They're calling it "snowquester."

A winter storm that set snowfall records in Chicago arrived in the capital region early Wednesday, forcing federal offices in Washington and school districts around the area to close -- hence the play on "sequester," the forced spending cuts making the rounds in government.

The electricity was going out in places, too, thanks to the wet, heavy snow downing trees and power lines. Nearly 188,000 homes and businesses had no power -- most of them in Virginia and West Virginia, but also in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Ohio, utilities reported around noon. That was down from an earlier peak of 253,000. Washington could see a crippling 10 inches of snow, CNN meteorologist Dave Hennen said. Snow totals could exceed a foot west of the city, while some places in northern Virginia and West Virginia could see as much as 30 inches, he said.

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