On the recordApril 12, 2013
I stand here on behalf of my district's seniors, veterans, and working families to say that I strongly oppose cuts to Social Security in the President's budget. Every week, my case workers in Arizona report back to me about our constituents, and every week I hear about another senior who is struggling or another veteran who is struggling. Our rural towns are filled with hard workers, but work is hard to find. These are folks who may never have the protections of a pension, so they must have the protection of Social Security. The President's budget uses a formula called chained CPI. It recalculates how the cost of living is calculated, and it will not keep up with inflation. So let's call this formula what it really is: a shrinking Social Security check for the people who need it most. Yes, we have to make cuts, and we need to do more with less, but seniors and veterans are already doing that. We can do better than sticking them with the tab. ____________________
