By Eliot Nelson & Arthur Delaney
President Obama bought a sandwich with a 10 percent furloughed employee discount, which is fine because he's a federal employee who isn't doing anything. The jobs report didn't come out today but, judging by the number of bars at near-capacity, a lot of people are out of work. And Jay Carney is answering his own phone ("Hi, this is Jay Carney and I don't have an answer to that. To whom am I speaking?"). This is HUFFPOST HILL for Friday, October 4th, 2013:
OBAMACARE TAKING THE WEEKEND OFF - Jeff Young: "The federal government will take down a critical part of HealthCare.gov, the Obamacare web portal, for a portion of the coming weekend as programmers feverishly work to fix major glitches that are impeding enrollment and marring the debut of the centerpiece of President Barack Obama's health care reform law." [HuffPost]
HOUSE DEMOCRATS UNVEIL DISCHARGE PETITION TO END SHUTDOWN - Jen Bendery: "House Democrats announced Friday that they will try to force the House to vote on a measure to fully fund the government -- and end the shutdown -- with a procedural motion known as a discharge petition. Democrats unveiled their plan at a Friday afternoon press conference. Their resolution would fund the government through Nov. 15 at the same levels as the Senate-passed continuing resolution. And, like the Senate bill, there would be no strings attached related to delaying or defunding Obamacare. The effort, led by Reps. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and George Miller (D-Calif.), has little chance of succeeding. The process can be time-consuming and it requires members of the majority party -- in this case, Republicans -- to buck their party leaders and sign a petition with the minority to force a bill to the floor. But it's one of the few things Democrats can do as the minority to try to force action. If all 200 Democrats sign the petition, 18 Republicans would have to join them in order to hit 218 signatures, the magic number needed to move forward with the petition. Democrats already know there are at least 21 Republicans who would support a 'clean' government funding bill, with no strings attached. But declaring support for such a bill and signing a petition to force it to the House floor, against the will of House GOP leaders, are two entirely different things." [HuffPost]
Do you like words? Then you'll love HuffPost Senior Editor Sasha Belenky's roundup of the week's best long-form reads.
GOP ESTABLISHMENT WILL PULL OVER THIS CAR RIGHT NOW - Ted Cruz needs to stop asking to go to the bathroom every twenty minutes. NYT: "on Wednesday at a private luncheon, several Senate Republicans — Dan Coats of Indiana, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire — assailed Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who has led the movement to block funding for the health law. Ms. Ayotte was especially furious, according to two people present, and waved a printout from a conservative group friendly to Mr. Cruz attacking 25 of his fellow Republican senators for supporting a procedural vote that the group counted as support of the health law. Ms. Ayotte asked Mr. Cruz to disavow the group's effort and demanded he explain his strategy. When he did not, several other senators — including Mr. Johnson, Mr. Coats and even Mitch McConnell, the minority leader — joined in the criticism of Mr. Cruz. "It just started a lynch mob," said a senator who was present. Despite the uproar, Mr. Cruz did not offer a plan for how his party could prevail in the shutdown battle and suggested his colleagues were defeatists. Republican elders worry that the tactics of Mr. Cruz and his allies in the House are reinforcing the party's image as obstructionist, and benefiting Mr. Obama at a time when his standing with the public is sliding. A New York Times/CBS poll last week found that 49 percent of Americans disapprove of the president's job performance." [NYT]
PRO TIP: "Shooting at a moving vehicle is against all nationally recognized protocols."
DAILY DELANEY DOWNER - Michelle Price of Ball, La., panicked earlier this week when she heard the federal government shutdown would soon hobble the program she uses to buy formula for her seven-week-old baby. "I spent two hours in Walmart filling all my October vouchers so I know I have formula and all of my staple groceries," Price, 26, told HuffPost. "I get formula for her and we get milk and eggs and cheese and juice for me. Those are my groceries. That helps my food budget stretch a little bit more." The Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants & Children is a nearly $7 billion program that serves 9 million women and infants nationwide. Pregnant women and new moms qualify if they're poor and facing "nutrition risk," meaning medical problems or difficulty getting healthy food. The program provides paper vouchers moms redeem at stores for baby formula and certain healthy foods. Louisiana's Department of Health and Hospitals said earlier this week that thanks to the shutdown, WIC vouchers wouldn't be good after Oct. 15. But on Thursday, the state announced on its website that WIC wouldn't shut down in the state after all.... Similar switcheroos occurred in Arkansas, Iowa, and Utah. It turns out that all state WIC programs should have enough money for the whole month. What happened? [HuffPost]
House Republicans voted Friday on a bill to restore WIC funding, something they're historically sought to cut.
