...let me count the ways

Not that anybody asked, but why does the President offend me so much? There are lots of reasons, but the thing I really hate is the systematic, Orwellian, dishonesty. Tax cuts for the rich are called jobs programs, programs to destroy the environment are called programs to save it, war is called peace, torture is called justice. As usual, Paul Krugman says it better here in his NYT column. Krugman shows how the President's program targets the middle class, and, more importantly is really intended to destroy Social Security, not save it.
Remember, these are the people who named a big giveaway to logging interests "Healthy Forests."

Sure enough, a close look at President Bush's proposal for "progressive price indexing" of Social Security puts the lie to claims that it's a plan to increase benefits for the poor and cut them for the wealthy. In fact, it's a plan to slash middle-class benefits; the wealthy would barely feel a thing.
Because the middle class will get little benefit from Social Security ala Bush, the base of popular support would be eroded in ways that Bush's multi-million dollar campaign of distortion and deception has so far failed.
No, this is about ideology: Mr. Bush comes to bury Social Security, not to save it. His goal is to turn F.D.R.'s most durable achievement into an unpopular welfare program, so some future president will be able to attack it with tall tales about Social Security queens driving Cadillacs.
OK, I've got of other reasons for not liking these guys, but I'll have to take the count past one some other day.

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