The latest news on Health Care, Economic Aid, Election Analysis, War Funding, Adoption & Gun Ownership, Kids' Stress, Climate Change, Afghanistan-British Troop Deaths, Iran, Iraq, Mideast, and Select op-eds.

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Quote of the Day. "This decision sends a clear message to all governments that even in the fight against terrorism you can't forsake the basic rights of our democracies." Armando Spataro, deputy public prosecutor in Milan, Italy, after an Italian court convicted 22 CIA operatives and a U.S. Air Force colonel on kidnapping charges for the U.S. government's long-standing practice of covertly seizing terrorism suspects abroad without a warrant. (Washington Post)

FAITH IN THE NEWS

Ban Ki-moon Urges Faith Leaders to Impact Climate Deal “U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged religious leaders on Tuesday to push their governments to take bolder action on climate change at a key U.N. summit next month.”

Patriarch calls for sacrifice to save Earth “Preserving the planet is linked to saving the human soul, the leader of the world's Orthodox Christians said Wednesday at the Brookings Institution.”

BMS World Mission writes prime minister about global warming “The urgent need for action on global climate change has caused a 217-year-old British Baptist missionary-sending organization to write what its leaders believe to be the group's first-ever open letter to a prime minister.”

Analysis: Off-year elections produce mixed bag for religious conservatives “While results of the Nov. 3 off-year state elections suggest that reports of the Religious Right’s demise are greatly exaggerated, the movement’s influence on election outcomes throughout the country was rather mixed.”

A City of Mixed Emotions Observes Calvin’s 500th “Though Calvin struck the roots of an incessant striving that fueled the city’s early capitalist economy, if he is remembered at all by Genevans it is as something of a dreary snoop who imposed on the city an unbendingly prudish morality that some say survives to this day in somewhat muted form.”

NEWS AT HOME

Health Care. House leaders prepare for rare Saturday vote on health-care bill “House leaders put in motion the machinery to hold a rare Saturday vote on the most far-reaching expansion of the health-care system in more than 40 years.” Abortion Deal in Health Bill Sets Off Haggling in Congress “House Democratic leaders struggled Wednesday to strike a deal that would restrict the use of federal money to pay for abortions under sweeping health care legislation headed for debate on the House floor this week.” Dems get health ready for House vote “Democratic House leaders are pushing for a final vote on a health care reform bill scheduled for Saturday with last-minute negotiations continuing over taxpayer-funded abortions and other contentious issues.”

Economic Aid. Senate extends home-buyer tax credit and jobless aid “Moving to shore up a still shaky economic recovery, the Senate unanimously agreed Wednesday to extend jobless benefits, continue the popular tax credit for first-time home buyers and offer a new tax break to homeowners who want to move up.”

Election Analysis. Democrats debate Obama agenda's impact on Democratic Party “Democrats on Capitol Hill began a nervous debate Wednesday about the course President Obama has set for their party, with some questioning whether they should emphasize job creation over some of the more ambitious items on the president's agenda.” As GOP celebrates victories, ideological battles between moderates and conservatives remain “A rebounding Republican Party is savoring victories in two states that President Obama won last year, but as it tries to build momentum toward what GOP Chairman Michael S. Steele called a "Republican renaissance," it faces troubling ideological fissures within its ranks over how best to reclaim power.” Energized G.O.P. Looking to Avoid an Intraparty Feud “Republicans emerged from Tuesday’s elections energized by victories in Virginia and New Jersey, but their leaders immediately began maneuvering to avoid a prolonged battle with conservative activists over what the party stands for and how to regain power.” Democrats to Use Election to Push Agenda in Congress “Blaming election setbacks on a drop in voter enthusiasm, Congressional Democrats said Wednesday that losses in governors’ races in Virginia and New Jersey -- and a striking House win in New York -- should give new urgency to their legislative agenda, including a sweeping health care overhaul.”

War Funding. Pentagon Expected to Request More War Funding “The nation’s top military officer said Wednesday that he expected the Pentagon to ask Congress in the next few months for emergency financing to support the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, even though President Obama has pledged to end the Bush administration practice of paying for the conflicts with so-called supplemental funds that are outside the normal Defense Department budget.”

