Here's a vote getter

How to destroy your base of support among retired voters:

WASHINGTON – Millions of older people face shrinking Social Security checks next year, the first time in a generation that payments would not rise. The trustees who oversee Social Security are projecting there won't be a cost of living adjustment (COLA) for the next two years. That hasn't happened since automatic increases were adopted in 1975.

By law, Social Security benefits cannot go down. Nevertheless, monthly payments would drop for millions of people in the Medicare prescription drug program because the premiums, which often are deducted from Social Security payments, are scheduled to go up slightly.

It's well known by pollsters and campaign architects of both parties that the older a citizen is, the more likely s/he is to vote. Retirees have already been vigorous participants in townhall protests this month. The news that their social security payments will lose purchasing power will certainly do nothing to bring them back into the fold.