Paul Ryan's Privatization Plan is the same Plan the Koch Brothers published in 1980, then again in 1983, from their propaganda-mill, CATO Institute. I should note here, that the 1980's Koch Brother's Privatization Plan was also the same Privatization Plan President G.W. Bush and Dick Cheney tried to con American's into in 2005.
As you will learn after reading this Diary, the Koch Brother's web of deceit in trying to Privatize America's Social Security has been being woven for 32 years. Paul Ryan and now Mitt Romney are trying to usher in the Koch Brother's 1980's Privatization Scheme.
One important fact to remember about the Romney/Ryan/Koch Privatization Plan is that their Privatization Plan still requires working Americans to pay a payroll tax -- only their payroll tax will not go to the traditional Social Security plan. Under the Romney/Ryan Koch Privatization Plan, the American Worker's payroll tax will go to bankers and insurance companies who would use Taxpayer money to gamble on Wall Street with no guarantee payout.
Remember how much money the People lost in their 401k Retirement Plans during the 2007 Economic Meltdown Bush and Cheney caused?
Paul Ryan Wrote Koch Brother's Privatization Plan into Bills:
2011:
In 2011 Paul Ryan wrote HR 4529 A Roadmap For America's Future Act which was, and is, the Koch Brother's Privatization Plan that would end Social Security and Medicare as we know it. The Romney/Ryan/Koch Privatization Plan would take 5.1% of each working American's Payroll Taxes, who is under 55 years old, and give it to bankers to gamble in stocks and bonds on Wall Street. Sweet deal for bankers, huh? Romney/Ryan/Koch Privatization is tied to inflation.
2010:
In 2010 Paul Ryan wrote HR 6110 which was, and is, the Koch Brother's Privatization Plan that would end Social Security and Medicare as we know it. People under 55 years old would have half of their Payroll Taxes, 6.2% diverted away from the traditional Social Security program and put their Payroll Tax money into private Banks to be invested in stocks and bonds.
2005:
Paul Ryan has been trying to get the Koch Brother's Privatization Plan into law since at least 2005. In 2005, Paul Ryan and Senator John Sununu (son of Mitt Romney surrogate John Sununu) wrote HR 1776 (neat number, huh?) titled, Social Security Personal Savings Guarantee and Prosperity Act of 2005 that would have had people under 55 years old divert roughly half of their Payroll Taxes, 6.2%, away from the traditional Social Security program and put their Payroll Tax money into private banks to invest in stocks and bonds.
Ryan says his plan would guard against wild swings in the Stock Market by moving people out of Stocks and into Government Bonds as they approached retirement.
Paul Ryan fails to address the risk a Romney/Ryan-Type of government issued bonds (government currency) would cause.
Romney/Ryan-Type Government Bonds would be Very Risky:
Government Bonds are supposed to be risk-free because the government can raise Taxes in order to redeem the Bond at maturity. Both Romney and Ryan have signed Grover Norquist's Pledge to never raise taxes so a Romney/Ryan-Type Government Bond would not be risk-free as they would not really be backed by the government with a guaranteed sum at face value at the time the Bond was issued because both Romney & Ryan pledged to never raise taxes. Basically the Bond would not have a guaranteed redeem rate upon maturity.
Added Risk to Romney/Ryan-Type Government Bond
In 2011, Paul Ryan and the GOP let America Default. Government Bonds are tied to the strength of a government's currency and ability to pay their Debts. Under a Ryan-Type Government Bond, the elderly would have lost all they had when Paul Ryan and the GOP allowed America to Default and lose it's credit rating.
As you can see, Paul Ryan has been trying to pass the Koch Brother's Privatization Plan into law for many, many years. It's unclear who owned who first. Did Koch Brother's
buy Paul Ryan in order to have their Privatization Plan passed into law or did Paul Ryan just happen to read the Koch Brother's 1983 Privatization Plan and agree with it?
Below I outline the 1980's Privatization Plan the Koch Brothers published and I hope you spot the similarities.
HISTORY:
1980:
In 1980 David Koch ran for Vice President on the ticket with Ed Clark.
The Clark/Koch Platform promised to:
Abolish Social Security,
Abolish Welfare,
Abolish the Federal Reserve Board,
Abolish Minimum-Wage laws,
Abolish Corporate Taxes,
Abolish the FBI and CIA and,
Abolish limits on campaign spending
... (sound familiar?)
