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Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN)

There are now multiple press reports that President Obama will agree to a fiscal deal that enacts a so-called ai???Chained CPIai??? to calculate Social Security and veteransai??i?? benefits. Under this plan, beneficiaries would get cuts in their cost of living adjustments.Ai??Outraged Congressional DemocratsAi??have been speaking out for days against these cuts. A defiant Congressional Progressive Caucus — with 75 Members in the House — vowed to vote against such a deal, calling it a definite “benefit cut.”

During an interview on The Young Turks’ Cenk UygurAi??last night, Progressive Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) reiterated his opposition to chained CPI and benefit cuts, saying that his caucus will not vote for a deal that has them:

ELLISON: Well the first thing that we can do is to let them know that we will not be voting for any cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. We’ve already fired off a whole number of missives on that exact point, we’re making our position very clear, we’re organizing caucus members, we’ve got a letter with 102 people on it, saying that we will not vote for anything that cuts Social Security, communicating that to our leadership and the White House. We’re firm on that. We’re talking internally to make sure the people are going to stay strong. And that’s what we’re doing, we’re letting folks know where we stand so they can go back and recalculate and come up with something else. Because we’re not going to solve these fiscal problems of the backs of the seniors, of the disabled, of the survivors.

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There has been intense unity among progressive organizations on this point of opposing a deal that cuts Social Security benefits. The AFL-CIO said Congress should ai???reject any cuts to …

There are now multiple press reports that President Obama will agree to a fiscal deal that enacts a so-called ai???Chained CPIai??? to calculate Social Security and veteransai??i?? benefits. Under this plan, beneficiaries would get cuts in their cost of living adjustments. Outraged Congressional Democrats have been speaking out for days against these cuts.

The cuts to Social Security benefits under such a recalculation would amount to about $112 billion over ten years.

Let’s put this in perspective. In the offer Obama gave to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), he also put $100 billion of Pentagon spending cuts on the table for the same period.

That means that Obama offered to cut a program that doesn’t add a penny to the deficit — Social Security — by more than the single largest drain on discretionary spending, the Pentagon.

We did polling in the swing states of New Hampshire and Virginia and found that voters overwhelmingly oppose cuts to Social Security benefits while they support cutting defense spending.

Obama should listen to the people.

We set up an ActBlue page to highlight and reward bold progressive members of Congress who are speaking out publicly against Social Security benefit cuts.Ai??Check them out and donate $3 to them here.

Click hereAi??to pledge to hold any Democrat who agrees to a deal that cuts Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid benefits accountable.

Click hereAi??to call your Member of Congress and demand that they oppose this bad deal.

CPC Co-chair Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) made clear he will oppose any cuts to Social Security benefits and vote against a deal that includes them.

Earlier today, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said she would support President Obama’s proposed Social Security benefit cuts — even arguing that using the “chained CPI” would not be a benefit cutAi??after previously telling President Obama “that House Democrats will not vote for any trims to future benefits in Medicare or Social Security, even a tweak to the cost-of-living index,”Ai??according to her hometown paper.

A defiant Congressional Progressive Caucus ai??i?? which hasAi??75 MembersAi??in the House ai??i?? pushed back, releasing a statement declaring:

Members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) are standing up against a proposal to cut Social Security benefits by changing the way we calculate inflation…Tying Social Security to chained CPI is a benefit cut and members of the CPC will not vote for a deal that cuts the benefits that millions of Americans rely on.

This Progressive Caucus statement follows similarly bold statements from individual Caucus members in the preceding 36 hours. Some are below (emphasis added):

Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), CPC co-chair:

“Chained CPI makes life harder for millions of retirees, weakens Social Security and doesnai??i??t reduce the deficit by a penny. Itai??i??s a Beltway fig leaf that I will never support, and I call on my colleagues to make their feelings known as soon as possible before this becomes yet another piece of conventional wisdom that makes things worse.”

Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI):

“I will vote against any agreement that imposes cuts to already modest Social Security benefits and does not ask millionaires and billionaires to pay their fair share.”

Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA):

“Reducing cost of living adjustments is a Social Security benefit cut. Any deal that cuts Social …

Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA)

There are now multiple press reports that President Obama will agree to a fiscal deal that enacts a so-called ai???Chained CPIai??? to calculate Social Security and veteransai??i?? benefits. Under this plan, beneficiaries would get cuts in their cost of living adjustments.

Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA) just released the following statement denouncing this policy, saying the proposal to cut benefits is “unacceptable” and that he will “oppose” it:

ai???Everyone has a grandparent, a friend or a neighbor who relies on the Social Security benefits they earned to pay for medical care, food and housing. A move towards chained CPI would be a long-term benefit cut for every single person who receives a Social Security check.
ai???The current average earned benefit for a 65 year old on Social Security is $17,134. Using chained CPI will result in a $6,000 loss for retirees in the first fifteen years of retirement and adds up to a $16,000 loss over twenty-five years. This change would be devastating to beneficiaries, especially widowed women, more than a third of whom rely on the program for 90% of their income and use every single dollar of the Social Security checks they’ve earned. This would require the most vulnerable Americans to dig further into their savings to fill the hole left by unnecessary and irresponsible cuts to Social Security.

ai???Reducing cost of living adjustments is a Social Security benefit cut. Any deal that cuts Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid benefits is unacceptable and I will oppose it.ai???

