w much. Now a study suggests the gloomier predictions may be closer to the mark.

"Warming is likely to be on the high side of the projections," said John Fasullo of theNational Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo., a co-author of the report, which was based on satellite measurements of the atmosphere.
That means the world could be in for a devastating increase of about eight degrees Fahrenheit by 2100, resulting in drastically higher seas, disappearing coastlines and more severe droughts, floods and other destructive weather.

Such an increase would substantially overshoot what the world's leaders have identified as the threshold for triggering catastrophic consequences. In 2009, heads of state agreed to try to limit warming to 3.6 degrees, and many countries want a tighter limit.

Climate scientists around the world use supercomputers to simulate the Earth's atmosphere and oceans. Sophisticated programs attempt to predict how climate will change as society continues burning coal, oil and gas, the main sources of heat-trapping gases such as carbon dioxide.

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budget balanced on the backs of seniors and veterans,” Sanders said during a telephone news conference in which he was joined by veterans’ and seniors’ organizations. Sanders said he opposes a possible change that would be made to the way annual cost-of-living-adjustments are calculated. He said arevised consumer price index, a so-called chained CPI, would harm millions of veterans, senior citizens and persons with disabilities, the Burlington Free Press, The Hill, VTDigger.org, Politicus, VPR, and FederalNewsRadio reported.

Social Security: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid assured Sen. Sanders in a phone call Thursday that he will not sign off on a deficit-reduction deal that cuts Social Security benefits. “It gives me a great deal of comfort when we have the majority leader of the United States Senate saying clearly that Social Security has nothing to do with deficit reduction and should not be part of the discussion with regard to deficit reduction,” said Sanders, The Hill reported.

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percent of the vote in Vermont. He said right-wing extremism suffered a major defeat on Election Day. Congressional leaders began jockeying on a way to avert automatic spending cuts and tax increases next year. Sanders told The New York Times that deficit reduction could be achieved by making the wealthy and profitable corporations pay their fair share in taxes and by cutting unnecessary spending, especially on the military, while maintaining the strongest armed services in the world. And in advance of Veterans Day, Sanders and leaders of more than 50 veterans and seniors organizations made the case on Friday that any budget deal must not cut VA benefits.

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nal leadership making the case against the use of policies to reduce cost-of-living adjustments for veteran's benefits and Social Security. So far, more than 35 organizations representing veterans, seniors and the disabled have signed onto the letter, according to The Associated Press.

Fiscal Crisis: Senior lawmakers moved quickly to take advantage of the postelection political atmosphere to try to strike an agreement that would avert a fiscal crisis early next year when trillions of dollars in tax increases and automatic spending cuts begin to go into force, but the forces arrayed against a budget deal remain powerful. Sen. Sanders, a standard-bearer for the left, told The New York Times that virtually all deficit reduction should come from tax increases on the rich, closing loopholes that have allowed profitable corporations to avoid paying any corporate income taxes and cutting military spending.

Take it to the People: "If we cannot reach an agreement in D.C., which is very likely, because the Republicans will continue to obstruct, I think the president has got to go around this country and say to those people in Oklahoma, in Mississippi, in Alabama, ‘Guess what? This is the issue. Tax breaks for the billionaires, you`re going to cut Social Security, what do you think? Call up your congressman, write to your senator.' We can win this debate," Sen. Sanders told Ed Schultz on MSNBC.

Prize Fund: Sen. Sanders has proposed creating a billion-dollar prize for new pharmaceutical innovations. If you come up with something that solves some critical need, you'll get billions of dollars in prize money, partially funded by the private sector as well as the government. "But the caveat is, if you win, you have to relinquish all kind o, intellectual property of your innovation. So you get the economic incentive to solve a big, pressing problem. But that eventual solution goes into circulation much faster and is cheaper and more accessible," author Steven Johnson told NPR's Talk of the Nation.

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nding by corporations and wealthy individuals. They become the 10th and 11th states to pass such resolutions. The initiatives in both states passed by landslide proportions with the support of almost three-quarters of the voters. Vermont voters in more than 60 towns last spring approved similar resolutions and the state Legislature also called for action to amend the U.S. Constitution. Sen. Bernie Sanders is the sponsor of the Saving American Democracy Amendment.

