Apparently the White House is back handing out extremely bad political advice to Congressional Democrats to get their support for a big partisan austerity package that includes Medicare and Social Security benefits cuts. From New York Times:
White House officials acknowledge the unrest among Democrats. But they argue that Democrats will be in stronger shape politically heading into November 2012 if they help enact a credible deficit reduction deal, allowing them to mount the argument that they protected Medicare from a much more drastic overhaul by Republicans.
With official unemployment around 9 percent and the economy stagnant what people don’t care about is deficits they care about jobs. Recent polling showed that seven times as many Americans rank jobs/economy as the top issue over the deficit.
Poll after poll after poll has also repeatedly shown that Americans overwhelmingly don’t want Social Security or Medicare benefits cut to reduce the deficit.
It is mind boggling that the White House is actually trying to convince Congressional Democrats the voting in direct opposition to the will of the electorate to address an issue that voters don’t even think is the top problem facing the country right now, would be a political winner. If Congressional Democrats are stupid enough to actually buy this nonsense they deserve to lose.
All I simply recommend is that Congressional Democrats remember the last political advice the Obama administration gave before a big vote, when they promised the popularity of corporatist health care reform law would soar after it was passed.
How well exactly did that advice work out for Democrats…
