The Rundown, 10/22

President Obama will sign the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act, while Vice President Joe Biden continues his trip to Eastern Europe, meeting with Romanian leaders before traveling to Prague. The former Eastern Bloc can be a cold place, but Biden will try to warm it up with some vice presidential smiles, diplomacy, and glad-handing.

In Congress, the Joint Economic Committee will hear from Christina Romer, who chairs the Council of Economic Advisers, on the national economic outlook.


If you're anxious for credit card reforms to kick in, so is Barney Frank. The House Financial Services chairman will continue his push to get credit card reforms (already passed by Congress this year) enacted on credit card companies sooner, as his committee marks up the Expedited CARD Reform for Consumers Act of 2009--a bill to move the enactment date of reforms up to December 1.

But not so fast, consumer financial protection reformers: House Republicans including Minority Whip Eric Cantor and Spencer Bachus, Frank's GOP counterpart on the Financial Services Committee, will hold a press conference to discuss the Consumer Financial Protection Agency and the "dangerous expansion of government into our financial markets at the expense of consumers."

It's unemployment insurance claims day once again, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its latest number on claims filed in the past week...meaning another piece of data, and possibly, if we're lucky, some ensuing analysis on whether or not the economy is rebounding.

And for anyone who lives in DC and loves horses, it's Day 3 of the Washington International Horse Show, held from Oct. 20-25 at the Verizon Center.I won't be there, but don't let that stop you.