Welcome to The WonkLine, a daily 10 a.m. roundup of the latest news about health care, the economy, national security, immigration and climate policy. This is what we’re reading. Tell us what you found in the comments section below. You can also follow The Wonk Room on Twitter.
Health Care
House Democrats return to Capitol Hill today, hoping to pass the final health care bill before the State of the Union. “The two most-talked-about dates for the speech are Jan. 26 and Feb. 2 — both Tuesdays.”
“House and Senate negotiators are considering applying for the first time the Medicare payroll tax to investment income as part of a compromise to pay for a health overhaul,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
EJ Dionne speculates that while the public option may be dead, “the idea of setting up a national insurance exchange — alongside state exchanges — where the uninsured can purchase coverage is very much alive.”
Economy
The Federal Reserve made a record $45 billion in profits last year, which is “good news for the federal budget and a sign that the Fed has been successful, at least so far, in protecting taxpayers as it intervenes in the economy.”
Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) said yesterday that there are not enough votes in the Senate for his and Sen. Kent Conrad’s (D-ND) proposal to form a budget commission. “Gregg blasted opponents of the plan, saying that they “kill everything at the starting line.’”
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, “is proposing a new way to incorporate student test scores into teacher evaluations.”
National Security
The LA Times reports “A powerful bomb blast killed one of Iran’s leading nuclear scientists this morning in a leafy north Tehran district as he left home for work.” “Reformist websites and two students also described him as an outspoken supporter of opposition figure Mir-Hossein Mousavi.”
Haaretz reports “The Turkish Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned Israeli Ambassador Gaby Levy for clarification, a day after the foreign ministry in Jerusalem called in Ankara’s envoy to Israel for what the latter described to Army Radio as the most shameful experience of his 35-year career.”
VOA reports “China says it has successfully carried out a test of military technology to shoot down missiles in mid-air.”
Immigration
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) writes that “Washington must take a jobs-friendly approach to every issue” and that “immigration reform should make it easier for businesses to hire legally and for our economy to retain highly skilled workers.”
Mexican government official Daniel Hernandez Joseph is complaining publicly about what he says is an alarming increase in hate crimes against Latinos in the U.S., a growing trend that many Latino leaders blame on U.S. immigration policy, a faltering economy and lax law enforcement for preventing hate crimes.
A bill to let undocumented immigrants in New Jersey obtain in-state tuition rates at public universities failed yesterday when legislative leaders, lacking votes for passage, did not schedule a vote on the last day of the lame-duck session.
Climate Change
Grist’s Daniel Moss explores an under-reported facet of the climate stabilization debate: water.
California is moving ahead on an auctioned cap-and-trade bill: “The auction is expected to bring in about $20 billion per year, 75 percent of which will be returned to California citizens and the rest invested in energy projects and climate change adaptation.”
Many UK meteorologists expect 2010 to be “the hottest year on record,” despite its frigid first month.
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