Senator Sanders

Rx Rebates Sens. Bernie Sanders and Patrick Leahy say nearly 9,000 Vermont seniors will receive a one-time $250 rebate check as the new federal health care law begins to close a gap in Medicare coverage for prescription medicine, The Associated Press, The Burlington Free Press, Vermont Public Radio, WCAX and WPTZ reported. LINK, LINK, LINK, LINK, VIDEO and VIDEO

Energy Legislation by Sen. Sanders is a good starting point for the Obama administration to lay out a new and sane energy policy, Katrina vanden Heuvel wrote for The Nation. "I think Sanders gets it, she said. LINK

Vermont Edition Sen. Sanders has introduced a bill that would ban off-shore oil drilling and raise the fuel efficiency standard for cars to 55 miles per gallon by 2030. The idea may gain momentum as frustration grows over the BP oil spill, Vermont Public Radio said in promoting today's "Vermont Edition." LINK

International

10 NATO Soldiers Die in Afghanistan Insurgents killed 12 NATO soldiers on Monday, 7 of them Americans, military officials said. It was the worst single day for the foreign forces operating in Afghanistan in over seven months, The New York Times reported. LINK

 
National

BP Had History of Problems A series of internal investigations over the past decade warned senior BP managers that the oil company repeatedly disregarded safety and environmental rules and risked a serious accident if it did not change its ways, The Washington Post reported. LINK

Obama Talks Tough President Obama on Monday told NBC News he's been talking closely to Gulf Coast fishermen and various experts on BP's catastrophic oil spill "so I know whose ass to kick." LINK

Obama to Reopen Oil Drilling The Obama administration, facing rising anger on the Gulf Coast over the loss of jobs and income from a drilling moratorium, said Monday that it would move quickly to release new safety requirements that would allow the reopening of offshore oil and gas exploration in shallow waters, The Wall Street Journal reported. LINK

 1 in 5 Kids Live in Poverty USA Today reported that the rate of children living in poverty this year will climb to nearly 22 percent, the highest rate in two decades, according to an analysis by the non-profit Foundation for Child Development. LINK

Goldman Accused of Stalling A commission probing the financial crisis denounced Goldman Sachs Group Inc., saying the firm first dragged its feet over requests for information then dumped hundreds of millions of pages of documents on the panel, according to The Wall Street Journal. LINK

Medicaid Cut Places States in Budget Bind Having counted on Washington for money that may not be delivered, at least 30 states will have to close larger-than-anticipated shortfalls in the coming fiscal year unless Congress passes a six-month extension of increased federal spending on Medicaid, The New York Times reported. LINK

Support for Congress at All-Time Low As voters head to the polls Tuesday for a crucial set of primary elections, a new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds antipathy toward their elected officials rising and anti-incumbent sentiment at an all-time high. LINK

The left has a message for Barack Obama: Shape up, or we're shipping out.

Left to Obama: We're Not Happy A high-profile conclave of progressives, the Campaign for America's Future, opened in Washington on Monday amid growing disenchantment with the president over the gulf oil spill, health care, jobs, immigration and political deal cutting, Politico reported. LINK

Vermont

VA Clinic The Veterans Administration Community Based Outpatient Clinic opened its doors to Vermont and New Hampshire veterans on Friday. A grand opening is scheduled June 26, the Brattleboro Reformer reported. LINK

Morses Line Less than a week after the Department of Homeland Security said it will shut a little-used Canadian border crossing to avoid having to take part of a dairy farm to expand it, people who live nearby say they should keep it open, The Associated Press reported. LINK

Leopold Snubbed The Burlington City Council refused Monday night to reappoint Chief Administrative Officer Jonathan Leopold, but that doesn't mean the city's top finance person is going anywhere. The vote has no practical force. Under the city charter, council approval is not required for reappointment, The Burlington Free Press reported. LINK

Lake Cleanup New evidence shows that efforts to reduce the amount of pollutants flowing into Lake Champlain might be working. Data collected between 2000 and 2008 showed a 1 to 3 percent decrease in the amount of phosphorous flowing into the lake in 14 of 18 tributaries, AP reported. LINK