This will be brief, but pointed — I think we’re missing a major GOTV opportunity.
A comment in one of today’s stories caught my eye and generated an almost visceral reaction:
We also need to target seniors with a message of your entire working life you paid into social security and Medicare. You earned your benefits, now the fat cats in the Republican Party want to take them away.
This is correct, but why do so many people think this is a message just for seniors?
I’ve seen this same emphasis on “seniors and the disabled” on social media; I’ve actually gotten a bit of pushback here and there when suggesting that we need to broaden our commentary on this point. Here’s the most common responses — and why I think they’re dead wrong.
1) "Most younger people have other means of retirement savings.”
I’ll just say that having such means available is not the same as using them. Here’s what Motley Fool has to say about 401(k)s, the most widely available means of saving for retirement:
Average and Median 401(k) Balances, 2021
26 to 34 |
$33,272 |
$13,265 |
35 to 44 |
$86,582 |
$32,664 |
45 to 54 |
$161,079 |
$56,722 |
55 to 64 |
$232,379 |
$84,714 |
65 and older |
$255,151 |
$82,297 |
Conventional wisdom says that proper retirement savings should look like this:
- Age 30: 1x yearly salary (BLS average salary, 26-34: $48,620)
- Age 40: 3x yearly salary (BLS average salary, 35-44: $59,748)
- Age 50: 6x yearly salary (BLS average salary, 45-54: $60,788)
As you can see, the majority of working adults are NOT hitting the recommended savings targets. That means that they’ll need Social Security and Medicare just as much as do today’s seniors.
2) “It doesn’t really resonate outside the seniors and disabled folks currently receiving it.”
I refuse to accept this notion; if it isn’t “resonating” with other groups, it’s because we aren’t delivering the message in the proper context for them. Put it this way:
- Most folks in their 40s have been paying into Social Security and Medicare for at least 20 years.
- Most folks in their 50s have been paying into Social Security and Medicare for at least 30 years.
- Most folks in their 60s have been paying into Social Security and Medicare for at least 40 years.
It doesn’t matter if they’re white-collar, gray-collar, or blue-collar; if they’ve been working, they’ve been paying into Social Security and Medicare. I have no intention of letting Republicans throw four decades of MY MONEY down the toilet...and I don’t think anyone else is going to be keen on seeing their investment of 10, 20, or 30 years disappear in a puff of Republican StupidityTM.
(Of course, 401(k)s only exist at the whims of the stock and bond markets; another crash could easily wipe folks out. Social Security and Medicare are the ONLY guaranteed retirement benefits we have.)
Don’t forget that this also hits employers; they’ve been paying into our Social Security and Medicare right alongside of us, dollar for dollar. Do you think they want to see their money disappear? We should be bringing this point home to every small business employer in the country: “It isn’t just your employees — Republicans are talking about tossing YOUR contributions into the toilet, too...”
3) “They don’t think they’re going to get Social Security by the time they retire, anyway...”
OK, this may be a side effect of point #1 above, but it’s absolute nonsense. There’s a simple way that they can ensure getting Social Security (and Medicare) in their retirement: VOTE DEMOCRATIC! Again, remind folks that, regardless of their age, Social Security and Medicare are the ONLY guaranteed retirement benefits awaiting them.
4) “Seniors and disabled folks should be our first priority...”
Yes, the folks currently dependent upon Social Security and Medicare should be our first priority, but their votes alone aren’t going to seal the deal; most of us will be dependent upon Social Security and Medicare to some degree when our time comes, so we need to drive that point home across the board. “It’s going to hit seniors and disabled folks first, but it will eventually hit almost all of us if we don’t stop it now” is a solid line of argument.
So, having said all of this, what kind of ammunition can we use to reach people who have no idea what they can expect from their years of investing in Social Security?
Well, as you might know from my comment and diary history here at Daily Kos, I’m a “hard numbers” kind of guy; I’m always looking for real data to inform my thinking, and it just so happens that every single one of us can get personalized Social Security data.
The Social Security Statement gives current estimates of the Social Security benefits you’ll receive, which will depend upon your age at retirement; it also documents your eligibility for survivor’s benefits, Medicare, disability benefits, and more. Here’s a partial sample:
(Here’s the complete sample in PDF format.) Oh, and remember my comment above about Republicans throwing our investment into the toilet? Well, the Statement puts hard numbers behind that, too:
This information is available online; one need only create a my Social Security account. Once the account has been created, it can be used to view one’s yearly statements, manage benefits, work with benefit applications, etc. You’ll also receive yearly email reminders when your new Statement is available, and you can generate a PDF of your personalized Statement at any time.
It’s a good thing to have this set up, and it plays directly into our GOTV efforts; simply tell people how to get access to their statement and challenge them to go see exactly what Republicans want to take away from them. If you’re comfortable sharing bits of your own data, that can make it all the more real to others — “I’ve put more than [$X] into Social Security, and I’ll bet you have, too...”
Republicans want to kill Social Security and Medicare, and they’ll wreck GENERATIONS of Americans by doing so; we need to bring that point home to everyone in the workforce.