"Amazingly enough, we withstood the assault. We withstood the hundreds of millions of dollars that came in from these billionaires," Sanders said after the election. The money spent by billionaires to influence the election was not enough to topple President Obama. Others in Congress survived the financial onslaught too. But he said a constitutional amendment still is needed.

"I worry very much what it does on the floor of the House and the Senate. How many people are going to have the guts to stand up to big money when they know that the airwaves in their states are going to be flooded with negative ads if they vote against Wall Street or vote against coal or oil? So I would say that one of the major issues that we've got to deal with is Citizens United. I think we need a constitutional amendment to overturn it. I think it would be a wonderful rallying point for folks all over this country."

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eserve programs such as Social Security and require the wealthy pay more in taxes. "The president said last night that maybe he's going to spend a little more time out of the Oval Office and go around the country, and I think that's an excellent idea," Sanders told the Burlington Free Press in an interview the day after the votes were tallied. "We have got to put the right-wingers on the defense right now." Sanders said he hoped Republicans heard the message that Americans aren't interested in a government pushing extremist policies, according to a Brattleboro Reformer editorial.

A Mandate: "What I believe the president of the United States has got to do is ... get up there and say, ‘Do you,' folks in Oklahoma, folks in Mississippi, or wherever, do you really want to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and give tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires?'" Sen. Bernie Sanders said Wednesday on The Ed Schultz Radio Show. "Instead of sitting in the Oval Office and moving to the right, the president's got to go around the country and talk about the issues that, in fact, the overwhelming majority of the American people support; and demand that these people in the conservative states start putting pressure on their elected officials."

Grand Bargain: President Obama will face challenges reaching a "grand bargain" on the deficit not only from the House where Republicans kept a majority but also from his own party in the Senate, where very few of the Democratic winners will feel like they owe their victory to Obama's coattails. Progressives already were disturbed before the election by rumors of back-room negotiations to offer concessions on Social Security or Medicare in exchange for Republicans yielding on tax rates for the high-income earners. Obama's remark in the first presidential debate that he and Republican challenger Mitt Romney had "a somewhat similar position" on Social Security sounded the alarm bell for Sen. Sanders, Marketwatch reported. "For the president to say [his]... position is somewhat similar to Gov. Romney is very distressing," Sanders said.

Citizens United: Sen. Sanders is pushing an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would reverse the Citizens United decision that let corporations and wealthy individuals spend unlimited sums on campaigns. He noted that Sen. Sherrod Brown beat back millions in spending by the super PAC American Crossroads in an effort to unseat him in Ohio. ‘‘But he had to spend much more time raising money than he wanted to,'' Sanders told AP. ‘‘Even the good guys have to raise huge amounts of money to fight back.'' And some members of Congress allow their votes to be influenced by a fear of attack by super PACs the next time they're up for election, Sanders said in the article published by the Rutland Herald, Times Argus and Brattleboro Reformer.

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of money trying to defeat President Barack Obama and progressive candidates around the country, Obama won a strong victory and Democrats, forced to defend 23 seats in the Senate, appear to have picked up two more seats, a result very few predicted.

Sanders urged the president to embark on a nationwide campaign to challenge right-wing Republicans in the home states of members of Congress who are out of sync with mainstream majorities on issues ranging from Social Security to tax breaks for millionaires to global warming.

"My sincere hope is that the Republican Party now understands that the American people do not want a government pushing right-wing extremist policies. They want a government that addresses the needs of working families, the elderly, the children and the sick, and not just the wealthiest people in this country," Sanders said.

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en major battlegrounds, The Washington Post reported.

Sanders Wins: Sen. Bernie Sanders was reelected to the U.S. Senate, The Associated Press reported.