Does somebody keep forwarding you this newsletter? Get your own copy. It's free! Sign up here. Send tips/stories/photos/events/fundraisers/job movement/juicy miscellanea to huffposthill@huffingtonpost.com. Follow us on Twitter - @HuffPostHill
MONOPOLY GUY READY FOR HIS CLOSEUP - Paul Blumenthal: "Removing the limits on total campaign contributions by a single donor, a restriction now before the Supreme Court, would lead to a huge increase in giving by a small group of very wealthy Americans, according to a new report released Friday. The aggregate limits, which restrict individual donors to giving no more than $123,200 in the 2014 election cycle, are being challenged in McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, set to be argued before the high court on Oct. 8. The case was brought by Alabama company owner Shaun McCutcheon and joined by the Republican National Committee. McCutcheon argues that the aggregate limits are an unconstitutional restriction of his First Amendment right to support as many candidates as he would like as much as he would like." [HuffPost]
SHUTDOWN MISERY IN THE HINTERLAND - Sam Stein and Jason Cherkis: "As she drove along the outskirts of Tallahassee, Fla., on Thursday, Kim Maxwell, 38, became overwhelmed with emotions. It had been nearly three days into the government shutdown, and the political paralysis brought on by warring lawmakers in Washington, D.C., had begun seeping into her life. The Head Start program that her 3-year-old son Matthew attended had closed, leaving her to balance new parenting responsibilities with critical work hours. 'I was bawling on Interstate 10,' Maxwell said. 'It just hit me. I feel so bad for Matthew being stuck in the house and I'm not having the money to put him in another program.'" [HuffPost]
THIS KID CHAD IS A REAL PAIN IN THE ASS - Worst Chad since 2000. Jeff Young: "Chad Henderson, who told The Huffington Post and numerous other news outlets that he had enrolled in health coverage via the Obamacare health insurance exchanges, recanted his story Friday. This article replaces an earlier version, published Thursday, which reported incorrectly that Chad Henderson and his father enrolled in Obamacare. Henderson admitted to HuffPost that he has not enrolled in Obamacare, countering reports in HuffPost, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and Politico....'When I said 'enroll,' I guess I got the terminology wrong. I meant that I was able to actually get in and have access to compare the prices,' Chad Henderson said." [HuffPost]
Congressman Lee Terry will not be caught dead in a studio apartment - Amanda Terkel: "Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) said this week that there is no way he's giving up his salary during the government shutdown. 'Dang straight,' he said when asked by the Omaha World-Herald Bureau whether he would keep his paycheck...'Whatever gets them good press,' Terry said of members giving up their salary. 'That's all that it's going to be. God bless them. But you know what? I've got a nice house and a kid in college, and I'll tell you we cannot handle it. Giving our paycheck away when you still worked and earned it? That's just not going to fly.'" [HuffPost]
PLURALITY OF AMERICANS SUPPORTS FURLOUGH BACK PAY - Emily Swanson and Dave Jamieson: "Americans are more likely than not to think that furloughed federal employees should receive back pay whenever the government shutdown is over, according to a new HuffPost/YouGov poll. The poll found that 47 percent of respondents believe government employees who aren't able to work during the shutdown should be paid for the time they miss, while 38 percent said they should not be. Another 15 percent weren't sure. The survey showed a sharp divide along party lines on the back pay issue. By a 64 percent to 21 percent margin, most Democrats said furloughed workers should be paid for the time they miss. By a 55 percent to 29 percent margin, most Republicans said they should not be. Independents were about evenly divided, with 42 percent supporting and 44 percent opposing back pay." [HuffPost]
