Russert and Matthews are journalists. Relax. That means they are looking out for you

Since it began over 70 years ago, probably something like 200 million American senior or disabled citizens, and their surviving spouses in most cases, have received month in and month out, year after year for the rest of their lives, Social Security payments. For most of them, it has been the difference between a decent retirement and severe poverty.

But we find out courtesy of The Daily Howler that Chris Matthews and Tim Russert, both summer residents of Nantucket mansions along with Jack Welch and other NBC millionaires, and regular residents of the most expensive neighborhoods in D.C., think they have all been participants in “a Ponzi scheme.” By implication, so is every recipient of a defined-benefit pension. After all, they say, with the perspective of three-year-olds, it’s the young folks subsidizing the old ones. That’s not fair, although they might consider the fact that the system is set up so everybody gets a turn. A Ponzi scheme, of course, is illegal, so it is safe to say their real feelings are in favor of eliminating Social Security as social insurance, as well as dumping defined-benefit pensions. Russert always is acting like he wants to fix Social Security, but he also agrees it is a Ponzi scheme. That does not compute.

It’s also safe to say they are completely out of touch with the American people, who by enormous majorities believe a national insurance program that protects old people -- who generally have a hard time finding a job -- from retirement in poverty is a really good idea. Is it possible to be more callous and removed from reality than that? Neither will ever need either a Social Security check or a pension, so they think it’s just peachy to take it away from people who need it. They just don’t care. Why should they, when they are multi-millionaires themselves who, nevertheless, are flunkies of one of the wealthiest men in the world who also happens to be a radical right wing extremist? Hell, they won’t even have to retire as long as they can put one syllable in front of the other correctly and maintain a decent “Q-score.”

Yet we tune in to people like this for our news. We let them tell the rising flunkies below them how to report political stories – mainly, which Democrats to attack with what storylines until the mission has been accomplished and it's time to shift in another direction. In effect, we let them decide who our leaders will be. Right now, it’s Clinton, and no doubt the research has identified the storylines against her that will gain traction. If anyone else emerges, he will be next.