Dictionary.com defines “sucker punch,” in part, as “A sudden unexpected defeat or setback.”

That is exactly what it felt like when President Obama offered to cut the annual COLA for Social Security, using a formula known as the Chained CPI. He is doing that to appease Republicans in the House so they will agree to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans as part of a large deficit reduction deal.

But in the first year, the proposed chained CPI will cut $130 out of Social Security benefits for a typical 65-year-old and, over time, the cut becomes nearly $1,400 per year for a 95-year-old.

In other words, it cuts the most from the people who can afford it the least.

Social Security has never contributed a dime to the deficit so it shouldn’t be part of the debate over debt. Period.

Judith Harris, Lewiston