While you weren't paying attention, today some House Republicans
announced legislation to introduce private Social Security accounts. The crux of the proposal: Spend the Social Security surplus, which is currently scheduled to be spent on treasury bonds in the Social Security Trust Fund, on private accounts, which they term "GROW accounts."
According to the Social Security Trustees, Social Security will run a surplus until 2017. Currently Social Security taxes pay for retiree benefits, as well as benefits for widows, orphans and the disabled. Any funds left over, known as the Social Security surplus, are used for other government spending.
This measure would change that by directing money from the surplus to fund newly created GROW Accounts. People under the age of 55 will have GROW accounts, or can choose to opt out. The accounts will initially be invested in marketable Treasury bonds. This allows a safe and prudent transition period for the development of personal accounts to protect the Social Security surplus.
An independent Board, similar to the one which manages the retirement plan for Federal workers, will manage and administer GROW Accounts. In January 2009, the board will submit a plan to Congress that would allow for workers to choose other prudent investment options or stay in low-risk marketable treasury bonds. When a person retires, the account balance will be used to help pay Social Security benefits.
The new plan has inspired new talking points.
Rep. Jim McCrery: "This bill will provide future retirees with fully inheritable Social Security accounts that can't be spent by Congress, ensuring that taxes paid into Social Security are used for Social Security."
Rep. Clay Shaw: "We can all agree that Social Security dollars should be spent on Social Security."
Rep. Sam Johnson: "It's just common sense that the funds in the Social Security surplus are spent on Social Security."
Rep. Paul Ryan: "We should all be able to agree that Social Security's surplus should go to Social Security."
Sen. Jim DeMint: "Democrats claim they only want to spend Social Security funds on Social Security; we are about to find out if they are serious. Let's see if the Party of `No' can say `no' to stopping the raid on Social Security."
This is reminiscent of talking points from the Free Enterprise Fund, a pro-privatization group that published a column in the Washington Times on May 12.
Congress should consequently stop the raid on the Social Security trust funds and use the money to ... finance the future retirement benefits of today's workers rather than other government spending. This is the only way to enact a true lockbox where the government can't get its hands on the money to fuel further runaway spending on other programs.
So the new meme is "diverting money from Social Security will save Social Security." This is as literal as "starve the beast" gets.
Pass it on.