Morning Mix: Senate Showdown on Small Business Looms, Microlending Eyed for American Small Business

Small business bill scheduled: Democrats have scheduled a test vote in the U.S. Senate on a bill designed to pump money in the form of tax breaks and a lending fund for small banks into the nation’s small businesses. But they will need at least a couple Republicans to join them to pass the bill, and right now, Republicans want to amend it. (Associated Press)

Dell aims at small business: A new group of computer security products branded by Dell and developed with Juniper Networks aims at the small business market. (Dow Jones)

Microloans may be answer: With small business credit tight, many are turning to a form of lending more closely associated with developing nations, the microloan. (New York Times)

Beginning the BP endgame: Retired Admiral Thad Allen, the man in charge of the government’s response to the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster, will meet with local Louisiana officials to outlines the next steps in cleaning up the mess, as BP makes ready to put an end to the troublesome well once and for all. Meanwhile, an expert on marsh grasses is cautiously optimistic that the key element to Louisiana’s wetlands can make a comeback from the disaster, good news for the shrimpers and fishermen and countless others who count on those wetlands’ health for their own livelihoods. (CNN, Reuters)

Amazon hopes to Kindle new interest: Amazon is coming out with its next generation of the Kindle e-reader, and opening a U.K. e-book store. (Washington Post)

Global warming called undeniable: Even as the U.S. Senate debates a watered-down version of energy reform that doesn’t address the causes of global warming or do much to encourage alternative energy, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is out with a report that calls the last decade the warmest on record, and calls global warming “undeniable.” (USA Today)

An Immigration Situation: Arizona officials plan to take their case for the most controversial portions of the state's illegal immigration law to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals today, after a federal judge struck them down Wednesday. The rest of the law went into effect today.

The blue-collar biotech exec: Gil Van Bokkelen sees stem cell research like a hockey game. You take "multiple shots on goal." It's an attitude that's won his company Athersys partnerships with major drugmakers like Pfizer.

Small-Business disaster: The BP oil spill is forcing many small local companies to make drastic changes to their business plans. One big issue on their list: seeking compensation from the oil giant.