Poll: Fight deficit by raising taxes for rich, steer clear of Medicare, Medicaid

A new McClatchy-Marist poll found that Americans overwhelming oppose Medicare and Medicaid cuts as a means to address the nation's deficit. Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.,  is pushing seniors to oppose the GOP's proposed Medicare changes.

McClatchy: Best Way To Fight Deficits: Raise Taxes On The Rich
Alarmed by rising national debt and increasingly downbeat about their country's course, Americans are clear about how they want to attack the government's runway budget deficits: raise taxes on the wealthy and keep hands off of Medicare and Medicaid (Thomma, 4/18).

The Wall Street Journal: Social Security Talks Benefit From Quiet
Amid political fireworks over Medicare, both President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans have left themselves room to negotiate on another thorny problem: What to do about Social Security. The question is whether partisan bickering, combined with divisions within each party, will get in the way (Meckler, 4/18).

The Hill: In Florida Pelosi Lobbies Seniors Against GOP's Proposed Changes To Medicare
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) lobbied seniors Monday against the Republicans' 2012 budget proposal, warning it will erode their Medicare benefits to fund tax cuts for the wealthy. "When Medicare was passed it was a pillar of stability for our seniors … much of which is being undermined by Republicans," Pelosi told dozens of seniors gathered at a retirement home in Orlando. "Why should the federal government save money on the backs of seniors at the same time that they are giving tax breaks to millionaires, giving subsidies to Big Oil, and tax cuts to companies that send jobs overseas?" (Lillis, 4/18).