Your daily armchair activism on the boss’ dime

Your daily armchair activism on the boss’ dime

by digby

The easiest armchair activism you’ve ever done: Watch this at 9:30 AM pacific time and send one person the link to watch it too:

Sens. Sanders, Warren, Reed, Franken and Whitehouse Host Summit to Protect Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and Veterans’ Benefits

Members of the Defending Social Security Caucus, the Congressional Progressive Caucus, the Alliance for Retired Americans and the Strengthen Social Security Coalition host a summit to protect Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and veterans’ benefits.

Livestream link: http://www.strengthensocialsecurity.org/senateshowdown

Washington, DC – Please join with every major organization representing senior citizens, working families, veterans, women, and persons with disabilities in support of protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits.

The summit will highlight the growing opposition to cutting Cost of Living Adjustments (COLAs) for Social Security and disabled veterans.

• Under the chained CPI, average 65-year-old retirees would lose $658 a year in Social Security benefits by their 75th birthday, $1,147 by their 85th birthday, and $1,622 by their 95th birthday.

• The chained CPI would cut the benefits of more than 3.2 million disabled veterans in this country. Permanently disabled veterans who started receiving disability benefits from the VA at age 30 would see their benefits cut by more than $1,400 a year at age 45, $2,300 a year at age 55 and $3,200 a year at age 65.

• The chained CPI also would amount to an across-the-board tax increase on working families. More than three-quarters of the new revenue raised by the year 2021 under the chained CPI would come from Americans making less than $200,000 a year. Those making between $30,000 and $40,000 would be hit the hardest.

WHO: -Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)

-Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI)

-Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)

-Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)

-Sen. Al Franken (D-MN)

-Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN)

-Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)

-Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR)

-Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI)

-Ed Coyle, Executive Director of the Alliance for Retired Americans & three senior citizens: Jody Weinrich – Allentown, PA , Martin Walsh – St. Louis County, MO, Martina Alvarado – San Antonio, TX

-Eric Kingson, Co-chair, Strengthen Social Security Coalition