MORNING MESSAGE: Back on the Chained-CPI Gang
OurFuture.org's Digby: "White House National Economic Council director Gene Sperling said today on his Reddit chat that the president really prefers the Chained CPI and that it’s not just an inducement to get the Republicans on board with the Grand Bargain. This may sound obvious, since it’s been clear from before the inauguration that the administration wants to 'reform' the so-called entitlements. But Sperling made it clear today that they believe in this on the merits ... The fact is that Social Security is already inadequate for millions and millions of people, and not just the poorest of the poor and veterans. And the losses of the past decade have taken their toll on many more millions who are about to go into the system. For reasons that I cannot completely understand, they want to make it worse."
Dems Not On Grand Bargain Bandwagon
No Social Security or Medicare benefit cuts in Senate Dem budget. W. Post: "...Senate Budget Committee Chairman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) announced a budget blueprint that proposes only minor trims to Medicare and Medicaid ... 'without harming beneficiaries.' ... 107 House Democrats — more than half the caucus — have signed a letter declaring their 'vigorous opposition to cutting Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid benefits.'"
Chained CPI would hit seniors harder than recent tax increase on wealthy, says Dean Baker: "For the typical retiree, Social Security benefits are close to two-thirds of their income. This means that the use of the chained CPI would amount to a hit to their income of approximately 2.0 percent ... By contrast, if we assume that a couple earning $500,000 a year is the typical household affected by the tax increase ... the Obama tax increase would reduce their after tax income by a bit less than 0.7 percent."
"House GOP Doesn’t Expect Obama Charm Offensive to Last" reports Roll Call: "The president only exacerbated House Republicans’ existing suspicions when, according to some who attended the meeting, he asserted that he does not approach issues or fixing problems from a political standpoint. This is a common Obama refrain, and it did not go over well with members..."
Budget Battle Is On
Senate Dems officially release budget. McClatchy: "Senate Democrats on Wednesday unveiled their first budget plan in nearly four years ... The Democratic plan, which Republicans instantly criticized, would reduce deficits by $1.85 trillion over 10 years and would replace the recent automatic spending cuts, called the sequester, with higher taxes and a different spending-reduction plan ..."
"The Press Has Turned On Paul Ryan" says TNR's Noam Scheiber: "... Ryan has done to himself what he never accomplished through years of fiscal lunacy ... and months of campaign-trail dishonesty ... He’s made it hard for political reporters to take him seriously ... The fall from grace must be especially puzzling to Ryan, whose great skill has been exploiting the mores of the mainstream media ... But there’s one insight Ryan didn’t fully glean: You can treat politics like a game, and you can assume reporters will, too. But you can’t go so far as to admit it’s a game.
Breakfast Sides
Deprivatization? NYT reports "Cities Weigh Taking Electricity Business From Private Utilities": "Boulder, Colo., for instance, could take an important step toward creating its own municipal utility, among the nation’s first in years, as soon as next month ... Officials and advocates in Minneapolis and Santa Fe, N.M., are considering splitting from their private utilities, while lawmakers in Massachusetts are trying to make it easier for towns and counties to make the break."
House votes to block state welfare reform waivers. The Hill: "House passage sends the bill to the Senate, which is unlikely to consider it."
