Thursday, November 15, 2012

The Grand Bargain Marches On

This is a sign of how far down the road we are with Medicare and Social Security cuts in the Grand Bargain:
As part of an event with the Wall Street Journal and corporate leaders, Rep. Chris Van Hollen (MD) — a leading Democrat and ranking member of the House Budget Committee — indicated that he thinks cuts to Social Security and Medicare benefits should be part of the upcoming deficit negotiations:
On Capitol Hill, it isn’t clear how strenuously Democrats will resist cutting entitlements. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D., Md.) said he and others were open to changes as long as they were done in a measured way and were part of deal that included tax increases. Mr. Van Hollen also said changing Social Security and increasing the Medicare eligibility age above 65 should be part of negotiations. “I’m willing to consider all of these ideas as part of an overall plan,” Mr. Van Hollen said Tuesday at the Journal’s CEO Council.
Van Hollen is in the house leadership, has higher ambitions, and is no dummy. He would not be talking like this if the framework of a deal wasn't in the works.

No comments:

Post a Comment