Republicans target Social Security disability They say new limits will force Congress to fix the ailing program. Liberals see a ploy to weaken all of Social Security.
Like Mrs. O’Leary’s cow, House Republicans kick-started a bigger fire than many imagined with an opening day rules change that revived Social Security as a hot issue for this Congress — and the 2016 presidential elections.
The GOP’s immediate target is Social Security’s sprawling disability insurance program, which has grown at a pace far beyond its revenues and will exhaust its trust fund reserves by December 2016, threatening a 19 percent cut in benefits.
In the past, Congress has simply shifted revenues from Social Security’s larger retirement account to fill holes in the disability fund. But the new House rule throws up a roadblock by creating a point of order against any such bill that does not improve the “actuarial balance” of the combined funds.
“What we want to do is not kick the can down the road anymore,” said Rep. Sam Johnson (R-Texas), who
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Poster Comment:
This situation would not have occurred without the self-destructive "free trade" policies that undermined, downsized and outsourced the wealth creating manufacturing sector that once supported these retirement and disability benefits.
Free Trade is not only an economic war against the American Middle Class, but also against our elderly and disabled.