Adoption & Gun Ownership. NRA seeks to halt adoption agencies from asking about gun ownership “The National Rifle Association is pushing legislation to ban adoption agencies from asking potential parents if they have guns and ammunition in the home.”

Kids' Stress. How stressed are kids? More than we think “Worrying about school and about their family's finances are causing the most stress for kids, according to the American Psychological Association, which for the first time included young people ages 8 to 17 in its annual Stress in America survey, released Tuesday.”

NEWS AROUND THE WORLD

Climate Change. Barcelona climate talks beset by rich-poor stalemate “The gap between rich and poor countries over a global climate deal appears insurmountable at UN talks in Barcelona, with countries sticking to positions that are fundamentally as far apart as they were a month ago.”

Afghanistan-British Troop Deaths. Troop Deaths in Afghanistan Stir British Outcry “The deaths of five British soldiers at the hands of an Afghan policeman with whom they were working have unleashed an outcry in Britain and highlighted the vulnerability of Western troops as they carry out a key part of the counterinsurgency strategy to train more members of the Afghan Army and the police." Policeman who killed British troops 'is back with Taliban' “The gunman who killed five British soldiers in an attack in Afghanistan's Helmand province was today back with Taliban fighters who greeted him with flowers, sources close to the Afghan security forces said.”

Afghanistan-U.N. Security fears force UN Afghan relocation “The UN says it will temporarily relocate 600 of its international foreign staff based in Afghanistan. The personnel would return to work once security had been boosted at unsecured accommodation used by the UN” Hundreds of U.N. staffers temporarily leaving Afghanistan “The United Nations is temporarily pulling hundreds of staff members out of Afghanistan while it reviews security arrangements in the wake of an attack by militants on a Kabul guesthouse last week that killed five U.N. employees.”

Iran. Clashes erupt as Iran marks anniversary of embassy siege “Thousands of Iranians took to the streets Wednesday to mark the 30th anniversary of the 1979 seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, but the annual state-sponsored anti-American rally turned into another sign of the deep divisions persisting in this country.” Dissidents Mass in Tehran to Subvert an Anti-U.S. Rally “Iran’s beleaguered opposition movement struggled to reassert itself on Wednesday, as tens of thousands of protesters braved police beatings and clouds of tear gas on the sidelines of a major, government-sponsored anti-American rally.

Iraq. Iraq MPs in election law stalemate “Iraq's parliament has met again but failed to agree on a new election law. The stalemate threatens to delay elections scheduled for January 16.” U.S. keeps a low profile ahead of Iraq elections “As Iraqi lawmakers repeatedly miss deadlines for writing the new law urgently needed for elections to go ahead in January -- and for U.S. troops to go home -- America's diminishing role in the political process is very much in evidence.”

Honduras. Honduras de facto leader 'to quit' “The panel overseeing a deal to end the four month political crisis in Honduras has said that Roberto Micheletti, the country's interim president, will stand down although it has not given details as to when.”

Mideast. Abbas 'not to seek re-election' “Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, has said he will not seek re-election when elections are held in January, Palestinian officials have said.” Obama administration missteps hamper Mideast efforts “President Obama came into office insisting that his administration would press hard and fast to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But after nine months, analysts and diplomats say, the administration's efforts have faltered in part because of its own missteps.”

OPINION

Warnings from the angry middle (E.J. Dionne Jr., Washington Post) “Tuesday's elections were a rebuke to the right wing and a warning to Democrats. They were also a timely reminder that President Obama needs to tune up his celebrated political organization and find a way to make Americans feel hopeful again.”

Trouble ahead for Democrats (David S. Broder, Washington Post) “A year after Barack Obama's election stirred broad hopes for change among American voters, persistent high unemployment and the spectacle of continued gridlock in Washington threaten Democratic dominance of the political landscape.”

Sojourners' Daily Digest is a compilation of the top news related to our commitments of life and peace, economic and racial justice, and care of creation, with a special focus on news of the engagement of faith in public life.