Fixing medicare and social security

Remember, when Republicans talk about "fixing" medicare and social security--and they have been talking about it for decades--they mean "fixing" in the same sense that people talk about "fixing" their dog as a form of birth control.

"Cutting Medicare and Social Security has been a key policy ambition of the Republican Party for decades. Due to the popularity of both programs, they’ve often cloaked their ambitions in different ways: objecting to the harsh “cut” in favor of the friendlier “reform” or “strengthen,” and ginning up panic that the programs are in crisis anyway.

"This antagonism toward Medicare — the government’s national health insurance program for people older than 65 and for some younger people with disabilities — and Social Security — a social insurance program where workers and employers pay a payroll tax that funds benefits for retirees and those with disabilities — stretches back decades. But even the recent history of the early 21st century is replete with dustups where Republicans sought to make good on this long-term aim."

Read the rest here:

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/republicans-medicare-social-security