We set up an ActBlue page to highlight and reward bold progressive members of Congress who are speaking out publicly today.Ai??Check them out and donate $3 to them here.

Click hereAi??to pledge to hold any Democrat who agrees to a deal that cuts Social Security, Medicare, …

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT)

Earlier this week, President Obama offered a fiscal deal that enacts a so-called ai???Chained CPIai??? to calculate Social Security and veteransai??i?? benefits. Under this plan, beneficiaries would get cuts in their cost of living adjustments.

There has been an intense backlash among congressional Democrats, but two members of the Senate Democratic caucus — Joe Lieberman (CT) and Kent Conrad (ND) — have indicated that they would be supportive of this cut to Social Security benefits.

The two share one common trait — they’re both retiring. They do not have to face accountability to voters, and they both will have the option of taking lucrative lobbying jobs Ai??which will pad their retirements. Earlier this year, Sen. Joe Lieberman’s (I-CT) office specifically refused to disclose any job negotiations he’s having for his post-Senate career.

As The Atlantic’s Molly Ball argues, Conrad and Lieberman’s retirements clear the path for a new class of Democratic Senators who are more progressive: “North Dakota’s old Democratic senator was the moderate Kent Conrad; its new Democratic senator, Heidi Heitkamp, campaigned on a platform of ending tax cuts for millionaires and protecting Social Security from cuts.” As she notes, “Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson is out; Elizabeth Warren, of Massachusetts, is in.”

Our polling in key swing states and President Obama’s home state of Illinois showed that voters overwhelmingly opposed cuts to Social Security benefits, and that they support Elizabeth Warren’s “balanced approach” of cutting military spending and corporate welfare while making the rich pay their fair. Voters gave these new Members of Congress a progressive mandate.

One would only hope that Lieberman and Conrad do not want their final legacy in the Senate to be one of helping hurt America’s retirees and veterans.

We set up an ActBlue page …

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR)

There are now multiple press reports that President Obama will agree to a fiscal deal that enacts a so-called ai???Chained CPIai??? to calculate Social Security and veteransai??i?? benefits. Under this plan, beneficiaries would get cuts in their cost of living adjustments.

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR) just released the following statement denouncing this policy, saying he “staunchly” opposes it:

DEFAZIO: Throughout my time in Congress I have always fought to protect Social Security and Medicare from unfair ideologically based cuts. The fact the Social Security, which did not contribute to our fiscal troubles, is being discussed as part of the deficit negotiations is outrageous. I staunchly oppose the latest proposal to cut the Social Security cost of living adjustments (COLAs) by using the ai???chained CPI.ai???Ai?? The current COLA formula already doesnai??i??t reflect the rising costs of medications, food, and other good that seniors buy. The chained CPI would only make the problem worse.Ai?? Using the chained CPI to calculate COLAs would cause the average senior to lose over $16,000 over 25 year retirement. Nearly 70 percent of Social Security beneficiaries depend on Social Security for at least half of their income. Social Security is the sole source of income for 15 percent of recipients . Asking these retirees on a fixed income to bear the brunt of reducing a deficit that they did not create is inappropriate and unacceptable.ai???

We set up an ActBlue page to highlight and reward bold progressive members of Congress who are speaking out publicly today.Ai??Check them out and donate $3 to them here.

Click hereAi??to pledge to hold any Democrat who agrees to a deal that cuts Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid benefits accountable.

Click hereAi??to call your Member of Congress and demand that they oppose this bad …

Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI)

There are now multiple press reports that President Obama will agree to a fiscal deal that enacts a so-called ai???Chained CPIai??? to calculate Social Security and veteransai??i?? benefits. Under this plan, beneficiaries would get cuts in their cost of living adjustments.

Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI) stated firmly that he would vote against any deal that has these sort of benefit cuts:

ai???After a lifetime of hard work, our seniors deserve to know that Social Security will be there to allow them to enjoy their retirement years with economic security and peace of mind.Ai?? By law, Social Security cannot contribute to the federal deficit. While we need to address its future solvency, cuts to Social Security benefits should not be a part of ai???fiscal cliffai??i?? negotiations.ai???

 

ai???I will vote against any agreement that imposes cuts to already modest Social Security benefits and does not ask millionaires and billionaires to pay their fair share.Ai?? As we continue to approach the January 1stAi??financial deadline, I urge our leaders to take Social Security off the table during negotiations and find a solution that works for the middle class.ai???

We set up an ActBlue page to highlight and reward bold progressive members of Congress who are speaking out publicly today.Ai??Check them out and donate $3 to them here.

Click hereAi??to pledge to hold any Democrat who agrees to a deal that cuts Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid benefits accountable.

