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The Senate campaign in Massachusetts will be close and hard fought.  Ed Markey, the winner of the Democratic primary, knows he has to run a bare-knuckled, knock down, full bore campaign to win.  So it is notable that one of the first appeals to his supporters is to enlist them in telling the president that they oppose his proposal to cut Social Security benefits through the so-called chained CPI.   Markey clearly realizes the president's proposal is electoral poison -- and wants to get ahead of any Republican effort to link him to the president on this issue.  Democrats across the Congress would do well  to take note.  Here's the Markey letter

From: Ed Markey <info@edmarkey.com>
Date: May 7, 2013, 9:34:43 AM EDT

Subject: Tell Obama: Don't cut Social Security

Reply-To: info@edmarkey.com

Dear XXXX

The President released a budget that would cut Social Security benefits for retired Americans by adopting something called a Chained CPI.

It's a complicated-sounding name that boils down to this: Social Security benefits for seniors would be cut. You could think of "CPI"

as meaning "Cutting Peoples' Income."

This is a wrong-headed move. Too many seniors -- almost two-thirds, in fact -- rely on Social Security for at least half of their income.

Budgeting requires compromise, but we cannot compromise by cutting Social Security.

Join me in telling President Obama: No cuts to Social Security. Add your name right now.

Democrats won huge victories in 2012. We reelected President Obama. We held the Senate and made gains in the House.

We don't need to roll over to the right wing when it comes to budget choices.

There's plenty in the President's budget I agree with. But Chained CPI is just a bad idea. Investing in clean energy, education,

and infrastructure should not come with the price tag of going back on America's promise to our seniors.

Tea Party Republicans may have pushed the President into making tough decisions. But that doesn't mean that this budget is right or fair

for the most vulnerable among us.

The President needs to protect Social Security. Add your name to mine and thousands of other grassroots supporters.

Tell the President: No Chained CPI. No Social Security cuts. No exceptions.

Thank you for your support.

Ed

Paid for by The Markey Committee

 

 

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