President Obama answers questions on Twitter.

Obama was asked about tax deductions for mortgage interest and about how much he is willing to give in negotiations with Republicans. The chat is part of the White House's effort to engage the American people in the fiscal cliff debate.

During the presidential campaign, President Obama said that one of things he would do more of during his second term is engage the American people. One attempt at such a thing came on Wednesday, when the White House announced the #My2K Twitter hashtag that they hoped Americans would use to continue debating the "fiscal cliff."

Today, the White House took it a step further: President Obama signed on to Twitter to answer questions about the large spending cuts and tax increases scheduled to take effect January 1.

The questions ranged in topic from mortgage interest rate deductions to college tuition. The chat is now over but we've collected some highlights:

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