President Obama made history with the nomination of the first Hispanic and only the third woman ever selected for the Supreme Court. General Motors headed into bankruptcy. Senator Bernie Sanders urged the appointment of a strong leader for a panel to investigate the economic crisis and what went wrong on Wall Street. Speculators drove up oil prices to a six month high. Congress prepared to get down to the serious business of reforming health care.

Health Care The United States is the only major nation without a universal health care system. Some 47 million Americans have no health insurance, even more are underinsured, and we spend more per capita on health care than any other country on earth. The debate over health care reform will be Topic A in Washington when Congress returns from a Memorial Day recess.  Senator Bernie Sanders will set the stage at a town meeting Monday in Burlington featuring T.R. Reid.  In the "Frontline" documentary "Sick Around the World," the award-winning correspondent examined why the health care system in the United States lags far behind other major democracies. For details on Monday’s town meeting, click here. To watch the PBS program online, click here.

Supreme Court “I very much appreciate that President Obama is attempting to address the gender and ethnic imbalance that currently exists on the highest court in our land,” Sanders said after President Obama nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court.  “As the nominating process unfolds, ,” Sanders added, “I look forward to hearing Judge Sotomayor’s views on the most important issues that the Supreme Court will be addressing. I am especially interested in her views on privacy rights and how, in these times of international tension, we can preserve our civil liberties and constitutional rights while we defend our nation against those who would do us harm.  At a time of growing corporate power, I also want to ascertain her views as to how the courts can protect the rights of workers and consumers against the abuses of large and powerful corporations.”

Oil Prices As crude oil prices jumped to the highest level in six months, Senator Bernie Sanders urged federal regulators to stop speculators from artificially driving up prices. Sanders said the Commodity Futures Trading Commission should use its emergency powers - which include the authority to impose speculation limits, increase margin requirements, and suspend trading - in order to ensure that oil prices accurately reflect supply and demand. "I hope you will seize this opportunity to redefine the CFTC as a strong regulator that will do everything within its power to benefit consumers," Sanders said in a letter to Gary Gensler, the commission's new chairman. To read the letter, click here.

Solar Energy President Obama on Wednesday toured a massive solar power array at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, a project Sanders visited last summer, Also on Wednesday, the senator announced that he secured $500,000 for Vermont public schools to install solar panels, the latest development in an ongoing campaign to transform Vermont’s energy system. “The truth is that in Vermont solar energy can become an important part of our energy mix and it’s vital that we begin that process as soon as possible,” said Sanders, chairman of the Green Jobs and the New Economy Subcommittee. The school solar grants – designed to help lower electric bills and teach students about alternative energy – will be distributed by the Vermont Department of Education to about 10 schools.  Sanders also announced more than $300,000 going to four state colleges for greener campuses, including Vermont Technical College for a wood pellet boiler, Lyndon State College for a solar array, Johnson State College for building efficiency improvements, and Castleton State College for an energy efficiency metering initiative.  He also announced a $500,000 allotment for installation of solar hot water heaters in hundreds of public housing units in Barre, Bennington, Brattleboro and Burlington. To read the Rutland Herald report on the solar grants, click here.

Economy Gross domestic product in the United States fell at a 5.7 percent annual rate from January to March, the Commerce Department said on Friday. It lowered an initial estimate that the economy contracted at a 6.1 percent annual rate during the quarter.  Still, the economy basically was in freefall. Just ask the millions of unemployed workers in America looking for jobs. The Labor Department on Thursday said companies are cutting fewer workers, but the number of people continuing to receive unemployment benefits rose to 6.78 million — the largest total on records dating back to 1967 and the 17th straight record week.

Wall Street Probe Sanders told Vermont Pubic Television that he called Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Thursday to discuss a new independent commission that will investigate the cause of the financial meltdown. Sanders said he urged the Senate leader to appoint “the strongest people he can…for a thorough investigation.”  Reid and House Speaker Pelosi will appoint six people to the 10-member panel. “I consider this to be a very important issue,” Sanders told Thom Hartmann on his nationally-syndicated radio. “I hope we see a very strong chairperson and an aggressive investigation.” For more on Thom Hartmann, click here.