Dems: Stop caving in

Here is something we all can agree on: Federal deficits are a serious problem.

Here is something few can seriously dispute: Today’s big deficits were caused mainly by big tax cuts for the wealthy, two unpaid-for wars, a horrible recession caused by Wall Street greed and an expensive prescription drug program rigged to favor pharmaceutical companies.


Here is something we should not agree to do: Cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits.

There is surprisingly broad consensus among Americans — except inside the corporate-dominated D.C. Beltway — on what to do about deficits. In poll after poll, strong majorities favor making the wealthiest Americans, who, in many cases, have never had it so good, share the sacrifice and pay a little more in taxes.

As the powerful supercommittee nears its Thanksgiving deadline, I hope (but doubt) that Republicans will listen to the American people and support deficit reduction in a fair and responsible way. I hope (but doubt) that Democrats will not again capitulate just for the sake of an agreement — but that’s been the pattern.

Increasing taxes on the wealthy is overwhelmingly supported by Democrats and independents. A majority of Republicans and people in the tea party movement also support taxing millionaires to help bring down deficits. Even many millionaires say they should be paying higher taxes.

At a time when many successful corporations pay nothing in federal income taxes, there is also widespread support for closing corporate tax loopholes. Taking a hard look at mushrooming defense spending also enjoys widespread support.

For much too long, the Washington agenda has been set by powerful corporate interests and a right wing that do not represent the needs and aspirations of most Americans. For too long, Democrats have gone along with Republican demands and caved in to these powerful special interests.

The American people have had it. The Occupy Wall Street movement is growing. A virtual popular uprising forced Bank of America to drop an unpopular $5 monthly debit-card fee. On Election Day this month, in Ohio and many other states, voters said no to right-wing extremism and corporate greed.

The American people are clear. They do not want Democrats to reach another “grand bargain” with representatives of the rich and powerful that eviscerates the most successful and popular social programs in the history of this country. They want Democrats to stand up for the 99 percent, not the 1 percent.

There is reason for concern. In December — when Democrats controlled the Senate, the House and the White House — Congress and President Barack Obama not only extended Bush-era tax breaks for the wealthy but gave new breaks to heirs of the super-rich.

In April — with a Democrat in the White House and Democrats still in the majority in the Senate — Republicans threatened to shut down the government and delay the processing of new Social Security benefits unless their demands were met. Democrats went along with $78 billion in cuts from the president’s budget request.

In August, in an outrageous display of unprincipled gamesmanship, Republicans put the United States on the brink of bankruptcy. Instead of invoking clear 14th Amendment powers to honor our nation’s debts, the president and most Democrats agreed to a $2.5 trillion deficit-reduction package.

That’s how we got to where we are today.

This time, if the president and Democrats on the supercommittee go along with cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, the three pillars of the New Deal and the Great Society, and permanently extend the Bush tax breaks for the wealthiest 2 percent, voters will shake their heads in disbelief. They will arrive at the reasonably valid conclusion that there are no significant differences between the two parties controlled by corporate interests.

This is a pivotal moment in U.S. history. The rich and large corporations are doing phenomenally well while the middle class is collapsing and poverty is increasing. Now is the time to answer the question that Woody Guthrie poignantly asked: “Which side are you on?”

The Democrats must answer boldly that they are on the side of working families and the middle class and that they will fight to protect their interests.

What if the supercommittee ends in stalemate? Across-the-board, automatic cuts are set to kick in. That so-called sequestration wouldn’t start, however, until 2013. That would make 2012 one of the most important election years in modern U.S. history.

If Democrats stand with ordinary Americans and make it clear that they are prepared to take on the wealthy and the powerful, they could win both houses of Congress. They could give Obama a fresh infusion of boldness as he enters a second term in the White House.

Somehow, I recall a few years ago, millions of Americans chanting, “Yes we can.” Now is the time to hear their voices.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) serves on the Budget and Joint Economic committees.