From Washington Post:
In an effort to go on the offensive in the battle over government spending, Obama will look for cuts in “all corners of government,” senior adviser David Plouffe said on several Sunday talk shows.
Although Obama’s health-care law is projected to curtail Medicare spending over time, “we have to do more,” Plouffe said Sunday, marking the first time the administration has made an explicit commitment to changes in entitlement programs for the purpose of deficit reduction.
Has it really come to this?
I have ceased my appeal to this President because, after this last "battle" I realize he has no interest in our party or its ideals.
Nonetheless, as a democrat, attacking Medicare is, to me, the metaphoric equivalent of trying to take away my children. You can gut my house, eliminate my livelihood and give what I have to the rich, but the minute you decide to take my kids from me is the moment I become a rabid dog.
It seems more than just a notion that this is our President's next move. It also appears pretty clear that meatless appeals to this man mean nothing.
I spent countless days over the last 10 years frustrated and angry at Bush. That's natural. The man's challenge to destroy our country was overt and unmistakable. With Obama, my anger is even more intense because I've been duped. This man PRETENDED to be on my side, picked policy positions that I agreed with and earned my vote, only to compromise it all away over two years and tell me my expectations of him were wrong.
Sorry. My memory is pretty damn good.
Those of you who support him unconditionally seem to see people like me as a threat. You find our rhetoric destructive, you question our "commitment" to the party and think that our expectations for this President are unreachable.
To that end, I ask you "What democratic ideal are you NOT willing to rationalize away?" We've lost tax increases to the wealthy, our signature position. We've lost support for unions through our President's indifference. We've given up on real health care reform. Accepted non-existent financial reform and are now headed for a budget battle that, based on past patterns, will mean the gutting of a program that has not only been a prideful moment in our history for our party but keeps our elderly from falling into further poverty and their families from taking on extra burdens.
There is no "compromises" with Medicare that will result in ANYTHING good for any of us. And our President has no tricks up his sleeve, nor does he seem to want any. Lets face it. Barack Obama is willing to destroy Medicare in order to avoid any form of confrontation or controversy - and right now there is no form of opposition - or loud political voice on the left - to stop him.
I am past the idea of hoping for the best here. It's not going to happen. I have sent letters to my President and my representatives which have, of course, been to no avail. I truly WANT to do something that will help this party protect what little we have left at this point. I have experience in public relations and advertising. We have to fight for this one ourselves, whether it's issue based or otherwise. Are there others out there willing to contribute their time or effort to this kind of cause rather than just criticize and give republicans more reason to entrench their own solidarity?
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HERE'S A STARTING POINT:
From the Stanford Advocate:
John Boehner:
"There's 23 Democratic Senate seats up for election in 2012 and only 10 Republican seats," Boehner said. "The point I'm trying to make is no one knows where the center of gravity is in the American Senate today. And I think Harry Reid has a pretty weak hand. It was one of the reasons this negotiation took as long as it did. Because they had no positions."
Give us all the names of the democrats who are too weak to stand for our needs and THOSE are folks we target with our phone calls, Press releases and social media and threats of lack of support - just as a start. If those on this site can formulate a proper list, THAT will help us target our message - then, after doing that, we take this fight to our hearing-impaired President.
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"I think we have more leverage on the debt ceiling," Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) told HuffPost Friday. "Because unless 51 Democrats want to vote to raise the debt ceiling and all the Republicans vote against it, they’re going to have to give us something in the way of a systemic reform."
The thinking is that in the current political environment, the most vulnerable Senate Democrats up for reelection would run for the hills when confronted with the idea of taking such a politically perilous vote, and that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) will in the end need Republican support to pass it.
It's obvious Harry Reid, as always, has no negotiating power in his own party. Pathetic, but a reality. If anyone has a list, lets find out WHO these cowards are who would run for the hills rather than support their party and target them with phone calls and emails.
The republicans will ALWAYS win with their tight voting block. We will always lose unless we do the same.