Obama Plan Won't Include Changes to Social Security

[ProSense]

Obama Plan Won't Include Changes to Social Security

By CAROL E. LEE And LAURA MECKLER

President Barack Obama's new deficit-reduction proposal will leave out changes to Social Security, and may exclude any increase in the Medicare eligibility age, people familiar with the discussions said Wednesday.

"As the president has consistently said, he does not believe that Social Security is a driver of our near- and medium-term deficits," White House spokeswoman Amy Brundage said in a statement.

<...>

Instead of raising the Medicare eligibility age, the White House is considering recommending cuts to providers and possibly increasing premiums for wealthier recipients, people familiar with the discussions say. It's also possible the president would propose changing the inflation calculation for other government programs, which currently use the same measure as Social Security does. The White House declined to comment on those discussions.

Social Security has emerged as an issue in the Republican presidential nomination race, with Texas Gov. Rick Perry calling it a Ponzi scheme. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney says such language is bound to scare seniors. Neither has proposed a plan to shore up the program's finances.

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[Big Blue Marble]

1. Perhaps, the Whitehouse is listening to the grass roots

and the Dems in Congress that want to run on protecting these programs. That would be wise.

[vaberella]

10. Or perhaps the White House never had any intentions that were assumed by the grassroots?

It's been known to happen. And hence the reason Obama's people have put out fact check sites of their for the amount of misinformation people are running on. This is from Dems and Repub voters alike.

[SidDithers]

17. That's a much more likely scenario...

:thumbsup:

Sid

[frazzled]

12. No, the grassroots hasn't been listening to Obama

I've heard him say at least 30 times at town halls and appearances that Social Security is not in trouble, is not a driver of the deficit problems, and that the best way to fix it is to lift the income cap on SS taxes. He said it very clearly this spring in Virginia.

I guess you weren't listening.

[DJ13]

2. Of course not

Thats what the Super Committee is for.

The bonus is Obama gets to claim he wasnt responsible, even as he signs the spending cuts into law.

Come on, we know why commissions are formed and how DC works by now.

[jefferson_dem]

3. There ya go. But no need to serve up crow to those who falsely predicted otherwise...

Deal is, let's just UNITE to beat back the decrepit teabagger/gop scumbags. ...Onward!

[jberryhill]

4. Not NOW... but someone said that he was thinking about maybe, uh, you know /nt

[jefferson_dem]

5. Ah... yes!

He might have entertained a fleeting thought or may sometime in the future will think about maybe considering doing something that really sucks... or something! Bingo!

Drats! Foiled again!

[jberryhill]

6. Are you going to sit around and wait until he does!

Then it will be too late.

I say, we impeach him right now.

[jefferson_dem]

8. IMPEACH!1!@!1!!

:eyes:

[treestar]

7. So the 80,000 DU posts panicking over this

We all for naught? Say it ain't so! :rofl:

[flamingdem]

9. hey whas happenz to da catfud comizzion? nt

[vaberella]

11. Don't worry...I saw a one stating that it's not in the Jobs Bill but coming out independently.

and the goal posts they are a moving.

[Whisp]

15. groundhog day... again!

and again and again.

really, how many times now?

:rofl:
good grief

[woo me with science]

16. Oh please.

For the first time, a DEMOCRATIC President put SS and Medicare on the table and successfully used them as hostages to not only obtain an unprecedented "deal" of massive spending cuts in the absence of any revenue increases at all....

but get people to thank him for it.

:eyes:

It will be used again this way, and it is disgusting.

[MannyGoldstein]

13. Fantastic, if true.

But after all the work he put into slashing it, I'm skeptical that he'll just give up.

In any case, it's up to the "Super Committee", and most of them have already said that it needs to be slashed.

[chill_wind]

14. The WH has sent out mixed signals over the past few months and that's a fact.

I am responding to all the upthread bullcrap that he didn't.

For starters, here's just the third paragraph of the OP's very same article- that was snipped out:

"Changing the inflation formula so Social Security benefits grow more slowly and raising the Medicare eligibility age were ideas Mr. Obama had been willing to accept this summer, when he was trying to strike a deficit-reduction deal with House ..."

As for the SS issue and "driver of deficits" it's true he DID finally come out and concede it was "not a primary driver" but insisted on keeping it in the budget deficit debate ANYWAY:

THE PRESIDENT: With respect to Social Security, Social Security is not the source of our deficit problems. Social Security, if it is part of a package, would be an issue of how do we make sure Social Security extends its life and is strengthened? So the reason to do Social Security is to strengthen Social Security to make sure that those benefits are there for seniors in the out-years. And the reason to include that potentially in this package is if you’re going to take a bunch of tough votes, you might as well do it now, as opposed to trying to muster up the political will to get something done further down in the future.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/07/11/press-conference-president

He most definitely indicated he did indeed want to "do" Social Security, and we should all be hoping what he meant by that is that he will support the Dems and Sanders' bill now that it's come up, if we are to "do" and strengthen SS, as he's maintained. Right?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1940808



He has talked over and over of willingness to take on his own party's "sacred cows" (HIS words) in terms of entitlement reforms and if everyone from progressive Congressional Dems in his own party to health care workers, advocacy groups for the poor and the elderly, and huge swaths of the Grassroots have been worried about his message, maybe there's been a problem with his message!

Maybe he is finally re-evaluating it, and I couldn't agree more with the poster above who observed "that would be wise."

Democrats See Perils on Path to Health Cuts
By ROBERT PEAR
Published: September 13, 2011

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/14/us/politics/obamas-expected-plan-for-entitlement-savings-worries-democrats.html

[Mass]

18. It seems Medicare age should be a no brainer. So, why not exclude it too.

[rug]

19. How reassuring.