Environment
Public Transit Loses to Polluters in Climate Bill Subsidies
Wednesday 08 July 2009 | As Senate lawmakers launch new efforts to curb the nation's greenhouse gas emissions, some key members have joined local transportation officials and environmentalists to ask a seemingly relevant question: Where's the commitment to public transit? House lawmakers last month passed a proposal designed to tackle climate change by creating a cap-and-trade system to limit greenhouse emissions and generate revenues for green initiatives. Yet - while billions of dollars went to subsidize the transition of the major polluting industries into the new system - only 1 percent was dedicated to public transportation projects. »Labor
Labor Leaders to Meet With Obama
Tuesday 07 July 2009 | Washington - President Barack Obama will meet Monday afternoon with about a dozen of the nation's top labor leaders to discuss efforts to make it easier to organize new members and reform the nation's health care system. The meeting - set for 1:15 p.m. Monday at the White House - is expected to include John Sweeney, the president of the AFL-CIO and Andrew L. Stern, president of the Service Employees International Union. An administration official confirmed the meeting, saying "it will be a chance to discuss our shared priorities and goals." »Women's Issues
Unintended Pregnancy Plunges Women in Pacific Northwest Into Economic Crisis
Wednesday 08 July 2009 | While Roe v. Wade ensures that abortion is legal in every state, the reality of abortion access today is increasingly dependent upon a woman's socioeconomic status and geographic location. The average cost of an abortion for a woman up to 12 weeks pregnant is $450 to $600 in the Northwest region, and costs increase markedly after 12 weeks. The Hyde Amendment, passed in 1976, ended the use of federal Medicaid funding for abortion, except when the woman's life would be endangered by a full-term pregnancy, or in cases of rape or incest. As the debate about the direction of health care reform takes off, the Obama administration should recognize the critical importance of repealing this fundamental barrier to women's access to comprehensive health care. »Health
Howard Dean: "This Is Ridiculous. We're 60 Years Behind the Times" on Fixing Health Care
Wednesday 08 July 2009 | During the 2004 presidential primaries, the conventional wisdom among Howard Dean's energized supporters was that the over-the-top conservative attacks on the Vermont governor reflected the degree to which the right feared his nomination. With his blunt, plainspoken populism, the argument went at the time, Dean represented a threat to the Bush administration's prospects for re-election that his more polished Democratic opponents lacked. Five years later, and it may be the "disease care" industry - now spending $1.4 million each and every day to lobby lawmakers against implementing significant health reforms - that may be sweating Dean's simple, but uncompromising, brand of politics. »Education
Colleges Pay Students Who Defer School for Service
Tuesday 07 July 2009 | Colleges are thinking creatively these days about linking two priorities for students: financial aid and public service. While loan forgiveness for graduates who take service jobs has been common for years, what's catching on now is the idea of rewarding up front students who defer college to help others. More than 80 colleges and universities have started offering some matching grants for students who earn tuition assistance through AmeriCorps. At least 1,165 have signed on to match new government grants for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. And Princeton University and Dickinson College recently created programs to support public service, expecting that these students will bring a unique dimension to campus after spending time off the education track. »Voter Rights
