The online, progressive advocacy group CREDO Action is targeting a top House Democrat and a leading advocate of far-reaching deficit reduction legislation, including both higher taxes and cuts to popular support programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.
In a Monday speech, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer revealed that he’s working with a bipartisan coalition of House and Senate members to fashion a “grand bargain” on deficits, in the hope of addressing the issue — and possibly even passing legislation — before the November elections.
Hoyer’s made no secret of the fact that he wants to see significant long-term deficit reduction, in programs that put everything, including entitlements and taxes, on the table. Progressives worry that such entitlement cuts will undermine the integrity of the programs and are warning Hoyer and Democratic members to tread cautiously. The subtext here, and the source of CREDO’s leverage, is that Hoyer may — a big may — need progressive help in a future leadership fight, if Democrats take the majority, or Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi retires, or another shakeup occurs in the Democratic ranks.
2:30 p.m. This post has been updated with a response from Hoyer’s staff.
Hoyer, CREDO writes to its substantial email list, “is once again pushing a…legislative proposal that would sell out our social safety net. He is working on a potential backroom deal to put the cuts we defeated last year back on the table.”
“House Democrats will be particularly sensitive to this kind of pressure in an election year,” the missive continues. “To be clear, we are not against sensible reforms to these programs. But we shouldn’t be cutting benefits for our seniors and other vulnerable Americans in order to spend more on our bloated military or keep taxes low for the ultra-wealthy.”
“Mr. Hoyer was clear that we need to take action on long-term deficit reduction to avoid the crippling effects that sequestration will have on domestic programs – including Medicare – starting next year,” says his communications director Katie Grant. “We should do so in a balanced way that includes significant new revenues, ensuring that the wealthiest among us pay their fair share so that we can continue to invest in the programs that help the most vulnerable among us.”
You can read the full letter below.
Dear XXXXX,
The corporatist wing of the Democratic Party once again has its sights set on cutting Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security benefits under the guise of deficit reduction. And our friends on Capitol Hill tell us House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer is leading the charge.
Last November CREDO activists helped stop Senate Democrats from agreeing to a terrible Super Committee deal, which would have resulted in deep cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security benefits in exchange for promised but unspecified tax increases that may have never materialized.
But now House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, a prominent member of Democratic Leadership in Congress, is once again pushing a similar legislative proposal that would sell out our social safety net. He is working on a potential backroom deal to put the cuts we defeated last year back on the table.
Tell Steny Hoyer: Don’t sell out Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits. Click here to automatically sign the petition.
According to recent reports, Rep. Hoyer is “looking to shake legislative politics” by forcing a vote on what the Washington Post called “a so-called grand bargain to raise taxes and restrain entitlement spending.”
Hoyer declined to provide any specifics to this proposal but he gave his remarks at an event hosted by an organization called Third Way, which is a Washington-based, so-called “moderate” Democratic think tank that shills for corporate interests and has previously advanced debunked arguments promoting cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits.
Hoyer’s move — which appears to be in coordination with Third Way — poses a danger to our social safety net. We cannot remain quiet while such a prominent member of Democratic Leadership appears to be working on a proposal which likely includes brutal cuts to Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security benefits.
Medicare and Social Security are wildly popular programs, and the clear majority of Americans want to protect these benefits. If we push back hard and make sure that conservative Democrats like Hoyer don’t cut a back room deal on benefit cuts with Republicans, we can hold the line and protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
House Democrats will be particularly sensitive to this kind of pressure in an election year — if we can expose this potential sell out, we can quash the momentum Hoyer and conservative Democrats need to move forward with a “grand bargain” at the expense of benefit programs pivotal to millions of Americans.
Tell Steny Hoyer: Don’t sell out Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits. Click here to automatically sign the petition.
To be clear, we are not against sensible reforms to these programs. But we shouldn’t be cutting benefits for our seniors and other vulnerable Americans in order to spend more on our bloated military or keep taxes low for the ultra-wealthy.
If Democratic Leaders such as Hoyer are serious about addressing our nation’s debt and deficit, they should work to address the biggest drivers of our debt — the Bush tax cuts, foreign wars and our economic downturn.
Sign our petition today and let House Majority Whip Steny Hoyer know that we are watching and we will not stand for any back room deal that puts cuts to Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security benefits on the table. Click below to automatically sign the petition:
Thank you for speaking out.
