News June 10
Senator Sanders
Oil Prices As oil prices soared above $71 a barrel Wednesday to reach a 2009 high, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee adopted a measure that would require the 50 biggest traders of oil contracts to report any oil reserves they are storing offshore in tankers. Senator Bernie Sanders offered the amendment that he said is aimed at preventing traders from distorting supply records and artificially driving up prices, Reuters, Fox 44 and the Brattleboro Reformer reported. LINK, LINK and VIDEO
Swindlers and Cheats “It
is important that Congress and the Obama administration…put in place
tough regulations of the financial industry...Sen. Sanders must keep
the heat on so that the swindlers and the cheats are not allowed to
regain the upper hand,” a Rutland Herald editorial concluded. LINK
Coastal Drilling The energy committee voted to expand offshore drilling into the last remaining off-limits areas of the eastern
Credit Cards “The
new regulations are progress, but they don't go far enough….The new law
says card companies can no longer raise your rate on existing balances
if you pay within 60 days. But there's nothing to stop them from
sending it to the moon on newly accrued debt. According to Sen. Bernie
Sanders, one-third of cardholders pay interest rates of between 20
percent and 41 percent. Sanders' proposal to cap interest rates at 15
percent was defeated,” according to Money.
Health Care A House panel this morning will hold a public hearing on single-payer health care, according to a DailyKos blog that cited Sanders support. The lone single-payer supporter in the Senate, Sanders on Tuesday told DemocracyNow! and Politico that “insurance companies are the basic cause of the problem.” A blogger for The Atlantic said Sanders told C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” the Senate wouldn’t be open to a single-payer plan “in a million years.” LINK, LINK, LINK, LINK and VIDEO
Conyers and Sanders “There
are only two members of Congress that I consider relatively untainted
by their years in the American testosterone jungle, [Rep. John] Conyers
[Jr.] and Sen. Bernard Sanders…It amazes me that these two people have
been able to spend so many years in Washington and still be able to
continue to fight for the same principles of justice that must have
inspired them to pursue political careers,” Richard Davis wrote in a Brattleboro Reformer column. LINK
International
Detainee Brought to
Swine Flu The
World Health Organization is inching closer to raising the infectious
disease alert level for the novel H1N1 influenza outbreak to its
highest level, indicating that a pandemic has arrived, the Los Angeles Times reported. The Vermont Department Health reported 17 more cases of the swine flu, bringing to 31 the total number people have tested positive for the virus in
National
Kennedy Health Plan Includes Long-Term Care Americans would be able to buy long-term care insurance from the
government for $65 a month under a provision tucked into sweeping
health care legislation that senators will begin considering next week.
The 651-page bill, released Tuesday by Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, would
revamp the way health insurance works, The Associated Press reported. LINK
Financial Regulation Retreat The Obama administration is pulling back from some of its most
ambitious ideas for overhauling the financial system, after determining
that the consolidation of power under fewer federal agencies would face
grave opposition by lawmakers and regulators, sources told The Washington Post. LINK
Large Banks Allowed to Exit U.S. Aid Program The Obama administration marked with little fanfare a major milestone
in its bank rescue effort — its decision on Tuesday to let 10 big banks
repay federal aid that had sustained them through the worst of the
crisis — as policy makers and industry executives focused on the
challenges still before them, according to The New York Times. “This is not a sign that our troubles are over,” President Obama said. “Far from it.” LINK
Salaries Safe, Bonuses Hit The Obama administration is dropping its plan to cap salaries at firms
receiving government bailout money, leaving them subject to
congressionally imposed limits on bonuses, according to The Wall Street Journal. LINK
Left, Right Press Obama on War Funds A bill to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan has turned into a major
legislative challenge on Capitol Hill, as members press President Obama
from the left and the right on a number of fronts: the logistics of
closing the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, the release of photos
showing abuse of detainees and a proposed loan to the International
Monetary Fund, The Washington Post reported. LINK
Fight Over Tobacco Law in Final Round After 11 years, three presidents and millions of dollars in lobbying by
worried cigarette makers, Congress is poised to put the tobacco
industry under the regulation of the Food and Drug Administration, The Wall Street Journal reported. LINK
Red Ink President
Obama’s agenda, ambitious as it may be, is responsible for only a
sliver of the deficits, despite what many of his Republican critics are
saying. But Obama does not have a realistic plan for eliminating the
deficit, despite what his advisers have suggested, according to The New York Times. LINK
Chrysler Poised to Close Sale Late on Tuesday, the Supreme Court cleared the way for the sale of the
bulk of Chrysler’s assets to Fiat rejecting an appeal by a trio of
Indiana pension and construction funds, consumer groups and others to
block the transaction, according to The Associated Press. Chrysler
released a statement late Tuesday saying it expects the sale to close
"very shortly." LINK
Stimulus Sen.
Bob Bennett voted against the $787 billion economic stimulus package
but wrote to the Environmental Protection Agency and the Agriculture
Department seeking stimulus money for
Stimulus Delays Economic
recovery director Tom Evslin says he's disappointed that the Obama
administration has been slow to establish rules for key broadband and
energy grant projects.
Welch Backs Spending Bill U.S. Rep. Peter Welch says pay-as-you-go is the rule in
