cnn's "newsroom" with wolf blitzer starts right now. >> thank you very much. i'm wolf blitzer reporting from washington. there are meetings today but still no meeting of the minds in the shutdown showdown. this is day nine of the partial government shutdown and we're only eight days away from the debt ceiling deadline. we're waiting for today's white house briefing. it's set to begin. we'll have live coverage. stand by for that. jay carney is getting ready to answer the questions. meanwhile, here's the latest that we have. president obama has invited the house democratic caucus to the white house. 219 house members would support what is called a continuing resolution to reopen the government with no strings attached. that's two more than the number needed but the measure is unlikely to reach the house floor at least for now. meanwhile, a senior house republican tells cnn that gop members may be willing to back a

short-term debt ceiling increase if the president agrees to negotiate during that time. as the stalemate drags on, the house speaker john boehner today turned his attention back to obama care and he blasted the rollout of the program. >> what a train wreck. how can we tax people for not buying a product from a website that doesn't work. how can you give big businesses a tax break and leave hardworking families out in the cold. this is why we need to sit down and have a conversation about the big challenges that face our country. >> the senate majority leader harry reid had this message for the speaker. >> basically what we've been saying is the speaker and my republican friends should take yes for an answer. we're ready to go to conference. we have a simple, simple request. let us pay our bills.

>> brianna keilar is at the white house and dana bash is at capitol hill. brianna, first to you. >> reporter: wolf, i'm told by a white house official not to read too much into this. it's congressional outreach. i'm told that this is not a meeting where any sort of specific plan is going to be laid out but right now there's this idea out there that you're hearing about a short-term extension to reopen the government and increase the debt ceiling even if just for a small while and i'm not sure if this is so much of a sign of a precursor to a breakthrough as it is sort of commentary on how dug in both sides have been, that the idea that the president has been open to this and house republicans are saying no to it. what we know, wolf, is that all

of these politicians are facing a tremendous amount of treasure. you're hearing about real life examples that i think cause a lot of outrage. highest among them, the death benefits for military families who have lost a loved one have now been stalled. you're talking about burial expenses, travel expenses to dover air force base in order to see the dignified transfer for their loved ones' remains. social security, medicare, disability as well as to active duty military, there's a lot of pressure coming down right now and so we're waiting to see if perhaps this will budge house republicans in the white house at least to do something short term. >> stand by for a moment. i want to go up to capitol hill. dana is watching what is going on. a house republican lawmaker, dana, says that a new plan is being discussed among some house republicans. what do we know about this? >> reporter: that's right. our jake tapper and congressional producer has been

learning about this moving around particularly among some conservative republicans saying that they would perhaps like the idea of promising for -- that they would raise the debt ceiling, reopen the government in exchange for some kind of entitlement reform and a promise for tax reform. that's sort of the gist of it. i'm told by senior republican house source that that is definitely being discussed but at this point one source told me that it was a pipe dream. why? because that might be something they want to do but the reality is they don't think that they can get that from the president. i'm told that, as brianna was saying, that the most likely way out of this, this is the thinking of some senior house republicans, is that short-term debt ceiling -- lifting of the debt ceiling for a short term and then to use that time to negotiate. we're talking about maybe six weeks. this is something new that i just heard this morning, wolf. that is from a senior house

republican source that it is entirely possible, maybe even probable that in order to do that they, republicans, would have to agree to what is effectively a clean debt ceiling increase. what the president is demanding. why would they do that? basically it's because, as the source said to me, the debt ceiling scares people. they understand, for the most part, not everybody, some people don't believe it's that big of a deal and it won't be the calamity that some people are predicting. but for the most part, house republicans understand the debt ceiling is a really big deal. that's why it's entirely possible that they would agree to something that is really effectively clean as long as they had very specific parameters laid out for negotiations that occurred right after they passed it dealing with entitlement reform, tax reform, anything that could deal with the debt and deficit long term, that would be the give that the republicans would get. now, i want to emphasize

everything i just said is coming from senior republican sources who are talking amongst themselves trying to read tea leaves from what the president has said publicly because they are not talking privately except one meeting we found out about today here on capitol hill among the democratic leadership in the house and republican leadership in the house. maybe nancy pelosi is going to be the go-between between the house republicans and the white house. they are not telling us what happened in that meeting. >> we should find out soon presumably. stand by. jay carney is asking reporters' questions, particularly about veterans benefits and how they are being affected. >> it's hampered without the increased productivity gained from over time for claims processors. as the secretary told us today, we've seen the backlog increase, reversing trends. employees perform a number of

