I knew this was coming, but it is news:
WASHINGTON — President Obama next week will take the political risk of formally proposing cuts to Social Security and Medicare in his annual budget in an effort to demonstrate his willingness to compromise with Republicans and revive prospects for a long-term deficit-reduction deal, administration officials say. In a significant shift in fiscal strategy, Mr. Obama on Wednesday will send a budget plan to Capitol Hill that departs from the usual presidential wish list that Republicans typically declare dead on arrival. Instead it will embody the final compromise offer that he made to Speaker John A. Boehner late last year, before Mr. Boehner abandoned negotiations in opposition to the president’s demand for higher taxes from wealthy individuals and some corporations. Congressional Republicans have dug in against any new tax revenues after higher taxes for the affluent were approved at the start of the year. The administration’s hope is to create cracks in Republicans’ antitax resistance, especially in the Senate, as constituents complain about the across-the-board cuts in military and domestic programs that took effect March 1. — Social Programs Face Cutback in Obama Budget – NYTimes.com
Needless to say that the reaction in the progressive blogsphere has not been a good one. Personally, I think that the President has good intentions; but he is cutting the wrong things. I simply do not believe that our Nation’s seniors, like my parents; should be punished because the recklessness of people on Wall Street. We need to get rid of the pork that is laden in these bills that congress just keeps on passing. This will help with the spending problem.
Furthermore, I believe Obama might be doing some damage to the Democratic Party brand. I mean, this guy promised his base that he would actually stand up to the Republicans and what is doing? Capitulating. From what I have seen, this is not going over well with his base at all. The Democrats should be quite worried about this; this will cuase them problems in 2014, and could very well cause them some serious issues in 2016 as well. I mean, why would anyone get exciting about a Democratic Party Presidental candidate, when the last one folded like cardboard?
Just my opinion. 😀