Jack Kingston: “I want to speak to that point, though, because I do think it is something on a bipartisan basis we could probably come…”

“I want to speak to that point, though, because I do think it is something on a bipartisan basis we could probably come up with something. I have been working on a lock box bill which was originally the idea of the gentleman from California (Mr. Herger), a Republican Congressman, and we passed it off the floor of this House, but what a lock box really would do is take that Social Security surplus and keep Congress from spending it. The reason why it is spent now is because the surplus goes out, buys Treasury bills, pays about 4.1 percent on the average right now to the Social Security trust fund, but the revenues that come in from it, do go into general revenue, and then Congress does spend it on veterans and education and health care and so forth. But I think it is a concept we could work on together on a bipartisan basis to come up with a lock box to discontinue that bipartisan practice which has been the practice for decades and decades. Yet, to date, I do not have any Democrats who want to work with me on this bill, and again, I am asking the Democrats, just come down here and let us talk, let us engage. That is what they are paid to do, come up with ideas. It is not good enough to come in here and vote in and have a little whining press conference and saying we do not like this or that. If you look at the Democratic agenda for the year, they have established two major issues. One is we do not want to do anything on Social Security, period.…”