critical activities, from staffing and helping veterans manage their finances. by the end of the month, the va will run out of funding to pay veterans the money they earned. disability compensation, vocational rehabilitation and employment benefits will be suspended due to lack of funding. our nation's veterans have done their job for this country. it's time for congress to do its job and pass a clean, continuing resolution to reopen the federal government and fund these benefits. with that, i'll take your question. julie? >> the rhetoric yesterday made it seem like everyone is entrenched in their position. i'm wondering if the white house sees any signs, whether it's the paul ryan op-ed, whether it's the meeting today between the house, republican, and democratic leadership, whether there's any movement happening

behind the scenes. >> the government remains shut down. it is entirely within the power of the speaker of the house and republicans in the house to reverse that by allowing a vote on a clean cr to reopen the government and we hope they will. the consequences of the shutdown are many and they are compounding. various economists have noted the impact of a prolonged shutdown on gdp growth and the specific impacts, including the ones i just mentioned continue. and the consequences of, you know, real and resonate for millions of americans. when it comes to raising the debt ceiling, we are now days away from the point beyond which

we will no longer have borrowing authority. that would put us in uncharted territory. we would have crossed a line we have never crossed before. tt consequences are unknowable in the specific but catastrophic in any case. so we hope that the reality of the consequences of a shutdown and the consequences potentially of threatening default or allowing us to cross that line will compel members of congress to do the simple thing, the least they could do, which is reopen the government and assure that we will pay our bills on times, as we always have. so the president i think yesterday from here expressed his view that in the end he believes congress will do the right thing. it's unfortunate that we have to

go through these manufactured crises because there are costs -- well, there are costs obviously because the republicans shut the government down and there are costs even to waiting as long as we already have to raise the debt ceiling in a responsible way without drama or delay. >> paul ryan's op-ed in "the wall street journal" today got a lot of attention. he doesn't mention obama care in there and it was seen by people in washington as a more palatable approach. does the white house view that in the same light? >> well, look, i think that we believe that there is a possibility of finding common ground when we sit down, republicans and democrats, to reach a compromise on funding the government and funding our priorities in a way that allows the economy to continue to grow and to grow faster and stronger and allows for the investments we need for future economic growth and job creation and allows for continuing the work

and addressing our longer term debt challenges and i'm sure that would be a part of that if it were to happen but it cannot happen under threat of continued shut down and it cannot happen under threat of default. the president has been crystal clear about that. we will not engage in a situation where the tea party faction of the republican party that the american people pay ransom for the congress do its job. >> and one more topic. has the president made a final decision yet of cutting off some of the aid to egypt? >> what i can tell you is that -- two things. one, reports that we are halting

all assistance to egypt is not everybody knows this but reports that we're halting all military assistance to egypt is false. as the president said, our overriding interest throughout these past few years is the government that reflects the will of the egyptian people and respect for minority rights, rule of law and a strong civil society. that remains our interests today. we'll continue to work with the interim government to support areas that support the egyptian people. the president was also clear and has been clear that we're not able to continue with business as usual. as you know, we have already announced that we are not proceeding with the delivery of certain military systems. following on the results of the review directed by president obama we will announce the future of our assistance relationship issue with egypt once we have made the

appropriate and diplomatic notify asi novemb notifications including u.s. assistance to egypt will continue but any announcement about the future of our assistance relationship will come after we've made the appropriate diplomatic and congressional decisions on this. >> it sounds like the president has made a decision but you need to notify certain parts before you can notify that publicly? >> i think it's fair to say that we will have a decision to announce once we've made the appropriate notifications. but i'm not going to get ahead of that process. >> let me just follow, some aid is going to be cut, then? are you willing to -- >> i think we've made clear, steve, that we're not going to continue with business as usual. that's been i think demonstrated by some of the decisions that have already been made when it

comes to certain military systems. but for the results of this review that the president asked for, i would have to ask to you wait for us to make that announcement pending the necessary notifications. >> okay. going back to the debt ceiling, some of the republicans were left with the impression after the news conference yesterday that if the president would like to do -- or would agree to do this, if you negotiate a short-term cr, then he would be willing to negotiate over the debt ceiling. is this the case? just -- what is he willing to do? what is he not willing to do? >> the president will not, you know, pay ransom and that is true today and will be true any ti

