Would even George W. Bush have had the brazenness to cut SS for present & near retirees?

[Faryn Balyncd]

Poll question: Would even George W. Bush have had the brazenness to cut SS for present & near retirees?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9531644

[Scurrilous]

1. Other: Pfffffft.

[Faryn Balyncd]

2. And if he had proposed it, would Democrats have let him pull it off?

[BzaDem]

3. It's amazing how "Obama will cut SS for present & near retirees" is the new bullshit statement

flying around. Because two people make a proposal that has no chance of passing the debt commission (let alone Congress or being signed by Obama).

What a joke.

[Faryn Balyncd]

4. Is it a joke when our presidents's appointed "Democratic" co-chairman comes up with this?

And, where WILL our party stand?

[MannyGoldstein]

5. Wanna bet $10?

You don't appoint Simpson & Bowles unless you want to slash Social Security.

[BzaDem]

6. Obama did not appoint Simpson and Bowles to unilaterally come up with a report that would become law

He appointed them to come up with a report that would get the agreement of 14 out of 18 members of a commission, that would then pass the House and pass a filibuster in the Senate.

I'm glad you are at least admitting that the Simpson/Bowles "report" is not actually a report at all, let alone something that would pass the commission/Congress/Obama.

[MannyGoldstein]

7. Do YOU wanna bet $10?

$10 says current retirees get their Social Security slashed.

You in?

Only reason to hire that pair is to attack Social Security.

[BzaDem]

8. I will happily donate $10 to the charity of your choice if the "report" released today becomes law

or even comes close to becoming law.

Beyond that, I have no idea what would happen. Obama very well might sign into law a bill somewhat affecting some SS recipients if it also affects the military budget and the tax code in a significant way. We can talk again once the commission actually releases a report (which I'm not even sure they will). This report is going nowhere.

[MannyGoldstein]

9. Obama wants to slash Social Security

That's the only reasonable explanation for this commission.

$10 says that current Social Security recipients will see a significant cut, even though the projections that have been most historically accurate show that Social Security is fully funded as far as the eye can see.

You in?

[BzaDem]

10. Again, some SS recipients (particularly some who don't need SS) might receive a cut, if they can

also get military budget cuts and tax increases from the bill.

When the commission releases a real report, I will be happy to look at it at that time and bet $10 depending on how certain I am that it will pass or fail (and what it has in it). This report is going nowhere.

[MannyGoldstein]

11. How about betting $10 that most median-net-worth retirees have their SS cut

Obama wants to slash Social Security across the board. That's the only reason that one hires Simpson and Bowles. Otherwise, it's like hiring John Gotti to do the gardening.

[BzaDem]

12. I'm not sure how many times I can say the same thing. It depends how much and what ELSE is in the

proposal.

Would I accept a small SS cut in exchange, for, say, single payer? Of course. In exchange for nothing? Of course not. In exchange for something in between? Depends on what that is. As Kevin Drum on Mother Jones says, "Social Security (the dark blue middle chunk) isn't a long-term deficit problem. It goes up very slightly between now and 2030 and then flattens out forever. If Republicans were willing to get serious and knock off their puerile anti-tax jihad, it could be fixed easily with a combination of tiny tax increases and tiny benefit cuts phased in over 20 years that the public would barely notice. It deserves about a week of deliberation." (http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2010/11/deficit-commission-serious)

I'm not sure how much clearer I can make this, though I will try one final time. I will bet you $10 dollars about the ultimate destination of a report once a report gets 14 votes on a commission. I will bet you $10 dollars that the ultimate destination of THIS "report" is the trash bin. I will be you $0 (zero) dollars on a hypothetical report that doesn't exist.

[MannyGoldstein]

20. The bet's not about the report

I claim that Obama is hell-bent on slashing Social Security in some misguided search for Tea Party cred. You claim otherwise.

I'm simply looking for one of us to win a few bucks when one of us is proven correct. How about we bet that Obama will embrace a cut of at least 10% of benefits paid to median-asset retirees within 10 years, with no substantial offset from some other bargain?

[no limit]

22. You do know you are not allowed to ask these questions until the offical talking points are out?

Right?

[Junkdrawer]

13. ROFLOL. Best One-Line Analysis of the Catfood Commission Yet....

:thumbsup:

[TBF]

17. "Otherwise, it's like hiring John Gotti to do the gardening." -

that kinda describes most of this guy's policies ... lol if it weren't so sad.

[eridani]

21. Jeebus. How would you like it if you totalled your car--

--and the insurance company surveyed your assets and refused to pay on the grounds that you had enough saved to buy a car without their help?

[speppin]

14. NO. Bush backed off and now a Dem President may do it.

[WinkyDink]

15. Well, he didn't, did he? Ergo,......

[TBF]

16. No, he couldn't do maths - he was better at just blowing shit up.

and rec FWIW :hi:

[KharmaTrain]

18. He Did One Better...He Stole Money From There

The infamous "lock box"...the money that had built up in the SS Trust fund that ended up going for tax cuts to booooshie's rich buddies.

Dare it be said that these are "recommendations"...still far from any done deal. The bottom line is the government does need to cut...just off of whose back? I'm not as upset about this as I know that almost every one of these recommendations are political poison for someone. If you thought health insurance reform was a long haul, this one promises to be a marathon that could take years...if anything happens at all.

[SidDithers]

19. Unrec...nt

Sid

[Gin]

23. (IMO) they throw in outrageous ideas to keep the focus on them

while they get what they really want....

reminds me of what utilities do when they seek a rate increase....they shoot high...then get just what they want.

[treestar]

24. Yes, he said he did regret privatizing it

He would do it and couldn't get it out of even a Republican congress. Or he was too busy starting his wars.