To answer a lot of people's questions [View all]

[jazzimov]

about "WHY" would Obama offer Chained CPI in his pudget proposal, I think Ezra Klein and Evan Solta did a pretty good job of explaining it:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/04/05/wonkbook-obamas-budget-will-start-in-the-middle-but-where-will-it-end/

President Obama’s 2014 budget proposal will “incorporate the compromise offer Obama made to House Speaker John Boehner last December in the discussions over the so-called “fiscal cliff”,” reports Zachary Goldfarb in The Washington Post. That means it will include, among other things, cuts to Social Security through chained-CPI, and a variety of cuts to Medicare.

The upside of this strategy is clear: Obama gets “caught trying” on a budget compromise. House Republicans have put forward a series of extremely conservative budget proposals that show no interest in a compromise. Senate Democrats have a more modest plan, but one that doesn’t include any notable concessions to Republicans. Obama will position himself in the middle. His budget will incude high-profile concessions to Republicans — though he will emphasize that he’ll only accept those concessions if they come with significant new revenues. No one will be able to say he isn’t trying to reach a deal, and the cries from liberals will prove that he’s forcing his base to accept very tough medicine.

Moreover, all this will come at a moment when sequestration is truly beginning to bite. In the days immediately following the sequester’s imposition, there were few visible consequences, and many in Washington convinced themselves the cuts were merely hype. But they were, in fact, just slow moving, and now unemployment checks are about to be slashed, cancer patients are being turned away, layoffs and furloughs are beginning, services are being curtailed, and both politicians and voters are looking for relief.

The White House points out that the concessions they’re offering in this budget aren’t new. They didn’t just exist in the final, private offer to Boehner. They existed in public on the White House’s web site. For that reason, the White House didn’t see much reason to hold them back from the budget. Obama is already on record supporting this deal. Why not get the credit for it, and why not use it to burnish credibility with the Senate Republicans who he’s courting to serve as the nucleus for a deal. Plus, it puts the pressure on Republicans to respond with something serious, or be seen as intransigent and at fault for the sequester’s continued cuts.

(emphasis added)
(More at site)

I'm not suggesting that the Chained CPI is a good idea, I don't think it is. But it's something that Republicans asked for, and then refused. It's also important to remember that even if Obama and Republicans come to agreement, it still has to pass Senate Democrats. But if Obama can help define where the Republicans "draw the line" it will help Senate Democrats in their negotiations. Although Republicans are standing firm in their "cuts only" demands, as the sequestration continues they'll either have to re-think their positions or give up their seats - either of which is good for me!

Full disclosure: I plan to retire in about 11 years. I am NOT a "Blue Dog", a "Centrist", or an "apologist". According to Political Compass I'm left of Gandhi. I simply think everyone needs to be informed before they launch attacks. I do not agree with all of Obama's policies, but I do remember that he was the one who brought us the Lilly Ledbetter Act, the repeal of DADT, is about to repeal DOMA, and much, much more.