News roundup: Reid wants Cruz to be GOP presidential nominee

Reid: Let Cruz win the GOP presidential nod. House investigators query missing files in AG's office. Congress confronts Obamacare loophole, personally.

Happy Thursday and happy Halloween. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says part of him wants tea party Sen. Ted Cruz to become the Republican's nominee for president — mainly because Reid thinks that would be the end of the GOP if it happened. "If I didn't care so much about our country, I would hope" Cruz is the nominee, Reid told MSNBC's Rachel Maddow. [Politico]

Topping the news: House investigators are worried that electronic files were deleted from the Utah Attorney General's Office computers and are working with experts to recover some information as part of the John Swallow probe. [Trib]

-> While there are widespread insurance cancelations nationwide being blamed on the changes in the Affordable Care Act/Obamacare, that's not the case in Utah. [Trib]

-> A loophole in the health care law allows members of Congress the chance to continue government insurance for their staff. Rep. Rob Bishop said he will let his employees decide if they want to keep their current insurance, or shop on the health care exchanges while Rep. Jason Chaffetz says he and his employees will go through Obamacare. [Trib]

Tweets of the day: From @mileskahn: "Did Sebelius take responsibility for Benghazi yet?"

From @pourmecoffee: "Each session of Congress should get a name and category of destructiveness like hurricanes."

In other news: The BLM plans to propose new rules to protect the Sage Grouse, including a ban on drilling within four miles if their nesting areas. [Trib]

-> Chaffetz is supporting Sen. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., who said he will block all of President Barack Obama's nominees until Congress is allowed to interview all of the survivors of the 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi. [Trib] [DNews]

-> Sen. Mike Lee says the he and tea party companion Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, will not get involved in the Senate Conservatives Fund's efforts to defeat incumbent Republican senators in primary elections. [Trib]

-> Mitt Romney slammed Obama for not learning from Massachusetts' healthcare system as the president visited Boston to discuss the health law. [Trib] [Politico]

-> UDOT is pumping the brakes on the West Davis Corridor by planning to have a final environmental impact survey completed by next summer instead of the end of this year. [Trib]

-> Pat Bagley offers his take on the moment President Obama discovered the NSA spying was more apparent than he thought. [Trib]

-> The Huffington Post unveils a six-part story about how a botched drug raid in Utah has stirred change in a police chief and district attorney, with the help of a political odd-couple being the voice of the people. [HuffPost]

Nationally: The NSA has infiltrated secure communication links in Google's and Yahoo's data centers across the world to obtain information on hundreds of millions of accounts, many of them American citizens, according to records leaked by Edward Snowden. The NSA says the story isn't true. [Politico] [WaPost] [NYTimes]

-> Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius called the problems plaguing the health care's website frustrating and promised they'd be fixed as soon as possible. Sebelius blamed the faults on private-sector contractors, but said she's accountable to fix them. [WaPost] [Politico] [CNN] [NYTimes] [WSJ]

-> President Obama defended the Affordable Care Act, even with the current problems facing the website, and promised that America will see through it. [WaPost] [CNN]

-> A new NBC/WSJ poll shows that Obama's approval rating has dropped to an all-time low; just 42 percent of Americans approve of Obama's job performance. [NBC]

-> After years of delay, members of the House and Senate met together to discuss making a deal for the Farm Bill — a measure that needs to be passed by the end of the year. Both chambers passed their own versions, but differed on how much money should be cut from the food stamps program. [WaPost] [Politico]

Where are they?

Rep. Jason Chaffetz visits the dentist and enjoys Halloween, but as in previous years, won't say if he and Mr. Potato Head will be seen in the same room.

Gov. Gary Herbert holds a boards and commissions discussion, sits down with Bud Scruggs and meets with executives from UTA.

SL Co. Mayor Ben McAdams meets with Director of Human Services Lori Bays, trick-or-treats in the office and chats with Deputy Mayor Nichole Dunn.

SLC Mayor Ralph Becker meets with University of Utah President Dr. David Pershing, attends the Access Wasatch Meeting and talks with State of Utah Planning Coordinator Alan Matheson.

WVC Mayor Mike Winder attends various Halloween activities throughout West Valley.

President Barack Obama speaks at the SelectUSA Investment Summit, meets with newly sworn in Sen. Cory Booker and later he and First Lady Michelle Obama welcome local children to trick-or-treat at the White House.

Got a tip? A birthday, wedding or anniversary to announce? Email us at cornflakes@sltrib.com. If you haven't already, sign up for our weekday email and get this sent directly to your inbox. [Trib]

— Thomas Burr and Jordan Bailey Twitter.com/thomaswburr Twitter.com/thejordanbailey