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<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message -----
<DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A
title=moveon-help@list.moveon.org
href="mailto:moveon-help@list.moveon.org">Daniel Mintz, MoveOn.org Political
Action</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=dlj725@hughes.net href="mailto:dlj725@hughes.net">David
Johnson</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, April 19, 2011 3:31 PM</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Senator Durbin parroting right-wing talking
points?</DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV><FONT face="Arial, Verdana, sans-serif" size=2>
<DIV>Dear MoveOn member,</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Senator Dick Durbin is usually a reliable progressive, but on economic
matters, he's just said some awfully troubling things.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Yesterday, Durbin told ABC that changes to <B>Social Security should be
part of the deficit reduction deal</B> he's currently negotiating with five
other, mostly conservative, senators.<SUP>1</SUP> That makes no sense.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>As numerous senators—including Majority Leader Reid and Bernie Sanders—have
pointed out, <B>Social Security doesn't contribute one penny to the deficit</B>
and making it part of negotiations gives Republicans an opening to dismantle it
under bipartisan cover.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Durbin also said that Rep. Paul Ryan's radical plan to end Medicare should
be "placed somewhere on the right side of the spectrum," while President Obama's
centrist plan—which includes $3 of cuts for every $1 of increased revenue—would
be "the other side of the spectrum."<SUP>2,</SUP><SUP>3</SUP> Thinking like that
<B>ensures that any final "compromise" will be deeply conservative</B>.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Senator Durbin's comments are disturbing, and do great damage to
progressive priorities on the economy. Progressives around the country are
objecting, but he'll pay particular attention to pushback from his constituents
in Illinois.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><B>Can you call Senator Durbin now and let him know that you heard about
his comments and didn't like them?</B></DIV>
<P style="MARGIN: 1em 0px">Senator Dick Durbin<BR>Phone: 202-224-2152<BR></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 1em 0px; OVERFLOW: hidden"><A
href="http://pol.moveon.org/call?tg=FSIL_1&cp_id=1563&id=27037-18292185-HNFyOJx&t=1"><B>Let
us know you called and what Durbin's office said by clicking here</B></A></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 1em 0px">Thanks for all you do.
<P>–<SPAN class=Apple-style-span
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Verdana,Geneva,Helvetica,sans-serif">Daniel, Tim,
Sarah, Peter, and the rest of the team</SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 1em 0px">Sources:</P>
<P style="MARGIN: 1em 0px">1. "Sen. Dick Durbin: Social Security Cuts Should Not
Be Ruled Out," ABC News, April 19, 2011 <BR><FONT class=Apple-style-span
face="Arial, Verdana, Geneva, Helvetica, sans-serif"><A
href="http://www.moveon.org/r?r=207947&id=&id=27037-18292185-HNFyOJx&t=2">http://www.moveon.org/r?r=207947&id=&id=27037-18292185-HNFyOJx&t=2</A></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 1em 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span
face="Arial, Verdana, Geneva, Helvetica, sans-serif">2. "Obama Deficit Speech
Outlines Approach For Reducing Spending (FULL TEXT)," The Huffington Post, April
13, 2011 <BR><A
href="http://www.moveon.org/r?r=207948&id=27037-18292185-HNFyOJx&t=3">http://www.moveon.org/r?r=207948&id=27037-18292185-HNFyOJx&t=3</A></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 1em 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span
face="Arial, Verdana, Geneva, Helvetica, sans-serif">3. </FONT>"Sen. Dick
Durbin: Social Security Cuts Should Not Be Ruled Out," ABC News, April 19, 2011
<BR><SPAN class=Apple-style-span
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Verdana,Geneva,Helvetica,sans-serif"><A
href="http://www.moveon.org/r?r=207947&id=&id=27037-18292185-HNFyOJx&t=4">http://www.moveon.org/r?r=207947&id=&id=27037-18292185-HNFyOJx&t=4</A></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 1em 0px"></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 1em 0px"><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Want to support our
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