John Kerry on GOP Proposal to Raise Retirement Age

[kerrygoddess]

John Kerry is keeping the pressure on all bad ideas and proposals from the GOP …

Below is a statement by Senator John Kerry on reports that Senate Finance Committee Republicans plan to ram through a proposal to raise the Social Security retirement age to 69.

"It's hard to believe that as pensions disappear around the country for men and women who have worked a lifetime, anyone would consider raising the retirement age for Social Security. Social Security is the one bedrock promise a worker can count on in an age when pensions are going bust. Now not only does President Bush want to risk Social Security in the stock market, Republicans in Congress are considering forcing Americans to work until they're 69 before they can begin receiving a Social Security check earned over a lifetime. It's time to build real retirement security, not take it away."

http://www.lightupthedarkness.org/blog/default.asp?view=plink&id=1086

[JohnKleeb]

1. I am glad hes against this

I think its unfair to blue collar workers and biased in favor of white collar ones.

[ohtransplant]

2. He makes an excellent point.

At the same time Corporate America is allowed to slink away from their pension obligations under ERISA.

ERISA was supposed to make pension and retirement saving portable so you could "take them with you" if you left a job. It promoted defined contribution plans (where employee retirement benefits are based on their own contributions while they work) over defined benefit plans (the old style - company sponsored and financed plans)

In summary, it occurs to me * wants to make the same kind of change to Social Security. If successful, maybe they could default on those obligations in 30 years - much like private industry is doing today.

[TayTay]

3. The pension mess is truly scary

PBGC is a client. They have a 'watch list' of companies. It is now up to thousands of companies. (I help maintain it.) This has the potential to be a $600 billion dollar disaster. It's just so scary.

[ohtransplant]

4. What's so scary is the apathy

This will eventually hit everyone - even if that just means bailing out the PBGC.

They've been relaxing the rules for years, letting companies dissolve plans in mergers and bankruptcies, and allowing (read:promoting) debacles like Enron. All in the interest of executive compensation and the bottom line.

This will be a big issue in the future. Maybe by 2008 people will wake up.

[sandnsea]

5. They're willing to default on FICA

So no shit they could default on a private system much easier. I am pissed that they're calling 20 years of my FICA money worthless IOU's. It wasn't worthless when we were sending it in. I don't understand how people can just not care that they don't want to pay back the money we sent in. Repeal the tax cuts on the wealthy and they can pay it back.

[ohtransplant]

6. Out of sight - out of mind (literally)

People just don't pay attention - even when it involves their own finances. Sad really.

Seems to me repealing the tax cut on the wealthiest Americans is the least they could do to secure the future for generations to come - but that's just me.