AARP and GOP Spar Over Poll

[cal04]

In a sign of the intensifying political battle over Social Security, the AARP released a nationwide poll Monday indicating deep public skepticism about President Bush's plan for personal accounts. The Republican Party immediately criticized the study as flawed.

``Approximately four in 10 respondents initially favored private accounts,'' the seniors' organization said in a summary of its findings. ``However, those who initially favored private accounts dropped off substantially once they were exposed to any of the consequences associated with implementation of private accounts.'


The AARP, which claims 35 million members age 50 and over, opposes Bush's call to allow younger workers to invest a portion of their payroll taxes in personal accounts. The organization carries unquestioned clout among older Americans. Two years ago, the White House and Congressional Republicans successfully enlisted its support for hotly contested legislation to remake Medicare.
John McLaughlin, a Republican pollster, said the AARP survey was ``skewed by age and skewed by politics,'' and that the repeated use of the term ``private accounts'' results in a drop-off in support for Bush's proposals.

Specifically, it said that 43 percent of those surveyed initially said they ``favored private accounts and 47 percent opposed them.'' AARP said support dropped when those polled were told that the consequences of the change might include a lower Social Security benefit in retirement, ban withdrawals prior to retirement, require a new government agency to administer the program, require an additional $1 trillion to maintain the benefits for current Social Security recipients.

more
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/3006804
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,1282,-4753363,00.html

[Kolesar]

1. Celebrity Deathmatch: Insurance Front vs. the GOP

Let's see some blood on the mat!

[isit2008yet]

2. GOPers hate it when the masses are informed! lol n/t

[Norbert]

3. And getting the truth on top of it.

That's not good.

[bluestateguy]

4. The AARP will be a valuable ally

Their endorsement of the drug bill in 2003 put it over the top--or at least allowed the vote to be close enough for Tom DeLay to steal (keeping the clock on for 3 hours, trying to bribe Nick Smith, etc.).

Anyway, the only thing I worry about here is that 40% of respondents initially favored privatization. That's a bit high for my comfort. it wouldn't take too much spin and propaganda, unanswered by Democrats, to push that number up to 51%.

Just remember initially less than a majority supported the Bush tax cut: he barnstormeed the country and it passed. Less than a majority initially supported the Iraq War: he barnstormed the country and it became (for a time) a popular war and was approved by Congress.

Don't be complacent people. If Democrats just assume that those numbers will stay fixed they have not learned their lessons from the last four years.

[KoKo]

6. bluestateguy, your caution is good. Just thinking today about how they

have managed to get everything they want through. They will do a massive ad campaign targeted just to those who are the swing Seniors and they will descredit anyone who calls them out and before we know it, they will have won again.

I don't know what more can be done...signing petitions writing letters.
I'm not an AARP member so no help there. But, I was hoping that other groups would put huge pressure to coutneract the Bush spin by using ads and sending folks out. Maybe they will. But, I'm very worried about this.

[VegasWolf]

8. AARP totally caved on the drug prescription card, they knew that

it was no good, that it prohibited bulk purchasing by
states and other entities. A lot of us left AARP over
this fiasco. I'll see what they do, but I'm not holding
my breath. Reading their publications over the last couple
of years, they have turned more and more conservative. The
new management is not your dad's AARP.

[Coastie for Truth]

5. The Rove Team Attacks The Opposition's CREDIBILITY

They strike back savagely when their credibility is attacked. But the White House credibility began to fall with the "American Gulag" of Gitmo and Abu Ghraib, cracked with WMDs, and is going under with the Baby Tax inherent in Social INSECURITY Piratization.

Their little scheme to Piratize Social Security and turn it into Social INSECURITY may be Bush's "Bridge Too Far."

[Cha]

7. Finally the gopheads are being exposed

to AARP members for the greedy grunts that they are.

[leesa]

9. AARP betrayed their constituency when they supported the MediCare fiasco

Have they learned their lesson?

[mitchtv]

11. I had already resigned, by the time they rolled in medicare

other issues.

[nashville_brook]

10. annoying that they don't give the final numbers

i've noticed AP does this a lot (doesn't clarify actual numbers they report on).

[struggle4progress]

12. kick

[napi21]

13. One of the main reasons AARP supported the drug bill was that

they themselves are an insurance company! They managed to help push it though, but the suffered a lot in the process! I don't think you'll see them cave on this one...for greedy reasons alone!

Their members now know what was really in that drug bill, and they're not happy about it.

I don't think shrub's SS plan stands much of a chance. Too many Pubs don't like it either, for completely different reasons than the Dems.

We've all heard of the Pubs over-reaching when they get into power. Well, I guess shrubco didn't!