White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was coy on Friday when it came to offering a date for the president to deliver the upcoming State of the Union address. He deflected questions as to whether the speech before a bicameral gathering of Congress would take place in January or February and only smiled suggestively when asked whether President Obama was waiting until health care reform was passed first.

But the press secretary did rule out one possible SOTU date -- much to the delight of a major television network. The speech, Gibbs said, would not take place on the same night as the three-hour premiere of the final season of ABC's "Lost".

"I don't foresee a scenario in which millions people who hope to finally get some conclusion with 'Lost' are preempted by the president," he said. "You can quote a senior administration official."