Why Is Obama Needlessly Scaring Seniors?

Heritage Foundation ^ | 10/8/2013 | Amy Payne

[IbJensen]

Apparently things aren’t ugly enough in Washington, so President Obama has started scaring senior citizens.

“In a government shutdown, Social Security checks still go out on time,” he said last week. “In an economic shutdown, if we don’t raise the debt ceiling, they don’t go out on time.”

This scaremongering is completely unnecessary, says Heritage’s Grover M. Hermann Fellow in Federal Budgetary Affairs, Romina Boccia.

President Obama is needlessly scaring seniors by suggesting that their Social Security benefit checks may not arrive on time if the U.S. runs out of borrowing authority at the debt limit. The 57 million Americans who receive Social Security benefits should know that their benefits will not be affected—unless President Obama and the Treasury deliberately choose not to pay them.

Boccia details three reasons why Social Security checks can still be paid even if the U.S. hits the debt ceiling.

Meanwhile, Congress is in gridlock confronting the real threat to seniors: Obamacare. For this entire segment of the population, Obamacare threatens: •Less access to care •Fewer health plan choices •Less access to physicians •Higher premiums in Medicare Part D •Higher taxes

And on top of all that, the future of Medicare is still in jeopardy. As Heritage expert Alyene Senger says, “Rather than implementing the structural reform desperately needed in Medicare, Obamacare’s provisions threaten current seniors’ ability to access care and leave Medicare in jeopardy for future generations.”

There is a real threat to our seniors’ personal health care decisions and their savings. Congress should act now to defund this unfair, unworkable, unaffordable law.

[TomGuy]

The Dems keep lecturing us that SS and medicare don't add a penny to the debt because the trust fund will pay those checks for another 50 years,

Recall that just months ago, when the pro-illegal immigration crowd were pushing the Senate bill, they claimed that legalizing illegals was the only way to save Social Security.

They play the same songs and dances, slightly adjusted for the specific crisis.

These scaremongerings are steeped in agenda-driven gobbledygook.

[SueRae]

Because it works....ala the B.S. ad with a Ryan actor pushing granny over the cliff..

I see gullible, stupid people...lots of them.

[TomGuy]

She expresses fear that her retirement funds are going to disappear. She fears the default will somehow wreck the economy that all will go instantly to hell.

If the nation continues on the spending spree, the credit card will eventually run its limit.

However, half or more of what WE see making news is little more than a dog-and-pony show.

Dems accuse Pubbies. Pubbies accuse Dems. Pubbies are accused of being obstructionists. Dems are accused of being obstructionists. Then, at the end of they day, they all meet up for drinks and chat and laugh at what a great day of 'politicking' they had.

Both get a share of the $money trough entitlements. And those who are in election trouble even get cover to vote for or against whatever issue is upsetting the folk back home.

Much of what WE see in the news is political theater -- staged for the benefit of 'WE' little folks back home.

[MrB]

I would hardly say it’s “needlessly”.
The left NEEDS to scare people into supporting them.

And,yes, it’s evil, and the left’s ideology is based on evil. “You will be as gods, knowing [defining] good and evil [for yourself]”.

[sickoflibs]

RE :”Recall that just months ago, when the pro-illegal immigration crowd were pushing the Senate bill, they claimed that legalizing illegals was the only way to save Social Security.”

Talk about a shell game, they will get EITC under that bill and use it to pay their SS payroll taxes.

That Senate bill was really a Obama-care piece of crap.

[bert]

Ha.....

That is the crux of the matter.

Who’s she going to believe.

Me (you) or the president?

[jsanders2001]

Elderly WHITE seniors that DON’T vote for him. Its payback time, remember?

[Buckeye McFrog]

Has Miss Payne been paying ANY attention AT ALL to the Democrat playbook from the past sixty years??

[Ben Ficklin]

"I think older citizens are more aware of this tactic"

This older citizen knows that if they don't raise the debt limit, there will have to be cuts in the big four: Either/and/or SS, Medicare, Medicaid, or defense.

You can't get there by cutting discretionary spending only.

[I want the USA back]

If you can’t understand it, you don’t understand the leftist mind. In the perverted mental cesspool known as the leftist mind there are no principles, and no right/wrong. Nothing matters except winning.

When they win, you get to see the inside of their minds: bitter, abject, negative, hateful, self-loathing, self-contradictory nihilism.

[Georgia Girl 2]

Yes this is nothing new. Barry Cades did the same thing in 2011. Its a great scare tactic. Of course he’s going to use it.

[JimRed]

We watch while Norway, Sweden and the rest of Europe cast off the shackles of socialism while the nitwits that are busily ruining America soldier on.

Progressive reply: Socialism does TOO work; it just hasn't been tried by the right people yet!

[JimRed]

Obama is effective in his treachery.

Doubly so due to his media enablers (AKA SHTF targets).

[JimRed]

It has been obvious for a long time now, just as you say it, but the danger is the Valerie Jarretts et al who are running his show. They are mature communists and mohammedan activists.

What does it take to make a Jarret or et al just DISAPPEAR? < /wishful thinking >

[IbJensen]

This Bozo would scare anyone. Here he is dressed up for his 'date night.' Moochie isn't invited. He'll cruise incognito.

[Travis McGee]

I’m still mulling over the modalities of how Obama & Co. can engineer the cutoff of all SS checks, retirement checks, EBT/SNAP benefits etc.

He’ll do it, as long as he can blame it on the Republicans. Then he’ll use the resulting chaos to declare some form of emergency rule.

But how will he jump from A to B?

Will he say that the Republicans are not allowing him to send out the money, after Obama refuses to budge an inch on the debt limit?

Will he demand a “clean” debt limit raise, with no conditions, then cut off the checks and blame the Republicans?

Is that doable?

[Lady Jag]

Support FR

[riri]

I hate being right. I really do. Stay observant for the second signpost. On the third one, FUTEPE.

Expound on this, por favor.

[Lazamataz]

Certainly.

[TexasRepublic]

Why? Because it has worked so often in the past.