7:10 pm

November 8
Casey Capachi

Election week 2013 takeaways from ‘In Play’

As election week comes to a close, PostTV's "In Play" spoke to political thinkers from around the country to tell you what you need to know heading into 2014 — and beyond.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) won reelection by the widest margin by any governor of the state since 1985. In a state where only 20 percent of registered voters are Republicans, Christie's decisive victory may be a sign of more favorable numbers to come in 2016. Democratic Governors Association chairman and Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin fills in the blank on what he thinks contributed to Christie's win.

And what is the biggest takeaway for Shumlin when it comes to the 2013 elections? Terry McAuliffe ran a great campaign focusing on "bread-and-butter" issues.

On Monday former Florida governor Charlie Crist (once a Republican, then an Independent) announced he would be running for governor of Florida — this time as a Democrat. "In Play" takes a look at his political evolution.

Colorado voted to make marijuana one of the most heavily taxed consumer products Tuesday. The Denver Post's Kurtis Lee explains Coloradans' sentiment behind pot politics and the rural-urban divide that placed a call for secession on the ballot.

On Thursday Pennsylvania Gov.  Tom Corbett (R) announced that, despite tanking poll numbers, he will be running for reelection. According to The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Jim O'Toole he'll have to rely on outside forces now to work in his favor.

Former Senate majority leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) has some advice for Democrats going into the 2014 elections that may be facing a tough public perception of Congress right now: "Every member of Congress running again for next year is going to have to figure out a way to convince their constituents that electing them again will improve their lives personally."

To follow these stories and more, tune in to PostTV's "In Play."

11:04 am

November 8
Aaron Blake

Democrats say shutdown hurt jobs report; conservatives see vindication

Democrats on Friday said that while they were encouraged by an October jobs report showing about 204,000 jobs were created in October, the numbers would have been better without the government shutdown. Some Republicans, meanwhile, suggested the report vindicated their shutdown strategy.

"Consider how much stronger job growth and the economy could be without the Republican government shutdown and debt limit brinksmanship," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a statement.

Jason Furman, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, pointed to progress leading up to the shutdown and said it was thwarted.

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8:51 am

November 8
Juliet Eilperin

New mental health, substance abuse insurance rule to be finalized, official says

The Obama administration will finalize a rule Friday that will require insurers to treat mental health and substance abuse problems the same way as physical illness, according to an administration official.

The regulation--which will be jointly issued by the Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury Departments—will ensure that co-pays, deductibles and visit limits for mental illness and addiction treatment will be comparable to surgical and medical benefits. The administration official who described the measure asked not to be identified because the announcement had not been made yet.

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6:26 pm

November 7
Zachary A. Goldfarb

Obama apologizes to Americans losing health plans

President Obama on Thursday said he was sorry that Americans are receiving cancellation notices from their insurance companies after he promised that people could keep their insurance plans if they liked them.

“I am sorry that they are finding themselves in this situation … based on assurances they got from me,” Obama said in an interview with NBC News. “We’ve got to work hard to make sure that they know we hear them and that we’re going to do everything we can to deal with folks who find themselves in a tough position as a consequence of this.”

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6:18 pm

November 7
Sean Sullivan

White House official: Obama supports Harkin/Miller bid to increase minimum wage

President Obama supports a bill sponsored by a pair of congressional Democrats to bump the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, a White House official said Thursday.

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and and Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) have been pushing a plan to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $10.10 an hour in increments of 95 cents. Not all Democrats have been on board.

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