Social Security News 7-16-12

 Huffington Post (NAT)

Saying The Obvious Out Loud

07-15-12

Jon (Bowzer) Bauman

Take the constant Republican thrust to privatize Social Security and turn Medicare into a voucher system. We Progressives get instantly angry about this and use it effectively as a campaign tool, but none of us ever seems to call it out for what it really is -- simply a shameless way of accruing massive campaign contributions.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jon-bowzer-bauman/saying-the-obvious-out-lo_b_1674782.html

 

New York Times (NAT)

Credits for Children

07-16-12

Nancy Folbre

Unless Congress takes action before the end of the year, the child tax credit (currently $1,000 a child) will be cut in half when other Bush-era tax policies formally lapse. Like the earned-income tax credit, which offers considerably more assistance to parents than other earners, the child tax credit enjoys fairly strong bipartisan support, and some conservatives have proposed increases to it.

http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/16/credits-for-children/

 

Washington Post (NAT)

Ryan should be at the top of the VP list

07-16-12

Jennifer Rubin

Republicans can bemoan the media’s disinclination to convey the details of Romney’s immigration tax, energy, Medicare, Medicaid, labor, Social Security and national security proposals. (Why fellow Republicans pile on to this no-specifics bandwagon is a mystery, but Republicans dumping on Republicans is the main way for right-leaning pundits to get attention.)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/post/ryan-should-be-at-the-top-of-the-vp-list/2012/07/15/gJQAhthymW_blog.html

 

Fox Business (NAT)

Is 70 the new magic number for retirement?

07-16-12

Maryalene LaPonsie

Early retirement is a financially sound choice for only 30 percent of 62-year-olds, according to a new analysis conducted by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. But that doesn't mean older workers will need to work indefinitely.

http://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/2012/07/16/is-70-new-magic-number-for-retirement/

 

The Spokesman Review (WA)

Letter: Many reasons for Cowan

07-16-12

Janet Searles

Are you over 65? Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers is not your friend. Are you part of a working family, a veteran, disabled or unemployed? She is not your friend. McMorris Rodgers consistently votes against Social Security – our income. She votes against Medicare – our insurance. She votes against equal pay for women – our daughter’s future. She votes against veterans’ benefits – our son’s security.

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2012/jul/16/many-reasons-for-cowan/

 

Post Standard (NY)

Letter: For chronically ill, law's semantics don't matter

07-16-12

Monica Zingaro

Rep. Ann Marie Buerkle lacks the integrity and moral compass to represent her constituents with honesty regarding a critical issue: health care. As a mouthpiece for the wealthy health care industry, she has no compunction about frightening seniors with lies about health care, Medicare and Social Security.

http://blog.syracuse.com/opinion/2012/07/for_chronically_ill_laws_seman.html

 

al.com (AL)

Under, ACA, Alabama must make a choice about creating a health insurance exchange

07-16-12

Joey Kennedy

Remember, too, that Social Security and Medicare received similar reactions when they were first enacted. Try getting rid of them now. Even the most far-right, tea-party soldier will defend his monthly Social Security check and health coverage under Medicare.

http://blog.al.com/jkennedy/2012/07/joey_kennedy_alabama_has_to_ma.html

 

Fox 9 (MN)

Green Party picks activist Jill Stein for presidential nominee

07-16-12

Mike Durkin

Stein says she didn't intend to run for national office until last year, when she became very concerned about Medicare, Medicaid and social security.

http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/19033203/green-party-picks-activist-jill-stein-for-presidential-nominee#ixzz20nSyBFsJ

Northampton Patch (PA)

Why Women Need to Save More Than Men

07-15-12

Maureen Cioppi Gril

Unfortunately, some negative stereotypes still exist about a woman's ability to manage money, which may cause some women to feel they shouldn't make their own investment choices. Some leave the decision making to their husbands, which can result in their being ill-equipped to handle their finances if they outlive their spouses.

http://northampton.patch.com/articles/why-women-need-to-save-more-than-men

 

New York Daily News (NY)

Social Security snafu traps Queens woman 

07-15-12

Irving Dejohn

A Queens septuagenarian became entangled in a bureaucratic snafu after an agency deemed her incapable of handling her own money. The unwelcome surprise tarnished her golden years, she says, and should be a cautionary tale for fellow seniors.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/queens/social-security-snafu-traps-queens-woman-article-1.1113821#ixzz20nL1qJdL

