tightening up COLA is hardly a meat-ax, but I do not know the terms of that tightening as certainly anything like late 1970s-early80s would crush retirees if the terms of the Socsec "cut" (a new COLA formula, spare the comparisons to the "success" of New Coke) were simply to allow inflation to run over fixed income folks.
While you speak towards "tendency" the fact is, bills must pass, and they are not, he maneuvers, and given the climate of the last 4 years, has pretty much preserved most things that would have fallen under the reigns of many lesser souls.
Just as Romney was wrong about 47% and so on, so to may be the left on the depth of animus towards the debt.
One must govern.
Sometimes the governed want to shoot themselves in an odd boomerang sort of way. At some point you must allow them, and do what you can to foil the flight of the boomerang.
'Mercans are clear, broadly speaking they want a deal that represents some pain, some benefit losses and some tax increases. 'Mercans have been clear on this. They may be wrong, but it is what they claim to demand. Obama's job is to save them from themselves and do something to get the right to actually vote for something.
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