Chris Christie Still Blames Atlantic City Mayor, Thanks President Obama

Plus: Updates on travel, the absentee ballot deadline gets pushed back, DeSean Jackson stocks up on snacks, and more of what Philly is buzzing about today.

Governor Christie Thanks Obama, Still Blames A.C. Mayor. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was on a number of morning shows to relay his analysis of Sandy’s effect on the Garden State. He says he’ll go up in a helicopter to survey the damage at the Shore as soon as the winds die down and it’s safe enough to go up. President Obama called him at midnight after seeing the extent of the damage in Jersey. Governor Christie says that President Obama deserves credit for streamlining the process to declare Jersey a major disaster area. Christie also says he still blames Atlantic City Mayor Lorenzo Langford for telling people they could stay put.

Sandy Wrecks the East Coast. More than six million people are without power and 16 people have been reported dead, including three in Pennsylvania and three in Jersey, thanks to Sandy. President Obama declared New Jersey, New York and Long Island federal disaster areas. [USA Today]

No Flights. Nearly all flights in and out of Philadelphia International Airport are canceled for Tuesday. [Inquirer]

SEPTA Still Down. Mayor Nutter isn’t optimistic that SEPTA service will resume on Tuesday. He expects service to be down at least through the afternoon. [CBS 3]

Major Roads, Bridges Re-Open. Major highways in the Philadelphia area reopened to traffic at 4 a.m. The Ben Franklin, Betsy Ross, Walt Whitman and Commodore Barry Bridges also reopened for cars at 4 a.m., but truck, bus and motorcycle traffic is still off limits. [Philly.com]

#OpeninPHL. Businesses in Philly tweet to let you know if they’re open. Good news: Federal Donuts is open. Bad News: No fancies. [Twitter]

Governor Romney Cancels Events. Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney canceled campaign events on Monday night and Tuesday. He also urged people to donate to organizations like the Red Cross to help deal with the problems related to Sandy. [Washington Post]

Absentee Ballot Deadline Moved Back. The deadline to request an absentee ballot in Pennsylvania was supposed to be Tuesday at 5 p.m. In the wake of the storm, Governor Corbett has moved that deadline back two days. [Inquirer]

DeSean Jackson Stocked Up for Sandy. The Eagles wideout made sure he wasn’t going to be stuck inside without plenty of snacks.


Picture via @deseanjackson10