A Faction defection?
TPM reader RK notes <$NoAd$> this statement on Faction member Rep. Ron Kind’s (D-Wisc) website.
The statement suggests two things — first, that Kind’s staff may have some problems with the ‘cut and paste’ function on their office computers; but, second, and more importantly, that he may be inclined to oppose President Bush’s Social Security phase-out plan …
The long term solvency of Social Security is a much-debated issue. The Social Security Board of Trustees estimates that if the program continues unchanged, the trust fund will be depleted by 2042. The past few years have seen numerous proposals for Social Security reform ranging from an increase in payroll taxes to overhaul and partial privatization of the system.
I regard the protection of Social Security as a top priority, and I am concerned about its long term solvency. The past few years have seen numerous proposals for Social Security and Medicare reform ranging from an increase in payroll taxes to overhaul and partial privatization of the system. I do not believe that a radical overhaul of the Social Security system is the way to ensure payments for current and future retirees.
The national debt is now $7.1 trillion. Paying down the national debt would help up shore up Social Security and assure that it will last for future generations.
Certainly not as specific as one might like. But definitely a step in the right direction. And quite a bit more that Rep. Moran is willing to do.
