John Shaw: “We are fighting our war. We were attacked. This is a time of emergency. If we have to spend some of the Social Security…”

“We are fighting our war. We were attacked. This is a time of emergency. If we have to spend some of the Social Security surplus, so be it, but we are not spending one dime of the Social Security trust fund. The Social Security trust fund is secure. The FICA taxes are going to be there to pay every benefit through 2017. The retirees and the disabled in this country have the first call on the Social Security money that comes into the trust fund. Let us get an even and balanced argument here. And for God's sake, why does every Member in this House, in this Chamber, not spend a little time and figure out and learn how the Social Security system works in this country and also recognize the fact that we are looking at a $25 trillion deficit in Social Security if we do not move together in a bipartisan way to reform Social Security. My door is open. As soon as we get any cooperation or see any cooperation from the other side of the aisle, or the other side of this Capitol, we will move and we will save Social Security for our kids and our grandkids. That is important. That is key. But right now we have an emergency, we have been attacked, and this country must react and we must react in a bipartisan way.”