Steve,

They're at it again.

Billionaires like the Koch Brothers, Pete Peterson, Stanley Druckenmiller and others are leading the charge to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

If they succeed, millions of senior citizens, working families, disabled veterans and children will suffer. We must not allow that to happen.

Today, the middle class is disappearing, real unemployment is extremely high, poverty is increasing, and working families throughout the country are struggling to keep their heads above water economically. Meanwhile, the gap between the very rich and everyone else is growing wider and wider -- and the wealthiest people and the largest corporations are doing phenomenally well.

We must not balance the budget on the backs of working families, the elderly, the children, the sick, and the poor.

As Vermont's senator, I have the honor of serving on the Budget Conference Committee, which will be negotiating a new federal budget over the next few months -- and where I am fearful that a deal could be struck to slash Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

Members of Progressives United have been on the front lines fighting against benefits cuts. So I urge you to stand with me today and demand that Congress and the President oppose any grand bargain which cuts Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

Let’s be clear. Despite right-wing rhetoric:

Social Security is not going broke. According to the Social Security Administration, Social Security has a surplus today of $2.8 trillion and can pay out every benefit owed to every eligible person for the next 20 years.

Social Security has not contributed to the deficit. Social Security is funded independently by FICA taxes that are paid by workers and their employers.

The so-called chained-CPI, which recalculates how COLA’s are formulated, is not a “modest tweak.” If the chained CPI went into effect today, a senior aged 65 would receive $658 a year less in Social Security benefits when he/she is 75, and $1,100 a year less at age 85. Further, the average disabled veteran would lose tens of thousands of dollars in benefits over their lifetime.

As the founder of the Defending Social Security Caucus, please stand with me, our friends at Progressives United, and our coalition partners in demanding; “No grand bargain in exchange for cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid."

When one out of four U.S. corporations pay nothing in federal income taxes; when Bush’s tax breaks for the rich remain in place for many wealthy Americans; when the U.S. spends almost as much as the rest of the world combined on defense, there are much fairer and economically-sound ways to address the budget than cutting programs desperately needed by the most vulnerable people in our country.

Please stand with me and Progressives United in protecting the future of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits.

Let’s go forward together. Thanks for your continued support.

Sincerely,

Bernie Sanders
U.S. Senator

Dear Mr. MyRealLastName:

Thank you for contacting me regarding proposed changes to the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) and state of affairs in Washington. I share your concerns and agree that seniors' benefits should keep pace with rising prices for goods like medicine and food.

Over the past few years, we have seen COLAs as high as 5.8 percent and, in some years, there has been no adjustment at all. The Social Security Administration increased the COLA by 1.7 percent for the current year and expects to announce next year’s COLA in the coming days.

Some have suggested replacing the Consumer Price Index (CPI) currently used to calculate the Social Security COLA with different measures of inflation. One such measure is the so-called chained CPI. Proponents of the chained CPI argue that it would be a more accurate measure of changes in the cost of living because it accounts for the substitution of less-expensive goods for goods that have increased in price. The chained CPI generally results in lower measured inflation compared to the current measure, which in turn would typically result in lower annual Social Security COLAs. The effects of these lower COLA compound over time and would result in a fairly significant benefit cut for all seniors. I am very concerned about the impact such a change could have on our seniors, especially the most vulnerable members of this population.

As a member of the Senate Budget Committee, I am committed to getting Federal spending under control. I have been selected to participate in the budget negotiations between the House and Senate over the coming months to develop a long-term budget that addresses our fiscal challenges and prevents another breakdown in governance as we saw with the shutdown. I am open to a range of new ideas that will reduce the debt but am also mindful that Social Security didn’t get us in the fiscal situation we are in today. Social Security does face long-term actuarial challenges, but it can be strengthened and maintained with sensible, bipartisan reforms.

I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue. I will continue to work to ensure that Social Security remains a meaningful source of retirement security for our seniors. Please do not hesitate to contact me again.

Sincerely,
Bill Nelson

In the future, while conducting future “admin-bashing” conversations with journalists, Hayden should look to more anonymous, out-of-the-way locations than the mid-week, mid-afternoon Acela train from Washington to New York—locations such as . . .

The Smith & Wollensky in northwest D.C.
Michael’s in New York
The Harvard Club
A Des Moines–Dulles flight during the Iowa caucuses
The Dean & DeLuca underneath The New York Times offices
The Condé Nast cafeteria
Off The Record, the bar at the Hay-Adams Hotel
The Four Seasons in New York
The green room at MSNBC studios
The German chancellor’s office (ka-pow!)