Protecting Social Security for Vulnerable Populations

Carrie Lukas

Yesterday, I testified before the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security. The hearing focused on Social Security’s role in protecting vulnerable populations. My remarks centered on how the current Social Security system fails women by providing unequal treatment of different women and, of course, by having over-promised so that we all face a future of benefit cuts. Women, who are less likely to have the opportunity to participate in other retirement savings vehicles like 401(k)s, will particularly benefit from plans the incorporate personal accounts into Social Security. You can read my full testimony here. I was surprised at how contentious the hearing was. The two panels that preceded mine featured the Social Security commissioner, Jo Anne Barnhart, and Barbara Bovbjerb of the GAO. The questioning from the Members of Congress revealed that the Democrats still refuse to recognize the extent of Social Security’s crisis and attempt to convince the public that the trust fund is something other than what it actual is: another debt owed by the American taxpayers that will require more of their tax dollars to redeem. They continue to use the unpayable promises of current law as the baseline to judge all reform plans. It was frustrating to watch. The testimony from all witnesses is available here.
Posted by Carrie Lukas on May 18, 2005 8:40 AM to Social Security Choice