WP,pg1: Details Cloud Support for Social Security Plan

[DeepModem Mom]

Details Cloud Support for Social Security Plan

By John F. Harris and Dana Milbank
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, December 22, 2004; Page A01


President Bush has wide support for his argument that Social Security needs dramatic change to meet its obligations to future retirees, but there remains considerable skepticism about his plan to let people invest a portion of their contribution to the program in the stock market, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Since his Nov. 2 reelection victory, Bush has frequently said the results were an endorsement by voters of the most dramatic revision of the retirement program since its inception nearly 70 years ago. But the survey shows that his efforts to educate the public about the idea and convince them of the merits are at best incomplete.

A strong majority of respondents, 63 percent, do not think Social Security will have enough money to pay the benefits they are entitled to, and 74 percent think the system faces either major problems or is in crisis -- as Bush has asserted. The president also has at least general support from 53 percent of the public for the concept of letting people control some of their contributions to invest in the market.

It is on the specifics that Bush faces problems. Support dropped to an even split when people were told that the cost of the transition to a new program could reach $2 trillion over time, as some forecasts project. And 62 percent said they would not participate in such a program if it meant their retirement income would go up or down depending on the performance of their stock picks -- which is the essence of Bush's plan.

The results cast uncertainty not just on Bush's political strategy but also on that of Democrats. In Congress, the opposition party has not yet unified around a position on what promises to be the dominant domestic issue of Bush's second term. The party, according to members of Congress and Democratic policy aides, faces a choice between opposing Bush's plan wholesale on philosophical grounds and critiquing it on practical merits, with at least the possibility that some Democrats would back a negotiated plan that addresses their concerns....


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A17151-2004Dec21.html

[KoKo]

1. This article is based on only ONE poll Abc/WaPo, yet they write

this whole article as if "their poll" of their selected respondents is the way Most Americans feel about the issue.

They really don't think folks can catch that? Bush has no mandate for anything...but they keep repeating the "big lie" and even do their own poll to support the Lie...sheesh....WaPo might as well be a tabloid.

[Prisonerohio]

2. We need to fight this!

The fact that there is no unified opposition in congress makes me wonder if there is an opposition party anymore.

[DeepModem Mom]

3. It's worrisome, Prisonerohio -- and welcome to DU!

[wishlist]

4. The Devil's in the Details- many unknown complications in changing S.S.

Right now the program has had decades of fine-tuning of the benefit computation formulas and eligibility rules and regulations. It is run extremely efficiently on much less than 1% of the SS payroll tax revenues. This partial privatization will add incredible complexities to the program that will change the formulas and regulations in unknown ways and make it much harder to administer simply and fairly.

These accounts are not going to be like 401Ks or IRA's either I will bet. People are going to be even madder than they are now when they get turned down for benefits by the SS Administration for not meeting the eligibility requirements. Even if you have worked and paid in some, you have to meet certain standards as to the amount you worked and your age and the extent of your disability if you can't work. It won't go over too well when people become sick or temporarily disabled and lose their jobs but don't meet the gov'ts age or disability standards and can't get a penny out of their private SS accounts until the SS Administration approves their eligibility to draw benefits.

[snippy]

5. Democrats need to accuse Bush of keeping the details "secret."

It is impossible to intelligently evaluate any plan for Social Security when all or most of the details of the plan are unknown. By accusing Bush of keeping the details of his plan "secret" the democrats put pressure on Bush and create an impression that the details are so terrible that Bush is afraid to reveal them to the public.

Democrats also should link the entire republican party to Bush's "secret" plan to change Social Security. If some republicans denounce Bush's plan even before the details are made public that might help defeat Bush's plan. At a minimum it should create a little discord in the GOP.