On Social Security: Apparently, Props to Lieberman Are in Order, For Now

In an act of a rare attempt at fairness from me towards Sen. Lieberman, I think that some props may be due Sen. Lieberman on firming his opposition to the Bush SS Swindle plan.

atrios links to TAPPED who links to  . . . Well anyway, the upshot is a letter signed by 41 of 44 Dem Senators, including Sen. Lieberman which sez:

While Secretary Snow's suggestion was initially encouraging, subsequent reports indicate that you remain committed to your privatization plan and his public comments were little more than a tactical maneuver. According to a story in today's Washington Post, "White House officials are privately telling Republicans that Bush is opposed to the idea [of accounts outside of Social Security], but does not want to say so because it would appear he is not willing to compromise."

Given the conflicting and ambiguous reports on such a critical issue, we urge you to publicly and unambiguously announce that you reject privatized accounts funded with Social Security dollars or otherwise linked to the provision of guaranteed Social Security benefits. Such a statement would eliminate a serious obstacle to the kind of bipartisan process that Democrats are seeking to deal with Social Security's long-term challenges and to improve the retirement security of all Americans.

3 Dems did not sign apparently. Feingold?!? (Maybe he wasn't around??) Ben Nelson of Nebraska. And Kent Conrad of North Dakota.

Update [2005-3-4 12:12:30 by Armando]: Sen. Feingold's mother just passed away. Our deepest condolences Senator.