1980:
Also, in 1980, the Koch Brothers paid their then-CATO employee, Peter Ferrara, to pen the Koch Privatization Plan and to "sell" it to the American public by calling it, "Family Security Plan". (So please, do not be surprised if you start hearing the Romney/Ryan/Koch Privatization Plan called, "Family Security Plan.")
1983:
Reagan Pissed off Privatization Supporters:
In 1983 President Ronald Reagan dramatically raised Payroll Taxes, Social Security/Medicare Taxes, on employees and employers. And -- and -- in addition to raising the Payroll Taxes, Reagan brought in a whole new class of recipients, new federal workers, to the system. Not only that, Reagan's Security/Medicare Tax was not tied to inflation.
At that time, former Koch employee, Peter Ferrara, was actually working in Reagan's Administration but Ferrara quit the Reagan Administration after Reagan raised Payroll Taxes.
You see, naturally, when Reagan embraced Social Security and Medicare by raising Payroll Taxes and added Federal workers to the system Peter Ferrara got pissed off and quit.
1983:
Koch Brothers re-publish Their Privatization Scheme in Outline Form:
The Koch Brothers also got pissed off at Reagan for securing Social Security/Medicare for all generations so they, in 1983, used their propaganda-mill, the CATO Institute, to re-publish Peter Ferrara‘s 1980 Privatization Plan only this time, they published the piece in an Outline form so politicians could use it to eliminate Social Security/Medicare once and for all.
Ferrara's plan, re-published by Koch Brothers, required dividing the Public:
First, we must recognize that there is a firm coalition behind the present Social Security system, and that this coalition has been very effective in winning political concessions for many years. Before Social Security can be reformed [Privatized], we must begin to divide this coalition and cast doubt on the picture of reality it presents to the general public.
~Peter Ferrara 1980 quote in Achieving A "Leninist" Strategy Published in CATO (page 2 of 15)
Follow the Money:
Ferrara's plot required conspiring with Corporations who would
gain the most financially from Privatization. Therefore, those who benefit the most financially should donate money to groups who would run ads to con the American people with.
What we must do is construct a coalition around the Ferrara plan, a coalition that will gain directly from its implementation. That coalition should consist of not only those who will reap benefits from the IRA-based private system Ferrara has proposed but also the banks, insurance companies, and other institutions that will gain [Financially] from providing such plans to the public.
~Koch Brother's Achieving A "Leninist" Strategy Published in CATO in 1983
Ferrara called his Scheme: “Family Security Plan” because he knew that calling it what is really is, “Banks Take-Over Social Security/Medicare” the Public would not go for it.
Phase-In Process:
The published Ferrara Plot involved a phase-in process for a Private Pension plan so that no one would really see it coming.
We must press for modest changes in the laws and regulations designed to make private pension options more attractive. In so doing, we will strengthen the coalition for Privatizing Social Security and we will weaken the coalition for retaining or expanding the current system. By approaching the problem in this way, we may be ready for the next crisis in Social Security—ready with a strong coalition for change [Privatization], a weakened coalition supporting the current system, and a general public familiar with the private-sector option.
~Koch Brother's Achieving A "Leninist" Strategy Published in CATO in 1983
Ryan's Phase-In Process:
When fully phased in, the personal accounts will average 5.1% of the current 12.4% Social Security Payroll Tax. The personal investment component is phased in to allow a smooth transition.
~Paul Ryan's Phase-In Plan
Sell It To The Elderly:
Koch Brother's plot involves conning those 65 and older into supporting Privatization for
younger people.
The sine qua non (main element) of any successful Social Security reform strategy must be an assurance to those already retired or nearing retirement that their benefits will he paid in full.
Instead of spreading widespread panic among our elderly, which will only undermine our efforts to reform the system, we should acknowledge the system’s liabilities as a total writeoff.
Koch Brothers tell politicians how to "sell" Privatization to the elderly:
From a purely political standpoint, it should be remembered that the elderly represent a very powerful and vocal interest group.
The political power of the elderly will only increase in the future. The proportion of the population over 65 will rise steadily, from 11.3% today to 18.3% by 2030. So any proposal aimed at cutting benefits will face increasingly stiff opposition from the elderly, undermining the prospects for genuine reform. Any plan to change the system must therefore he neutral or (better still) clearly advantageous to senior citizens. By accepting this principle, we may succeed in neutralizing the most powerful element of the coalition that opposes structural reform.
Paul Ryan Uses Koch's "Sell It To The Elderly" Approach:
[P]ersons now retired and receiving Social Security benefits, and those currently 55 and older, will remain in the existing system and will receive their promised benefits.
