Frank Pallone: “I want to take what time I have to discuss my fears, and I stress fears, this evening over the changes in the Social…”

“I want to take what time I have to discuss my fears, and I stress fears, this evening over the changes in the Social Security system that have been proposed by Governor Bush of Texas. Mr. Speaker, Social Security has lifted millions of seniors out of poverty. It is, by far, the most successful economic program ever passed by Congress, and the reasons for the success are simple. It offers a guaranteed, and I stress guaranteed, benefit for every American retiree. More than half of all Americans, especially working families, have no retirement savings beyond Social Security. Without the guaranteed income provided by Social Security, millions of seniors could fall through the cracks left to live out their lives in poverty. Recently, Governor George Bush proposed a Social Security plan that would undermine Social Security, in my opinion, and simultaneously threaten our thriving economy. By diverting funds from the Social Security Trust Fund to set up individual retirement accounts, as Bush proposed, the plan would hasten the insolvency of the Social Security Trust Fund. It would also force seniors to question rather than count on their Social Security benefits.”