The Liberal Argument for raising revenue in a recession was framed perfectly by former Obama economic adviser Larry Summers:

We have infrastructure in this country — I mean you can argue whether we need a new high speed rail system or whether we don’t need a new high speed rail system. But I don’t know what the argument is for letting bridges collapse. I don’t know what the argument is.

via Brainstorm Tech video: Larry Summers on debt, bubbles, and Obama – Fortune Tech

This is what the President is only touching on when he says “he cannot guarantee Social Security checks” and this is what rank and file Democrats need to argue for. The end result of the GOP push to cut spending is one that will reduce our standard of living for years to come.