Obama’s Call to Expand Social Security Shows Sanders’ Clout
- As recently as 2013 the president was willing to cut benefits
- The proposal signals a shift leftward in American politics
Senator Bernie Sanders speaks during a campaign event in Palo Alto, California, on June 1, 2016.
Photographer: David Paul Morris/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
President Barack Obama’s surprise call to expand Social Security highlights a populist shift in the U.S. political landscape that has been propelled by the campaign of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
Just five years ago, Obama called for reducing future Social Security benefits -- an idea that at the time was in vogue for many Republicans and some Democrats, who treated it as a badge of fiscal responsibility.