SAD JAY CARNEY ANSWERING PHONES ALL BY HIMSELF - Politico: "Place a call to White House press secretary Jay Carney these days, and it'll lead to something surprising on the other end: Jay Carney. The White House is a building of gatekeepers — legions of assistants and special assistants and deputy assistants who protect their bosses and keep the place running. But the White House under the government shutdown, pared down to a fourth of its usual staff size, is a shadow of its hierarchical self. Carney, deprived of his assistant, has to answer all the calls coming into his office. 'With great care,' he adds. Principal deputy press secretary Josh Earnest stepped in for the shuttered White House Travel Office, sending the notification to the press charter company that the last two legs of President Barack Obama's Asia trip were canceled...White House aides are loath to portray the disruption as comparable in any way to the upheaval felt by families losing a Head Start slot for their child, businesses that can't get loans processed, and veterans who depend on disability payments. But the shutdown has scrambled the way the West Wing operates, creating annoyances, extra work and lots of open desk space." [Politico]
*******PAID CONTENT******
America's Essential Hospitals - An essential partner in better health and economic outcomes. NAPH is now America's Essential Hospitals. ***
*******PAID CONTENT******
BREAKING: PRESIDENT PERAMBULATES, MASTICATES - Remember how "president eats at place" owned, like, half of the 2009 news cycle? AP: "President Barack Obama used a surprise walk out of the White House Friday to get a sandwich and the spotlight in the government shutdown as it dragged on with no negotiations scheduled with House Speaker John Boehner. Obama strolled unannounced out of the White House gate, making his way along with Vice President Joe Biden a block up Pennsylvania Avenue to a Taylor Gourmet deli that was offering a discount to furloughed federal employees going without a paycheck. 'As long as they're off the job, nobody's winning,' Obama said as he walked up to place his order. He was responding to a reporters' question about a quote in the Wall Street Journal from an anonymous senior administration official who reportedly said the White House was 'winning' in the clash over the shutdown, and that the length of the shutdown 'doesn't really matter to us.' Obama bristled at the suggestion." [AP]
The cable news networks really lost it when POTUS and VPOTUS when for their stroll. Our personal favorite was CNBC's chyron: "BREAKING NEWS: PRES. OBAMA GOES FOR A WALK". The president ordered a turkey and provolone and the vice president got an italian sub. Chump orders, both. [BuzzFeed]
BECAUSE YOU'VE READ THIS FAR - Here is a red panda losing its mind over a pumpkin.
@AdamTuss: Metro source tells me man doused himself in gasoline and lit himself on fire at 7th and Jefferson on the Mall
COMFORT FOOD
- Kayaking down a drainage ditch is the poor man's luge. [http://bit.ly/19Ye7HX]
- The robotic cheetah that DARPA constructed is now running on its own four robotic paws. [http://engt.co/15LPRNk]
- A roundup of the best government shutdown memes. [http://bit.ly/16eipgO]
- What would one quadrillion Sour Patch Kids look liked stacked up in a giant, sour, monolithic square in lower Manhattan? [http://bit.ly/174wwAY]
- Meet the voice of Siri. [http://bit.ly/1f4NDvx]
- The world's most intricate sand castle is actually more of a sand cathedral. [http://bit.ly/19mnSVe]
- Smell-a-vision has come to your smartphone. [http://bit.ly/GD753G]
TWITTERAMA
@elisefoley: I, for one, am not so sad to not have the "X minutes to jobs report" tweets.
@pourmecoffee: For raising debt ceiling, give House GOP a Certificate of Ideological Purity with Reagan watermark, 9 separate flags, and embossed eagles.
