Lynn Woolsey News

As U. S. Senators and members of the House of Representatives prepare to negotiate to combine the two distinctly different health care bills, members of the Congressional Black Caucus are vowing once again to push for a public option to make the final bill affordable for their largely African-American and low income constituencies.

On the eve of a historic health care vote in the Senate, liberal Democrats in the House have launched a full-throated defense of the public option - a sign of battles to come when party leaders try to meld the two bills.

Senators took to the floor to pass healthcare reform legislation today, marking the first time the body has conducted business on Christmas Eve since 1963 .

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, left, and Senate Budget Committee Chairman Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D. share a laugh on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Dec.

Despite threats by Senate moderates Kent Conrad and Ben Nelson , some House Democrats are still forcefully pushing for a public option : On the eve of a historic health care vote in the Senate, liberal Democrats in the House have launched a full-throated defense of the public option - a sign of battles to come when party leaders try to meld the two ...

State, National, International , posted by Unemployed, a resident of the Mill Valley neighborhood, 2 hours ago From CA EDD website: New action taken by the U.S. Congress and signed by President Obama on Saturday, December 19, 2009 will now enable more long-term unemployed workers to qualify for federal extension benefits.

The prospect of millions of illegal immigrants earning a path to citizenship is now back on the table in Congress, though the first bill out of the chute has already split some California progressives and has zero support from Republicans.

In the fear-filled, nationalistic fervor after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in September 2001, Congress rushed to approve President George W. Bush 's decision to attack Afghanistan, the country where the terrorist leaders had trained for their suicide voyage.

Published 22 minutes ago at http://www.joescott3.com/index.php/js/sarah_returns_arnold_fire/ STUNG by California Gov.

From Russ Feingold : "This bill appears to be legislation that the president wanted in the first place, so I don't think focusing it on Lieberman really hits the truth," said Feingold.

Senator Joseph I. Lieberman spoke with reporters on Capitol Hill on Tuesday. In the Senate, where time is running out for Democrats to meet the president's deadline of passing a bill by Christmas, liberals signaled on Tuesday that they would hold their noses and vote for a version of the measure that would strip out some of their most cherished ...

The unexpected new proposal forged by the Senate for breaking the impasse over creation of a government-run medical insurance plan won President Barack Obama's endorsement Wednesday and raised hopes among many Democrats that the way may be clearing to pass their massive health care bill by Christmas.

President Barack Obama waves as he arrives to announce nearly $600 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act awards to support major construction and renovation projects at 85 community health centers nationwide, on Wednesday in Washington.

In the largest such operation in U.S. history, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested 286 foreign nationals in California with criminal records in a three-day enforcement surge that ended Thursday night.

Rep. Judy Chu joined the House in July 2009 and represents the east Los Angeles-based 32nd Congressional District.

South Carolina lawmakers said Gov. Mark Sanford's actions did not rise to a high enough level to warrant his removal from office before the end of his second and final term in January 2011.

Rep. Lynn Woolsey is a co-chair of the House Progressive Caucus, the group of liberal House Democrats who have been the most vocal supporters of the public option in Congress.

This is a rush transcript from "Your World With Neil Cavuto," December 4, 2009. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted to prevent the federal estate tax from expiring on Dec.

The U.S. House of Representatives begins debate today on the soon-to-expire federal estate tax, the focus of a partisan battle over how much the government should claim from fortunes bequeathed by multimillionaires.