The economy and the environment were in the headlines. President Bush downplayed the recession as a "rough patch." He did acknowledge global warming, but offered a remedy that was ridiculed as "a step backward" at a world summit of environment ministers. Senator Bernie Sanders, sponsor of the Senate's strongest bill on climate change, called Bush's proposal "too late" and "too weak." Also on Capitol Hill, Sanders chaired a hearing on farm workers and slavery, and senators voted to mark an important Vermont anniversary. Plus this programming note; Bernie will be a guest Monday on The Colbert Report.

‘A Rough Patch' We're in a rough patch right now," Bush said at a White House press conference. He must have missed the report that "growing numbers of people are settling for part-time work out of a failure to secure a full-time position." He may not be aware that drivers continue to get a shock when they pull up to gas pumps. Vermont Public Radio reported that a gallon of regular unleaded reached a record $3.36 in the past week. No wonder the public's ratings of the national economy continue to sour, as The Washington Post summed up new poll findings. Nine in 10 Americans now give the economy a negative rating. A majority say it is in "poor" shape, the most to say so in more than 15 years. In our own poll, more than 94 percent of you think wealth is not fairly distributed in the United States. Almost as many say there a moral obligation to address the growing gap between the rich and poor. To take our poll, click here.

Global Warming Bush's new plan to curb greenhouse gas emissions was criticized at a meeting of the world's largest polluting countries. The plan also landed with a loud thud on Capitol Hill. "Unfortunately, it's about seven years too late and his proposals are far too weak if we're going to be serious about breaking our dependency on fossil fuels and moving toward energy efficiency and sustainable energy," Sanders said. Meanwhile, as The Associated Press reported, "Planet Earth continues to run a fever." Last month was the warmest March on record over land surfaces of the world and the second warmest overall worldwide.

Slavery in Florida "At a packed Senate hearing on working conditions for tomato workers, Senator Bernie Sanders asked Detective Charlie Frost, investigator for the human trafficking unit at the Collier County Sheriff's Office, ‘Do you believe that there is human trafficking happening in Florida agriculture as we speak right now?' ‘It's probably occurring right now while we sit here,' Frost said," according to an article posted by The Nation. The Bradenton Herald said the Senate ordered up an investigation into the tomato industry "over claims of paltry pay and deplorable working conditions. "Concerned senators vow to continue their efforts to secure better working conditions and increased pay for Florida's 30,000 tomato-field workers. We applaud those efforts," the editorial said. To read about the hearing in The Nation, click here. To read the editorial in the Bradenton Herald, click here.

Lake Champlain Vermont next year will mark the 400th anniversary of French explorer Samuel de Champlain first sailing the lake that bears his name. It also was in 1609 when English explorer Henry Hudson led a Dutch East India Company expedition up the waterway subsequently named for him. The 200th anniversary of Robert Fulton's first use of commercial steam navigation, which happened on the Hudson, also will occur in 2009. A commission to coordinate the anniversary celebrations would be created under legislation introduced by senators from Vermont and New York that the Senate passed and sent to the House of Representatives. To read more, click here.

Colbert Nation "It should be a lot of fun," Sanders said of his upcoming guest appearance Monday night on The Colbert Report. "A lot of people, especially young people, are becoming increasingly skeptical about network news, about corporate media, and amazingly many of them are turning to Comedy Central and The Colbert Report to get a different perspective. Sanders told The Burlington Free Press he had been on the Fox News program The O'Reilly Factor . I'm a little bit nervous, but I've been on the Bill O'Reilly show a couple of times, so it can't be any worse." Stephen Colbert's guests in the past week included Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, and former Senator John Edwards.