Congress and the White House unveil their comprehensive immigration plans this week, and the hopes of 11 million people hang in the balance. What are their hopes? Are they they optimistic? Anxious? And what’s at stake?

Ben Smith, editor in chief of Buzzfeed, gives his analysis of the President's press conference, originally scheduled for 11:15 this morning. It will be the final press conference in his first term. 

Fifty years ago today, Paul Winter and his sextet brought jazz to the White House for the very first time. Those recordings are now available to hear. Winter reminisces about how it all happened.

With one term down and one more to go, we take a look at how well the first Obama administration did on some of the issues OTM cares about most: surveillance, transparency, whistleblowers, and press access. Brooke and Bob speak with The Guardian's Glenn Greenwald, the Sunlight Foundation's Lisa Rosenberg, and ABC's White House correspondent Jake Tapper about Obama's first four years, and what they expect in the next four.

Nathan Salsburg - Eight Belles Dreamt the Devil Was Dead

Valerie Jarrett, a senior advisor and assistant to President Obama for Public Engagement and Intergovernment Affairs, talks about the American Jobs Act and a new report from the White House on Creating Pathways to Opportunity. Cynthia Gordy, Washington reporter for The Root, is moderating an event tonight and talks about the kinds of questions readers of The Root want the White House to answer about the Jobs Act. 

Event: Tonight at 5:30 p.m., White House officials Valerie Jarrett and Melody Barnes take questions at The Root!

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The White House and Congress are butting heads over who authorizes military action in Libya. The 60-day deadline for President Obama to get approval from Congress to go to war passed on May 20th.

Tuesday, the White House offered its first public argument on why the administration thinks it has not violated the War Powers Resolution. The White House Press Secretary said that President Obama’s actions are consistent with the War Powers Act. However, ten members of Congress, led by Representative Dennis Kucinich filed a lawsuit Tuesday, effectively asking a judge to order an end to U.S. involvement in the war.

The details and narrative of what happened during the raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan have come out in bits and pieces over the last few days. Initial reports that Bin Laden met American forces with armed resistance seemed to be inaccurate and reports that bin Laden used one of his wives as a shield has also been recounted. Are White House officials revising history?

El Salvador is the last stop on President Obama's three-nation tour of Latin America. Mr. Obama's stops in Brazil and Chile were largely overshadowed by events in Libya, but his reasons for visiting the strategically important South American nations were clear: with their galloping economies, Brazil and Chile are emerging as power players in the region and in the world. However, his reasons for visiting El Salvador are less obvious.

How does the president and the White House prepare for such a major event as the State of the Union? Jen Psaki, deputy communications director for the White House, says that this is an opportunity for the president to talk about what to expect in the future. But how much of this speech is just a laundry list and how much is a real opportunity to talk to the public about moving forward?

It's been a big week as Washington gets back to work. There are questions about whether the Republican-dominated House can actually repeal the health care plan. Meanwhile, Democrats are finally "finding their voice" on health care, says Takeaway Washington correspondent, Todd Zwillich, as they prepare to counter GOP claims about the bill.

President Obama returns from his family holiday in Hawaii to the first major reorganization of his administration. When restructuring, does he choose a team for governing or a team for winning and campaigning for 2012? Marcus Mabry, associate editor for our partner, The New York Times, joins us to discuss. Also,major snow storms hit multiple parts of the country over the weekend; we'll find out how the weather affected post-Christmas sales, and what retailers made during the shopping craze before the big day from Charlie Herman, economics editor for The Takeaway.

The Pentagon will release its highly awaited review of U.S. policy in Afghanistan today. Early leaks from the report indicate that some progress has been made in President Obama's stated goal of defeating al-Qaida in Afghanistan. But The Washington Post reports a high-level U.S. official says Pakistan is failing to pursue insurgents who cross the border into Afghanistan and then retreat into Pakistani territory. We talk to Ambassador Akbar Ahmed, the former Pakistani ambassador to the U.K., for more on the story. 

Jimmy Carter, former U.S. president and the author of White House Diary, talks about his days in the White House and his recent trip to North Korea.

President Obama meets today with governors and mayors from around the nation to talk about “investing in America’s infrastructure.”

Neera Tanden, chief operating officer at the Center for American Progress, reflects on Rahm Emanuel's tenure as White House chief of staff.

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President Obama will announce the departure of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel later today. As the right hand man to the president, Emanuel championed Obama’s causes behind the scenes and brokered deals to push through legislation. But his wasn’t a flawless record. Critics argue that Emanuel’s pugilistic nature often attracted negative attention to himself, and that his focus on short term goals squandered some of the political capital the president carried into his first term.