Is this another Lucy and Charlie Brown moment, or did Dems set a clever trap for GOP? (Paul Harvey/Dreamstime.com)

Yesterday, Democrats said they would be willing to move towards the GOP's position on spending cuts in order to avoid a government shutdown.

Today, Republicans responded by moving the goalposts, saying that unless Democrats agree to cut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, Republicans will block an increase the national debt limit, forcing the United States into default:

McConnell: No debt increase without benefit cuts Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell warned on Friday that GOP senators will not vote to increase the government's borrowing limit unless President Barack Obama agrees to rein in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, laying down a high-stakes marker just weeks before the debt ceiling is reached.

I guess the question is whether prematurely conceding to the GOP on spending cuts was a genius chess move designed to bait Republicans into touching the third rail of Social Security and Medicare, or whether it was a boneheaded play that will result in Democrats agreeing to a GOP plan to slash entitlements.