Social Security: President Bush Wants One More Shot

Voters, take note: when it comes to President Bush and the quest to ditch Social Security, Captain Ahab is still hunting his whale:

Bush, for his part, appears fixated on the issue, even as he is focused on securing new immigration legislation and preoccupied by several world crises. Despite being forced to shelve his Social Security plan -- which included establishing private investment accounts and reducing guaranteed benefits down the road -- Bush regularly mentions his desire to tackle the issue again.

"We need to cut entitlement spending," the president said in one typical comment last month, as he reviewed the midyear budget numbers. "The easy fix is to say 'Let somebody else deal with it.' This administration is going to continue trying to work with Congress to deal with these issues." ...

[S]ome administration officials and lawmakers are hopeful that the partisan wars may recede after the November balloting, that the public is eager for practical solutions -- and that there could be a small window to try again before the 2008 presidential campaign reaches full bloom. "It's a limited opportunity, but it's one that [Bush] is interested in," said Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), chairman of the Budget Committee. "I have spoken to him innumerable times about this, and he's engaged. ... He wants to move in this area."

If the bipartisanship that Bush wants amounts to his usual variety -- in other words, everybody signing on to what the White House wants -- then the only "practical solution" worth considering is this: waiting ’til 2009 for Bush to head back to Crawford.

Americans United For Change Web Team | 08.10.06 | | Link to this post

Student Loans: Government Walloping Americans With Rate Increases

Students and parents across the country are learning the hard way: in the Bush administration's America, college loans don't come cheap:

"It's going to be harder for kids to repay their tuition now," said Dr. Jeff Diamond, director of guidance at Fauquier High School. "But a lot of them don't have much of a choice, because most students don't have $50,000 to $100,000 to get them through school."

Last month, the fixed rates for Stafford loans for enrolled students (or those in the six-month post-graduate grace period prior to beginning repayment) rose from 4.7 percent to 6.54. Rates for Stafford loans already in repayment increased from 5.3 percent to 7.14, and PLUS loans interest rates climbed from 6.1 percent to 7.94.

New Stafford loans issued on or after July 1 now carry a fixed rate of 6.8 percent; PLUS loans are being offered at 8.5 percent.

Often times, after a student's graduation, he or his parents will choose to consolidate whatever college-related loans he or she holds-to combine them all under a single, fixed-rate loan. With the new system, the federal government is encouraging all loan holders, graduated or otherwise, to consolidate before June 30.

Those loans that were not consolidated at the end of the month now have a new 7.13 variable interest rate. Last year at this time, that same rate had dipped to almost 3 percent.

"It's possible the new rates could prohibit someone from attending college," said Diamond. "These kinds of changes make an impact on students' choices."

"It's possible the new rates could prohibit someone from attending college." Does no one in leadership at Congress or the White House see a problem with that?

Americans United For Change Web Team | 08.08.06 | | Link to this post

Privatizers, Watch Out: Get Ready for the Thrilla Grandpa Gorilla

Republican leaders in Congress and the White House have spoken – and to us they still sound like a party bent on destroying Social Security and breaking promises made to America's greatest generations. So the privateers need to meet their match – and we know just who to do the job.

He wants to go around the country to give the privateers a what for – and we're going to make that happen. He says he'll stand up for seniors and all Americans. His name: Grandpa Gorilla – and come August 16, get ready to watch him knock the Social Security privatizers out of the ring.

Want a taste of what the privatizers can count on? Glimpse this sneak peek:

Privateers in Congress, be on notice: when Grandpa Gorilla comes out, he's gonna swing hard. Get ready – if you can.

Tune into the blog for updates, and keep checking in to find out when the Social Security Showdown Tour comes near you.

Americans United For Change Web Team | 08.06.06 | | Link to this post

Conservatives Hold Wages Hostage to Paris Hilton Tax Cut; Film at 11

So the Senate blocked a bid to raise the minimum wage this week – yes, the same minimum wage that Congress has allowed to stagnate for nine years, while members of Congress hiked their salaries by over $30,000.