 

Politics

 

Washington Post (NAT)

Democrats threaten to go over ‘fiscal cliff’ if GOP fails to raise taxes

07-15-12

Lori Montgomery

“This is not a Wile E. Coyote moment where you have the economy plummeting on Jan. 2,” Stone wrote. “You have some time to implement policy to address the weak economy in the short term and the deficit in the long term.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/democrats-threaten-gop-with-fiscal-cliff-as-tax-fight-rages-on/2012/07/15/gJQAvybLnW_story.html?hpid=z1

 

Politico (DC)

The Democrats play hardball

07-16-12

John Bresnahan and Manu Raju

President Barack Obama and congressional Democratic leaders enter the final stretch of the legislative year prepared to play hardball: They refuse to budge on the looming defense cuts and expiring Bush-era tax cuts.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0712/78528.html#ixzz20nadj7DQ

 

Washington Post (NAT)

Romney tries to regain momentum with new focus on Obama’s ‘political payoffs’

07-16-12

Philip Rucker

Trying to shift the presidential campaign narrative away from his personal finances and tenure at Bain Capital, Republican Mitt Romney will launch a fresh assault this week accusing President Obama of political cronyism at the expense of middle-class workers.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/romney-tries-to-regain-momentum-with-new-focus-on-obamas-political-payoffs/2012/07/15/gJQAXgScnW_story.html?hpid=z3

 

Washington Post (NAT)

A few thoughts on Romney and Bain

07-16-12

Ezra Klein

That Romney wasn’t better prepared for the attacks on Bain and the questions over his taxes is one of the great mysteries of this campaign. An example: In 2008, Romney turned more than 20 years of his tax returns over to the McCain team in order to be vetted for the vice presidency. So he clearly realized that tax returns could matter for political campaigns. And yet he didn’t call his accountants in 2008 and say “make my taxes simple. Now.” Why?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/wp/2012/07/16/a-few-thoughts-on-romney-and-bain/

 

Talking Points Memo (DC)

Romney: Teresa Heinz Kerry Didn’t Release Tax Returns, Either!

07-16-12

Pema Levy

Mitt Romney tried to deflect continued demands that he release more tax returns onto a peculiar target Monday: Teresa Heinz Kerry, wife of Sen. John Kerry.

http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/07/romney-tax-returns-teresa-heinz-kerry.php?ref=fpa

 

Talking Points Memo (DC)

Republicans Attack Obama For Giving States Flexibility On Welfare Reform

07-16-12

Sahil Kapur

Republicans are pouncing on the Obama administration’s directive to grant states more flexibility with implementing welfare reform, accusing the president of “gutting” a central pillar of the 1996 law that ended welfare as an entitlement.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/07/republicans-attack-obama-welfare-reform-states.php?ref=fpb

 

New York Times (NAT)

Five Obamacare Myths

07-15-12

Bill Keller

On the subject of the Affordable Care Act — Obamacare, to reclaim the name critics have made into a slur — a number of fallacies seem to be congealing into accepted wisdom. Much of this is the result of unrelenting Republican propaganda and right-wing punditry, but it has gone largely unchallenged by gun-shy Democrats. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/16/opinion/keller-five-obamacare-myths.html?pagewanted=all

 

The Guardian (UK)

New York and Connecticut look into Libor rate-fixing allegations

07-16-12

Dominic Rushe

New York and Connecticut attorneys general have joined forces to investigate alleged manipulation of the Libor interest rates. The scandal is already being investigated by the US justice department and financial regulators on both sides of the Atlantic. But the involvement of New York state is likely to ramp up the investigation.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/jul/16/new-york-connecticut-rate-fixing-allegations

 

The Guardian (UK)

Israeli man's self-immolation triggers further protests against cost of living

07-16-12

Phoebe Greenwood

A crowd of around 2,000 activists demonstrated in Tel Aviv on Sunday night in solidarity with Moshe Silman, a 58-year-old man who set himself alight in a desperate act of protest at the high cost of living in Israel.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jul/16/israel-man-self-immolation-protests?newsfeed=true