A Vermont Victory: "I have always believed that this small state, this state of Vermont, this state of three electoral votes, in many ways is going to lead our nation in a very different direction," Sanders said. "I'm going to take the message back to Washington that we're going to end the war against working families, we're going to end the war against women, we're going to stand up for social justice, for environmental sanity, and we in Vermont are going to lead this nation to make sure that all of our people have health care as a right," Sanders said, according to the Vermont Press Bureau.
Sweeping Support Sanders' margin of victory was 71.2 percent. Unofficial tallies indicated that only two other incumbent U.S. senators received a greater share of the vote in their home states; John Barrasso in Wyoming was re-elected with 75.9 percent of the vote and Kristin Gillibrand was supported by 72 percent of New York voters, according to AP.

Lame-Duck Congress: "Deficit reduction and our large national debt is a serious issue, but we cannot and must not balance the budget on the backs of the elderly by cutting Social Security and Medicare or Medicaid, or cutting back programs that the most vulnerable people in this country need. There are ways to do deficit reduction by asking the wealthiest people and largest corporations to start paying their fair share of taxes. By ending these absurd tax havens in the Cayman Islands and Bermuda, where Romney and his friends are able to stash their money; we're losing about $150 billion a year on that. And I think we've got to take a hard look at the Defense Department and other agencies of government where we're probably spending more than we should. Bottom line is, we can move toward serious deficit reduction in a way that does not attack the middle class and working families of this country, and that's the first battle that we're going to see," Sen. Sanders told Ed Schultz on Tuesday.

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e illegally asking voters to show identification. “I hope everyone understands that there has been an effort to suppress the vote,” Sen. Bernie Sanders told radio host Ed Schultz on Tuesday. “We can have all kinds of differences of opinion about where we want this country to go, but you have folks out there who are deliberately suppressing the vote, making it difficult for Americans to participate in the political process. I think that’s the lowest of the low … Our goal should be that in a democratic society we want the voter turnout to be as large as possible.”

Listen to the Ed Schultz interview: http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/media/listen/?m=77a35801-6044-4026-867b-b8e2aee44640

blicans are going to fight not only to extend Bush's tax breaks for the wealthy, but also to lower tax rates for large corporations and wealthy individuals," Sanders said, adding that GOP lawmakers wanted to cut Medicare and Social Security. "My fear is there are some conservative Democrats who may want to go along with that effort," he said on Current TV.

Senate Dems Outpace Rs in Close Contests: Democrats outraised Republicans in the 11 Senate races considered tossup by a combined $45 million, according to an analysis by The Wall Street Journal. Republican super PACs and interest groups have offset part of that disparity. But a little-noticed surge in Democratic fundraising, fueled in part by a super PAC created by allies of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.), has helped create a Democratic firewall.

Budget: Sen. Sanders said the contrast between the two parties has grown clearer in recent years. "It's clear to me that what Republicans are about is protecting the wealthiest people in this country while they balance the budget on the backs of the elderly, children, the sick and the poor," Sanders told the Valley News. Sanders' Republican opponent, John MacGovern, believes the House-passed budget is "too timid." He "wants to make even more devastating cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and education," Sanders said. "Meanwhile, like the national Republicans, he supports continuing tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires."

Citizens United: Super PACs, unleashed by the Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling, are drowning out progressive voices on the campaign trail. Sen. Sanders said, "What the Supreme Court did in Citizens United is to say to these same billionaires and the corporations they control ... ‘Now, for a very small percentage of your wealth, we're going to give you the opportunity to own the United State government,'" Bill Knight blogged for the Galesburg (Ill.) Planet.

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there is any Republican - maybe one, maybe not - who is prepared to say that global warming is real, that global warming is already causing severe problems, and that's distressing. I hope as a result of this terrible hurricane that we've just experienced that some of my Republican friends will wake up and say, ‘Well, maybe, maybe we have to start transforming our energy systems and cut back on greenhouse gas emissions.'

Sandy: Six days after a superstorm devastated parts of the northeast, the recovery -- and frustration -- continues. At least 111 people are known dead. Nearly 2 million homes and businesses remain without power, down from a peak of over 8 million -- most of them in New Jersey and New York. There's still a scramble for gas and housing as temperatures drop, CBS News reported.

Fiscal Cliff: Unless Congress acts by the end of the year, more than 26 million households will for the first time face the alternative minimum tax, which threatens to tack $3,700, on average, onto taxpayers' bills for the current tax year, The Washington Post reported.

