{Political_Views} Fw: Bernie Buzz: Stop Wall Street Speculation

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April 03, 2012 Stop Wall Street Oil Speculation Wall Street speculators are at it again. Four years ago the Wall Street gambling casino drove this country into the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. Now, with over 80 percent of the oil futures market controlled by Wall Street speculators, they are driving up oil and gas prices – hurting consumers and the entire economy. Bernie wants federal regulators to crack down, like they were supposed to do 14 months ago under the Wall Street reform law. He introduced a new bill with 14 cosponsors setting a 14-day deadline for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to invoke emergency powers and rein in the speculators responsible for rapidly-rising gasoline prices. Read Bernie's statement » Watch a press conference video » Big Oil Wins Again Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked legislation that would have repealed tax breaks for the five biggest oil companies and extended expiring renewable energy tax incentives. With major oil companies having made more than $1 trillion in profits over the last 10 years, Bernie wants to end subsides for Exxon Mobil and other huge oil companies. Transportation Roadblock A Senate-passed, bipartisan bill to provide funds for road and bridge construction projects hit a dead end in the House. The Senate bill authorized $109-billion over two years. It would create 1 million new construction jobs at a time when unemployment remains unacceptably high because of the recession. Bernie helped draft the bill as a member of the Senate transportation committee. The best Congress could muster for now, however, was a 90-day extension of a construction program that would have expired on Saturday. Reverse Global Warming While many in Congress are backing off efforts on global warming, Bernie is keeping the issue in the forefront. In an unusual alliance, insurance industry officials joined him and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse at a news conference to describe how insurance costs are soaring as a result of extreme weather disturbances and why Congress must act to address this enormously important issue. And the Green Jobs Subcommittee Bernie heads heard last Tuesday how the armed forces are working to move toward energy efficiency and sustainable energy and, in the process, protect combat troops. A new solar installation at the Vermont National Guard is an example of how the military is in the forefront of an energy transformation that also is creating good-paying green jobs. Read about the hearing on military energy initiatives » Protecting Senior Citizens As a strong defender of senior citizens and founder of the Saving Social Security Caucus, Bernie heads a subcommittee that is working to update the Older Americans Act. The act supports Meals on Wheels and other programs that keep seniors healthy and independent. It also saves taxpayer dollars by preventing costly hospital and nursing home care. Watch Bernie at a forum for more than 300 advocates for seniors » What do you think? TAKE THE POLL The Supreme Court heard arguments last week on the health care law. How do you think the justices should rule? In Other News RICH GET RICHER Between 2009 and 2010, 93 percent of all new income went to the top 1 percent. During that period, the bottom 99 percent received a microscopic $80 increase in pay per person in 2010. The top 1 percent, whose average income is $1,019,089, had an 11.6 percent increase in income » TOO BIG TO FAIL The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas called behemoth banks "a clear and present danger to the U.S. economy" in a report on "Why We Must End Too Big To Fail-Now" Bernie has introduced legislation to break up big banks » FREAKY WEATHER Was a spring heat wave in Vermont and other northern states part of a broader climate change? Scientists are increasingly confident that the uptick in heat waves is linked to human-caused greenhouse gas emissions » POSTAL PROGRESS Bernie and other senators are making progress on maintaining mail delivery standards and protecting rural post offices and processing plants » TRENDING NOW, THANKS TO YOU A new study named @SenatorSanders the "most influential" member of Congress on Twitter. "Thanks," Bernie tweeted to his followers. He believes one of the important roles of a U.S. senator is to agressively communicate with constituents about what's going on in Washington » Upcoming Events THOM HARTMANN PROGRAM Listen to "Brunch with Bernie" Fridays at 3 p.m. ET » SHARE THIS Please do not respond to this email, it is not a monitored address. If you would like to send Senator Sanders a comment click here. To unsubscribe to all newsletters from this sender, click here. Privacy Policy