time that congress faces the mandated legal responsibility to raise the debt ceiling in order for the united states to continue to pay its bills on time. we prefer, because the issue here is certainty, that the debt limit, debt ceiling be extended for a longer duration. we support the bill that's in process in the senate authorized by senate democrats that would extend the debt ceiling for a year because that would add to the certainty that is so necessary in maintaining the full faith and credit of the united states. but what the president was making clear is that he wants congress to act responsibly to ensure that we pay our bills on time and if congress sends them a bill that does that without partisan strings attached, he'll sign it. but whenever that responsibility

looms for congress, the republicans and the tea party caucus are not going to get anything in return for fulfilling their responsibility to ensure that the united states is not a deadbeat and that the united states pays its bills. jim? >> jay, the last couple of days folks have been wondering what is going to happen to the military spousal death benefits. any update on that? >> i thank you for the question. the department of defense informed congress that the department would be legally unable to pay death benefits were there to be a lapse in d.o.d. operations. in other words, informed congress prior to the lapse that that would be the case if there were to be a lapse. unfortunately, this issue was not explicitly addressed as part of the pay our military act. the president was very disturbed to learn of this problem and he directed the department of defense to work with the office

of management and budget and his lawyers to develop a possible solution and he expects, rather, the president expects this to be fixed today. >> oh, so today? >> yes. >> this should be resolved? >> he was not pleased to learn of this problem and he has directed his lawyers to find a solution and he expects to have one you today. >> and getting back to the debt ceiling, we know that october 17th is sort of the deadline said by the treasury secretary and i'm just wondering, the last time we went through this exercise, we didn't even go into default and the nation's credit rating was downgraded. is there a date before october 17th, are we entering sort of the red zone or danger zone even now with respect to the debt ceiling in terms of not getting this resolved because of potential consequences that may

come, whether or not we go over the edge? >> we'll, we've already seen and i'm just reflecting what i've read in the financial press, there have already been signs of, you know, reaction to the possibility that congress may fail to fulfill its responsibility here and as we get closer i think that reality would become more of an issue. you know, that's -- i think you accurately described what happened in 2011. because it became clear that republicans in the house were serious about threatening default. there was an impact on our economy. there was an impact on the global markets and their perception of u.s. credit worthiness. that, in turn, slowed economic growth here costing us jobs. that, in turn, those

consequences in turn added to the deficit, added to unemployment. this is one of the things that is so frustrating, i think, about the rationale behind the economic deniers that in the name of fiscal probity, they are insisting that we engage in a process with unknowable consequences except that they are all severe and negative, that in all cases would add to our deficits. if the cost of borrowing goes up for the united states, it hits families across the country. it also hits the united states and that adds to our deficits. if economic growth slows or we go into a recession, revenues are down, unemployment goes up, more people depend on assistance, that adds to our deficits. you know, this is irresponsible

and reckless and we should not even flirt with the prospect of default. congress should do its job and fulfill its responsibility in the manner that, prior to 2011, it had always been fulfilled, which is raising the debt ceiling without the real threat of a default and without, you know, threatening default if you don't get the partisan demand that you ask for. >> is there a feeling inside, though, in the white house that really needs to get done before the 17th, maybe this weekend to sort of avoid the edge as much as possible? >> i think -- look, this is the problem with unchartered territory. the sooner the better. we have been calling on congress to act and raise the debt ceiling without drama or delay for weeks and months. they did it, remember, in early this year. and because there was no threat of default, because there wasn't

a lot of senators talking about the apparently positive benefits of this kind of scenario, we did not see any negative consequences. quite the contrary, the economy continued to grow and the economy continued to create jobs. more than a million at least so far this year. the opposite of that is what we're seeing now. the american people suffered too much during that terrible recession and have fought too hard recovering from it and are still recovering from it to then be thrown back into economic dire straits because a faction of one party, one branch of the government is not getting what it wants. it isn't getting what it couldn't get through the ballot box, through the legislative process, isn't getting what it could have got through the supreme court of the united

states. that's why we're here and, you know, we hope and the president hopes that congress will act responsibly in the very little time available to it to raise the debt ceiling, to turn on the lights, open the government, and the president will be more than eager to sit down weith both lawmakers of both parties on how we can come together and compromise so we can grow our economy, invest where we need to and continue the process of reducing our deficits and reducing our debt. >> just to follow up on that, the president said towards the end of the news conference that he would be okay with attaching something. he used that word attach to a clean cr, clean debt ceiling even if it's short term to start some negotiations that -- >> i think you're mischaracterizing it. the president believes they

