The Barstow, CA Social Security field office is to close next week. It will be a 70 mile round trip to the nearest Social Security office.
The comments to the article are exactly the sort of thing seen in comments on this blog. All budget cuts that cause pain are President Obama's fault. That's ridiculous since austerity has been forced upon the country by Republicans in the House of Representatives. If pressed, those who post these comments say that Democrats control the White House and the Senate so everything bad must be Obama's fault. The logic is absurd, of course, but the consistency of these comments is amazing. It's the same thing everywhere you look. I don't think this is an accident. Someone is paying a lot of money to services that spread this sort of thing.
11 comments:
You're right, Charles, but not how you think.
There is tons of money being spent to peddle this crap, but it's being spent on "news" channels and other media, scare tactics, etc. to "inform" these people who swallow the crap and then go and post these comments.
The money is not being spent to pay shills to write these comments/posts. If only it were hired guns spewing this garbage...these folks believe it Charles. They actually believe it.
It might be different if the House, Senate and Pres would have finalized a budget during their first two years in charge, but no, they were too buzy, being buzy.. You know stimulating with those shovel ready jobs.. Passing unread healthcare law.. But, I digress. Offices are not being closed due to Republicans. they are being closed due to poor management by the Agency and poor priorities. Talking about putting money into CDR's is nuts. The claimant's continue to get paid and don't show up for the hearings and then run to the AC and get another hearing while staying in pay status. Making ALJ's employees and mandating 50 hearings a month will only lead to more Huntington fiascos and Judges that will no longer give a damn about anything. This Agency is so far out of line and it is not the Republicans fault. Get your POTUS to put a good Commissioner in place and straighten it out..
11:27
Very valid thoughts.
Unfortunately, CDRs are the one thing where the massive amounts of process we afford the claimants is actually required by the Constitution as interpreted by our Supreme Court (I realize the process we give elsewhere is also required because it's enshrined in the regs and other places, but as far as I understand it, the need for an in-person hearing and other big procedural processes we use are only required by the Constitution for terminations, not for initial applications...but I digress). Thus, there's no way around all the hearings and remands and all the joys that come with those things with our increased CDRs.
However, there are plenty of other areas of SSA's processes that, with some action from Congress (and sometimes without it--admin law allows a great deal of changes by the admin agency itself), we could really cut down on the process.
But we won't.
I don't think closing this office is the "fault" of anyone. In fact, more field offices need to close in order. Don't forget, taxpayers pay to keep these offices open...they cost money. Contrary to popular opinion, money is finite so it must be allocated.
Well done to whomever decided to close this office.
Yes please appoint a new commissioner. As we know whomever he appoints will have no trouble clearing congress
I don't know where the office is in Victorville(though I can find it), but that's a real inconvenience since that means people will have to travel over 70 miles of Desert, just to go to the SSA and to go home, I know of a few people that this would hurt. Who do I blame? Republicans in Congress, VOTE BLUE in 2014 and cuts like this will be undone and cuts to taxes given to corporate tax evaders/bribers can be undone...
Good gosh, Charles. Pot, kettle, black. "It's the House Republicans' fault." Every damn time. Same degree of predictability as the folks you're deriding.
11:27 makes some valid points, which speak to the fact that, as is almost always the case, there is a bigger picture at play. True, the Republicans are raising spending at a slower rate than the Democrats would like to. And as pointed out above, SSA has crap management right now; there's something to be said for a couple of the deputy commissioners, but that's about it, and their hands are largely tied. Further, whether you like it or not, budgets don't happen without Democrat votes in the Senate and Obama's signature in the White House. Moreover, years of union-friendly policies have led to an SSA workforce that has a not-insignificant minority of employees who aren't cutting it but who can't be let go. Add to that a culture of self-protectionism rather than excellence and/or innovation, as well as a muddled view of how the agency measures productivity nowadays. And so on...
My point is, there are numerous factors that go into any event like this, and I think anyone who steps back to think for about three seconds would have to admit that.
PS: Democrats are currently running the agency, and the agency's budget is better than it has been recently (OT is back, about to open a "super NCAC," etc.). Yet another office is closing. Seriously...pot, kettle, black.
Anyone that thinks that "austerity" has been forced on the U.S. is living in a fantasyland. Federal tax collections recently recorded an all-time high, even as the federal budget continues to be a projected $ 600 billion dollars in deficit. The problem is misallocation of resources, for which at least some of the blame can be laid to Obama, who is the chief executive. Of course, that presupposes leadership skills, which at this point in time seem to be non-existent.
11:02 AM, Since when did Congress stop appropriating tax money to let President Obama do that?? I call that BS, massive BS and a LIE.
Congress = Appropriations = Truth
POTUS ≠ Appropriations = Truth
To 3:23 pm--this is 11:02 am--Say what?? How about no personal attacks, and improve your phraseology. Thanks.
Barstow is represented by Republicans across the board at the state and federal levels. They get what they voted for.
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