Sandy

Senator Harry Reid, the Democratic majority leader, said today on the Senate floor that Hurricane Katrina was "nothing in comparison" to Hurricane Sandy:

THE WEEKLY STANDARD podcast with Bill Kristol, hosted by Michael Graham:

New Jersey governor Chris Christie, a Republican, blasted Speaker of the House John Boehner for ending the congressional session before voting on the Hurricane Sandy relief bill.

Senate Democrats are trying to gain Republican support for the legislation meant to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy by offering kickbacks, a senior Senate aide tells THE WEEKLY STANDARD. As proof, the Senate aide sends along a marked up piece of the Sandy legislation, showing that Democrats…

Senator Mark Begich, a Democrat from Alaska, is "pleased" to include more than $200 million in pork spending in the Sandy legislation, a bill meant to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy.

The legislation to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy has been turned into something of a mini auto bailout, according to those familiar with the Obama administration's request. The request includes millions of dollars worth of cars, to be paid for by the federal government.

In the bill to cover expenses related to the devastation from Hurricane Sandy, the Obama administration is requesting $13 billion to cover storms to be named later.

A reporter today asked the White House why folks in New Jersey and New York still don't have power "weeks" after Hurricane Sandy:

It has been a little more than a month since Hurricane Sandy made landfall and pounded the Atlantic shores of New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut. Within hours, government big dogs, the president included, were on the scene promising speedy and comprehensive relief. When they left to attend to…

President Obama said in front of a church devastated by Hurricane Sandy in New York that ""We've got some work to do and I want you to know I'm here to do it." Here's more, from the pool report:

President Obama is traveling in New York today for the first time since Hurricane Sandy devastated large areas in that state (and elsewhere). While touring the federal centers set up to deal with the storm, a woman told the press: "We need help--he should [have] been here a long time ago."

New York City will start rationing gas tomorrow. Here's the announcement, from mayor's Twitter feed:

A friend of THE WEEKLY STANDARD passes along this note he received from a friend (some names and places have been edited out):

Here's a video calling attention to how President Obama abandoned those who are recovering from Hurricane Sandy to go back on the campaign trail:

The New York Post reports that:

President Barack Obama invoked the destructiveness of Hurricane Sandy--and the ensuing clean-up--in his campaign stop earlier today in Wisconsin.

President Obama comes to work, conducts a few conference calls on Hurricane Sandy, holds a press conference, and later travels to New Jersey to survey the damage caused by the storm. In doing so, he performs a job expected of him as president.

Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, the former chief of staff to President Barack Obama, is politicizing the clean-up of Hurricane Sandy and, he says he offered help to the Democratic mayors of Philadelphia, New York, and Boston. Emanuel does not appear to have made the same offer to Republican governors…

Former President Bill Clinton, using the backdrop of Hurricane Sandy, blasted Mitt Romney for criticizing Barack Obama's unkept promise of "turn[ing] back the seas":

On MSNBC, host Andrea Mitchell criticized Republican presidential Mitt Romney for making collections to help victims of Hurricane Sandy:

A pro-Syrian government Facebook page, News Network of the Syrian Armed Forces, is reporting that the hurricane that touched down on the East Coast of the United States is not a natural catastrophe. Rather, it's the work of Syrian and Iranian scientists.

THE WEEKLY STANDARD podcast with Bill Kristol, hosted by Michael Graham:

President Obama is on board Air Force One on his way to Orlando, Florida for campaign events. "[Obama] is bound for Orlando to squeeze in some campaigning before Sandy really bears down," according to the pool report.