This will be a short diary, but I think this article from the Huffington Post is worth mentioning:
WASHINGTON -- Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Steve Israel warned lawmakers on Friday that he would have trouble recruiting candidates for office if the party caved on Medicare during the debt ceiling negotiations.
The comments came during a closed-door caucus meeting. Multiple sources confirmed the remarks, describing them as "impassioned."
"He said recruits would not consider running if Democrats did not stand up for Medicare," one attendee told The Huffington Post. "He added that national polling showed a seismic shift against House Republicans after the [Paul] Ryan budget because of Medicare."
It seems so obvious that the trial balloon that has been floated by the White House places the Democratic Party's chances in 2012 at jeopardy.
Here's a link to the article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...