The President's Prescription (Social Security)

[Martin Eden]

I just sent this LTTE to the Chicago Tribune. I noted that if it's too long to publish in its entirety, then I submit just the 2nd paragraph.

President Bush is embarking on a 60-city tour to convince the American people that his prescription for Social Security is necessary to solve the system’s financial problems. One has to admire his chutzpah, considering that his policies are responsible for draining the trust fund. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, deficits will grow by an additional $1.6 trillion over the next decade if his tax cuts are made permanent. Bush promises that Social Security benefits will not change for older Americans, but at the same time he suggests the trust fund is little more than worthless IOU’s. If the government is not going to honor the bonds it issued when it borrowed from the trust fund and if payroll taxes are diverted to private accounts, how does he intend to keep that promise without plunging our nation deeper into debt?

Private accounts would not change the demographic reality that Americans are living longer and the ratio of workers to retirees is getting shorter. What these accounts will do is bankrupt an insurance program that can, with minor adjustments now, continue to provide a safety net for seniors, survivors, and the disabled. The demise of Social Security would not be a good deal for younger Americans because the guarantees would be gone. What happens when the family breadwinner dies before building a large account? Those fortunate to live to a ripe old age will outlive their accounts. And if the president keeps his promise to Americans who are 55 or older today, the next generation will be burdened by the additional debt of $2 trillion in transition costs.

President Bush is asking us to trust his plans for our future financial security, but his fiscal policies to date have not earned that trust. His prescription increases risk, debt, and insecurity. The prudent course of action would be to raise the cap on income subject to payroll taxes, repeal the irresponsible tax cuts that turned surplus into deficit, and raise the retirement age if necessary. One must question whether the president is pursuing a practical solution for a fiscal problem or the longstanding conservative goal of dismantling Roosevelt’s New Deal.

[senseandsensibility]

1. Great letter.

Let us know if it's published. Here in supposedly liberal California, where Kerry beat chimpwad by thirty percent, I have trouble getting anything critical of * published.