http://mediamatters.org/items/200502040012Reporters falsely claim that private accounts will address Social Security's solvency problem
On the February 3 edition of CNN's American Morning, CNN White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux said
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0502/03/ltm.03.html of Bush's speech: "
he centerpiece of his domestic agenda was reforming Social Security to allow younger workers to actually divert some of their payroll taxes into private accounts to make the system solvent." Later, on CNN Live Today, she explained http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0502/03/lt.04.html : "f course, really the centerpiece of his domestic agenda, reforming Social Security, a big item last night. The president saying that he believes that creating for younger retirees, younger workers, these private investment accounts is the way to go for the Social Security system to be solvent in the future."
But in a pre-speech briefing, an unnamed "senior administration official" admitted that private accounts will do nothing to address Social Security's long-term revenue shortfall. From the February 2 White House background briefing http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A59045-2005Feb2?language=printer :
QUESTION: Can you give us a second ten-year estimate on the revenue effect? Can you tell us how you would pay for that, in the first ten years' revenue loss? And am I right in assuming that in the way you describe this, because it's a wash in terms of the net effect on Social Security from the accounts by themselves, that it would be fair to describe this as having -- the personal accounts by themselves as having no effect whatsoever on the solvency issue?
SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: On the second point, that's a fair inference.
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