Click hereAi??to call your Member of Congress and demand that they oppose this bad deal.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)

There are now multiple press reports that President Obama will agree to a fiscal deal that enacts a so-called ai???Chained CPIai??? to calculate Social Security and veteransai??i?? benefits. Under this plan, beneficiaries would get cuts in their cost of living adjustments.

This morning, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) joined representatives fromAi??The American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and other veterans groups to denounce this proposal. Here’s an excerpt from a release about the event:

Leaders of The American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars and other veteransai??i?? organizations on Wednesday joined Sen. Bernie Sanders to denounce proposals to cut veteransai??i?? disability benefits as part of a year-end deal on deficits.

A member of the Senate Veteransai??i?? Affairs Committee and the Budget Committee, Sanders said there are better approaches to deficit reduction than slashing benefits for more than 3 million disabled veterans and their families.

ai???We must do deficit reduction, but not by cutting programs for people who lost arms, legs and eyes defending our country,ai??? Sanders said. ai???We must not balance the budget on the backs of men and women who already sacrificed for us in Iraq and Afghanistan.ai???

Sandersai??i?? point was echoed by the nationai??i??s leading veteransai??i?? organizations.

ai???The American Legion understands the need to restore fiscal discipline, but it should not be done by reneging on this countryai??i??s promises to its veterans who already have earned these benefits through their service to our country,ai??? James Koutz, the American Legion national commander, wrote in aAi??letterAi??to congressional leaders.

We set up an ActBlue page to highlight and reward bold progressive members of Congress who are speaking out publicly today.Ai??Check them out and donate $3 to them here.

Click hereAi??to pledge to hold any Democrat who agrees to a deal that cuts Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid …

Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD)

There are now multiple press reports that President Obama will agree to a fiscal deal that enacts a so-called ai???Chained CPIai??? to calculate Social Security and veteransai??i?? benefits. Under this plan, beneficiaries would get cuts in their cost of living adjustments.

The plan is drawing the ire of Democrats in Congress. Rep. Elijah Cummings (MD) released Ai??the following statement on these proposed cuts, calling them “fundamentally unfair”:

ai???I stand with my fellow CPC members in strongly opposing any move toward chained CPI that would greatly reduce the long-term benefits of every single Social Security recipient and their families. These are our family members, our friends and neighbors who worked hard, played by the rules, and paid their fair share.Ai?? Now the government must uphold its end of the deal and protect their Social Security benefits.

 

ai???It is fundamentally unfair to ask our most vulnerable citizens ai??i?? our elderly and our poor ai??i?? to shoulder the burden for our country; it is morally wrong and unacceptable.Ai?? We must do better.ai???

 

The Center for Economic Policy and Research estimates that, for the average worker retiring at age 65, a change to chained CPI would mean a cut of about $650 each year by age 75 and a cut of roughly $1,130 each year at age 85.

 

Calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Consumer Price Index, or ai???CPI,ai??? is often referred to as a cost-of-living estimate. Chained CPI changes the formula used to calculate inflation by taking into account changes in spending patterns, not just the price of goods, over time.Ai?? This different calculation lowers the annual cost-of-living adjustment Social Security recipients receive therefore reducing their total benefits over time.

We set up an ActBlue page to highlight and reward bold progressive members of Congress who …

Senator-elect Chris Murphy (D-CT)

There are now multiple press reports that President Obama will agree to a fiscal deal that enacts a so-called ai???Chained CPIai??? to calculate Social Security and veteransai??i?? benefits. Under this plan, beneficiaries would get cuts in their cost of living adjustments.

The plan is drawing the ire of Democrats in Congress. Senator-elect Chris Murphy (CT) said the plan is a “terrible idea,” joining several others in denouncing it, including Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) who quipped, “It doesn’t warm my heart”:

ai???I donai??i??t like it at all,ai??? said Rep. James McGovern (D-Mass.).

ai???A terrible idea,ai??? said Rep. and Sen.-elect Chris Murphy (D-Conn.).

ai???We donai??i??t like the chained CPI,ai??? said Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.).

ai???We donai??i??t like it,ai??? said Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.). ai???Why are you hurting the vulnerable seniors?ai???

Any fiscal-cliff deal brokered between Boehner and Obama will need a significant amount of Democratic support to pass the House, because Tea Party lawmakers are expected to reject such an agreement.

Several Senate Democrats also hammered Obamaai??i??s chained CPI proposal Tuesday, with Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) saying the provision would be ai???a problem for Democratsai???; Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) warning that heai??i??ll ai???fight hardai??? to keep Social Security out of the fiscal-cliff package; and Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) saying the White House move ai???doesnai??i??t warm my heart.ai???

ai???I donai??i??t care if they spread it over a whole bunch of years. The whole understanding has been that we wouldnai??i??t do Social Security,ai??? Rockefeller said. ai???That was for later.ai???

We set up an ActBlue page to highlight and reward bold progressive members of Congress who are speaking out publicly today.Ai??Check them out and donate $3 to them here.

Click hereAi??to pledge to hold any Democrat who agrees to a deal that cuts Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid benefits accountable.

Click …