Source: Fiscal cliff talks see major setback

[thesquanderer]

2. Obama making two contradictory arguments?

According to the post at

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022097448

Obama is in favor of chained CPI, saying that, despite its unpopularity with his base, he thinks it will ultimately make SS stronger.

Now this article says that he's only willing to do it "in exchange" for a fix to the debt ceiling debacle. That implies he feels he is giving something up on SS, to get something else.

If he genuinely feels that chained CPI makes SS stronger (or at least if he states that that's the case), it would seem hard to look at it as a bargaining chip, because rather than it being a concession, i.e. doing something he would rather not do, it's something he actually wants, that he thinks is good. I don't see a way to reconcile the two arguments. How can you say, "Give me this thing I want, or else I won't give you this other thing that I also want"?