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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: LindyBill who wrote (101901)	2/23/2005 7:00:49 PM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793746

Congressman Pence - Live From Indiana Beltway Buzz Eric Pfeiffer Reporting 02/23 06:01 PM Congressman Mike Pence just called into the Beltway Buzz, from the 6th District in Indiana. Pence is making use of the break in session to hold a series of town hall meetings with voters regarding Social Security reform. He has held five this week alone. When asked about the effort to get members of the House out in their local districts discussing reform, Pence said, “We are making an effort to get members out there in town hall meetings and on radio. I think there’s a genuine sense that we tell our story better when we tell it at home. We are urging our members to go home and do that.” Congressman Pence is no stranger to town hall meetings. He holds about 50 of them each year. He also noted that his office has been receiving a high volume of mail regarding Social Security reform with about a 50/50 split of those in favor of and opposed to reform. I asked Pence what kind of response he has been getting from citizens at the town hall meetings. “I told the White House I have been surprised by two things. First, in regards to the idea that Social Security is in a fiscal crisis. Nobody’s buying it. But the second thing that has surprised me is that many of these same people are very open to personal accounts.” Pence stresses this point as evidence that honesty with the voters is the best route to reform. “I think most people underestimate the intellect and patriotism of senior citizens,” he said. Pence notes that the White House has been expecting the opposite reaction from most seniors, “The White House focus has been on the hard lifting of personal accounts. They believe everyone knows there is a fiscal crisis. I’ve found just the opposite.” This is a prime example of why President Bush is seeking so much congressional feedback and ideas on how to best pursue reform. Pence noted that just about everyone told him he would suffer for not supporting Medicare increases. But that hasn’t happened. So, he has a measured degree of skepticism as well for those who tell him seniors will reject personal accounts out of hand. And this time, he knows the White House is listening, “The White House is genuinely grateful for the enthusiasm of Republican members of Congress on this issue.”