
 |
|
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
|
| |
Jewish World Review
May 9, 2005
/ 30 Nisan, 5765
Is Dubya D.C.'s only adult?
By
Debra J. Saunders
| 
|
|
|
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
At first, President Bush tried to lowball his push to partially
privatize Social Security. Or, as Harry Zeeve of the bipartisan
fiscal-watchdog group the Concord Coalition put it, "For 60 days, Bush was
talking about how great private accounts would be, without discussing the
potential for driving the economy off a debt-cliff by borrowing to fund the
accounts."
The American public refused to warm to his half-baked proposal.
(Me, too. I support private accounts, but not without a solid plan to pay
for them.) This left Dubya at a low point, where many other Repubs would
have bashed the Democrats for not even having a plan and then slinked on to
another issue.
Instead, Bush got serious. While 99 percent of Washington pols
have been talking as if Americans have a sacred right to expect something
for nothing, Bush backed a plan by a Democrat, Robert Pozen, called
"progressive indexing." Pozen's plan would maintain Social Security benefit
increases for lower-income workers, while limiting increases for high-income
and middle-income workers, by tying the growth in their benefits to a price
index. The White House claims this plan would fix 70 percent of the system's
projected shortfall.
Bush "definitely put his neck out, and he deserves a lot of
credit for offering a concrete suggestion for how to rein in benefits," said
Zeeve.
No lie. Meanwhile, the Democrats have spent the last two months
acting as if a few tweaks would fix Social Security's woes. They still have
no plan, and they still aren't leveling with the American voter.
The Concord Coalition has put together a series of issues
briefs you can find them at www.concordcoalition.org on just how
close to collapse the system is. The organization notes that while Social
Security "trustees say that Social Security is 'solvent' until 2042," what
they mean is that the government has written IOUs for that amount without
setting aside any money to pay it back.
There is no trust fund. While the trust fund has accumulated
trillions in IOUs, "that just means that the government will owe itself a
lot of money." Money it won't have. Thus, after the year 2018, the federal
government will have to find new money to pay expected Social Security
benefits.
In a statement last week, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi
attacked Bush for saying the "unheard of that he did not intend to pay
the Social Security trust fund back." Pelosi also bashed Bush for cutting
Social Security benefits for the middle class. As if everything would be
hunky-dory without Dubya's plan.
Don't' take my word for it. As The Washington Post reported,
under the Bush-Pozen plan, "workers earning as little as $35,000 a year
would lose a quarter of their promised benefits by 2065, although their
benefit under progressive indexing would be 11 percent larger than the check
Social Security could afford to issue by then."
Democrats say they won't compromise with Bush unless he drops
private accounts, but the voluntary nature of the Bush plan only those
who want private accounts would have them is a compromise.
Besides, shouldn't the Dems welcome a plan that would allow poor
workers, if they sign on, to leave their savings to their loved ones?
Meanwhile, some Republicans are distancing themselves from
progressive indexing, lest they be associated with a cut in benefits for
their constituents. They want private accounts without paying for them, to
supplement government benefits without paying for them.
As Zeeve sees it, Washington has become the land of "do-nothing
Democrats and free-lunch Republicans." He would like to see a Social
Security reform that cuts benefits and raises taxes.
If you ask me, Bush has introduced compromise to the equation by
proposing cuts suggested by a Democrat and proposing cuts that hit the GOP
base. Still, that doesn't mean that Bush is done compromising. It won't help
if Bush is compromising alone. It won't help if compromise means not each
side giving something up, but each side getting what it wants, thanks to
borrowing.
If Democrats won't budge at all not even for a
wealth-weighted plan that offers private accounts only to those who want
them then the system will go broke. And if GOP pols won't agree to
benefit cuts, or won't agree to a modest tax hike, then the country is sunk.
Voters will be part of the problem, too. The left tells its
partisans to demand that any reform leave out private accounts. The right
tells its base to demand no new taxes. What voters should demand, says
Zeeve, is "a return to adult leadership."
That's the only way to win a solid reform.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Comment JWR contributor Debra J. Saunders's column by clicking here.
Debra J. Saunders Archives
© 2005, Creators Syndicate
|
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Jay Ambrose
Michael Barone
Barrywood
Tony Blankley
Lori Borgman
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Richard Z. Chesnoff
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Alan Douglas
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
Frank J. Gaffney
Bernie Goldberg
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Argus Hamilton
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Ron Hart
Nat Hentoff
Marybeth Hicks
David Horowitz
Jeff Jacoby
Renee James
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ed Koch
Ch. Krauthammer
Michael Ledeen
John Leo
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Ann McFeatters
Dale McFeatters
Dana Milbank
Jeanne Moos
Dick Morris
Jim Mullen
Deroy Murdock
Judge A. Napolitano
Bill O'Reilly
Kathleen Parker
Star Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Sharon Randall
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Heather Robinson
Pat Sajak
Debra J. Saunders
Martin Schram
Culture Shlock
David Shribman
Roger Simon
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Ben Stein
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Dan Thomasson
Bob Tyrrell
Ben Wattenberg
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
ZeitGeist
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
Lisa Benson
John Branch
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Glenn Foden
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holbert
Lee Judge
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Jimmy Margulies
Rick McKee
Michael Ramirez
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Ed Stein
Danna Summers
John Trever
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters

Mr. Know-It-All
Dr. Peter Gott
GET A JOB! by Marty Nemko
Richard Lederer
Frugal Living
Tech Maven
On Nutrition
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
|