(Reuters) Paulson: Politics block Social Security reform talks

[Eugene]

Paulson: Politics block Social Security reform talks

Jan 4, 2007 — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson
said on Thursday the biggest obstacle to discussing reform of Social Security was
politics, but that Democrats and Republicans need to talk without setting
conditions.

Interviewed on the Public Broadcasting System's "Nightly Business Report," Paulson
said he has been in contact with members of both parties but was cautious about
what might be proposed.

-snip-

Democrats now control both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate and
in 2005 they strongly opposed a Republican bid to reform Social Security by adding
private savings accounts to the retirement program.

Paulson said Republicans were "not going to take those off the table," nor were they
requesting that Democrats leave any measures out of discussions. Instead, they were
asking that "everybody will come in with their ideas and we'll talk."

-snip-

Full article: http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=2771754

Only if you consider last November's election to be just politics.