National service bill draws strong bipartisan support

WASHINGTON - A national service bill aimed at drawing Americans from elementary school children to retirees won bipartisan plaudits yesterday from key senators, who said they are hoping to get the measure passed before Easter.

The measure - a joint effort by Senators Edward M. Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat, and Orrin Hatch, a Utah Republican - would provide $5 billion over five years to fund 250,000 volunteers in energy, the environment, healthcare, and education. President Obama mentioned the Serve America Act in his address to Congress last month.

While US soldiers are serving overseas, "Americans should be able to serve on the home front as well, addressing the national problems of our times," Michael Brown, CEO of the Boston-based City Year community service program, told the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Kennedy was not present at the hearing, but several of his colleagues - as well as those who testified in favor of the measure - lauded the Massachusetts lawmaker for his authorship of the bill. Senator Barbara Mikulski, a Maryland Democrat who presided at yesterday's hearing, said she would push to get the bill approved before the Easter-Passover break, which begins April 6.

SUSAN MILLIGAN

The Howard Dean-for-surgeon-general boomlet rose again after CNN medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta dropped out.

But the former Vermont governor threw cold water on that speculation yesterday. Dean said he can push for a healthcare overhaul from the outside, saying that President Obama's plan is the most promising since the 1970s.

"I'm happy what I'm doing," Dean said on MSNBC.

He just returned from a trip to Britain, where he passed along tips to political allies from his 50-state organizing strategy as Democratic National Committee chairman, which Obama capitalized on for his sweeping victory.

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This should come as little surprise to Massachusetts voters, but the Bay State had the most liberal delegation in the US House last year, according to the latest National Journal rankings.

The House delegations from Rhode Island, Vermont, and Connecticut ranked in the top five most liberal, and Maine and New Hampshire made the top 10. The magazine looks at key votes on economic, social, and foreign policy issues to compile the annual rankings.

In the House, Massachusetts Democrats John Olver and John Tierney were among nine representatives who tied for the most liberal, while Barney Frank and Richard Neal tied for 13th most liberal of the 435 representatives. In the Senate, John F. Kerry ranked the 29th most liberal, while Edward M. Kennedy did not have enough votes last year - while he was being treated for brain cancer - to be ranked.

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WASHINGTON - The American Medical Association presented Senator Edward M. Kennedy with an award yesterday for outstanding government service that has "promoted the art and science of medicine and the betterment of public health."

Kennedy has been a leading voice for healthcare in the Senate for decades. But the association's president, Dr. Joseph M. Heyman, cited two actions last year: helping to pass legislation requiring large health plans to offer the same benefits for mental health care as they do for other medical care; and returning to the Senate last summer during his brain cancer treatments to vote against a Republican attempt to cut Medicare payments to doctors.

"Senator Kennedy made an absolutely heroic appearance after his surgery," Heyman said. "It just inspired us so much to see him there that it was an easy choice for us."

LISA WANGSNESS

Senator John F. Kerry announced yesterday that he and Republican Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania are introducing a bill to strengthen mentoring for youths at risk of getting into trouble.

According to the Massachusetts lawmaker's office, 3 million young Americans, including more than 19,000 in Massachusetts, are being mentored, but another 15 million could benefit from such programs.

"Mentoring programs can bring together at-risk young people with positive role models who can help them gain the skills they need to lead successful lives," Kerry said in a statement.

David Shapiro, CEO of Mass Mentoring Partnership, endorsed the legislation.

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