Finally, a Principle
There is some encouraging news in the latest New Republic, in that the right wing of the Democratic Party will not seek to cut a deal with the White House as Bush tries to privatize Social Security. The not-so-aptly named Adam Smith (D-Wash.) said this:
This is a very positive turn of events indeed. It proves that no matter how conciliatory (read wussy) red state and moderate Democrats have been over the last four years that there is a point that even they will push back. We have finally found the bedrock principle upon which the Democrats will not compromise. To be a Democrat means believing in the social safety net, a role for government to be a positive actor in people's lives. And people are willing to say it. Could this be the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the Democrats as a minority party, a chapter in which they stand for their principles in a positive way rather than trying just act tactically? I hope so.
There are plenty of ways to do this, including Rudepundit's. My sense is that Democrats need to stand up and say the following:
Social Security exists as a monument to our nation's best impulses, the American people affirming that in the most prosperous nation on earth no person should starve to death because they are unable to work. Taking $2 trillion dollars from the Social Security trust fund right now, when the nation is running a deficit, means that those people won't be helped. We won't ever support that.
"Social Security is a safety net. That's what it's there for. It's there to be the safest portion of your portfolio," he told me. "It's a guaranteed benefit for a reason, and, for that reason, I don't support private accounts." Smith doesn't speak for every moderate Democrat, but, he added, "I think there is broad consensus among New Democrats that you must not privatize the system."
This is a very positive turn of events indeed. It proves that no matter how conciliatory (read wussy) red state and moderate Democrats have been over the last four years that there is a point that even they will push back. We have finally found the bedrock principle upon which the Democrats will not compromise. To be a Democrat means believing in the social safety net, a role for government to be a positive actor in people's lives. And people are willing to say it. Could this be the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the Democrats as a minority party, a chapter in which they stand for their principles in a positive way rather than trying just act tactically? I hope so.
There are plenty of ways to do this, including Rudepundit's. My sense is that Democrats need to stand up and say the following:
Social Security exists as a monument to our nation's best impulses, the American people affirming that in the most prosperous nation on earth no person should starve to death because they are unable to work. Taking $2 trillion dollars from the Social Security trust fund right now, when the nation is running a deficit, means that those people won't be helped. We won't ever support that.
1 Comment(s):
- Posted by
Form at January 14, 2005 5:30 AM |
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My sentiments exactly. If Democrats do not support Social Security, the greatest long term accomplishment of the New Deal, they do not deserve to exist. This is an essentialist position.