Early Voting: Up to a quarter of Vermont's eligible voters already cast their ballots, the Vermont Press Bureau reported.

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ogged down in partisan gridlock.

FEMA and Sandy: Although he still feels that the Disaster Relief Fund is sufficient to cover response efforts related to Hurricane Sandy, Federal Emergency Management Agency head Craig Fugate said Thursday that in the later stages of recovery, his agency may need to seek more funding, Congressional Quarterly reported.

Guard to Afghanistan: Thirty members of the Vermont Air National Guard are being deployed to Afghanistan. Family, friends and Vermont's most prominent elected officials came to the Air Base on Saturday to see them off. Sen. Patrick Leahy spoke at the podium, "We'll be here to welcome you back, safely, and know that we're proud of you and that we'll pray for you," WCAX-TV reported.

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’s Global Warming, Stupid,” a Businessweek cover shouted. Sen. Bernie Sanders agreed. He called the storm a wake-up call about the need to seriously address climate change. He also said transforming America’s energy system from fossil fuels to clean energy sources such as solar and wind would have a major side benefit. It would create jobs. The U.S. Labor Department report issued Friday on unemployment in October showed signs of improvement but millions of Americans remained out of work.

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er. The unemployment rate rose to 7.9 percent, from 7.8 percent in September, The New York Times reported. The Labor Department said the real jobless rate was 14.6 percent counting workers forced into part-time jobs along with frustrated job hunters who gave up looking.

Senate '12: Vt. A week before the election, Sen. Bernie Sanders had run no attack ads. In fact, he hadn't run any TV commercials. He was still speaking in full sentences, not sound bites; still inviting voters to ask complicated questions on controversial issues, and still answering with big, bold proposals to address climate change, really reform health care with a single-payer "Medicare for All" program, steer money away from the Pentagon and toward domestic jobs initiatives, and counter the threat of plutocracy posed by Citizens United by amending the Constitution. Rejecting the empty partisanship of the pre-election frenzy, Sanders was ripping the austerity agenda of Romney and Paul Ryan, while warning that Obama and too many Democrats were inclining toward an austerity-lite "grand bargain" that would make debt reduction a greater priority than saving Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid," John Nichols wrote for The Nation.

Campaign Finance: Sen. Sanders, a vocal supporter of campaign finance reform, said last year when introducing campaign finance reform legislation that "there comes a time when an issue is so important that the only way to address it is by a constitutional amendment," the Vermont Standard reported.

Global Warming: In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Sen. Sanders called for strong action to combat global warming and protect America from future superstorms. "Hurricane Sandy is a wake-up call for all Americans that we must act to reverse global warming," said Sanders, VTDigger.org reported.

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future superstorms.

“First and foremost, our thoughts are with the families of those who died during this massive storm, and with the millions of people who remain without electricity and whose homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed. Just as the people of Vermont needed support to recover from Hurricane Irene last year, our message to those suffering from the damage from Hurricane Sandy is that the people of the United States will be there to support you as you recover,” said Sanders.

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like to cut important education programs such as Stafford loans and Pell grants," he told The Vermont Cynic. "However, I believe we should expand them to help all Americans, regardless of income."

Power Restored: Nearly all of the power outages have been repaired in Vermont after Superstorm Sandy brought high winds and rain to the state. Under 20 households were still without power on Wednesday night from a height of more than 48,000 during the storm, The Associated Press reported.

Jobs Report Due Friday: The October jobs report will come out as scheduled on Friday morning, the government said Wednesday. The hurricane shut down government offices on Monday and Tuesday, and threatened to delay the release of the monthly jobs numbers, according to The New York Times.

Solar City: The state Public Service Board approved a Green Mountain Power solar project on the site of a former coal-to-gas plant. It's part of the utility's initiative to make Rutland the city with the most solar capacity in the Northeast, the Rutland Herald reported.

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s to discuss the mounting financial impact of global warming. “Perhaps no industry better understands the impact of global warming than the insurance industry whose job it is to analyze risk,” Sanders said at the time. Coming off a year of record-setting $1 billion-plus natural disasters, the insurance representatives warned that costs to taxpayers and businesses from extreme weather would continue to soar.

