Hurricane Sandy, appropriately dubbed “Frankenstorm,” proved to be everything geologists warned it would be and more. The superstorm has left a trail of destruction across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, has claimed the lives of over 50 people, including three children, and caused approximately $20 billion in damage.

The controversial Fast and Furious gun-walking operation has prompted members of Congress to take a closer look at the Department of Justice. An October 29 report on the Fast and Furious investigation reveals that Justice Department officials “failed to identify red flags” in the gun-walking operation.

Monsanto has been working overtime to salvage its increasingly poor image as the state of California is fighting to ensure that GMO products are labeled. The California Right to Know campaign has fought on behalf of California’s proposition 37, set to be voted on by voters on Election Day, that mandates all GMO products be labeled. But Monsanto has fought to counter proposition 37 through the No on 37 campaign, which is now being accused of fabricating a quote by the FDA that implies the agency is opposed to GMO labeling.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that it is not unlawful to ban licensed firearms dealers from selling handguns to people under the age of 21. The decision proved to be a blow for the National Rifle Association, who brought the issue to court. The court’s decision upheld a September 2011 ruling by District Judge Sam Cummings in Texas.

According to the New York Times, the increasing number of people opposed to the federal government's “blank check” for national security since 9/11 may help put an end to the seemingly infinite costs of such efforts.

According to a jury in Tennessee, a mother who berated TSA officers over her daughter’s pat down is guilty of “disorderly conduct.” Fox News reports, “Jurors deliberated four hours before convicting Andrea Abbott. She had faced up to 30 days in jail and a $50 fine for her conduct in the July 2011 confrontation at Nashville International Airport, but the judge placed her on probation for a year because she has no criminal record.”

According to Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, there are indications that a federal program is being used to bolster President Obama’s election chances by hiding the negative impacts of ObamaCare. Issa has issued a subpoena to receive documents on that program to prove his case.

In 2010, the U.S. Congress cut the Social Security payroll tax from 6.2 percent to 4.2 percent for 2011 as part of a compromise between the president and congressional Republicans. This temporary reduction in Social Security payroll taxes is due to expire at the end of the year.

Though President Obama has stated that women “rely” on Planned Parenthood for vital health procedures such as mammograms, the Food and Drug Administration denies that to be true. In fact, the FDA indicates that no Planned Parenthood facility in the United States is licensed to do mammograms.

In recent weeks, the Internet has witnessed a dramatic increase in racially charged threats regarding a potential Obama loss. Despite the abundance of these threats and indications that the Department of Homeland Security has purchased a copious amount of riot gear in preparation of some unknown threat, police say that they are not anticipating civil unrest on Election night.