Dems' oldies tour lauds Social Security, Medicare

[August 19, 2010]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- Unable to make a sizable dent in unemployment, Democrats are on the political equivalent of a golden oldies tour, pledging support for Social Security, Medicare and other venerable programs while trying to stoke voter fears about Republican intentions.

The Voting Rights Act, Americans with Disabilities Act and most recently, the 90th anniversary of the constitutional amendment giving women the right to vote have drawn attention from Democrats.

More than nostalgia is at stake as Democrats court a series of key voting blocs 11 weeks before midterm elections in which Republicans are making a strong drive to gain control of the House as well as several governorships, and perhaps even the Senate.

In his most recent radio and Internet address, President Barack Obama accused some Republicans of "pushing to make privatizing Social Security a key part of their legislative agenda if they win a majority in Congress this fall."

Marking the 75th anniversary of the program's creation, he said, "We have an obligation to keep that promise, to safeguard Social Security for our seniors, people with disabilities and all Americans -- today, tomorrow and forever."

Obama did not name any Republican by name, but one prominent GOP lawmaker, Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, has proposed giving workers under age 55 an option of investing in a private account rather than remain in the government-run Social Security system.

In response, Republicans say changes are need to preserve the program's financial soundness, and accuse Democrats of a diversionary tactic in a campaign dominated by voter concerns about the economy. They "are looking to change the subject to anything but their failed record on jobs," the Republican National Committee rebutted.

It's also hard to predict the impact of the maneuvering on any post-election attempt to launch a bipartisan attack on the nation's debt, now a record $13 trillion and growing. A presidential commission is charged with developing proposals, and steps to rein in Social Security, Medicare and other government benefit programs are likely to be among them.

But the policy implications will have to wait until after Nov. 2.

For now, unemployment is 9.5 percent nationally and the recovery from the near-economic meltdown of late 2008 has slowed, raising economists' fears of a double-dip recession. In an Associated Press-GfK poll conducted this past week, only 35 percent of those surveyed said the country was on the right track, an ominous sign for the Democrats who control Congress.

"We have never taken our eye off growing the economy and creating jobs," said Nadeam Elshami, a spokesman for Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., but there appears to be little Obama and his Democratic allies can do to improve the economy in the months before the elections. And while they often warn that voting for Republicans would mean a repeat of the Bush-era economic policies, a key part of their summertime strategy is to warn voters about the changes Republicans might favor in other areas.

Obama's remarks on Social Security marked one of numerous events that Democrats and their allied organizations orchestrated around the 75th anniversary of a program that is of particular concern to older voters. The two parties evenly split the votes of those 65 and older in the 2006 midterm elections, according to exit polls, and Republican Sen. John McCain outpolled Obama in the 2008 presidential election among that group, 53-45 percent.

Seniors generally vote in disproportionately large numbers in midterm elections, making their support even more prized this year than in 2008.

A few weeks before the Social Security observances, Pelosi marked the 45th anniversary of Medicare, the government program that provides health care to millions. The bill was a bipartisan accomplishment, her written statement said, but now "congressional Republicans not only oppose improvements to our seniors' health care system, but pledge to repeal them and end Medicare as we know it..."

Like Obama, Pelosi did not name any Republicans. But Ryan, in line to become chairman of the House Budget Committee if Republicans win control of the House, has called for "shifting the ownership of health coverage away from the government and employers to individuals." Instead of traditional Medicare, his plan calls for a tax credit of $2,300 for individuals and $5,700 for families to be used to purchase private coverage.

Additionally, Pelosi and others noted the 45th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, an issue of particular interest to black voters. While they generally vote overwhelmingly for Democrats and turned out in large numbers for Obama, the party needs a heavy turnout this year to maximize its chances in several statewide and congressional races.

Pelosi's statement included no Republican-bashing, but came with a reminder that President Lyndon Johnson, a Democrat, signed the voting law into existence. "The struggle for civil rights goes on," it added.

Also on the Democrats' list for anniversary celebrations this summer is the two-decade-old Americans with Disabilities Act.

As part of the observance, they installed a series of lifts that permitted Rep. James Langevin, D-R.I., to preside over the House, the first lawmaker ever to do so from a wheelchair. Democrats even voted to allow a photographer in the House chamber -- an event not generally permitted.

Unlike the other legislative accomplishments that Democrats noted, this one had a Republican sponsor in the White House, President George H.W. Bush.

Women suffrage, too, has an anniversary this summer. It was 90 years ago that Tennessee completed ratification of the 19th amendment to the Constitution. In an e-mail to supporters, Democratic National Committee Executive Director Jen O'Malley Dillon noted that "Woodrow Wilson -- a Democrat -- became the first president to pick up the call." She urged supporters to vote this fall "to continue the fight to bring down barriers."

[Associated Press; By DAVID ESPO]

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.