Obama Offers Social Security & Medicare Cuts

President Barack Obama continues to handle negotiations with the terribly. Obama offered Social Security and Medicare cuts. The Republicans have refused to even consider ending tax breaks for corporate jets to help pay off the federal debt. Obama once again forgot which caucus backs him. Obama failed to tell the Democratic caucus that he was putting Medicare and Social Security on the table.

“We would have preferred to hear it from the president instead of from the press,” said Sen. Barbara Mikulski (Md.), a senior member of the Senate Democratic conference. “We first have to go after tax earmarks.”

Mikulski and Sen. Kent Conrad that they are open to Social Security cuts. Social Security is running on a surplus. Republicans have long hated Social Security and wish to turn it into Chile dictator Augusto Pinochet's pension plan. Social Security isn't the cause of the federal debt.

Obama gave the the pay freeze to Republicans without getting nothing back. Obama dropped the public option to garner Republican votes. The result was House Republicans attempted to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Obama's poor negotiating skills have created friction with the Democratic caucuses and the progressive base. Howie Klein urges progressives not to vote for President Obama in 2012.

Read more »

Arlen Specter Press Conference

President Barack Obama and Vice-President Joe Biden welcome Sen. Arlen Specter to the Democratic caucus.

Update: Sen. Barbara Mikulski is not happy Harry Reid will let Specter retain his senioity. Obama and Biden will support Specter in the Democratic primary.

"I won't be happy if I don't get to chair something because of Arlen Specter," said Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), who sits on the Appropriations Committee with Specter and is fifth in seniority among Democrats behind Chairman Daniel Inouye (Hawaii), Sens. Robert Byrd (W.Va.), Patrick Leahy (Vt.) and Tom Harkin (Iowa). "I'm happy with the Democratic order but I don't want to be displaced because of Arlen Specter," she said.

One senior Democratic lawmaker told The Hill that the Democratic Conference will vote against giving the longtime Pennsylvania Republican seniority over lawmakers like Harkin, Mikulski and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) when they hold their organizational meeting after the 2010 election.