Guess what, though? This vote went the right way – and blame for this failure rests with conservatives who thought they could make working families their beasts of burden for yet another estate tax cut:

Senate Democrats blocked a Republican bid to combine a tax cut for the wealthy with a wage increase for the working poor last night, adding a volatile economic issue to this fall's congressional campaigns.

GOP leaders fell three votes short of the 60 needed to cut off debate and bring the package to the Senate floor, where it was considered certain to pass on a simple-majority vote. Republicans said Democrats will pay a price in November, contending that most Americans support the bill's call for an increase in the minimum wage and deep cuts in the estate tax.

But Democrats said rich Americans have received enough breaks from the Bush administration and the GOP-led Congress. Voters, they said, will see the Republican-backed bill as a ploy to further enrich upper-income families while trying to usurp the Democrats' role as champions of the working poor.

Under the bill, "8,100 of the wealthy and well-off hit the jackpot, while millions of working families get $800 billion in [federal] debt," said Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.), who led the opposition to the measure.

Well said, Senator. Our thanks to Harry Reid – and the senators who voted with him – for blocking conservatives from cutting taxes on the backs of the working poor.

Americans United For Change Web Team | 08.04.06 | | Link to this post

It’s a Trifecta: Bush Treasury Sec’y Gives Green Light to Social Security Privatization

Lo and behold, the GOP released yet another new trailer for the the party's top coming attraction for the next Congress; call it Privatization II – Die Hard, With a Vengeance. This time, the starring role goes to Henry Paulson, the newly sworn-in Secretary of the Treasury, who told people gathered at Columbia University:

The President put forward a plan last year to strengthen and modernize Social Security. ... I have always tried to live by the philosophy that when there is a big problem that needs fixing, you should run toward it, rather than away from it. That is one of the reasons I decided to come to Washington, and that is the reason I admire the President's political courage and willingness to address entitlement reform. ... So the President has instructed me to work with Congress on a bipartisan basis to find workable solutions – solutions that will help to keep our economy competitive in the years, and decades to come – and solutions that should not place an unfair burden on future generations.

First: "strengthen and modernize Social Security"? Slashing benefits and gutting the program's finances "strengthens" Social Security? Funny conception of strength, that.

Second: "solutions that will help to keep our economy competitive"? But the president's plan added $2 trillion in transition payments to the national debt; how would sticking our children with a $2 trillion tab make America more competitive?

Third: "should not place an unfair burden on future generations"? Let's say it again: $2 trillion in debt. [See above.]

If Paulsen means it when he says the Bush plan would have strengthened and modernized Social Security, we have to ask how much more of these guys' 'strengthening' and 'modernization' the program can take.

(Hat tip: Think Progress.)

Americans United For Change Web Team | 08.03.06 | | Link to this post

Social Security: House Republican Leader Pledges “to Get Serious” About Phaseout

Any skeptics out there in doubt of the Republican commitment to get rid of Social Security? House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) hears you, and says put your minds at ease — because while the last try at privatization ended with a bust, he promises to really get serious when he comes back as majority leader in 2007. See for yourself, in the Washington Times (emphasis added):

Q: Where does Social Security reform stand?

A: I just met with Congressman [Frank R. Wolf, Virginia Republican], a few minutes ago with his SAFE Commission [formed to fix the entitlement programs]. In 1990 when I first ran for Congress, I talked about the need to reform these big entitlement programs because the sooner we began the process, the easier it would be to make the necessary changes so that these programs were sustainable for the long term. ... If I’m around in a leadership role come January, we’re going to get serious about this.

Wait, did we say when Boehner comes back as leader? Sorry: we meant to say if. And the more Boehner talks like this, the more iffy we need to make his chances become.

Americans United For Change Web Team | 08.01.06 | | Link to this post