Social Security and Medicare: the radical disconnect

Robert Reich, The Truth About the Federal Budget Deficit That Noone [sic] Is Willing to Tell 12/02/2010:

Rarely before in American history has there been more disconnect between Washington and the rest of the nation. Washington is obsessing about the projected federal budget deficit. Everyone else in America is worried about jobs.

Seven months of bipartisan wailing about the alleged horrors of the deficit and debt, polls do show more people naming that as a problem.

But there is overwhelming support for Social Security and Medicare. And President Obama has come out in opposition to them. And for our Pod Pundits, this counts as "adult" behavior and bravely joining hands and jumping off the cliff together. No, the two images don't make sense together. But neither do our pundits much of the time.

The current fight to save Social Security and Medicare from President Obama's push to cut them illustrates just how true Reich statement is: "Rarely before in American history has there been more disconnect between Washington and the rest of the nation." Except maybe he was being too modest. Never before might be closer to it.

Tags: medicare, social security, robert reich