Obama cancels two Asia stops amid shutdown

U.S. president Barack Obama is cancelling two stops on his trip to Asia because of the partial government shutdown.

Obama leaves Saturday to visit Indonesia and Brunei, but is calling off the final two stops in Malaysia and the Philippines.

The shutdown began yesterday after congress missed its deadline to fund many government services, part of a Republican effort to kill or delay the nation’s health care law.

With nearly $800,000 federal employees off the job for a second day, Obama is blaming tea party Republicans for shutting down the government over their objections to his health care law, known as “Obamacare.”