Social Security Debate Deserves Better Than Hypocrisy, Scare Tactics

Liberal State Senators Robson, Wirch, and Hanson held a press conference today denouncing President Bush’s proposal to reform Social Security with Personal Retirement Accounts that would allow every American worker access to the types of retirement programs that public servants in Washington, D.C. and Madison enjoy.

President Bush and other Congressional leaders like Rep. Paul Ryan are pushing reform to allow individuals to voluntarily divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into accounts that they own and control – not the government – and receive higher rates of return and build real retirement security.

Administratively, personal accounts would mirror the immensely successful and popular Federal Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) that all federal employees enjoy. Far from privatization, this plan is administered by the federal government, thereby reducing administrative fees and allows workers to seek higher rates of return via the stock market. The TSP works much in the same way as pensions, 401(k)s, IRAs, and the Wisconsin Retirement System.

Reformers are arguing that workers should have the option of investing a portion of their payroll taxes in TSP-style personal accounts. Moreover, these proposals, in particular the Ryan-Sununu plan, actually put Social Security into permanent solvency without increasing public debt and avert the fiscal crisis predicted by President Clinton and other prominent Democrats throughout the late 1990’s. Consequently, personal accounts will eliminate the $10 trillion unfunded liability (future debt) facing Social Secuirty.

FreedomWorks State Director Cameron Sholty commented:

“FreedomWorks appreciates everyone’s involvement in this debate, but if they’d take a minute to separate themselves from their partisan talking points, these state senators would realize that Social Security has one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel – it cannot continue on the present pay-as-you-go course.

“These same Democrats have the option to shore up their own retirement, after nearly a combined 40 years on the public dole, through the Wisconsin Retirement System – which is providing returns nearly ten times that of Social Security – but then demagogue to keep John Q. Taxpayer from doing the same?”

“Personal accounts that hold investments in bond and stock funds should be a retirement option for all Americans. This debate deserves better than the scare-tactics and hypocrisy we saw today from these state Democrats.”