Posted on 03/12/2013 4:31:03 PM PDT by Libloather
Liberal Democrats challenged President Obama on Tuesday over his willingness to cut Social Security benefits.
At a meeting that lasted just less than 90 minutes, Obama was peppered by questions from Sens. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), among others, who challenged Obama on adopting “chained CPI” — a less generous formula for adjusting benefits under Social Security and other programs for inflation.
Obama has said he is open to chained CPI as part of a “grand bargain” that would include spending cuts as well as new revenue. And he didn’t back down from that support during a closed-door meeting with Senate Democrats, despite pushback from Harkin and Sanders.
"We don’t want to start whacking away at Social Security . . . or Medicare or things like that, which we have pathways to get out of this one without putting it in some kind of a grand bargain that pulls the rug out from our elderly or our sick, our needy, so we were cautioning about that, about being careful about this grand bargain,” Harkin said after the meeting.
The meeting was the first of four visits Obama will make this week to Capitol Hill, where he will visit House Republicans on Wednesday and Senate Republicans and House Democrats on Thursday.
Obama covered a wide range of issues during the meeting, including tax reform, cybersecurity and drones.
But the biggest sparks in the meeting appeared to be over the possibility Obama would agree to cut entitlement benefits to reach a defecit deal.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) insisted that just because Obama and Vice President Biden had offered such concessions in prior negotiations with Republicans, it did not mean congressional Democrats would agree.
"The president in the past, in personal negotiations with Boehner, Biden with personal negotiations with Cantor, have indicated they'd be willing to do certain things," Reid said, referring to Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.).
"The Republicans never get further than that," Reid said. "They take these things that are talked about in abstract and say that's what we've agreed to. We haven't agreed to any of that."
Senior administration officials thought the first meeting with lawmakers was as one put it, "off to a good a start."
"I think it went as well as planned," one official said, adding that Obama aides expected some Democrats to hold firm on entitlements.
"We knew some would hold those views. It's exactly what we anticipated. But we need to all come together and find out what we can and can't live with. That's the way we compromise. We don't have to give up on our values to reach a compromise. I think that's the message the president sent today."
As the week marches on and Obama meets with Republicans in both chambers, "[Obama] is going to send the same message to Republicans," the official added. "Not everyone is going to be happy on everything but that's how meet in the middle."
At the meeting, Obama pledged to more regularly update Senate Democrats on the administration's plans — an indication that the White House's charm offensive would become a bipartisan effort. In recent weeks, Obama has hosted a dinner for a dozen Republican senators and invited top GOP leaders, including House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.), to the White House.
Earlier Tuesday, White House press secretary Jay Carney said Obama would also devote part of his time to thanking senators for passing the Violence Against Women Act and to reaching across the aisle on immigration reform.
"He will also, of course, talk about budget and fiscal issues, the work that Senator Murray is doing on a budget for the Senate and the work that he is engaged in, discussing with lawmakers of both parties to try to find common ground on these issues, on the need to reduce our deficit in a balanced way, the need to move forward with comprehensive immigration reform, to move forward with measures to reduce gun violence, to take action to ensure that we're investing in education and infrastructure and innovation, the areas that will allow our economy to grow and create jobs in the future," Carney said.
"You know, there is a big agenda here, and the American people want action on all of it," he added.
He just cut military school benefits. SS ain’t far behind. And it will end his lovefest.
I want NO COMPROMISE on any damn thing with those filthy democrats, NONE.
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