WASHINGTON EXAMINER: Obama Doesn’t Understand The Family Budget.

Meanwhile Megan McArdle predicts a Washington Monument / Starve Grandma approach on the debt ceiling:

Matt is thinking like a wonk, not a politician. What Obama should do is the exact opposite of this sensible advice: he should make preparations to shut down the machines that write Social Security checks and army paychecks, lamenting that he has no choice because the US is contractually obligated to pay its other bills. The GOP is betting that Democrats will take the blame for this. I think that is a very bad bet.

This is why schools and other government agencies facing budget cuts tend to immediately slash something high-profile and politically popular. That’s how you get them to reverse the budget cuts. I’m sure most of us in the private sector can recount situations where this has worked in corporations as well.

The GOP should go for a short-term debt ceiling tied to new cuts — and they should include language that will prevent this approach if the debt ceiling is hit next time. How will the Dems oppose “protect Grandma” language?