Charlie Pierce of Esquire’s Politics Blog calls in at 10:30am ET / 7:30am PT to talk about the political implications of Hurricane Sandy

• As Superstorm Sandy marched slowly inland, millions along the East Coast awoke Tuesday without power or mass transit, with huge swaths of New York City unusually vacant and dark. President Obama declared a major disaster in the city and Long Island.

A levee broke in northern New Jersey on Tuesday, flooding the towns of Moonachie, Little Ferry and Carlstadt with 4 to 5 feet of water in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, officials told Reuters.

President Barack Obama urged Americans to heed local officials’ warnings about Hurricane Sandy on Monday as his re-election said it would determine the president’s campaign schedule on a “day-to-day basis.”

Gasoline prices jumped as much as 11 cents a gallon on commodities markets as traders feared that power outages and flooding could leave refiners struggling to restore operations after Hurricane Sandy hit the United States.

• Former President Bill Clinton and Vice President Joe Biden campaigned in Youngstown, Ohio, Monday in place of President Obama, who cancelled his campaign events to handle the effects of Hurricane Sandy.