunisia and Egypt is precarious at best. But what concrete steps is Obama promising — and can he come through?