Even the Republicans can smell a rat:
Social Security 'crisis' questioned
By Jill Lawrence, USA TODAY
Two key Republican lawmakers suggested Sunday that Social Security (news - web sites) is not in crisis and questioned President Bush (news - web sites)'s proposal to let younger workers invest part of their payroll taxes in private accounts.
Rep. Bill Thomas, R-Calif., chairman of the House panel that handles Social Security, and Sen. Olympia Snowe (news, bio, voting record), R-Maine, a pivotal moderate on the Senate Finance Committee, said any proposal for private accounts should be part of a larger overhaul of Social Security.
Bush has called Social Security's finances a "crisis." But Thomas, appearing on NBC, said "I think 'problem' is really what we're dealing with." Snowe said Congress should take its time weighing changes. "First of all, we have to reach a consensus on the level of urgency and the magnitude of the problem," she said on CNN.
Thomas said Bush's proposal alone "doesn't address the fundamental inadequacies of dealing with seniors in our society today." He suggested Congress examine controversial ideas, such as varying retirement ages based on gender, race and occupation, and new ways to finance all benefits for seniors - Medicare and Medicaid as well as Social Security.
He said almost any change in benefits could be labeled "a cut," such as using inflation instead of wage increases to set payments to new retirees to slow rising costs, "You have to be careful about the words you choose," Thomas said.
Bush is promoting private accounts as part of his push for an "ownership society," in which people control more of their own money and lives. He has not yet provided specifics, except to say older people's benefits would not be cut.
Bush's plan is expected to resemble an option created by a commission he appointed in his first term. That option estimates private accounts initially will cost as much as $2 trillion to set up, raising the question of where to find the money. There are also concerns about the risks for people who retire when the stock market is down.
Social Security benefits to retirees are paid for by payroll tax contributions from workers and their employers. The system is expected to have enough money to cover 100% of benefits until 2042. That timeframe has prompted Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and other Democrats to accuse Bush of manufacturing a crisis.
Snowe expressed reluctance to tinker with the basics of a system that has provided a stable monthly income and kept seniors out of poverty for 70 years. "I don't think we want to erode the principles of that system," she said.
"I'm certainly not going to support diverting $2 trillion from Social Security into creating personal savings accounts," she added. |
