McCain: Social Security "a disgrace" because young workers' taxes pay current retirees.

[enough]

http://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2008/07/a-disgrace.html

July 09, 2008
A Disgrace?

Dean Baker:

For folks not familiar with Social Security, it is the country's biggest social program. It costs over $600 billion a year (20 percent of the federal budget) and has 50 million beneficiaries.

At a forum on Monday, after wrongly claiming that Social Security won't be there when young workers retire, McCain went on to say:

"Americans have got to understand that we are paying present-day retirees with the taxes paid by young workers in America today. And that's a disgrace. It's an absolute disgrace, and it's got to be fixed."

Of course present-day retirees have always been paid their benefits from the taxes paid by current workers. That has been true from Social Security's inception.

Some folks might have thought Senator McCain's description of Social Security as a "disgrace" was worth a mention somewhere in the media, but the NYT, Washington Post, WSJ, and USA Today don't seem to have noticed. It's not like he said "bitter."

snip> MORE


The page contains links to several other mentions and discussion of McCain's weird statement about social security, but so far not in the corporate media.

[pinto]

1. Would be good if AARP picked this up.

[enough]

17. It would make a great campaign ad for us, especially if there's video.

[pinto]

22. Yeah. That would make a great soundbite. Social Security a "disgrace" ?

[NorthCarolina]

26. I think AARP's current focus in on ensuring that "Insurance" continues to play a role in

America's health care prescription.

[mrreowwr_kittty]

29. AARP is nothing but a giant insurance consortium.

Still, they might pick up this SS issue, since how are seniors going to pay for health insurance with no income?

[billyoc]

2. Are ya TRYIN' to lose, John?

:rofl:

[zanne]

3. That fits right into the "Selfish Young Conservative Plan".

He's trying to attract young voters who whine about taxes.

[Kaylee]

4. I see what he's doing now.....it all leads to privitization of SS.

[zanne]

9. Ding! Ding! Ding! nt

[fasttense]

5. No they don't

and they haven't since Ronald Raygun doubled Social Security taxes (while cutting the uber wealthiest taxes). The Baby Boomers are the first generation to not only pay for their parent's retirement but pay for their own as well. That was the whole idea of the Social Security Trust Fund. There wasn't a trust fund until Raygun came along. What the current retirees have done is pay for their parent's and their own Social Security.

But McSame doesn't want you to know that.

The working young today don't have to worry about supporting the retiring Baby Boomers Social Security because the Boomers already paid for it in their doubled taxes and it is all safely saved in the Social Security Trust Fund - that Greenspan borrowed.

[predfan]

10. Exactly. Remember the grief Gore got over the term "lock box"?

SNL, Faux news, you name it. Well, once again this month Congress, Dems and Republicans alike, dip into the Surplus Fund, leaving an IOU that Republicans wring their hands and worry they might have to pay back. Damn right it'll be paid back.......when they borrow from the Chinese do they tell them they may not pay it back? Of Course Not.

At least treat the American taxpayer as well as the Chinese.

[LSK]

27. except that Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush all borrowed money from SS

And now all that is there is a bunch of IOU's. That was what Gore was referring to as the lock box. To stop borrowing from SS.

[TexasObserver]

6. a guy who gets $60,000 a year for disability thinks Social Security is bad

This guy has lived his entire life on the public tit, from the first day of his life until this moment. He's sucked down more benefits than any ten welfare mothers combined.

[ellacott]

19. Post of the day

Thank you!!

[sufrommich]

7. McCain seems to be trying to alienate boomers

I say "Go for it,John!". What an idiot.

[sui generis]

8. but about the state of Social Security

it is a disgrace. I am not anywhere near "privatization" but it needs to be overhauled.

For one thing, it really does eat the poor. When you look at actuary for who pays in and is dead by the time they would be eligible to use it, it turns out the people who need it most will have to work well past retirement and most likely benefit the least from it for the shortest amount of time, while the people who traditionally have other or better options tend to retire earlier and live longer, and draw on it longer.

It's not about the "younger" people paying into the pool. It's ALL about the people who will never see a dime of it paying into the pool.

And JOHN DUMBASS MCCAIN HERE IS WHAT IT IS REALLY ALL ABOUT:

It's about us spending a trillion dollars a year on made up wars and military supply so Halliburton won't have to pay out their pensions in order to afford their executive payroll and bonuses.

It really is all about our monstrous willingness to spend monstrous dollars on a monstrous war that we can't finish. Fix that, get our quality jobs back within our borders so the "American people (all ages)" can earn and pay into social security, and Social Security is no longer an issue for anyone.

[zanne]

11. I like your username.

When I worked in a law library, I had a T-shirt made with SUI GENERIS on it to give to the head librarian.

[MaineDem]

12. He's trolling for the "youth vote"

He needs to do something to make them like him.

I think he's a disgrace.

[indepat]

13. What is a disgrace is current social security revenues are financing pre-emptive war

and tax cuts (a raid on the lock box) for those whose incomes are above the income subject to social security payroll taxes, a double whammy for the poor and middle class, but a brilliant, though wholly corrupt, 'puke value brought to us with malice of forethought. :grr: :mad:

[napi21]

14. So John, do you have insurance on your cars and houses? Do you

YAMMER & WHINE when YOU don't have an accident or fire but YOUR money pays for the people who DID?

I would THINK, after the horrible reception Shrub's privatizing plan got, the he would stay away from this BS, but then again, I guess he doesn't do much thinking!

[nancyr]

15. What a senile old fool.

[slinkerwink]

16. Uh, that's how the system works.

[liberalhistorian]

18. Hey, Johnny, howzabout we take away

your nice, cushy 58 grand a year "disability" pension, then? I mean, after all, it IS paid for by other workers, right? At least, using your logic. What an ignorant, pandering, hypocritical asshole.

[enough]

20. Sure enough, TPM has the video.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/203287.php

[Overseas]

21. More proof that John Sidney McCain III is not like you and me.

John SIdney McCain III can convince his wife to sell one of their seven estates if he needs some cash.

[Froward69]

23. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZAAAAAAAAAAP!!!!

that was touching the third rail mr mcSame.:toast: :applause: :rofl:

[The Backlash Cometh]

24. What's he going to do next? Dissolve public schools?

[LSK]

25. ok Grampy Shit for Brains, how do you propose to pay for retirees incomes then????

Thats how the system is supposed to work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:banghead: :banghead: :banghead:

[Jim Lane]

28. It was no slip; he said essentially the same thing the next day

In an interview on CNN, McCain said that younger people "pay their taxes and right now their taxes are going to pay the retirement of present-day retirees. That’s why it’s broken, that’s why we can fix it." ()

In other words, what he thinks is broken, and what he wants to "fix", is the fundamental structure that Social Security has had since 1939.

[mrreowwr_kittty]

30. Good god, if seniors vote for him after this, I give up. nt