~Paul Ryan's Sell it to the Elderly scheme
Koch Brothers Outline Additional Plan for Politicians:
[A] political strategy to achieve basic reform of the Social Security system in the fashion suggested by Peter Ferrara. There are two main elements to this strategy.
The first element consists of a Campaign to achieve small legislative changes that embellish the present IRA system, making it in practice a small-scale private Social Security system that can supplement the federal system. As part of this campaign, the natural constituency for an enlarged IRA system must be identified and welded into a coalition for political change.
The second main element in our reform strategy involves what one might crudely call guerrilla warfare against both the current Social Security system and the coalition that supports it.
The Koch Brothers tell Bankers to "sell" the public on Privatization since bankers will benefit financially from getting the American Worker's Payroll Taxes to gamble with on Wall Street.
Not only does business have a great deal to gain from a reform effort designed to stimulate private savings, but it also has the power to be politically influential and to be instrumental in mounting a public education campaign.
Clearly, an important thread running through the entire strategy is education. An education Campaign is needed to gain the support of key individuals in the media as well as to win over vital constituencies for political reform. The Banking industry and other business groups that can benefit from expanded IRAs must be encouraged to play a central role in educating the public about the benefits of the private plan. They can do this both through their commercial advertising and through public relations.
Fast-Forward to 2005
In 2005, when George W. Bush and Dick Cheney tried to usher in the Koch's Privatize Plan. Karl Rove and Bush/Cheney Adviser Charles P. Blahous III began using the ploys in the Koch's 1980's outline and began getting GOP donors to raise $50 Million each for their Privatization Campaign.
At the time, Jim VandeHei wrote in the Washington Post the ways Bush/Cheney were using Koch's plot to get bankers and insurance companies to fund the Privatization Campaign:
Washington Post 2005:
President Bush's political allies are raising Millions of dollars for an election-style Campaign to promote private Social Security accounts.
[T]he White House are asking the same donors who helped reelect Bush to fund an extensive Campaign to convince Americans -- and skeptical lawmakers -- that Social Security is in crisis and that private accounts are the only cure.
Progress for America, an independent conservative group [founded by Karl Rove's friend, Tony Feather] that backed Bush in the campaign, has set aside about $9 Million to support the president's Social Security plan as well as other White House domestic priorities in the new year, said spokesman Brian McCabe. The group is asking its donors for much more, he said.
Stephen Moore, head of the conservative Club for Growth, has raised $1.5 million and hopes to hit a $15 million target when his fundraising drive ends.
Other likely contributors include the Financial Services and Securities Industries and other Fortune 500 companies, GOP officials say. White House officials, led by Karl Rove and Charles P. Blahous III, the president's policy point man on Social Security, are helping to shape the public relations Campaign.
"It could easily be a $50 Million to $100 Million cost to convince people this is legislation that needs to be enacted," Stephen Moore said. "It's going to be expensive" because "it's the most important public policy fight in 25 years," he said.
Yep, Moore was correct, 1980 was when the Koch Brothers first published their Privatization Scheme and 25 years later was 2005.
The Washington Post went on to explain the other Koch Brothers Privatization elements Bush/Cheney were using:
Republicans are expediting their fundraising plans after learning that AARP, the influential seniors group that supported Bush's Medicare program but opposes his Social Security designs, will spend $5 Million in the first two weeks of this month attacking the president's plan to allow younger workers to invest part of their Social Security contributions in the stock market.
Both sides say the fight could eventually become the most expensive lobbying Campaign Washington has witnessed because the stakes are so high for Businesses and taxpayers and the issue is so complex for most Americans.
Bush and his GOP allies want to change the system by allowing some workers to put a percentage of their Payroll Taxes into Private investment accounts.
Republicans inside and outside the White House said Bush plans to ask Congress to allow younger Americans to put at least 6.2% Payroll Tax into Private accounts
Corporations will do much of their work through a group called the Alliance for Worker Retirement Security, which operates out of the National Association of Manufacturers headquarters here and was once headed by Blahous III.
Make no mistake about it, Peter Ferrara's, and the Koch Brother's ultimate goal was to, and is to, end and eliminate Social Security because they absolutely loathe everything about Social Security
“Under traditional principles of equity, therefore, the social security compact between the generations is unfair, immoral, fraudulent, and voidable.”
~Peter Ferrara thoughts on Social Security in 1980.