Got something to add? Send tips/quotes/stories/photos/events/fundraisers/job movement/juicy miscellanea to Eliot Nelson (eliot@huffingtonpost.com), Ryan Grim (ryan@huffingtonpost.com) or Arthur Delaney (arthur@huffingtonpost.com). Follow us on Twitter @HuffPostHill (twitter.com/HuffPostHill). Sign up here: http://huff.to/an2k2e
OBAMACARE TAKING THE WEEKEND OFF - Jeff Young: "The federal government will take down a critical part of HealthCare.gov, the Obamacare web portal, for a portion of the coming weekend as programmers feverishly work to fix major glitches that are impeding enrollment and marring the debut of the centerpiece of President Barack Obama's health care reform law." [HuffPost]
HOUSE DEMOCRATS UNVEIL DISCHARGE PETITION TO END SHUTDOWN - Jen Bendery: "House Democrats announced Friday that they will try to force the House to vote on a measure to fully fund the government -- and end the shutdown -- with a procedural motion known as a discharge petition. Democrats unveiled their plan at a Friday afternoon press conference. Their resolution would fund the government through Nov. 15 at the same levels as the Senate-passed continuing resolution. And, like the Senate bill, there would be no strings attached related to delaying or defunding Obamacare. The effort, led by Reps. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and George Miller (D-Calif.), has little chance of succeeding. The process can be time-consuming and it requires members of the majority party -- in this case, Republicans -- to buck their party leaders and sign a petition with the minority to force a bill to the floor. But it's one of the few things Democrats can do as the minority to try to force action. If all 200 Democrats sign the petition, 18 Republicans would have to join them in order to hit 218 signatures, the magic number needed to move forward with the petition. Democrats already know there are at least 21 Republicans who would support a 'clean' government funding bill, with no strings attached. But declaring support for such a bill and signing a petition to force it to the House floor, against the will of House GOP leaders, are two entirely different things." [HuffPost]
Do you like words? Then you'll love HuffPost Senior Editor Sasha Belenky's roundup of the week's best long-form reads.
GOP ESTABLISHMENT WILL PULL OVER THIS CAR RIGHT NOW - Ted Cruz needs to stop asking to go to the bathroom every twenty minutes. NYT: "on Wednesday at a private luncheon, several Senate Republicans — Dan Coats of Indiana, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire — assailed Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who has led the movement to block funding for the health law. Ms. Ayotte was especially furious, according to two people present, and waved a printout from a conservative group friendly to Mr. Cruz attacking 25 of his fellow Republican senators for supporting a procedural vote that the group counted as support of the health law. Ms. Ayotte asked Mr. Cruz to disavow the group's effort and demanded he explain his strategy. When he did not, several other senators — including Mr. Johnson, Mr. Coats and even Mitch McConnell, the minority leader — joined in the criticism of Mr. Cruz. "It just started a lynch mob," said a senator who was present. Despite the uproar, Mr. Cruz did not offer a plan for how his party could prevail in the shutdown battle and suggested his colleagues were defeatists. Republican elders worry that the tactics of Mr. Cruz and his allies in the House are reinforcing the party's image as obstructionist, and benefiting Mr. Obama at a time when his standing with the public is sliding. A New York Times/CBS poll last week found that 49 percent of Americans disapprove of the president's job performance." [NYT]
PRO TIP: "Shooting at a moving vehicle is against all nationally recognized protocols."
DAILY DELANEY DOWNER - Michelle Price of Ball, La., panicked earlier this week when she heard the federal government shutdown would soon hobble the program she uses to buy formula for her seven-week-old baby. "I spent two hours in Walmart filling all my October vouchers so I know I have formula and all of my staple groceries," Price, 26, told HuffPost. "I get formula for her and we get milk and eggs and cheese and juice for me. Those are my groceries. That helps my food budget stretch a little bit more." The Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants & Children is a nearly $7 billion program that serves 9 million women and infants nationwide. Pregnant women and new moms qualify if they're poor and facing "nutrition risk," meaning medical problems or difficulty getting healthy food. The program provides paper vouchers moms redeem at stores for baby formula and certain healthy foods. Louisiana's Department of Health and Hospitals said earlier this week that thanks to the shutdown, WIC vouchers wouldn't be good after Oct. 15. But on Thursday, the state announced on its website that WIC wouldn't shut down in the state after all.... Similar switcheroos occurred in Arkansas, Iowa, and Utah. It turns out that all state WIC programs should have enough money for the whole month. What happened? [HuffPost]
House Republicans voted Friday on a bill to restore WIC funding, something they're historically sought to cut.
