True Democrats don't work to slash Social Security. They don't. Not Ever.

[Oilwellian]

220. Manny, I guess we're supposed to forget last summer's "Grand Bargain"

The "Grand Bargain" was a huge eye-opener for Democrats who were paying attention, and it convinced many of us that the Democratic leadership was weak, their ability to negotiate was mind-numbing, and they were indeed willing to bow to the new Tea Party majority in the House by agreeing to their demand of cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits. It seems the DLC'ers want us to believe President Obama's attempt to strike this "grand bargain" never happened because the deal fell through. Ironically, it fell through because Boner didn't have control of his new Tea Party members who would would never agree to the tax increases that the Republican leadership was willing to negotiate as part of this "grand bargain." (The increases finally agreed to by the Obama team were an effing pittance compared to the cuts they put on the table.)

A few months before the "Grand Bargain" began, the Washington Post article linked below, described President Obama's mindset as follows:

Against the vehement advice of many Democrats, including some of his own advisers, Obama was pursuing a compromise with his ideological opponents, a “grand bargain” that would move into unmarked territory, beyond partisan divides, pushing both parties to places they did not want to go. Now might be the moment.

Let's take a walk down MEMORY LANE, shall we?

On that Sunday in July, Boehner, the old-school pol from Ohio, seemed willing to hash it out. He had met in private with the president and his aides many times. Their sessions were so sensitive — especially for the speaker, who was dealing with a House teeming with tea party rebels — that Obama’s aides were under strict orders to “protect Boehner” and not talk about his private entreaties. Obama liked Boehner; they got along well during the private sessions and a round of golf.

The conversation during that brief gathering inside the Oval Office did nothing to dampen the optimism. When the trio emerged and returned to the roomful of aides, Obama appeared upbeat. “I want a deal,” he said.

The major elements of a bargain seemed to be falling into place: $1.2 trillion in agency cuts, smaller cost-of-living increases for Social Security recipients, nearly $250 billion in Medicare savings achieved in part by raising the eligibility age. And $800 billion in new taxes.

Secrecy would be essential as the details came together, the president told everyone. He spoke openly with Boehner about how the two sides might sell the emerging plan to their respective parties, an imposing task from either end.

A senior administration official said the White House team recognized that the two offers were coalescing and that the time for a decision was at hand. People asked themselves, the official said: Is this something we can sell? Is this a deal we can live with?

That night, Obama prepared his party’s congressional leaders. He warned Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) that he might return to the position under discussion the previous Sunday — that is, cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid in exchange for just $800 billion in tax increases.

Would they support him?

The Democratic leaders “kind of gulped” when they heard the details, Daley recalled.

By this time, Obama had become the face of the bitter debt-ceiling talks and his poll numbers were dropping. His allies on Capitol Hill cringed at his predicament but also at what he was asking them to do.

Reluctantly, Reid and Pelosi agreed to do their best to support the plan.

During the on again/off again negotiations described in the WP article, the Gang of Six entered the picture offering a $2 trillion increase in taxes and better protection for the poor and elderly than what the Obama/Boehner negotiations offered. When the Democrats attempted to use the Gang of Six's report as levy for a better deal, Cantor and Boehner went into a tizzy and the deal fell through. My initial response was "good!" Had the Democrats made cuts to the social programs they created and have protected for decades, it would have destroyed the party. I have absolutely no doubt about it. But here's the real kicker to this story and explains why so many Democrats are leery of what Obama will do once the election is over and this issue is on the table again. After all of the capitulating to Tea Party demands, and it was apparent the Republicans weren't going to budge, Obama did this:

Two day later, July 24, one week after the Sunday morning meeting that sparked such optimism, the president found himself trying to turn back the clock. Working late into the evening, Obama asked someone to get Boehner on the phone. His message: I’ll take your last offer.

The Young Turks did an excellent report on this at the time:

Like you said Manny, no Democrat would put Social Security, Medicare & Medicaid on the chopping block...ever...period. I swear to God I will be wearing a clothespin on my nose when I vote one last time for a Third Wayer as president. Never again.