Wall Street uses Third Way to to Lead Its Assault on Social Security

[Bill USA]

http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/12778-wall-street-uses-the-third-way-to-lead-its-assault-on-social-security


Third Way, lobbyists for and from Wall Street who are leading the effort to enrich Wall Street by privatizing Social Security, was created by Wall Street to fool some of the people all of the time. I have written previously to expose their fictional claims to be a moderate or liberal Democratic group.
Eric Laursen documented Wall Street’s effort to become even wealthier by privatizing Social Security in articles and his recent book ("The People’s Pension: The Struggle to Defend Social Security Since Reagan" (AK Press)).

I showed that Third Way makes itself useful by providing a faux “liberal” or “moderate” “Democratic” quote machine that can be used to discredit Democrats and Democratic policies such as the safety net. I gave examples of how Third Way gave aid and comfort to the effort to defeat Elizabeth Warren and the effort to unravel the safety net. Third Way continues to prove that you can fool some of the people all of the time.

The National Journal ran an article on November 8, 2012 entitled “Left Divided over ‘Grand Bargain.’”


“Groups concerned with protecting entitlements such as Social Security and Medicare are finding themselves at odds over whether an overarching fiscal deal during Congress’s end-of-year session would help or hurt their cause.

The AFL-CIO organized a day of action on Thursday–part of a broader post-election campaign to protect entitlements–with dozens of events scheduled nationwide to urge lawmakers to avoid such a deal.

A ‘grand bargain’ to prevent the year-end onset of tax hikes and spending cuts ‘could cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits, all to give tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans,’ the labor group argued on its organizing site. But the union campaign is being met with resistance from others on the left.

‘We, like you, are ecstatic about the reelection of President Barack Obama and what it means or American growth and prosperity,’ wrote Jim Kessler, senior vice president for policy for Third Way, a liberal think tank with a centrist approach, in an open letter to the groups involved with the day of action. ‘However, as fellow progressives, we were disappointed to learn that you will be leading an effort against the President to impede a balanced grand bargain.’

In order to protect safety-net programs, such as Social Security and Medicare, the left must embrace reform, Kessler writes.”

(more)

[sabrina 1]

1. I don't think the Left/Democrats are divided over the Grand Bargain.

The Third Way is not the Left. Their policies are far more in line with Republicans. What they are doing in the Dem Party is something that needs to be explained.

[Larkspur]

2. I refer to the Third Way Dems as the Lieberman wing of the Dem Party

or the Shrinking Wing of the Dem Party.