Todays news from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.): Energy Conference: The Thetford Energy Committee was honored Saturday at a statewide energy conference for a home weatherization program. “I am here because I respect enormously the work that you are doing,” Sen. Bernie Sanders said. He called climate change “the issue of our day,” but said government has been slow to respond. “If we’re going to transform our energy system, it’s not going to come from Washington or Paris or London, it’s going to come from the grassroots and people knocking on doors,” he added in the Valley News. Single Payer: The biggest downside of the Affordable Care Act is the reliance on the private insurance industry. It does not have to be this way, however. The law includes a provision that can open the door for states to institute their own single-payer healthcare system. Vermont — home of Ben and Jerry’s, Maple Syrup, Bernie Sanders and the first state to pass marriage equality — decided to set up their very own single payer system.,” according to Truth Out. Senate May Vote on Iran Sanctions: US lawmakers are preparing a possible vote on new sanctions against Iran, a move President Barack Obama fears could sabotage the nuclear deal. Even as a six-month Geneva agreement provides for partial suspension of existing sanctions, a bipartisan group of senators led by Senate Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Robert Menendez and Sen. Mark Kirk were set to unveil a sanctions bill, AFP reported. Food Stamp Cuts: Top farm bill negotiators have kept mum about how close they are to finding common ground on potential policy changes and spending cuts for domestic food assistance. But advocates tracking the closed-door discussions say they have heard a figure of $8 billion in nutrition cuts over 10 years is under consideration -- double the proposed reductions in a farm bill passed by the Senate with the support of the Obama administration, Congressional Quarterly reported. Continue reading here: sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/newswatch/120813
Posted on: Sun, 08 Dec 2013 14:44:10 +0000