As you know, Rep. Allen Boyd of Florida is now the interim <$NoAd$> Dean of the Fainthearted Faction, pending more information about Rep. Jim Moran’s weaseling on the issue. And today we got a hold of the Annual Report he just sent out to constituents.
Of particular interest to the TPM research department was this section (click the link to see a image of the section) updating voters on his stand on Social Security. What caught our attention was the 2nd and 3rd “basic tenets” which he says will inform his decision-making …
Second, there must continue to be a guaranteed benefit that ensures no retiree falls below the poverty level, and third any proposal must be fiscally responsible and not rely on smoke and mirrors to disguise the true cost of saving the system.
Now, first off, does Rep. Boyd really mean that under any new plan Social Security must maintain a “guaranteed benefit” that prevents any retiree from falling below the poverty line? And look at tenet three. Any proposal “must be fiscally responsible.” Can any proposal that requires $2 trillion in additional borrowing on top of our existing problem with accumulating national indebtedness be “fiscally responsible”?
I believe the Kolbe bill, which Boyd has signed on to as a co-sponsor, envisions a mix of borrowing, increased payroll taxes (raising the ‘cap’) and benefit cuts to manage transition costs. So it’s probably time for someone to take a close look at the Kolbe bill to see if there’s any way Rep. Boyd can square it with his ‘tenets’.