Does somebody keep forwarding you this newsletter? Get your own copy. It's free! Sign up here. Send tips/stories/photos/events/fundraisers/job movement/juicy miscellanea to huffposthill@huffingtonpost.com. Follow us on Twitter - @HuffPostHill
MONOPOLY GUY READY FOR HIS CLOSEUP - Paul Blumenthal: "Removing the limits on total campaign contributions by a single donor, a restriction now before the Supreme Court, would lead to a huge increase in giving by a small group of very wealthy Americans, according to a new report released Friday. The aggregate limits, which restrict individual donors to giving no more than $123,200 in the 2014 election cycle, are being challenged in McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, set to be argued before the high court on Oct. 8. The case was brought by Alabama company owner Shaun McCutcheon and joined by the Republican National Committee. McCutcheon argues that the aggregate limits are an unconstitutional restriction of his First Amendment right to support as many candidates as he would like as much as he would like." [HuffPost]
SHUTDOWN MISERY IN THE HINTERLAND - Sam Stein and Jason Cherkis: "As she drove along the outskirts of Tallahassee, Fla., on Thursday, Kim Maxwell, 38, became overwhelmed with emotions. It had been nearly three days into the government shutdown, and the political paralysis brought on by warring lawmakers in Washington, D.C., had begun seeping into her life. The Head Start program that her 3-year-old son Matthew attended had closed, leaving her to balance new parenting responsibilities with critical work hours. 'I was bawling on Interstate 10,' Maxwell said. 'It just hit me. I feel so bad for Matthew being stuck in the house and I'm not having the money to put him in another program.'" [HuffPost]
THIS KID CHAD IS A REAL PAIN IN THE ASS - Worst Chad since 2000. Jeff Young: "Chad Henderson, who told The Huffington Post and numerous other news outlets that he had enrolled in health coverage via the Obamacare health insurance exchanges, recanted his story Friday. This article replaces an earlier version, published Thursday, which reported incorrectly that Chad Henderson and his father enrolled in Obamacare. Henderson admitted to HuffPost that he has not enrolled in Obamacare, countering reports in HuffPost, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and Politico....'When I said 'enroll,' I guess I got the terminology wrong. I meant that I was able to actually get in and have access to compare the prices,' Chad Henderson said." [HuffPost]
Congressman Lee Terry will not be caught dead in a studio apartment - Amanda Terkel: "Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) said this week that there is no way he's giving up his salary during the government shutdown. 'Dang straight,' he said when asked by the Omaha World-Herald Bureau whether he would keep his paycheck...'Whatever gets them good press,' Terry said of members giving up their salary. 'That's all that it's going to be. God bless them. But you know what? I've got a nice house and a kid in college, and I'll tell you we cannot handle it. Giving our paycheck away when you still worked and earned it? That's just not going to fly.'" [HuffPost]
PLURALITY OF AMERICANS SUPPORTS FURLOUGH BACK PAY - Emily Swanson and Dave Jamieson: "Americans are more likely than not to think that furloughed federal employees should receive back pay whenever the government shutdown is over, according to a new HuffPost/YouGov poll. The poll found that 47 percent of respondents believe government employees who aren't able to work during the shutdown should be paid for the time they miss, while 38 percent said they should not be. Another 15 percent weren't sure. The survey showed a sharp divide along party lines on the back pay issue. By a 64 percent to 21 percent margin, most Democrats said furloughed workers should be paid for the time they miss. By a 55 percent to 29 percent margin, most Republicans said they should not be. Independents were about evenly divided, with 42 percent supporting and 44 percent opposing back pay." [HuffPost]
