THE BURNED OVER DISTRICT

Or just a big purple DINO? TPM looks at what DD has said about various budget items that the Gang of Six is looking to slash and his record is not very reassuring.

One big tell was his official public response to the House Republican budget, which doesn't meaningfully touch Social Security but basically obliterates Medicare and Medicaid, while not raising any new revenue, and lowering taxes on wealthy Americans.

In an official statement reacting to the plan, Durbin said "The Ryan Republican budget has three pillars: reduce Medicare benefits by more than half; reduce Medicaid benefits for seniors in nursing homes; and reduce taxes on the wealthiest Americans. America can resolve its budget crisis without punishing the elderly and poor while rewarding the very rich."

Elsewhere he went further: "The Republican budget proposal ends Medicare as we know it and tries to balance the budget on the backs of the most vulnerable in our society," Sen. Durbin said. "Any proposal to solve our fiscal crisis needs to reflect our priorities as a nation. We can control spending without sacrificing our values."

Republicans have been clear that there's almost no common ground between the parties on health care issues. That's why their budget places such a heavy focus on health care entitlements, and punts on Social Security, where they hope to be able to strike a bipartisan deal.

Which brings us to Social Security, where Durbin's rhetoric is remarkably different. As a member of the White House fiscal commission, Durbin voted for the Simpson-Bowles proposal, which brought Social Security into long-term actuarial balance with a mix of benefit cuts, including a slow increase in the retirement age, and revenue increases. And he recently refused to endorse a resolution authored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) holding that Social Security benefits should not be cut as part of a debt reduction plan.

"I think Bernie is going too far with his language," Durbin said critically.

Nice and progressive until he gets to Social Security and then Dick the Douche appears. The best thing Dick Durbin could do is blow up the Gang of Six and walk away. But Senators almost never do what is best.