ought to act responsibly. what the president has always said is that when it comes to our budget priorities, he has always been willing to negotiate, just not under the threat of a threat of a shutdown. if congress raises the debt ceiling, if republicans allow that to happen, then, of course, he would be willing to sit down and negotiate with lawmakers over our budget priorities. what he won't do is in any scenario pay ransom on behalf of the american people to the tea party in exchange for preventing default. can't do that, because the consequences of many as written -- >> i meant attach something that requires discussions to occur, he said something like, well, if my word isn't good enough, you can attach something that would require discussions. >> all he's saying is that he's made it abunt antly clear, as he

has all year long during his phone calls with, chats with republican lawmakers over the course of this year that he's willing to sit down and negotiate. and how republicans and lawmakers -- >> he's pledging -- >> if you missed that, i don't know where you've been. he's pledging, as he has all year long, to sit down and negotiate with lawmakers over our budget priorities. what he won't do, because it is irresponsible on behalf of the behavior of the republicans, is pay ransom in exchange for keeping the government open or in keeping us from defaulting. congress ought to take care of those issues and then we can negotiate. john? >> jay -- >> you have that skeptical look on your face, john. >> i'm always a little skeptical, jay. on this question of families of those who have lost loved ones in surveying our country --

>> uh-huh. >> -- you said that the white house knew the problem would be there -- >> the department of defense warned congress so congress knew about it, yep. >> if congress knew about it, the white house knew about it. the president as the commander in chief, is the chief executive. is there literally nothing he could do to assure that these families were taken care of? >> he's doing it today, john, because it was not addressed by congress in our pay our military act. john, the republicans shut the government down. two, the department of defense, as every agency did, warned congress of the myriad of consequences of a shutdown and it was not addressed in our pay our military act. it was not addressed, unfortunately. he directed the omb and his

lawyers to work on a solution and we expect one today. so i don't think there's any disagreement that this is a matter that needs to be resolved, that it's unthinkable that these benefits would not be available and, therefore, he's doing the right thing as commander in chief in making sure that it's resolved. >> but what i don't understand is there is discretion clearly in deciding who is essential and who is not essential and who is furloughed and who is not furloughed. you're here and these briefings are taking praise. how could there not have been a decision made that if there's anything that is essential, it would be taking care of those who lost loved ones in the field of battle? >> the department of defense warned the consequences and it's not -- john, look, if you want to editorialize, the commander in chief demanded that a solution be found. >> so it wasn't until yesterday that he realized it wasn't addressed? >> i think i've been pretty

clear about the process here. congress was informed, as it was informed of all of the consequences of a shutdown and they are many, as we see, and, you know, a solution to all of this is not the piecemeal reaction to them or, you know, band-aid approach to solving them. funding levels that republicans set. remember, if anybody thinks that democrats in congress are getting a concession by extending the government on a short-term continuing resolution of funding levels, sequester levels agreed to by republicans are sorely mistaken. leader reid and pelosi deserve credit that they agreed that it was too important to not shut the government down and unfortunately they have decided

to launch a -- you know, a crusade against obama care, one that everyone knew was going to lead to nothing and everyone across the country who has even a tangental relationship with the government is suffering consequences. >> this window that seemed to be opened yesterday of a short-term debt ceiling increase, short-term funding and negotiations that could happen in the interim, would the white house be -- >> we're going to break away from jay carney, the white house press secretary. the news he released a while ago, the president was very upset when he discovered that these benefits, financial benefits to families of those killed in action, specifically in this particular case in afghanistan, that they wouldn't be reimbursed a special funding to pay for funerals, to go to dover to the u.s. military base in dover, delaware, to receive the bodies of those u.s. military personnel killed in

action. when the president heard about this, he was upset. he reviewed the matter today with his lawyers, with the office of management and budget, and he expects this to be resolved today ending this particular irritant and it's a deep, deep wound right now that because of the government shutdown, family members, spouses of u.s. military personnel killed in action were not going to be reimbursed by the federal government. the white house press secretary says president expects this to be resolved today. we're going to have much more on this part of the story coming up. we're going to hear later from the president himself during the 3:00 p.m. eastern hour, a little more than an hour and a half from now, the president will announce a new chair of the federal reserve, janet yellin. the president will also probably speak out about the government shutdown and speak out about the raising of the debt ceiling. this is a very, very historic and important announcement the president will make. the first woman, arguably maybe

