The Slatest

Slatest PM: The Shutdown Is (Almost) Upon Us

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Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH) arrives for a Republican Conference meeting at the U.S. Capitol September 30, 2013 in Washington, DC.

Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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T-Minus 8 Hours: New York Times: “The Senate on Monday quickly rejected a House proposal to fund the government only if Democrats agreed to delay or undo parts of the 2010 health law, as House Republicans gathered in the Capitol to plot their response in the escalating budget fight. Within minutes of convening just after 2 p.m., the Senate on a 54 to 46 vote followed through on Democratic threats to strip the health care provisions from a measure passed by the House early Sunday morning and send it back to the House.”

Boehner’s Counter-Offer: Washington Post: “House Speaker John A. Boehner’s leadership team is presenting rank-and-file Republicans with an option that would include a one-year delay of the cornerstone of the Affordable Care Act — the so-called individual mandate — while adding a provision that would strip federal subsidies for lawmakers and their staffs, GOP aides said. Democrats have already rejected this package. If Republican House members agreed to it, it would surely be rejected by Senate Democrats, leaving little time for a deal before the shutdown begins at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, the start of the new fiscal year.”

Economic Impact: Politico: “If a shutdown drags on longer than a couple of weeks, pushing close to the Oct. 17 deadline for raising the debt ceiling, it could be far more damaging, possibly even driving an already slow-growing economy back into recession. Combine a shutdown with a default or near-default, and the sluggish economy would almost certainly stall out.”

Financial Markets Slip Amid Uncertainty: New York Times: “Investors are worried that even a temporary government shutdown could endanger an already weak economic recovery. Stock markets fell worldwide on Monday as political disagreements in Washington made a shutdown on Monday night increasingly likely. The Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index was down about 0.6 percent in trading at midday. Leading indexes ended down 2.1 percent in Japan, 0.8 percent in Germany and 1.2 percent in Italy.”

It’s Monday, September 30th, welcome to the Slatest PM. Follow your afternoon host on Twitter at @Dan_Gartland, and the whole team at @Slatest.

Accountant’s Ties to Al-Qaeda: Associated Press: “A successful accountant who admitted supporting al-Qaida with money and supplies was sentenced to 18 years in prison Monday by a judge who said it was necessary to deter others from developing similar violent aspirations. Sabirhan Hasanoff, 37, a citizen of the U.S. and Australia, was sentenced in Manhattan federal court, where he pleaded guilty last year to supporting al-Qaida and conspiring with others. He was also ordered to forfeit $70,000.”

Bibi-Obama Talks: AFP: “President Barack Obama promised Benjamin Netanyahu Monday he would enter talks with Iran with clear eyes and demand verifiable actions, following the Israeli leader’s warnings about ‘sweet talk’ from Tehran. Netanyahu and Obama held talks at the White House, days after Obama’s historic call with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani spurred hopes for a breakthrough in the 30-year estrangement between Washington and the Islamic Republic. … [I]n a sign of an easing of the once-tense relations between the leaders, Netanyahu was restrained in his public press appearance with Obama, after warning before he left home that he would speak out against the ‘sweet talk’ and ‘charm offensive’ coming from Tehran.”

Chicago Train Crash: CBS/AP: As many as four dozen people were injured when two Chicago commuter trains crashed in a western suburb during Monday morning rush hour, though none of the injuries appeared to be life threatening, officials said. The crash happened when an empty Chicago Transit Authority train was traveling eastbound and hit a westbound train that was carrying passengers and stopped at the Blue Line’s Harlem station in Forest Park, CTA spokeswoman Lambrini Lukidis said. Forest Park is about 10 miles west of downtown Chicago. Federal officials tell CBS News that all indications are that the crash was an accident. Local authorities remain in charge of the investigation.”

Fight Over NC Voting Law: New York Times:  The Justice Department is expected to sue North Carolina on Monday over its restrictive new voting law, further escalating the Obama administration’s efforts to restore a stronger federal role in protecting minority voters after the Supreme Court struck down part of the Voting Rights Act, according to a person familiar with the department’s plans. The lawsuit, which had been anticipated, will ask a federal court to block North Carolina from enforcing four disputed provisions of its voting law, including a strict photo identification requirement. The lawsuit will also seek to reimpose a requirement that North Carolina obtain “preclearance” from the federal government before making changes to its election rules.

A Few More Quick Hits From Slate —

That’s all for today. See you back here Tuesday. Until then, tell your friends to subscribe or simply forward the newsletter on and let them make up their own minds.