What Obama's Putting in His Health Care Speech

'Accommodation' for religious employers will likely be announced today

(NEWSER) - The White House yesterday signaled a compromise over its contentious birth control decision, and the Wall Street Journal confirms that an attempt to accommodate the Catholic Church will likely be announced today. Details remain hazy, but one source tells the Journal that insurance companies, not religious employers, will become the ones who pay for contraception coverage. ABC News notes the move would be cheaper for health insurance companies than having to cover unwanted pregnancies and complications. But since the "accommodation" will still allow female employees access to birth control, Jake Tapper notes, it will likely not satisfy religious leaders. More»

Just 10% approve of work on Hill, according to latest Gallup poll

(NEWSER) - A Gallup poll released Wednesday finds that Americans' approval of Congress has hit yet another record low: 10%. There aren't many institutions Americans have liked less over the last 50-or-so years, according to Gallup: Only Fidel Castro, Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden, and OJ Simpson detective Mark Fuhrman have ever scored lower. ABC News takes a look at some very unpopular things that still manage to rank above Congress:

• According to an August poll, Paris Hilton is America's least-favorite celeb. But her 60% disapproval rating is still better than Congress's 86% disapproval rating.

Rep. Spencer Bachus faces first-of-its-kind ethics investigation

(NEWSER) - Foxes have been found guarding hen houses on Capitol Hill in the past, but ethics investigators now believe they have identified a particularly greedy one. Rep. Spencer Bachus, chair of the House Financial Services Committee, is being probed for possible violations of insider-trading laws, reports the Washington Post . The investigation of the Alabama Republican is the first of its kind involving a member of Congress, and comes as lawmakers are taking steps to stamp out insider trading by legislators and executive branch officials . More»

That's more than double the proportion from 2007: analysis

(NEWSER) - President Obama continues to be successful raising money through small donations—and this time around, he's outpacing his campaign from four years ago. Last year, almost half of the money raised by the president's re-election campaign came from donors who gave $200 or less in total, a new report from the Campaign Finance Institute shows. In 2007, by comparison, just 22% of the $96.7 million he raised came from donations of $200 or less. In total, Obama raised $56.7 million from small donors last year, compared to the $38.1 million small donors contributed to all of his Republican opponents combined. More»

Gail Collins doesn't think new rules are impinging on religious freedom

(NEWSER) - The furor over President Obama's decision to force Catholic employers to provide health care that covers contraceptives brought a story to mind for Gail Collins. Her mother-in-law once told her that, when she'd confessed to a priest she was using birth control, he replied, "You're no better than a whore on the street." These days the clergy is less judgmental, but the story shows "why bishops are not the only Roman Catholics who are touchy about the issue of contraception," she writes in the New York Times . More»