1104obamaPresident Barack Obama sought Thursday to retake the political initiative after a bruising election, inviting Republican and Democratic congressional leaders for talks and challenging his Cabinet to make Washington work better.

The Nov. 18 meeting will be closely watched, in particular, for any signs of elusive progress between Obama and his two frequent Republican antagonists, incoming House Speaker-in-Waiting John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. They will be joined by the top Democrats in Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Four other lawmakers will join the meeting: Republicans Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia and Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl, and Democrats Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland and Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said he expects the meeting to be the first of many.

Tuesday’s elections amounted to a national political reset, shifting control of the House to Republicans when the new Congress convenes early next year.

The president said he wants the bipartisan meeting with congressional leaders to be a substantive discussion on the economy, tax cuts, and unemployment insurance. He wants to focus on the busy legislative agenda that awaits Congress when lawmakers return for a lame-duck session. Among the top front-burner issues: renewing Bush-era tax cuts due to expire at year’s end.

Aware that he’s been pegged as antibusiness, Obama said he wants to provide both businesses and middle class families with some certainty about what their tax landscape will look like.

Gibbs said Thursday that while extending tax cuts permanently for upper income earners “is something the president does not believe is a good idea,” Obama would be open to the possibility of extending the cuts for one or two years.

Obama also said the work that needs to be done during this month’s legislative session extends to foreign policy. Specifically, he said, the Senate should ratify a new arms control treaty with Russia to cut both countries’ nuclear arsenals by one-fourth.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.