The use of the word, "voidable" highlights and underscores that Koch Brother's then-employee Peter Ferrara think the Social Security system does
not have the force of law, and the system does
not have to pay its retirees their benefits.
The Koch Brothers, through their CATO, have been screaming since 1980 that Social Security will go belly-up, and they have been wrong every time. In March, 1992, Koch's released Cato Policy Report 14 with the provocative title: “Will the Social Security System Survive till 2001?”
Chile's Privatization Scheme and the Koch Brothers:
1995: Koch Brother's Employ Author of Chile's Failed Privatization Plan:
In 1995, Koch Brother's through CATO established the Project for Social Security Privatization. They brought in George Shultz, the butcher of Chile’s Social Security system and Jose Pinera, to be co-chairman. (In 1973, Shultz’s network installed General Pinochet as dictator of Chile in a coup-massacre) and in 1981, under those conditions, Pinera privatized the Chile’s Social Security system, which banks have since looted.
Chile Failed Privatization Plan:
Chile's Social Security System has left over half it's citizens penny-less.
Sebastián Piñera, the brother of José Piñera said during the presidential candidacy in 2006:
Chile's Social Security system requires deep reforms in all sectors, because half of Chileans have no pension coverage, and of those who do, 40% are going to find it hard to reach the minimum level.
Hmmm... so in less than 15 years of Chile Privatizing Social Security, over half their citizens
have no pension coverage ... neat.
Koch's Chilean Privatization Scheme For America is Pretend Workers have a Choice:
In 1997, Koch's paid Jose Pinera to 'sell' Privatization Plan through CATO:
Chile allowed every worker to choose whether to stay in the state-run, pay-as-you-go social security system or to put the whole payroll tax into an individual retirement account. For the first time in history we have allowed the common worker to benefit from one of the most powerful forces on earth: compound interest.
We [Chile Government] guaranteed benefits for the elderly -- we told those people who had already retired that they had nothing to fear from this reform. We also told people entering the labor force for the first time that they had to go to the new system.
Today, all workers in Chile are capitalists, because their money is invested in the Stock Market.
~ Jose Pinera; Chile's Social Security Lesson For the U.S. Published in CATO Institute
Paul Ryan echos Chile's Pinera in Ryan's Privatization Scheme:
The choice of personal retirement accounts is entirely voluntary. Even those under 55 can remain in the current system if they choose. Further, those who choose to enter the personal account system also have an opportunity to leave the system
Individuals 55 and older will remain in the current system and will not be affected by this proposal in any way: they will receive the benefits they have been promised.
This proposal [Privatization Scheme] strengthens the retirement safety net by providing Workers with the voluntary option of investing a portion of their FICA Payroll Taxes into personal savings accounts.
~Paul Ryan echoing Chile's Pinera in Ryan Privatization Plan
Yes, Jose, all Chileans are capitalists and your brother admitted that
half of those Chileans have no pension coverage.
Chile's Income Inequality:
Not only do half Chilean people have no pension, the income inequality is staggering.
As Felipe Kast, former minister of planning and cooperation under President Piñera, said, these levels of inequality in a country with Chile’s growth are a “social embarrassment.”
~The Inequality Behind Chile's Prosperity (Nov 2011)
It's obvious to me why the Koch Brothers and the GOP chant how awesome the Chile Privatization Plan is and that's why America should adopt it -- it's because
Americans have no idea that half Chilean's have no pension plan due to Privatization.
I don't think Koch's or Romney or Ryan or any of the Pro-Privatization chanters really give a damn if Social Security goes belly-up, in fact, as much as they hate Social Security one would think they would pray Social Security went belly-up.
The Koch Brother's and Ryan and Romney and all the Pro-Privatization chanter's real Agenda is to get their hands on American Worker's Payroll Taxes so they, and their multi-millionaire buddies can gamble American's Payroll Taxes on Wall Street.
So the next time you hear: Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan, Karl Rove or any of their PACS say current seniors won't be touched, it's just those folks under 55 years old who will have to give 5.1% - 6.2% of their Payroll Taxes to bankers to gamble on Wall Street and cross their fingers that another 2007 Economic Meltdown does not occur ... Just remember, these people want to Privatize Social Security and Medicare so the rich can get richer by gambling with American Workers Payroll Taxes. They do not give one flying fig about what happens to the workers -- so I suggest, and hope no one buys what these greedy bastards are 'selling.'
I apologize for the length of this Diary, but, given the size of the web of deceit the Koch Brother's have woven over 32 years -- took a lot of penning.
