Cheat Sheet - Capitol Hill’s Toxic Groundhog Day

Today: , Shutdown Keeps Markets on Edge , Conservative Groups Urges Default October 16, 2013 DEBT CEILING CRISIS 1. Capitol Hill's Toxic Groundhog Day So we're on the brink of default, with our AAA credit rating at risk and House radicals rushing for the fiscal cliff. Sound familiar? It's just like August 2011—and Congress hasn't learned a thing, says The Daily Beast's John Avlon. Plus, Michael Tomasky on how the Senate deal won't mean this mess is over, Patricia Murphy on the Tea Party freakout, and Eleanor Clift on the ghosts of the confederacy who are out in full force in the GOP fringe. Read it at The Daily Beast DOWN AND DIRTY 2. The Country's Best Colleges Climbing walls and organic mac-n-cheese are cool, but what really defines a great college in 2013 is how well it prepares you for life after commencement. With that in mind, The Daily Beast crunched the data for nearly 2,000 colleges and universities across the country, factoring in everything that students actually care about—from affordability to future earnings to diversity to activities—to come up with a list of the very best schools in terms of real value. Plus, read the full methodology. Read it at The Daily Beast JITTERY 3. Shutdown Keeps Markets on Edge Nobody is going to say the U.S. government wasn't warned. Investors are on edge Wednesday as the country inches closer and closer to a possible debt default, although the hint of a deal helped keep financial markets steady in their opening Wednesday. "The markets have been going sideways for a while now and they seem pretty hopeful that we will get this compromise deal and that is what is getting us through it," said HSBC G10 currency strategist Darah Maher. But things were bleak on another front: Fitch Ratings warned Tuesday it could pull the U.S.'s AAA rating—causing S&P, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq to all drop on the news. Read it at Reuters OH GOD 4. Conservative Groups Urge Default So these must be the Ted Cruz supporters. Influential conservative groups Heritage Action for America and FreedomWorks urged House Republicans on Tuesday to vote against the proposed deal to end the shutdown and avoid default—because it didn't do enough to defund Obamacare. The House deal fell apart a few hours later. "The proposed plan will do absolutely nothing to help Americans who are negatively impacted by Obamacare," Heritage Action said in an alert to lawmakers, which also included a scorecard and a warning that a yes vote could lead to a blemish on the Rep.'s record. Charming. Meanwhile, a Pew poll released Tuesday found that a majority of Republicans and 38 percent of Independents said the country could go past the debt ceiling "without major economic problems" occurring. Read it at Politico DEADLY 5. Japanese Typhoon Kills 17 A powerful typhoon slammed the Japanese island of Izu Oshima, south of Tokyo, on Wednesday, causing mudslides and leaving at least 17 dead and another 50 unaccounted for. Typhoon Wipha, which brought nearly five inches of rainfall, is the strongest storm to hit the Japanese region in 10 years. Operators worked to protect the Fukushima nuclear plant in preparation of the storm, and luckily the damaged facility seemed to be spared the worst of the storm. In Tokyo, flights were canceled, bullet trains suspended, and schools closed on Wednesday. "I heard a crackling sound and then the trees on the hillside all fell over," one woman told the local news in Izu Oshima. "Then mud slid as far as the house." Read it at BBC News SCARY LAX Worker Arrested for Ice Bomb Took the dry ice from the plane. RELIEF Russian Opposition Leader Spared Jail Aleksei Navalny is an anti-corruption crusader. NO ENTRY Nazi's Body Moved to Italian Airport Funeral called off after angry protests. $24 Million Kutcher Is Highest Paid U.S. TV Actor For the second consecutive year. START THE MUSIC Lady Gaga Teams Up with Muppets For holiday show. Wonderwall Natalie Portman on Moving to Paris Conde Nast Traveler First Look Inside London's Newest Super Suite Beach Tomato The Five Strangest People at the Beach GET The Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of news and must-reads from across the Web. You'll love the featured original stories on politics, entertainment, and more from The Daily Beast's diverse group of contributors. GET Culture Beast Weekly cultural recommendations from The Daily Beast. Lance Armstrong: Dope on Wheels by Thomas Flynn Iowa's Transgender Queen by Caroline Linton The Beard in Sports? by Sujay Kumar

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