House Speaker John Boehner: This isnt some damn game, said House Speaker John Boehner, as the White House and Democrats held to their position of agreeing to negotiate only after the government is reopened and the $16.7 trillion debt limit raised, according to 660 News. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., also said the two issues were linked. We not only have a shutdown, but we have the full faith and credit of our nation before us in a week or ten days, he said and WASHINGTON Prospects for a swift end to the 4-day-old partial government shutdown all but vanished Friday as lawmakers squabbled into the weekend and increasingly shifted their focus to a midmonth deadline for averting a threatened first-ever default. House Republicans appeared to be shifting their demands, de-emphasizing their previous insistence on defunding the health care overhaul in exchange for re-opening the government. Instead, they ramped up calls for cuts in federal benefit programs and future deficits, items that Boehner has said repeatedly will be part of any talks on debt limit legislation. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Ed Miliband: The Mail is Britains most polarizing paper, and one of the most powerful. To fans, its the voice of old-fashioned British values and the enemy of meddling bureaucrats and stultifying political correctness. To critics its a sensationalist, small-minded rag that demonizes feminists, foreigners and the poor, according to 660 News. But many feel the Mail went too far when it angered Ed Miliband, leader of the left-of-centre Labour Party, by running a story about Milibands late father, a leading socialist intellectual, headlined the man who hated Britain and LONDON Britains Daily Mail newspaper will tell you that many things you eat can give you cancer, global warming is probably bunk and the British way of life is under threat from pernicious Eurocrats in Brussels. To politicians, the Mail is a formidable force whose blessing can help deliver crucial swing votes and whose wrath is best avoided. Its not the papers conservative bent that bothers them in Britain, unlike the United States, newspapers are expected to have a strong political stance that comes through in news coverage as well as editorials. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Indonesia: In his election campaign Tony Abbott, Australias new prime minister, promised more Jakarta, less Geneva i.e., more of a focus on Asia and bilateral ties, less of one on historic Western links and multilateral bodies. So it was important that he fulfilled his promise to make his first foreign trip in office to Indonesia, Australias closest neighbor, according to The Chronicle Herald. Abbotts visit this week to Jakarta, Indonesias capital, accompanied by his foreign minister and a business delegation, was never going to be plain sailing, however. Not only had his opponents made much of his alleged ignorance about foreign affairs and the flat-footed simplifications with which he summed them up, but also he had riled Indonesian leaders with his approach to the one foreign-policy issue that loomed large in the campaign: how to handle the thousands of asylum-seeking boat people from Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and elsewhere heading for Australian shores more than 18,500 in 250 boats so far this year. Most use Indonesia as a staging post. Thirty-six asylum-seekers lost their lives at sea shortly before Abbotts visit and He also probably needed to do so before attending the annual meeting of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation group in Bali on Oct. 7-8. Of all multilateral talking-shops, APEC struggles most to justify its existence. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Olive Crane: In a video posted on the Charlottetown Guardian website, Steven Myers told reporters that he notified the Speaker on Friday that Crane was no longer a member of the party's caucus, adding that he spoke to the politician as well, according to CTV. Myers and Crane could not be reached for comment and CHARLOTTETOWN -- The interim leader of Prince Edward Island's Progressive Conservatives says he has removed former leader Olive Crane from the Tory caucus. The Tories now have three caucus members after Hal Parry announced earlier this week that he was frustrated at the party's lack of opposition to Ottawa's employment insurance rules and crossed the floor to join the Liberals, who have a large majority in the province's legislature. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

dubious claims: Todays media-savvy breed of politicians can almost always provide evidence for their claims. But sometimes that evidence is skewed, exaggerated or just misleading, according to The Chronicle Herald. Claim: The Nova Scotia government played a crucial role in Irving winning the national shipbuilding contract and Politicians rarely have to straight-out lie anymore. Here we take a look at some dubious claims by party leaders. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Karin Scott: My daughter will lose her house. Her kids will lose their schooling. They ll be uprooted from their daily lives and it will be a struggle, she said, according to CTV. In December 2012, Reid and his girlfriend got married in England in September, and when they arrived back in Canada Reid was told he couldnt stay, and was given a week to get his affairs in order to leave the country and Karin Scott is worried her family will be broken up if they cant stop her son in law from being deported on Sunday. Scotts son in law, Sean Reid, is from the United Kingdom, but hes been working in Canada in the oil industry for seven years. In May 2012 he applied to have his temporary work permit renewed. Seven months rolled by, and nothing was approved. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

economic disruption: Moreover, traders worried about an Oct. 17 deadline when the U.S. hits its debt limit, an event that could trigger severe economic disruption around the world, according to 660 News. Hopes had been high earlier in the week that Republicans and Democrats would come to a last-minute agreement that would avoid the shutdown or that the withdrawal of some services would be short-lived and TORONTO The Canadian dollar closed higher Thursday as traders continued to fixate on the U.S. budget impasse that has resulted in a partial shutdown of the U.S. government. The loonie rose 0.05 of a cent to 96.84 cents US. amid widespread U.S. dollar weakness. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Elizabeth Silva: The killings in a sun-seared farming region of western Mexico prompted her to board a bus to the U.S. border to seek asylum, a hugely popular escape route in a remote area that has seen some of the country's worst drug-fueled violence. As gunfire rang in the distance, her family hurried out of the cemetery after burying the bodies and fled the same day, according to Times Colonist. The AP counted 44 women and children from the Tierra Caliente released in San Diego in just one month, from Aug. 26 to Sept. 27, including the 25-year-old Silva, her 2-year-old daughter, mother, grandmother and sister and SAN DIEGO - Elizabeth Silva was walking her younger sister to school when two hooded men burst into her house and pumped three bullets into her father. When her 14-year-old brother rushed out of his bedroom to see what was happening, he was also shot dead. Asylum requests from Mexico have surged in recent years and, while the U.S. government doesn't say from where within Mexico, The Associated Press has found that many are now arriving at the border from the "Tierra Caliente," or Hot Country, about 250 miles west of Mexico City. Word has spread there that U.S. authorities are releasing women and children while they await hearings before immigration judges, emboldening others to follow. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Halifax Armdale Halifax Atlantic Halifax Chebucto Halifax Citadel: Use the links below to navigate to a particular riding, or scroll through all of the ridings, according to The Chronicle Herald. Bedford Clayton Park West Cole Harbour-Eastern Passage Cole Harbour-Portland Valley Dartmouth East Dartmouth North Dartmouth South Fairview-Clayton Park Halifax Armdale Halifax Atlantic Halifax Chebucto Halifax Citadel Halifax Needham Hammonds Plains-Lucasville Preston-Dartmouth Sackville-Beaver Bank Sackville-Cobequid Timberlea-Prospect Waverley-Fall River-Beaver Bank EDITOR #39;S NOTE: Reporter Jacob Boon asked everyone running for office in the greater Halifax area to answer a candidate survey. Candidates #39; responses are in their own words. We have corrected obvious spelling mistakes, but have essentially left the surveys as we received them. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Preston Manning: If Stephen Harper ever woke up to find the face of Reform Party founder Preston Manning splashed on the front page of the morning papers under a headline that proclaimed his opposition to a Conservative signature policy, no one would blame the prime minister for refusing to get out of bed, according to The Star. It seems that with her values charter Quebec premier Pauline Marois has done just that and MONTREAL No government in its right mind wants to earn the public rebuke of its spiritual father, especially over a controversial plan that is crafted to become a major re-election plank. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.