John Shadegg: “I actually am going to spend a little time now trying, hopefully, to bring anybody who maybe joined this discussion late…”

“I actually am going to spend a little time now trying, hopefully, to bring anybody who maybe joined this discussion late up to speed on this particular idea, and I want to do it first graphically. In this discussion tonight, we have talked about what is happening with Social Security and the whole notion of Social Security reform; but we have tried to focus on a simple idea that has come forward recently to deal with the several problems that are confronting the Social Security program. The biggest problem, of course, is that demographics make it unsustainable over time. We have too few people working and paying in benefits for the number of retirees. We have already heard about that tonight. In the long run, we are going to run out of money; but in the short run, we have a surplus and there is an idea that I think will protect America's taxpayers and strengthen our Social Security system that has just surfaced here in Washington within the last 3 or 4 weeks that I think is a brilliantly simple idea, and I want to try to explain it. It is embodied in a bill called the GROW Act; Growing Real Ownership for Workers Account is the name of the act. It is being introduced here on the House side by several Members of the Ways and Means Committee, led by the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. McCrery) and on the Senate side by Senator Jim DeMint and 11 of his colleagues. I just want to explain very simply the concept of the bill. First of all, I have got a blank piece of paper here.…”