the most powerful woman in the united states and maybe in the world, janet yellin will be the next chair of the federal reserve if she's confirmed by the u.s. senate. we'll have special coverage at 3:00 p.m. eastern. much more coming up in the "newsroom" right after this. ?hña @8@x

all right. you just heard the news here on cnn. jay carney announcing the president expects, expecting

those death benefits to the families of fallen troops to be reinstated as early as today. the remains of four u.s. troops killed in afghanistan were returned home today at dover air force base in delaware. their families have not received the $100,000 death benefit due to the partial shutdown here in washington. it's just one of the many indignities that veterans are suffering under the furloughs. congressman of the chairman armed committee is joining us. thanks very much for coming in. >> thank you, wolf. >> let me get your quick reaction to what we heard from jay carney. the president was you be set when he learned that the death benefits would not be provided to those families of military service members killed in action. have you been informed that this has already been resolved? will it be resolved? >> we never thought it was going

to be a problem. we passed pay our military act over a week ago when there was talk of a possible shutdown. we thought that would cover any kind of contingency like this, that the military would be unaffected. when we found that this was not so, that they were interpreting it differently, then we brought a bill to the floor. it's already been debated. in a few minutes we'll vote on it and that, i'm sure, will passover we pass overwhelmingly. i'm glad that the president is on the same page as us. if we can get the senate to also conform, we should have this problem fixed tomorrow. it's just an unfortunate thing that ever happened. >> the piecemeal legislation passed by the house, taken up by the senate, one of the only things that did pass by the senate was making sure that the u.s. military would be paid on

time. so who screwed up? >> right. >> do you know where this failure to make sure that the spouses of military personnel killed in action, families of those killed in action would not be reimbursed immediately for funeral expenses, for going to dover, do you know where that screw-up occurred? >> no. i think it is just a misunderstanding. we thought it was covered. the think it was. we have a good relationship. i encouraged them to be very liberal in his interpretation of that law because our intent was to make sure that all of these expenses were covered. so it's just a sad thing that it happened. they should have had that $100,000 within 36 hours of the passing of their loved ones. >> you know, there would be no problems whatsoever in terms of funding the military, funding

everyone in the u.s. government if you and the house of representatives, the republican majority, passed a clean cr, this continuing resolution that the democrats support which would allow the government to go back to business as usual at the funding level that the republicans want. and there are at least 19 or 20 of your colleagues, republican colleagues who say they are willing to vote for such a clean bill. what about you? >> i really want to see the president sit down and visit with us on this. you know, i come from a business background. we had retail stores and my interpretation of what the president is asking is sign the lease and then we'll talk about what's in the lease. you know, that's not something that we practice as a good business practice and i don't think it's something that we should sign on to here. so i think that we're -- we're -- we're being open.

we say what we're asking is just to sit down and talk to us. i don't think that's an unreasonable demand and i think that the president is kind of trying to move in that direction. he's bringing some of the democratic congressmen down to the white house to talk. we just think when he finally gets to the point where he'll include all of us, republicans are in control in the house, we should be included in those negotiations. >> was it a blunder for the republicans to demand some changes to obama care as a condition for avoiding a government shutdown, whether defunding or delaying various aspects of that? bringing in obama care, was that a major mistake on the part of republicans? >> well, we are all elected, eep of us, 435 members of the house, we listen to our constituents. we listen to them and many of

them thought that was a very, very important issue. i think as time goes on and we see some of the tremendous problems that this law is causing, that maybe it was a little overreached to ask for it to be defunded. i mean, the president is so committed to it. but i think it was very reasonable to ask for a year's delay, especially when he had given it to so many people already. why not the people that are going to be the ones hit with penalties? i think that was very legitimate and i think as we see all of the people -- i heard that they've had over eight million hits, people that have tried to sign up and so far they have people in the single digits that have signed up. now, obviously there is something very wrong there and these are coming from -- these statements are coming from bipartisan people that are concerned about the implementation of a law.

