Kent Conrad on Ed Schultz show - UGH! and Matthews pins Social Security Cut Plan

Kent Conrad is the biggest baloney New Democrat Coalition stooge of them all. Schultz had him on recently to promote the cut Medicare and slash Social Security commission.

Wake up, Ed. This is the enemy.

Meanwhile, Chris Matthews finally found some progressive gonads on Feb. 1 and pinned the GOP on their plans to cut Social Security. Clip is from YouTube



Members of the New Democrat Coaition will vote with the GOP to cut Social Security and Medicare when the votes comes. They will also support a Value Added Tax (VAT) "to balance the budget." The VAT is a national sales tax - one sure way to cut down the income and transfer wealth from the middle class to the elite.

The Hensarling encounter on MSNBC was summarized well by Rachel Slajda at tpmlivewire.talkingpointsmemo.com:

In the name of deficit reduction, House Republicans are going back to the Social Security well, offering budget proposals similar to those President George W. Bush proposed after his 2004 re-election that would privatize Social Security accounts and reduce cost of living adjustments.

Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) appeared on Hardball tonight and advocated balancing the budget by privatizing Social Security and cutting benefits for those now under 55.

"You can get better health care and better retirement security if you go to a defined contribution plan. We had this debate in Social Security a few years ago," Hensarling said:

A "defined contribution plan" means the amount contributed to the plan on the front end is fixed. Social Security and traditional pensions are "defined benefit plans," where the amount paid out on the back-end is fixed according to a formula.

"Are those under 55 ... gonna get the same deal as their parents? No, probably not," he said.

Throughout the interview, the congressman said Social Security benefits should be kept the same for those already receiving them, or those over 55.

"You mean cut Social Security benefits as a way of balancing the budget," Chris Matthews said.

Hensarling rejected Matthews' wording, but continued to call for privatization and reduced benefits for those under 55.