Ed Rendell trying to sell Medicare and Social Security cuts as deficit reduction

Hey, deficit hawks! Great news! In June, the US government posted the largest budget surplus it's had since before the economy collapsed in 2008 and is on track to drastically reduce the overall deficit to the level Obama promised when he ran for election in 2008.

Just don't tell Ed Rendell. It would ruin his whole day. In fact, it might ruin his post-gubernatorial career. Rendell has made an industry out of fearmongering over the debt and deficit with lots of help from the Peterson Foundation. In the process, he's made some interesting friends.

Thursday morning, just as news was breaking about the surplus, Rendell was making an appearance with his new BFFs Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio about the terrible, awful national debt.

On July 11, former Pennsylvania Gov. and Co-Chair of Campaign to Fix the Debt, Ed Rendell, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) will keynote Concerned Veterans for America and The Weekly Standard's second 'Defend & Reform' Breakfast Event. The federal government will soon hit yet another grim fiscal milestone—$17 trillion in national debt. Sadly, these milestones just tick past as Americans have grown accustomed to Washington's spending addiction. However, this type of overspending cannot continue without threatening our economic health and ability to keep our country safe. Concerned Veterans for America believes only spending reform—across the government and including everyone's "sacred cows"—can put this country on sound financial footing. How can America best address this spending problem? What are the short-term opportunities for reform and the long-term problems that simply must be tackled? How can veterans, and all Americans, demand real spending reform? On July 11th, Concerned Veterans for America will sponsor a Weekly Standard-hosted event to answer these urgent questions.

Oooh, sacred cows? You mean things like Medicare and Social Security that benefit people who aren't billionaires too? And of course, Social Security doesn't add anything to the deficit anyway, but that never stops Rendell from preaching on about it.

My first question: Why is an organization like Concerned Veterans for America, which would seem to be primarily concerned with veterans' issues sponsoring a forum on the national debt with the likes of a Pete Petersen lacky and Tea Party darling Ted Cruz?

It appears that our "Concerned Veterans" are another Republican offshoot of the usual cast of characters. Their CEO is Pete Hegseth, who was the Executive Director of Vets for Freedom. Vets for Freedom was an organization created to try and convince everyone that we should remain in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Their communications director, Kate Pomeroy, comes fresh out of Public Notice, the Koch-fueled organization that propelled debt fearmonger Gretchen Hamel to Fox airwaves and made her the darling of the deficit hawk organizations. Before Public Notice, Pomeroy spent 4 years with the Independent Women's Forum. Her resumé also includes a long stint with the Heritage Foundation and Shirley and Banister public affairs, our favorite right-wing PR firm.

These are the people Ed Rendell is palling around with? I guess anyone can be bought if the price is right, eh?