SAD JAY CARNEY ANSWERING PHONES ALL BY HIMSELF - Politico: "Place a call to White House press secretary Jay Carney these days, and it'll lead to something surprising on the other end: Jay Carney. The White House is a building of gatekeepers — legions of assistants and special assistants and deputy assistants who protect their bosses and keep the place running. But the White House under the government shutdown, pared down to a fourth of its usual staff size, is a shadow of its hierarchical self. Carney, deprived of his assistant, has to answer all the calls coming into his office. 'With great care,' he adds. Principal deputy press secretary Josh Earnest stepped in for the shuttered White House Travel Office, sending the notification to the press charter company that the last two legs of President Barack Obama's Asia trip were canceled...White House aides are loath to portray the disruption as comparable in any way to the upheaval felt by families losing a Head Start slot for their child, businesses that can't get loans processed, and veterans who depend on disability payments. But the shutdown has scrambled the way the West Wing operates, creating annoyances, extra work and lots of open desk space." [Politico]
*******PAID CONTENT******
America's Essential Hospitals - An essential partner in better health and economic outcomes. NAPH is now America's Essential Hospitals. ***
*******PAID CONTENT******
BREAKING: PRESIDENT PERAMBULATES, MASTICATES - Remember how "president eats at place" owned, like, half of the 2009 news cycle? AP: "President Barack Obama used a surprise walk out of the White House Friday to get a sandwich and the spotlight in the government shutdown as it dragged on with no negotiations scheduled with House Speaker John Boehner. Obama strolled unannounced out of the White House gate, making his way along with Vice President Joe Biden a block up Pennsylvania Avenue to a Taylor Gourmet deli that was offering a discount to furloughed federal employees going without a paycheck. 'As long as they're off the job, nobody's winning,' Obama said as he walked up to place his order. He was responding to a reporters' question about a quote in the Wall Street Journal from an anonymous senior administration official who reportedly said the White House was 'winning' in the clash over the shutdown, and that the length of the shutdown 'doesn't really matter to us.' Obama bristled at the suggestion." [AP]
The cable news networks really lost it when POTUS and VPOTUS when for their stroll. Our personal favorite was CNBC's chyron: "BREAKING NEWS: PRES. OBAMA GOES FOR A WALK". The president ordered a turkey and provolone and the vice president got an italian sub. Chump orders, both. [BuzzFeed]
BECAUSE YOU'VE READ THIS FAR - Here is a red panda losing its mind over a pumpkin.
@AdamTuss: Metro source tells me man doused himself in gasoline and lit himself on fire at 7th and Jefferson on the Mall
COMFORT FOOD
- Kayaking down a drainage ditch is the poor man's luge. [http://bit.ly/19Ye7HX]
- The robotic cheetah that DARPA constructed is now running on its own four robotic paws. [http://engt.co/15LPRNk]
- A roundup of the best government shutdown memes. [http://bit.ly/16eipgO]
- What would one quadrillion Sour Patch Kids look liked stacked up in a giant, sour, monolithic square in lower Manhattan? [http://bit.ly/174wwAY]
- Meet the voice of Siri. [http://bit.ly/1f4NDvx]
- The world's most intricate sand castle is actually more of a sand cathedral. [http://bit.ly/19mnSVe]
- Smell-a-vision has come to your smartphone. [http://bit.ly/GD753G]
TWITTERAMA
@elisefoley: I, for one, am not so sad to not have the "X minutes to jobs report" tweets.
@pourmecoffee: For raising debt ceiling, give House GOP a Certificate of Ideological Purity with Reagan watermark, 9 separate flags, and embossed eagles.
Got something to add? Send tips/quotes/stories/photos/events/fundraisers/job movement/juicy miscellanea to Eliot Nelson (eliot@huffingtonpost.com), Ryan Grim (ryan@huffingtonpost.com) or Arthur Delaney (arthur@huffingtonpost.com). Follow us on Twitter @HuffPostHill (twitter.com/HuffPostHill). Sign up here: http://huff.to/an2k2e
You received this email from The Huffington Post.
If you'd like to update your account settings please go here.
If you'd like to unsubscribe from The Huffington Post please click here.
(C) 2013 The Huffington Post PO Box 4668 #22504 New York, NY 10163-4668
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Post a Comment