The insurers were joined by Sens. Sanders and Sheldon Whitehouse. Both Vermont and Rhode Island in August of 2011 felt the brunt of Tropical Storm Irene, one of the record 14 natural disasters in the United States last year that each caused more than $1 billion in damage. Irene alone, which first came ashore as a hurricane, killed at least 45 people and caused more than $7 billion in damage.

Property and casualty insurers in the United States experienced an estimated $44 billion in losses last year when hurricanes, droughts, tornadoes and other natural disasters were more severe, longer, more frequent and less predictable than in the past.

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le the prospect of another storm caused anxiety for many residents, Vermonters also were better prepared for having gone through Irene, The Associated Press reported.

Home Heating: A special Vermont state panel that has the authority to spend money when lawmakers aren't in session is set to vote today on nearly $8 million in funding to help low-income residents heat their homes this winter. It would be the second year in a row that the state has had to step up to fill in where the federal government has left off in funding for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, AP reported.

Northeast Suffers Staggering Damage: Still hobbled by power outages and waterlogged transit, the New York region struggled to return to the rhythms of daily life on Wednesday, while facing the reality of a prolonged and daunting period of recovery. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg opened the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday morning after a two-day closure, the first for weather-related reasons since 1888, as Wall Street and other businesses began to shake off the storm and return to work, >The New York Times reported.

Superstorm Moves On: Sandy, the hybrid hurricane/nor'easter, began to lose steam Tuesday as it drifted across Pennsylvania and veered toward Canada. The storm was blamed for 51 deaths up and down the East Coast, according to The Associated Press. The tempest played havoc with the power grid, knocking out electricity to 7.5 million people. More than 16,000 airline flights have been canceled so far. Eqecat, a firm that models the costs of catastrophes for insurance companies, estimated Sandy's economic impact on the country at $10 billion to $20 billion, The Washington Post reported.

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e from Superstorm Sandy. There were still significant gusts of wind and a wind advisory remains in effect until 5 p.m. ‘‘It has done its stuff, but it very well could have been a magnitude or more stronger and we lucked out,'' National Weather Service Meteorologist Scott Whittier told Vermont Public Radio. As of 7:30 a.m., Vermont utilities reported about 10,100 customers without power. There were no immediate reports of significant flooding. Most state employees were told to report to work later than usual Tuesday and some schools from one end of the state to the other were given the day off, The Associated Press reported.

Sandy in N.Y.: Superstorm Sandy carved a harrowing path of destruction through the East Coast on Monday, inundating Atlantic City and sending cars floating through the streets of lower Manhattan. At least 16 deaths - including seven in the New York region - were tied to the storm, The Associated Press reported. Power remained out for roughly six million people, and residents up and down the battered mid-Atlantic region woke on Tuesday to lingering waters, darkened homes and the daunting task of cleaning up from once-in-a-generation storm surges, The New York Times reported.

Sandy in D.C.: Federal officials announced that government offices would remain closed for most employees on Tuesday, but the Washington area escaped the worst of the devastation brought to the East Coast by Hurricane Sandy. Residents awoke Tuesday to widespread but not overwhelming power outages, and flooding and downed trees and branches that paled in comparison to what had happened further north and along the eastern seaboard, The Washington Post reported.

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storm system known as Hurricane Sandy conspired to assault the most populous part of the United States. Sandy strengthened before dawn and stayed on its predicted path toward Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York, The Washington Post reported. The Washington region's entire public transit system ceased Monday operations. Steady rain was falling throughout the Washington area, with winds of about 20 miles per hour and some gusts up to 30 mph. The winds will gain strength throughout the day. Hurricane-force gusts of 60 mph to 70 mph are considered likely starting Monday afternoon and continuing through Tuesday evening.

State of Emergency: Gov. Peter Shumlin declared a state of emergency Sunday ahead of the storm's arrival to give Vermont access to National Guard troops and federal emergency response funds if needed. Some Vermont schools have canceled classes as Hurricane Sandy approaches, and others are planning short days. The University of Vermont canceled classes and other activities as of 4 p.m. Monday, The Associated Press reported.

