The Rundown, 10/15

Evidently sick of the political chatter and uncannily clean streets of downtown Washington, DC, President Obama will hit up two of America's cultural epicenters today: New Orleans and San Francisco.

Obama will fly to New Orleans this morning, where he'll visit a charter school and hold a town-hall meeting to talk about Katrina recovery. It'll be Obama's first trip to New Orleans as president, after a campaign where he promised an administration dedicated to rebuilding where the Bush administration had left work undone. Expect some criticism from Republicans of his efforts so far.

San Francisco will be the nighttime destination, where the prez will attend a Democratic National Committee/Organizing for America fundraiser, seeking to drum up some of that liberal cash from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's hometown. And, just to reminisce about his history with San Francisco fundraisers, the president may say something about how bitter conservatives cling to guns and religion and anti-immigrant sentiment...just for old time's sake.

Joe Biden, meanwhile, will be in St. Louis, MO talking about stimulus progress, as he is wont to do these days. Members of the media will be anxiously hoping that someone--anyone--gets a chance to ask him about Rush Limbaugh's bid to buy the Rams.

And in Congress, the House Foreign Relations Committee will hold a hearing on Afghanistan strategy. With health care temporarily out of the way, what else is there to talk about?