Reid: Democrats won't talk Social Security reform until privatization is off
March 5, 2005
LAS VEGAS (AP) - Democrats will stand firm and not begin discussions on Social Security reform until President Bush abandons his plan for private retirement accounts, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said Saturday.
"We will not attempt to solve the problem as long as he continues to try to gut Social Security with his privatization plan," Reid told a crowd of about 400 gathered for a town hall meeting at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
The Nevada Democrat said he told Bush on Friday in a letter signed by 42 senators, "We will not negotiate with you until you take privatization off the table."
Reid, along with Sens. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., and Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., were at UNLV as part of a two-day, four-city "Fix It, Don't Nix It" tour to discuss the Social Security issue. Previous stops included New York, Philadelphia and Phoenix.
"Privatization is a catchword for `get rid of,'" Reid told the crowd, praising Social Security as one of the most successful social programs in history.
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