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Hurricane Sandy was on a collision course with a winter storm and a cold front. Officials expected then freak combination storm to wreak havoc over 800 miles from the East Coast to the Great Lakes.

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin on Sunday declared a state of emergency. The declaration gives Vermont access to National Guard troops and federal emergency response funds if needed. State officials braced for widespread power outaes.

The National Weather Service predicted sustained winds of 30 to 40 mph and gusts of more than 60 mph. A high wind warning for the entire north country was in effect from 2 p.m. Monday through 11 a.m. Tuesday. A flood watch was in effect beginning Monday evening, but the chief meteorologist in Burlington told Vermont Public Radio that the storm likely won't rival last year's Tropical Storm Irene.

Amtrak cancelled all service north of New York Sunday evening and planned to cancel nearly all service along the Eastern Seaboard starting Monday.

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cuts. Sen. Sanders said their advice was not welcome, according to National Journal. "There really is no shame," Sanders said. "The Wall Street leaders whose recklessness and illegal behavior caused this terrible recession are now lecturing the American people on the need for courage to deal with the nation's finances and deficit crisis. Before telling us why we should cut Social Security, Medicare and other vitally important programs, these CEOs might want to take a hard look at their responsibility for causing the deficit and this terrible recession."

Rail Trail: The Lamoille Valley Rail Trail won a land use permit that will allow construction to begin on 44 miles of trail across scenic stretches of northern Vermont. "I'm enormously excited about it," Sen. Bernie Sanders told ABC 22 and Fox 44. Sanders secured $5.2 million to help build the trail. "This will be fantastic recreational asset while strengthening Vermont's economy," Sanders added according to VTDigger.org.

‘Free Trade': The Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations, launched in 2007, seek to establish expanded free trade agreements between the United States and several South American and Pacific nations. A number of U.S. congressmen, including Sen. Sanders, have expressed concerns about TPP requirements that would limit access to medicine in the developing world, John Case wrote for Political Affairs.

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port on Thursday on CEOs and deficits. In what President Obama thought was an off-the-record conversation with the Des Moines Register editorial board, he was blunt about his hope to reach a "grand bargain" with congressional Republicans on spending cuts during the first six months of next year. A transcript of the conversation was made public on Wednesday when Sanders was equally blunt in calling on the White House to keep Obama's 2008 promise not to cut Social Security.

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, The Hill reported. "There really is no shame," Sanders said, according to Reuters. "Before telling us why we should cut Social Security, Medicare and other vitally important programs, these CEOs might want to take a hard look at their responsibility for causing the deficit," Sanders said on Fox Business News, Common Dreams, Politicus and Op-Ed News.

Green Energy: Mitt Romney called sustainable energy "imaginary," but Sen. Sanders said progress has been made on green energy programs since President Obama took office. "The United States today has not only the opportunity to lead the world in cutting carbon emissions, but also in creating millions of good paying jobs as we transform our energy system away from fossil fuels," Sanders wrote in The Huffington Post.

Housing: The Regional Affordable Housing Corp. formally opened its newest apartments Thursday in Bennington. Gov. Peter Shumlin credited local lawmakers for supporting the project, as well as the state's three-man team in Congress. Sen. Sanders secured a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy for renewable energy products across the state. Part of that was used for the apartments, which all use solar and other energy efficiency measures, the Bennington Banner reported.

Social Security: "The fact is, Social Security, according to Sen. Sanders has a $2 trillion surplus right now, has never missed a payment and, if nothing at all is done to it, will remain solvent for at least another 20 years and is deficit neutral," wrote George Richard in a letter to the New Richmond (Wis.) News.

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hursday on deficit reduction, Sanders released a report detailing how many of the companies headed by the same CEOs have avoided taxes, sent American jobs overseas and took taxpayer bailouts. "There really is no shame," Sanders said. "The Wall Street leaders whose recklessness and illegal behavior caused this terrible recession are now lecturing the American people on the need for courage to deal with the nation's finances and deficit crisis. Before telling us why we should cut Social Security, Medicare and other vitally important programs, these CEOs might want to take a hard look at their responsibility for causing the deficit and this terrible recession."

