Republicans’ budget proposal for fixing Social Security calls for “modest adjustments” to the retirement age to reflect longer life expectancies, though it did not specify how high the age could go up. The plan also calls for reducing full retirement age benefits for high-income earners, while also limiting and phasing out “auxiliary benefits” for those beneficiaries’ spouses and dependents. The budget did not specify the income thresholds to which those changes would apply..

I agree with "modest adjustments" to the retirement age depending on the specifics. Low-income earners should not be harmed by the adjustments. Reducing benefits for high-income earners is a good idea.

I have no interest in arguing about the causes and effects of inflation on world economies. I will leave that topic to the experts who have actually studied the subject. Here is one expert opinion. "An increase in government spending is one of the factors that economists say can drive inflation. Other factors include interest rates, monetary policy, supply chain disruptions and fluctuations in demand for goods and services. Inflation can be an important consideration for investing, saving and borrowing."

During the Biden Administration, stock market investors experienced some solid wealth building. I am one of them.

A recent NBC News Poll lists the top two concerns for Biden supporters and the top two concerns for Trump supporters. The poll indicates that among strong Biden supporters, the top two issues are... A******n and Uniting the Country.

Regardless of how you feel about a******n, the fact remains that this is a big concern for many. The second thing to note is that there is a very clear and feasible path for overriding the Supreme Court by passing a law through Congress that guarantees a woman's right to choose. Efforts are already underway to make this happen and Biden has resolved to support the effort.

Again... not arguing whether it's right or wrong, just pointing out that this change is within political reach. The plan already underway *IS* feasible, which is giving the Biden supporters a good reason to v**e for him.

The second one, uniting the country, is something I would say is NOT within political reach. This may be a top concern for Biden supporters but whether or not Biden can actually do something about it, is in my opinion, doubtful. The divide is cultural and runs too deep. It may have metastasized into politics under Trump but he certainly didn't create it... Trump was leveraging the divide that was already there, which is something we've never seen a president do before. Trump was the first president to openly favor one half of the American people over the other half and I think avoiding another one-sided presidency is what drives this concern.

Moving over to the other side, the poll indicates that among Trump supporters, the top two issues are... Inflation and Competency.

Personally, I agree with the Trump supporters that inflation is the most pressing issue for most of us, but much like the cultural divide, I think inflation is something that no president can do much about. There are of course lot's of politically motivated theories and baseless accusations that push the narrative that Biden caused inflation, but an honest assessment of our post-p******c economy, the free market and the banking system will tell us that inflation is being driven by forces that are almost entirely outside p**********l control.

Finally, there is competency... a top concern for the first time ever. Perhaps this is because our choice in 2024 is between the two oldest p**********l candidates in our history. But it's only a top concern for Trump supporters. Well, Biden *is* four years older, but for his supporters it's not a top concern. For them, Biden seems to have proven himself over the last three years to be fully competent with his decisions, despite his age, his geriatric walk and his stammering at the podium. Some of his supporters also know that he has assembled the youngest administration in history and that he actually listens to them.

On the Trump side, where the concern is elevated to the top notches, it's hard not to see it as a vindictive stab for the constant questioning of Trump's competency during his term. But there is also the fact that right-wing media obscures the very things that assures Biden supporters of their candidates competency, while honing in on his stammering and anything else that emphasizes his age.

I also want to point out that political moves rarely satisfy everyone. Any move a president makes will be strongly opposed by some and regardless of how competent the move might actually be, it's become normal for those in opposition to call it an incompetent move.

So what these four concerns tell us is that Biden supporters are more tuned into reality, with the only concern out of the four that can actually be affected by their supported candidate and the other concern being the only one out of the four that can be avoided by NOT v****g for opposing candidate. The Trump supporters seem to be entirely driven by their dislike toward the opponent with one concern that neither of the candidates can fix (so why would it even be an e******n issue?) and one concern about the opposing candidates (competency) that strongly suggests the concern *should* be about the supporters themselves.

When you use the phrase "too little too late" or say that "a storm is coming" I know it is the MAGA way of admitting defeat. You have no clue about what to do. Honest, informed, educated Democrats are problem solvers.
If your MAGA understanding of complex issues comes from spending a lot of time as a kid at the beach maybe you should have spent more time in the classroom.

FYI. Your sand castle analogies fail to explain anything related to the issues we talk about. The reason interest rates were so high in the 1980s was due to high inflation. Investers like us benefited from inflation.