Washington, D.C. House Minority leader Nancy Pelosi wasn’t happy on the eve of the government shutdown on September 30. An estimated 800,000 federal workers were furloughed on October 1, President Obama cancelled a trip to Malaysia and the Philippines, and experts are predicting the U.S economy will take a significant hit. The deadlock came when House Republicans refused to approve funding for the federal government unless enactment of Affordable Care Act was delayed. The political cost seems to be high for everyone involved. According to a Washington Post-ABC News poll, disapproval rates for the president and both political parties are high, though Congressional Republicans are the least popular. AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
More than two dozen U.S. municipalities have banned the sale of dogs in pet stores because of brutal puppy mills. Is this progress or animal rights gone rabid?