Another Reason Clinton Will Lose: She'd Weaken Social Security

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Thursday October 15, 2015 · 1:35 PM PDT

2015/10/15 · 13:35

For decades, the assault on Social Security has been led by those who want to "means-test" it -- to give full benefits only to the very poor, while cutting them for "those who can afford it". This way the wildly-successful intergenerational retirement savings program would be turned into a welfare system, undermining the broad public support that FDR secured for the SS system and making it much easier to cut benefits in the future.

In the Democratic debate Hillary Clinton joined Wall St, deficit hawks, and Republicans in pushing for such means-testing...

Clinton was asked by CNN’s Dana Bash whether “Senator Sanders’ plan to expand Social Security” was “something that you would support.”
“Well, I fully support Social Security,” Clinton began. “And the most important fight we’re going to have is defending it against continuing Republican efforts to privatize it.”

Case closed? Not quite. Bash pressed on: “Do you want to expand it?”

That yes-or-no question got neither. “I want to enhance the benefits for the poorest recipients of Social Security,” she said, singling out “particularly widowed and single women” who didn’t make a lot of money during their careers. “I will focus on helping those people who need it the most,” she concluded.

What alarmed Social Security activists is that underneath Clinton’s positive language – “fully support,” “enhance” – appears to lie support for policies, including from leading conservatives like Pete Peterson – that would actually undermine Social Security.

Read the whole article by Isaiah J. Poole, it's short. And -- though it's hardly been noticed yet by the fawning corporate media -- this could be the issue that turns the election. Read More

Poll

153 votes Show Results

Do you support means-testing Social Security benefits?

153 votes Vote Now!

Do you support means-testing Social Security benefits?

44 votes

No, benefits need to be raised.

94 votes

Yes, we have to preserve the billionaires' fortunes.

1 vote

Yes, anything Hillary Clinton says must be correct.

9 votes

Yes, you understand, we just have to.

1 vote

Yes, the poor & elderly already get too much!

1 vote

Yes, Paul Ryan told me so.

3 votes

Romney/Bain Funded by Death Squad Leaders

hooper

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Wednesday August 08, 2012 · 8:23 AM PDT

2012/08/08 · 08:23

Sounds hyperbolic but apparently it's true! According to stories in the LA Times & Boston Globe -- as reported today on HuffPo (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...) -- Mitt funded Bain about 40% with money from the guys who also funded the Savadoran Death Squads in the mid-80s.

I'm putting this up as a diary because I want the story to fly. I looked at today's "recent diaries" and didn't see it reported on DK. If someone puts up a better one on the same topic I'll gladly take mine down later today, after I get back from getting two root canals and a bunch more done at the dentist...thus the shortness of my writing and commentary over the next few hours.

As they say, "Behind every great fortune lies a great crime." In Mitt's case many crimes. All "legal", of course. This one is new to me, though, and imo inflammatory enough to have legs with the public. I'll copy a few passages below, but the whole thing's a quick read and well worth your time.

Good luck, fellow Romney-busters! (If you share my thinking on this please pass the HuffPo story around the web. Again, my apologies for my lack of real writing or dairy-tending)

Poll

60 votes Show Results

Is Mitt Toast or just a typical Republican Pirate?

60 votes Vote Now!

Is Mitt Toast or just a typical Republican Pirate?

Toast

17 votes

Pirate

9 votes

Both

34 votes

Bull's Eye! Chait on Liberals, History, Obama. A must-read for Progressives...

hooper

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Monday November 21, 2011 · 1:10 PM PST

2011/11/21 · 13:10

Why are liberals so desperately unhappy with the Obama presidency?
Here is my explanation: Liberals are dissatisfied with Obama because liberals, on the whole, are incapable of feeling satisfied with a Democratic president. They can be happy with the idea of a Democratic president—indeed, dancing-in-the-streets delirious—but not with the real thing. The various theories of disconsolate liberals all suffer from a failure to compare Obama with any plausible baseline. Instead they compare Obama with an imaginary president—either an imaginary Obama or a fantasy version of a past president.

So, what if we compare Obama with a real alternative? Not to Republicans—that’s too easy—but to Democratic presidents as they lived and breathed?

hooper

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Sunday September 05, 2010 · 11:33 AM PDT

2010/09/05 · 11:33

For decades many have been warning that if we kept sending American manufacturing jobs overseas, we'd eventully run out of work here. Mainstream economists have consistently mocked this concern....Free Trade will benefit us all, they've claimed. Just wait a little longer.

But now here we are. No jobs here, busy factories "over there."

We've heard the standard solutions...more training, more small business, more startups. Anything but looking at altering the Free Trade model itself.

Those who suggest such things are denigrated as "protectionists," and it's an article of faith that protection (tarriffs on imports) would kill the world economy.

Well now here's another view, from an insider who knows of what he speaks:

hooper

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Tuesday December 01, 2009 · 7:51 PM PST

2009/12/01 · 19:51

That's the message I'm hearing from President Obama. We'll start leaving in 18 months, after really doing our best. A new, intelligent strategy, many more resources, and a close-in expiration date.

