Previous updates and live video are here.
11:39 AM PT: Next question from Ed Henry of Fox. Gets a "Merry Christmas" in there, bringing Fox's War on War on Christmas to the White House.
11:46 AM PT: Henry's question was about as long as a typical Obama answer, and ranged from the substance of the NSA phone metadata program to a larger question about whether Americans can trust Obama given the Obamacare rollout. Obama's answer basically goes back to his standard line which is that the substance of the programs has been and will continue to be perfectly fine, but that the publicizing of them has made people worried about privacy violations, and because of those concerns, Obama believes some changes to the programs needs to be made, not to address substantive issues, but rather to reassure the public that the programs don't violate their privacy. (This is a somewhat subtle argument to make, and Ed Henry tried to do his best to accuse Obama of flip-flopping over the past few months, but failed to rattle Obama.)
11:49 AM PT: Jon Karl wants to know what President Obama thinks his biggest mistake of the year was. Obama's answer isn't a shock: The first few weeks of HealthCare.gov and how the IT management was done. But at the same time, he doesn't lose sight of the fact that at the end of the day, thanks to Obamacare, several million people who didn't have health insurance in 2013 will have it in 2014.
11:52 AM PT: Imagine that: Brianna Keilar of CNN asks a question about policy instead of the "biggest regret/why do you suck" kind of question that AP, Fox, and ABC went for. Her question is about the debt limit, and whether Obama will agree to negotiate the GOP's ransom demands for raising it. Obama starts out his answer with a quick no, but detours into a discussion of the budget deal, to make the point that it's possible to negotiate without brinksmanship.
11:55 AM PT: But she snatches defeat from the jaws of victory, asking him what his New Year's resolution is. He says: "To be nicer to the White House press corps."
11:59 AM PT: Major Garrett asks about the possibility of a plea agreement or amnesty for Edward Snowden. Obama says "I can't weigh in specifically on this case at this point," but says he'll try to address "the spirit of this question." Obama says the debate prompted by these disclosures is valuable, but that disclosures were "damaging." His first example of the sort of damage is to essentially argue that the disclosures have harmed America's reputation. Although Obama doesn't directly address Garrett's question, he gives no indication that he's actively pursuing amnesty or a plea deal.
12:03 PM PT: Chuck Todd asks about the decision to delay mandate for people who had their insurance cancelled, and why didn't the administration just delay the mandate for everyone. Obama says they wanted the change to only apply to people who are dealing with hardship situations, because that's the provision of the law under which those people were granted the mandate reprieve. Obama says that the bigger picture is that despite the website issues and messaging problems, the law is working: Everyone who had insurance before the website rollout (outside of the individual market) now has more protections, and starting in 2014, millions of people will have insurance because of the ACA.
12:08 PM PT: On why he won't be attending the Olympics: Essentially says he's too busy, and then "The delegation speaks for itself." He specifically notes Billy Jean King and Brian Boitano and that the U.S. believes LGBT community should be treated equally under the law.
12:09 PM PT: On what Max Baucus appoint as China ambassador says about his confidence in tax reform: It says he believes Max Baucus will be an outstanding ambassador to China. And then he says he'd love to see tax reform.
12:13 PM PT: Another filibuster question, this one from Jackie Calmes of the New York Times—and when Obama calls her out, she takes a shot at Ed Henry's stemwinder, to groans from the gallery. Her first question was about Politifact's Lie of the Year (which they previously rated as half-true) on "You can keep your health insurance." Obama, thankfully, doesn't really address her idiotic question on that. She also asked about Iran, which Obama was more eager to address. "We now have a structure to have a very serious conversation to see" it's possible to achieve a verifiable agreement for Iran to give up its nuclear ambitions. This is important because "the alternative is potentially for us to have to engage in some sort of conflict." Obama says he's keeping all options on the table, but if he can do it diplomatically, that's what he wants to do.
12:19 PM PT: Last question is about Obama reshaping his staff. Obama says it's tough for him to see Pete Rouse leave. "I love that guy," that "will be a significant loss." Says he thinks Podesta coming onboard will be crucial.
12:20 PM PT: "Have a great holiday everybody, I appreciate you," President Obama says, wrapping up. Then, in a tease to Fox: "Merry Christmas!." And the press conference is over.