>> when you say single digits, i'm not exactly clear what you mean by that. >> single digits would be less than ten. >> less than ten people out of the millions that have experimented? is that what you're saying? >> i'm saying i read that in an article in "forbes" today. >> less than ten americans have signed up for obama care? nationwide is that -- >> that was -- that was one statement that i read. i heard on the paper -- or on the radio today, they said in the state of maryland 565 people, something like that have signed up. in other words, it's a very small number and it's because it's a lot more difficult than what we were told it would be. and it's going to cause a lot of problems for people that -- one

of the guys on the macafee who is a guru on internet secure said that this is going to be -- and i quote him -- a wet dream for hackers. they are going to take advantage of millions of people. they will set up a legitimate-looking website. the whole way they set this up, there's no control by the government. people can come in and set up a phony website and take advantage of people and they will ask, you know, for their social security numbers, their birth date. they will be able to take all of their assets and they won't even know what is happening to them. >> all right. congressman mckeon, this is the last question, you will still require some modification to obama care in order to vote for legislation that would reopen the government? >> no, i'm not laying out any conditions. i think the leadership is doing that. they are trying to just get in to where they can talk about it.

i'm just saying that was -- there was reason why we did what we did. and i think time will show that people that held that position were justified in asking for those changes. and i'm, frankly, surprised that the president who gave a year delay to union leaders, why didn't he give that to the people? we'll just see how that all plays out. i think that what we really need to do is sit down, talk about it, get it worked out, get this problem solved, get american people back to work and those who haven't been working, get jobs for them. that's what is really crucial. >> i think a lot of people will agree with you on that. everyone will agree with you on that. and get the military operating full speed ahead without any setbacks and humiliations that have occurred. buck mckeon, thanks for coming in. >> thank you. so have republicans changed

their message? in an opinion piece today by paul ryan admits the key demand that it's been making over the past several weeks. gloria borger is standing by live. we'll discuss. ♪ (train horn) vo: wherever our trains go, the economy comes to life. norfolk southern. one line, infinite possibilities.

just want to update you object the information we're getting. i want to clarify how many people have so far signed up for obama care based on the interview i just did of buck mckeon. based on -- we're not getting numbers from the federal government so far. they say they will once a month release numbers but three states so far, kentucky, maryland, and washington state have released numbers and they say 16,724 people so far have enrolled in obama care. that's more than single digits, obviously. 16,724. that's in three states. at some point the federal government will release numbers nationwide.

a new tactic has been adopted in a showdown. wisconsin congressman, former vice presidential nominee paul ryan wrote in the wall street journal today, "the president is giving congress the silent treatment. he's refusing to talk. to break the deadlock, both sides should agree to commonsense reforms of the country's entitlement programs and tax code." you may have noticed something was missing in that message but a staffer in senator ted cruz's office spotted the omission right away. he's sending out a tweet and let me quote that tweet. there is one big word missing from this op-ed. it starts with an "o" and ends with "bama care." gloria borger is here and wrote about a thunderous silence, if you will. explain what you make of this. why, for example, paul ryan, chairman of the house budget committee, vice presidential nominee, why didn't he mention

something, among other things you write, and i'll let you read it. "so speaker boehner, no fool, carefully turned the page on all of this. deficit reduction, tie a package of spending cuts to raising the debt ceiling, he says, that's what has always been done." so wolf, what we see here is the strategy that has been evolving. he understand that they stepped on their own message, obama care. you were talking about the glitches in the system with the congressman. they want to criticize obama care, talk about the problems with just getting on to these exchanges. they would have had the bully pulpit on that. we saw at the president's presser, not one question was raised about obama care because what was everybody talking about? the government shutdown. so now, speaker boehner starting over the weekend, has clearly turned a page to where he wanted to be in the first place, which

was to talk about deficit reduction and tie that to the debt ceiling but you still have ted cruz out there and he represents one wing of the republican party and paul ryan clearly represents another wing of the republican party. paul ryan is much more about getting those entitlement cuts and ted cruz is still talking obama care. >> and i read the op-ed that eric cantor, the majority leader in "the washington post." certainly he didn't make that the central issue. >> no. because now they have done this pivot and we saw the speaker go on the house floor this morning talking about obama care, talking about the glitches because they also have to get to that message because they haven't been doing that very effectively. so in all of this i think they kind of understand that they -- that their message has been unmuddled, it's been unpopular and in many ways they have promised conservatives something that they can't promise,

defunding obama care. they knew all along, wolf, that could never happen. >> the president is not going to go along with that. >> of course. >> at 3:00 p.m., we're going to be covering the announcement of janet yellen if she's confirmed by the senate. she has a good chance of being confirmed. we'll see what happens in that fight. stand by for that. frustration grows over the obama care website. glitches a glitches and serious problems. republicans argue it was not ready for primetime. we have more when we come back. she loves a lot of the same things you do. it's what you love about her. but your erectile dysfunction - that could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently or urgently.

tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medications, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sexual activity. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than 4 hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or if you have any allergic reactions such as rash, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, or difficulty breathing or swallowing, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a 30-tablet free trial. a confident retirement. those dreams, there's just no way we're going to let them die. ♪ like they helped millions of others. by listening. planning. working one on one. that's what ameriprise financial does.

that's what they can do with you. that's how ameriprise puts more within reach. ♪

that's how ameriprise puts more within reach. "stubborn love" by the lumineers did you i did. email? so what did you think of the house? did you see the school ratings? oh, you're right. hey babe, i got to go. bye daddy! have a good day at school, ok? ...but what about when my parents visit? ok. i just love this one... and it's next to a park. i love it. i love it too. here's our new house... daddy! you're not just looking for a house. you're looking for a place for your life to happen. more than a week after its launch, the federal health care website still plagued by major problems. long wait time, error messages, crashes, other issues are preventing many people from signing up for insurance. brian todd has been taking a

closer look at this story. what are we seeing right now well into a week into this new program. >> a week into it, wolf, still a lot of glechs. people not able to create accounts just to get information to possibly enroll, much less not being able to enroll in the blan. still a lot of problems. i was with a computer programmer. he's tried to enroll in this since the roll-out on october 1st. he as a database company owner, he knows this stuff. he says is really is just poorly designed. it's not user friendly. he's still not able to enroll, much less navigate and get information. when i was with him, he got an error message saying he wouldn't be able to go further. he went into a chat room and said there were others ahead of him. people are having problems. we're also hearing now, wolf, that the administration was rolled about these potential problems months in advance. we spoke to robert lushevsky.

a health care consultant who have clients who are insurers. he said his insurers who dealt with the administration in the months ahead of time, the insurers he dealt with had c contentious meetings with hhs and other people in charge of this. contentious meetings in the months before this, warning them, this isn't working. it's not going to be smooth. don't do it. they ignored them, went full speed ahead, and said we'll work this out. there has been pushback from the white house. >> if they had three years to get this ready, if they weren't fully ready, they should accept the advice republicans are giving them, delay it for a year, get it to work. there are health insurance sites that work great. they know how to do it. if they didn't get it ready in time, make sure to get it right.

you'll have more in "the situation room." a lot of people are wondering how a 9-year-old boy managed to hop a flight to las vegas, including his own dad. his dad gave a news conference, hiding his face, but revealing information about how he tried to help his son. we'll have a report when we come back. [ male announcer ] campbell's angus beef & dumplings. hearty cheeseburger. creamy thai style chicken with rice. mexican-style chicken tortilla. if you think campbell's 26 new soups sound good, imagine how they taste. m'm! m'm! good! ♪ ♪ store and essentially they just get sold something. we provide the exact individualization that your body needs. before you invest in a mattress, discover the bed clinically proven to improve sleep quality.

once you experience it, there's no going back. oh, yeah! at our columbus day event, save $500 to $700 dollars on the final closeout of our performance series mattress sets. but hurry-ends soon! only at a sleep number store, where queen mattresses start at just $699.99. sleep number. comfort individualized

nthat's why they deserve... aer anbrake dance. get 50% off new brake pads and shoes. new developments today on that 9-year-old boy who hopped a flight from minneapolis to las vegas with no adult present and no ticket. today, his father appeared before cameras, his face hidden, because he wants to remain anonymous. he says he tried to get his son some help but couldn't. listen to this. >> he's not what you call an

honest dude. okay? he had his ups, he had his downs. and you know, principal gives me a phone call saying my son's doing this, doing that. i go up to the school and sit down with the principal, we talk. okay? we put in a plan for the services he needed. but i'm just hoping it's not too late for somebody to please help me. >> what a story that is. that's it for me this hour. i'll be back in one hour, 3:00 p.m. eastern, for special coverage of janet yellin's nomination as chair of the federal reserve. "newsroom" will continue right after this with brooke baldwin. your body needs. before you invest in a mattress, discover the bed clinically proven to improve sleep quality. once you experience it, there's no going back.

oh, yeah! at our columbus day event, save $500 to $700 dollars on the final closeout of our performance series mattress sets. but hurry-ends soon! only at a sleep number store, where queen mattresses start at just $699.99. sleep number. comfort individualized