Is there anyone here who actually expected that the US would leave Afghanistan that soon?

This whole debate is being framed as "the troop increase". Why not as "the end of the war?"

Considering the actual and political realities around Afghanistan, war, wars, America, etc, could this be an actually-workable resolution to a gigantic, terrible no-win situation?

What do you think? How would you get us out of this war?

Heads-up: "They're laughing at us out there!"

hooper

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Sunday October 12, 2008 · 7:55 AM PDT

2008/10/12 · 07:55

A good friend of mine called today asking how to get in touch with the Obama campaign, wanting to warn them about something he'd heard while recently in California.

My friend's work brings him into contact with ultra wealthy, very connected Republicans.

He called to warn that his contacts expect California to be an unpleasant Nov 4 surprise for Obama, due to a whole new level of polling place manipulation.

hooper

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Monday September 08, 2008 · 5:50 PM PDT

2008/09/08 · 17:50

Obama has many great qualities...honesty, steadiness & calm, excellent judgement, intellectual brilliance, masterful speaking, great negotiating skills, etc. But getting through the McCain/Palin/Rove-media alliance to the public mind is proving daunting.

During the primary season Obama's greatest moment was his speech on race. The "big speech" format allowed him to use and display all his talents. The result was spectacular.

Why not use this "big speech" format to take back the initiative from the un-real McCain?

hooper

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Wednesday August 20, 2008 · 9:55 AM PDT

2008/08/20 · 09:55

I've read enough kvetching to last a lifetime. It's time to get our stuff together to change the "McCain narrative." You know... unique hero, maverick, strong leader, "country first." All crap, but that's how they're spinning it.

McCain's a fraud. We know this, but the story's not yet getting traction. I'm starting this diary in hopes that we can join in and catalogue his failings. Let's gather the evidence in one place so it's easier to access and use, for us and for the media-types who read DK.

Then we can use the material to generate talking points, articles, emails, memes, videos, etc

Poll

60 votes Show Results

John McCain is a....

60 votes Vote Now!

John McCain is a....

Liar

1 vote

Hypocrite

1 vote

Rage-aholic

1 vote

Front for the Neocons

5 votes

Privatizer

0 votes

Misogynist

0 votes

Playboy

1 vote

Corrupt rich guy

2 votes

Media manipulator

0 votes

Fraud

1 vote

All of the Above

43 votes

Strong selfless leader courageous maverick

5 votes

The Truth About McCain, from MarketWatch

hooper

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Thursday August 07, 2008 · 4:08 PM PDT

2008/08/07 · 16:08

This'll be a short diary. Basically it's to point Kossacks to a great article today on CBS Marketwatch by Rex Nutting, their senior Washington bureau chief, titled Why McCain Would Be a Mediocre President.

This is the best I've seen on old John from the mainstream press. A few excerpts after the fold...

hooper

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Tuesday May 06, 2008 · 11:16 AM PDT

2008/05/06 · 11:16

We're about to go into the backroom part of the primary season, according to Chuck Todd last night, since only a few states remain to vote and since the most delegate-rich states will already have been counted. Clinton's argument will be based on her count of the popular vote, and of course she'll try to include the skewed and invalid results of FL and MI in her total.

But what I don't see being mentioned is that in reality there is no popular vote, or at least no national popular vote that includes all the states. There's no record of any kind of popular vote from the caucus states.

Clinton's hypothetical "popular vote" is a myth, unless one is willing to radically discriminate against the residents of the caucus states, which would obviously be injust and undemocratic. This imaginary inclusive popular vote doesn't exist, so it can't be counted.

hooper

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Sunday March 23, 2008 · 6:06 PM PDT

2008/03/23 · 18:06

Fundraising is the one remaining area where Clinton could still plausably "pull ahead."

Obama crushed Clinton in February, raising $55M to her $35M. Could Clinton come back to beat him in March? That's what she's hoping.

While the media is focused on the February numbers and on Clinton's low finances as of March 1, she's revamped and gone over to a web-based fundraising operation much like Obama's, focusing on smaller donations from more people. The word is she's been doing very well, but we have no current numbers (that I know of) as of now.

Could she be planning a stealth run at winning the March money primary? Then she'd once again be able to paralyse the party with another "the tide is turning" diversion.

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Another Reason Clinton Will Lose: She'd Weaken Social Security

Romney/Bain Funded by Death Squad Leaders

Bull's Eye! Chait on Liberals, History, Obama. A must-read for Progressives...

Fix Free Trade for Labor Day

Obama: U.S. Leaving Afghanistan, starting in 18 Months!

Heads-up: "They're laughing at us out there!"

Obama's great strength. Use it again? (w/ update!)

Let's Get McCain; a research diary...

The Truth About McCain, from MarketWatch

There's no such thing as the "popular vote"!

Could Clinton Out-Fundraise Obama this month?