Give me that old time populism

Just when I despair of the possible rehabilitation of the Democratic party, Elizabeth Warren delivers a speech on the Senate floor in which she calls for increased Social Security benefits:

“The absolute last thing we should do in 2013 – at the very moment that Social Security has become the principal lifeline for millions of our seniors — is allow the program to begin to be dismantled inch by inch.

“Over the past generation, working families have been hacked at, chipped, and hammered. If we want a real middle class — a middle class that continues to serve as the backbone of our country — then we must take the retirement crisis seriously. Seniors have worked their entire lives and have paid into the system, but right now, more people than ever are on the edge of financial disaster once they retire — and the numbers continue to get worse.

“That is why we should be talking about expanding Social Security benefits — not cutting them. Senator Harkin from Iowa, Senator Begich from Alaska, Senator Sanders from Vermont, and others have been pushing hard in that direction. Social Security is incredibly effective, it is incredibly popular, and the calls for strengthening it are growing louder every day.”

Bigger excerpt at the link. No, she won't be running in 2016 and that's a good thing. She can do a lot more good in the Senate right now. And we need to vote in more progressive Dems to help her in 2014.