SS was never in jeopardy, but your complaints and outrage are very important

[fried eggs]

to the "willing to compromise" narrative that Obama's team has carefully crafted. As others have stated, Obama knows how to count and he knew any deal he offered would be rejected. He also must have known that he would cause a lot of anger, outrage, and sadness amongst his base.

So why did he do this? Why would he bluff about social security, of all things?

I think it's because he's putting his own reputation (with his base) aside for the greater good of this country. We are witnessing the systematic dismantling of the republican party!

8 minutes to 12am on the west coast. I suppose this could all be moot if the Mayans were right

[cliffordu]

1. I wish I could K&R this x 100000000000

Perfect, that is EXACTLY what is going on.

[Luminous Animal]

2. So, what is the Dems new proposal and will We The People have the

opportunity to see it instead of being forced to react to strategic leaks based on a cruel game?

Will We The People have the opportunity to comment to an honest proposal rather than be led by the nose with rumors and lying games?

[Lionessa]

7. Exactly, Obama hasn't actually pulled his offers off the table at all,

and I hope we can end that sentence with "yet", but Obama's dedication to his corporate overlords has been discouraging, disgusting, and, as you say, cruel to those that voted him in .... twice.

[hfojvt]

3. yeah, I heard that after 2006 and 2008

and yet the Bush tax cuts are still with us.

And the "Democratic" President is still telling the country that 78%-85% of the Bush tax cuts should be made permanent.

Even though doing so, heavily favors the rich.

I still fear that when the dust settles, the rich will have won. I see no indication that there will be a victory for the people.

I don't have faith in St. Nicholas.

[UnrepentantLiberal]

14. I wish I could K&R this x 100000000000

Perfect, that is EXACTLY what is going on.

[SunSeeker]

4. OK. I'll go with that.

It sure beats being depressed about Obama having put SS on the table.

[Cha]

5. So there's still a West Coast, right?

We're fine here in Hawai'i

I have no Crystal Ball but, I trust Pres Obama.. He has to negotiate the opposite of straight forward when dealing with the rodeo clown-Plan B-oner. with the weasel, cantor, waiting in the wings.

[sabrina 1]

6. So Nancy Pelosi doesn't really believe what she said this week?

If they are going to play such a cruel game why not play it with, eg, Congressional Health Care?

Why is it ALWAYS SS or the PO (which we were also told was just several dimensional chess and we would should be patient etc etc and we know what happened with that) that is used as a gambling chip?

Sorry, I do not buy any of these wild guesses and mind-reading exercises.

I know what Pelosi said about Obama's proposal and I take her at her word until she tells us she was 'just kidding'.

[Lionessa]

8. I've pretty much supported Pelosi as trying hard to

keep things heading leftly. Please link for me (I'm not finding it, Boehner and Obama are the only two I can find info on tonight) what Pelosi said. Is she supporting Obama's plan as it was presented to Boehner?????? Jeez I hope not, I really don't want to be disappointed and discouraged by YET ANOTHER Democrat.

[sabrina 1]

12. Yes, she is supporting Obama's proposal and so is Hoyer ..

Several links in this OP which I wrote earlier:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022042171

[Lionessa]

13. Thank you for the link. Jeez...

this is all so discouraging.

[Sherman A1]

9. Precisely

I simply don't buy into the SS is safe idea. Nothing is safe unless we stand up for it.

[Not a Fan]

10. " SS was never in jeopardy, but your complaints and outrage are very important"

That was my take on it. They needed us to make a fuss over the possibility. They needed to know we weren't going to let them slip anything by us.

[ashling]

11. "I agree with you, I want to do it, now make me do it."

"After his election in 1932, FDR met with Sidney Hillman and other labor leaders, many of them active Socialists with whom he had worked over the past decade or more. Hillman and his allies arrived with plans they wanted the new President to implement. Roosevelt told them: "I agree with you, I want to do it, now make me do it."

[Demo_Chris]

15. I disagree

SS is always in danger so long as EITHER side is willing to use it as a bargaining chip.

[Resonance_Chamber]

16. Sen Bernie Sanders is the ONLY person who can really be counted on to Protect SS

all the others will glady compromise it away including the POTUS.

Pretty Sad a Democratic Socialist is our last hope.

It speaks volumes about the Democratic party.

[mucifer]

18. Wow that's NOT a fair statement. There are LOTS of dems fighting this:

Last edited Fri Dec 21, 2012, 07:34 AM - Edit history (1)

http://news.firedoglake.com/2012/09/20/29-dem-senators-including-reid-and-schumer-sign-letter-opposing-social-security-cuts/


29 Dem Senators, Including Reid and Schumer, Sign Letter Opposing Social Security Cuts

The problem here is that only 29 members signed this, rather than the 41 that would be needed to block through a filibuster any deficit reduction package. If this gets through the lame duck session, you may have a higher percentage of Democrats willing to sign on to such a pledge with the incoming freshman Senators. But a substantial number of Democrats withheld their signature from this pledge, which was organized by Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Mark Begich (D-AK) and Al Franken (D-MN).

Here are the others who signed:

Sens. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii), Tim Johnson (D-S.D.), John D. Rockefeller IV (D-W.Va.), Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Carl Levin (D-Mich.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) also signed on.

Notice the presence of Manchin there. So who didn’t sign?

Max Baucus, Michael Bennet, Jeff Bingaman, Tom Carper, Bob Casey, Kent Conrad, Chris Coons, Dick Durbin, Dianne Feinstein, Kay Hagan, John Kerry, Amy Klobuchar, Herb Kohl, Mary Landrieu, Joe Lieberman, Claire McCaskill, Ben Nelson, Bill Nelson, Mark Pryor, Jeanne Shaheen, Jon Tester, Mark Udall, Mark Warner, Jim Webb.

[aandegoons]

17. I don't beleive that is true.

In my opinion. I would think a Democratic leader would not put so many of his fellow Democrats in a position of weakness just to make a bluff.

What ever happens from now there will be many who will remember what the Democrats were willing to do to protect the wealthy. It will always be there and will have a negative effect on the 2014 elections. I have no doubt the repukes will already be creating the political ads with grandma chained to something with the warning that Democrats wanted to take away social security.

Not the first time President Obama sold out the liberals and it won't be the last.

[djean111]

19. I agree.

And I do not believe Obama would deliberately touch, no, embrace the third rail, plus gift the GOP with a sure-fire campaign weapon - "Obama wanted to make cuts to Social Security" - if he didn't intend to follow through.
If I am to really believe Obama and Pelosi were just kidding - WTF?
Why believe anything that is said now?

So - I guess the next proposal from Obama will not have the Chained CPI in it, right?
That's the only thing that will convince me, not a bunch of spin.
I think "free to do what he wants in his second term" may mean something different to Obama than it does to me. We'll see.
Besides, since he doesn't need our votes any more, why all the angst about people complaining? We can't threaten to not vote for him any more.
Bad chi'i? Hurt feelings?
Obama got reelected. Now he has proposed something that will hurt others in 2014. And I am considered intransigent?
I am not a freeper, expected to blindly follow no matter what.

[jsr]

21. Obama's willingness to cut Social Security is now very well documented.

[KG]

20. it's still in jeopardy...