Hands Off Social Security

Charles Krauthammer wants you to know two things: There's no "lockbox" for Social Security and there's no such thing as a free lunch. He's wrong about Social Security, but first things first: Let's do lunch.

Here's Krauthammer last Thursday, rebutting White House Budget Director Jack Lew: "There is no free lunch." And here's Krauthammer in 2004, in a piece called "Tax and Drill": "There is no free lunch." And in 2009, writing about the health care bill: "...(I)n medicine, as in life, there is no free lunch."

And here's Krauthammer in June of 2007, saying that politicians will never support a gas tax because it would be "too honest and open an acknowledgment that there is no free lunch." He says in the same piece that ethanol is "another free lunch," and bemoans Congress' desire to "perpetuate the fantasy of the tax-free lunch." (The piece was called "The Tax-Free Lunch.")

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The D.C. elite insist that the retirement age should be raised even more than the current 67. They have jobs where they sit in nice chairs behind nice desks in nice offices in affluent areas. They don't even know anyone who waits tables or cleans or lifts boxes all day. They don't even know anyone without a fat 401K, or who is in their 50s who can't find work. more »

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There are rumors that President Obama is going to ask for cuts in Social Security in his State of the Union speech. We have 4 weeks to stop him. People, we can stop this.

Tell The President: Stand Up To The Hostage-Takers! No Social Security Cuts more »

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Congress passed tax cuts for the rich and cut the estate tax way down, adding $800 billion to the deficit and placing Social Security on the chopping block. more »

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The National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (“Deficit Commission”) was charged with coming up with a plan to reduce the budget deficits and accumulated debt caused by tax cuts for the rich and military spending increases. It was supposed to come up with a bipartisan package that, taken as a whole, would get votes from both sides of the aisle. more »

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Conservative just hate Social Security. The Social Security program is an example of government at its best. It demonstrates We, the People taking care of and watching out for each other. It works, it is efficient and effective, and people love it. For their war against government to work conservatives have to find a way to undermine Social Security. more »

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Today's Washington Post has punch two of a one-two punch. Punch one was the Simpson/Bowles "plan" to cut Social Security, cut middle-class tax breaks and programs (and dramatically cut taxes on the rich.) Punch two is pushing this plan hard with headlines claiming this solution is actually popular, while shutting out voices who explain why we shouldn't do this. more »

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The next time a conservative politician goes to the microphone and says something to the effect that "the American people have spoken, and they've made it clear that they want us to rein in out-of-control entitlement spending and keep programs such as Social Security from bankrupting the country," you already know the right response: "The American people have said no such thing." more »

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Former White House budget director Peter Orszag is taking a new approach in his quest to cut Social Security. He's playing progressive "good cop" to to the ultra-right bad cops of the White House deficit commission, Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson. more »

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