Senator Sanders

Single Payer The longtime dream of a government-run health care system for all was blocked Wednesday in the Senate, but Sen. Bernie Sanders vowed it will return when the realization dawns that private insurance companies "are no longer needed," The Associated Press reported. Republicans said Sanders had candidly avowed a goal that many Democrats secretly shared: a government takeover of health care, The New York Times reported. LINK

Delaying Tactics Sen. Sanders said he was "very disturbed" that he could not bring up his measure, The Wall Street Journal reported. Republicans showed they were prepared to extend the health-care debate as long as possible, with Sen. Tom Coburn demanding that a Senate clerk read aloud a 767-page Democratic amendment sponsored by Sanders, The Washington Post, ABC News, CBS News, NBC News, CNN, MSNBC and Fox News reported. "This is nothing more than an ongoing stalling tactic on the part of the Republicans," Sanders told the Vermont Press Bureau. LINK, LINK, LINK, LINK, VIDEO

An Unanswered Prayer The Rev. Barry Black, the Senate chaplain, began Wednesday's session with a prayer for senators. "Lord help them to relinquish any negative thoughts to you, and receive a fresh infusion of your hope." Not long afterward, according to NPR's All Things Considered, a Republican stalling tactic forced Sanders to withdraw his amendment. He "was livid," Vermont Public Radio reported. LINK and LINK  

Health Centers "I've indicated both to the White House and the Democratic leadership that my vote is not secure at this point," Sanders told Fox News. One way leadership can possibly win over Sanders' vote is to greatly increase the amount of money that Federally Qualified Health Centers receive, The New York Daily News reported. Community health centers are a blessing to Americans who have Medicare, Medicaid or no insurance at all..." LINK

The Fed Sen. Sanders continued his push to have the chairman replaced, according to the PBS Newshour. "Bernanke failed on his job. Why would you want to re-appoint somebody for that enormously important position with that kind of poor track record?" he asked on NBC News. He called Bernanke a shill for Wall Street, CNN reported. "Bernanke is their guy. They want their guy to stay in office," Sanders said. LINK, VIDEO, VIDEO and VIDEO

Man of the Year Time's Person of the Year one moment was the object of Senate scorn the other, AP reported.  "I thought it was an April Fools' joke," Sanders said on CNN. He also called the choice "ironic," since the article bestowing the honor discusses how Bernanke, like his predecessor, fell asleep at the switch, Politico reported.  LINK and LINK

International

Galbraith Plotted to Replace Karzai As widespread fraud in the Afghanistan presidential election was becoming clear three months ago, the No. 2 United Nations official in the country, the American Peter W. Galbraith, proposed enlisting the White House in a plan to replace the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, senior United Nations officials told The New York Times. LINK

Clinton: US Would Help Raise Billions on Climate As hopes faded for a strong climate deal, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton sought to put new life into flagging U.N. talks Thursday by announcing the U.S. would join others in raising $100 billion a year by 2020 to help poorer nations cope with global warming, The Associated Press reported. LINK

National

House Passes Bills on Debt and Pentagon Spending The House on Wednesday narrowly approved a short-term, $290 billion increase in federal borrowing power, setting the stage for a major fight over national fiscal policy in 2010, according to The New York Times. LINK

Effort to Extend Estate Tax Fails The federal estate tax will likely expire as scheduled Jan. 1, creating dilemmas for politicians of both parties and roiling tax planning for thousands of Americans, according to The Wall Street Journal. LINK

Treasury Halts Plan to Sell Off Citi Stock The U.S. government abruptly shelved plans to start trimming its 34 percent stake in Citigroup Inc., after investors demanded a price so low that the Treasury Department would have lost money on the deal, The Wall Street Journal reported. LINK

Vermont

Vermont Yankee The owner of Vermont's only nuclear power plant is expected to release an offer on what it will charge the state's utilities for power if the plant is allowed to continue operating after 2012. The Burlington Free Press says Vermont's two largest electric utilities, Green Mountain Power Corp. and Central Vermont Public Service Corp., have been negotiating with Entergy. LINK