Continue reading here: http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=9D15C4D6-189A-41D6-848B-F07B523C2EEE

Read Sen. Sanders' report on the top tax dodgers: http://www.sanders.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/102512%20-%20JobDestroyers3.pdf

the national debt. Sen. Bernard Sanders said he had expressed concerns privately to the White House that Obama appeared to be avoiding firm promises to protect entitlement programs, The Washington Post reported. "Unlike four years ago," Sanders told the Post, "the president has not been outspoken in saying he's not going to cut Social Security."

Defending Social Security: Sen. Sanders criticized Obama for softening the commitment he made during the 2008 campaign to protect Social Security from cuts, and for aligning himself with Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney on the entitlement issue during the first presidential debate. The senator suspects that President Obama may endorse a so-called chained CPI as part of a deficit reduction package after the election, a policy change that would decrease COLAs for seniors and disabled veterans, according to The Huffington Post.

Sanders to Obama: ‘Be Stronger' Sen. Sanders discussed plans by Romney and other right-wing Republicans to cut Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and other key programs that working families and the middle class rely during an interview on Wednesday on The Ed Schultz Radio Show. "Our job right now has got to be, the day after this election ... to say to President Obama, ‘Mr. President, you've got to be stronger. You've got to take on these Republican right-wing extremists,'" Sen. Sanders said.

Veterans Care: After marking the opening of a Women's Comprehensive Care Center at the VA Medical Center in White River Junction on Thursday, Sen. Sanders dropped by an open house at the VA's Community-Based Outpatient Clinic in Brattleboro. "A big reason why this clinic [in Brattleboro] is here is because of the hard work of Bernie Sanders," said medical director Dr. Richard Orlan, The Commons reported.

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ve campaign to convince him and Senate Democrats not to go along with any deal that cuts Social Security benefits, The Hill reported. "We're doing our best right now to make sure that the president comes on board the position he had four years ago: that Social Security has nothing to do with the deficit and that Social Security should not be cut," Sanders told The Huffington Post.

Read The Hill » http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=d2b35626-b115-4bd2-90c5-8a3ccdfcf548

Read The Huffington Post » http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=7362cfd5-754a-430e-8dad-fe1e412a5717

Read about Sanders' deficit plan » http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=a20566d5-8292-4fc6-ac0a-f10d4bbc7edb

Read Obama's off-the-record interview with The Des Moines Register » http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20121024/NEWS09/121024003/President-releases-transcript-of-Register-interview?Frontpage&nclick_check=1

re or Social Security. "You can have virtually all of the senior groups, you can have the unions, you can have some of the veteran groups as well coming on board," said Sanders. "You're going to have a whole lot of people beginning to stand together and say, ‘Sorry, at a time when the wealthiest are doing phenomenally well and so many people are hurting terribly because of this recession, you're not going to balance the budget on the backs of the elderly, the children, the sick, the poor, the disabled veterans,'" he told The Hill.

Living Standards in the Shadow as Election Issue: Breaking out of a decade of income stagnation that has afflicted the middle class and the poor and exacerbated inequality is arguably the biggest challenge facing the country today, according to The New York Times. Many of the bedrock assumptions of American culture - about work, progress, fairness and optimism - are being shaken as successive generations worry about the prospect of declining living standards. No question, perhaps, is more central to the country's global standing than whether the economy will perform better on that score in the future than it has in the recent past.

Irene Recovery: Local, state and federal officials are optimistic that the federal government will reimburse Bennington and nearby towns for millions of dollars in emergency work performed after
Tropical Storm Irene. Sen. Sanders told the Bennington Banner that the Federal Emergency Management Agency, in an about face, has signaled that it will reimburse the towns.

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ested in sustainable energy. Sen. Bernie Sanders visited the campus in Lyndonville, Vt., on Tuesday. The 24 photovoltaic panels were assembled and installed by LSC students as part of Dr. Ben Luce's Energy and Environment class. The project was partly funded by a grant secured by Sanders from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Lyndon State College President Joe Bertolino said the benefits are multi-faceted. "The hands-on experience these students gain is beyond measure."

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