10 things you need to know today: September 29, 2013

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last updated 8 January 2015

1. House votes to delay ObamaCare

The Republican-run House of Representatives voted Sunday morning to attach a one-year delay of President Obama's health care law to a spending bill, sending the government toward its first shutdown in 17 years. The votes, filed just past midnight, followed an often-angry debate and all but assured that large parts of the government will be shuttered as of 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday. [The New York Times]

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A three-month investigation into the June deaths of 19 firefighters killed while battling an Arizona wildfire cites poor communication between the men and support staff. The 120-page report released Saturday assigned little blame for the worst firefighting tragedy since Sept. 11, 2001. All but one member of the Granite Mountain Hotshots crew died June 30 while protecting the small town of Yarnell, where the blaze destroyed more than 100 homes and burned 13 square miles before it was fully contained on July 10. [CBS News]

Former President Bill Clinton said there is a better chance to have constructive talks with Iran than when he attempted to while in office. On ABC's This Week, Clinton said the electoral politics in Iran have changed since he was president. "I think they should keep the door open. This is — but the short answer to your question is, we should keep working for the best and preparing for the worst," Clinton said. [Politico]

Italian leader Silvio Berlusconi pulled his ministers out of the ruling coalition on Saturday, effectively bringing down the government and leaving Europe's third-largest economy in chaos. The announcement came a day after Prime Minister Enrico Letta challenged Berlusconi's party to support him in a confidence vote. Tensions had been rising for weeks following moves to expel Berlusconi from parliament after his conviction for tax fraud last month. [NBC News]

Terrorism continued in Africa Saturday night as suspected Islamic extremists attacked an agricultural college in Nigeria, setting classrooms on fire and gunning down dozens of students as they slept. As many as 50 students may have been killed in the attack that began at about 1 a.m. local time on Sunday in the country's tumultuous northeast region. The school's other 1,000 enrolled students have fled the college. [The Guardian]

The Olympic torch was lit in Ancient Olympia on Sunday, beginning its seven-day journey across Greece and on to Russia. Some LGBT and human rights activists have considered an Olympic boycott for the 2014 Winter Games following Russia's anti-gay legislation that passed in June. Last week, various organizations said they would apply pressure to sponsors, which include Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, General Electric, and others. [Washington Post]

Lane Kiffin was fired as head coach of USC's football team following the team's 62-41 loss to Arizona State on Saturday night, the seventh loss in 11 games. Kiffin's career at USC ends after less than four seasons with a record of 28-15. He guided the program through a period of NCAA sanctions, but the results last season and the early portion of this season were enough to warrant his dismissal. [Bleacher Report]

Terri is a freelance writer at TheWeek.com. She's a graduate of Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism and has worked at TIME and Brides. You can follow her on Twitter.

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