New York Times: Obama Defending Health Law as Economic Benefit

Dec 4, 2013 | Latest News, Media Coverage

By JACKIE CALMES Even as the president acknowledged widespread cynicism that has been stoked by his administration’s mismanagement of Healthcare.gov, the new federal insurance website, he said repeatedly that government’s role was to give Americans a hand up, not a...

Daily Kos: Corporate ‘Dems’: cutting Social Security is path to electoral victory

Dec 3, 2013 | Latest News, Media Coverage

Remember Third Way? They’re the jokers who filled the void when the DLC collapsed. But unlike the DLC, Third Way operates in the shadows, lobbying Democrats behind the scenes and via travel junkets. So it’s always a pleasure when they emerge from the...

Bloomberg News: Budget Negotiators Seen Close on Deal to Ease U.S. Spending Cuts

Dec 3, 2013 | Latest News, Media Coverage

By Heidi Przybyla U.S. budget negotiators are close to a deal to ease automatic spending cuts that congressional aides say could increase airline and other user fees instead of ending some corporate tax breaks and making federal workers contribute more to retirement...

Politico: Paul Ryan, Patty Murray closer to budget deal

Dec 3, 2013 | Latest News, Media Coverage

By MANU RAJU and JAKE SHERMAN House and Senate negotiators are pushing to finalize a small-scale deal to set spending levels and replace sequester cuts for the next two years, a potential respite in the bitter budget wars consuming Congress. The two congressional...

Huffington Post: New GOP Plan Would Save Military From Sequestration By Cutting Social Security

Dec 3, 2013 | Latest News, Media Coverage

By Amanda Terkel WASHINGTON — A pair of House Republicans have a new bill that would spare the military from sequestration by cutting the Social Security benefits of many Americans who already experience painful federal budget cuts. Reps. Jim Bridenstine...

LA Times: Explaining the ‘mystery’ of where all the disabled are coming from

Dec 3, 2013 | Latest News, Media Coverage

By Michael Hiltzik The apparent explosion in Social Security disability claimants in recent years has provided endless fodder for critics of the program. Their favored explanation is that the growth in the ranks of the disabled, from 250,000 new claimants a year in...