The Entitlement Buzz

Andrew Biggs, who worked on the staff of Bush's 2001 entitlement reform commission, offers some advice to Obama:

One problem with President Bush’s 2001 Commission was that it didn’t represent the reasonable spectrum of beliefs on Social Security reform. This didn’t make it a dishonest commission; like President Roosevelt’s Committee on Economic Security, it was designed to put flesh on the bones laid out by the President. In this case, the Commission was tasked with designing a reform plan that included personal accounts and excluded tax increases. That said, a commission only builds political capital toward enacting reform if it’s seen as building a consensus through a process in which all views have been heard.

Which is precisely how Obama approaches policy. This, I think, is a huge opportunity to tackle the long-term fiscal catastrophe. Why am I fearful conservatives will refuse to participate in good faith?