Democrats finally admit their Social Security 'assets' hoax

Or, as Investors Business Daily puts it, "Obama Exposes Social Security Big Lie."

The Democrats have been telling us for decades there's no need to do anything about Social Security's finances because there's enough money in its Trust Fund to last decades into the future.

In fact, there is no money in the Social Security Trust Fund. There are government IOUs reminding Congress it spent $2.6 trillion that are supposed to be in that fund on all sorts of things other than Social Security.

IOUs equal nothing. With only those IOUs in the Trust Fund, to come up with that $2.6 trillion, Congress has to do the same thing it would have to do if it had nothing in the Trust Fund. It has to raise taxes or borrow more. In other words, those IOUs are no cash, no asset at all -- worthless.

President Obama made that clear two days ago in the debate over raising the national debt ceiling by Aug. 3. He told CBS News:

"I cannot guarantee that those checks [for Social Security, veterans and the disabled] go out on Aug. 3 if we haven’t resolved this issue, because there may simply not be the money in the coffers to do it.”

In other words, folks, on Social Security the case is closed, the jig is up. If there were something real in the Social Security Trust Fund, if the all the money workers sent in Social Security taxes each year were reserved only for Social Security, there'd be $2.6 trillion in reserve and sending out grandma's checks next month would be no problem.

All savings spent. Because of the Great Recession and reckless government planning, Social Security as of last year no longer is able to cover retirees' benefits with the money that workers pay in taxes. That pay-as-you-go racket also has been exposed.

We were supposed to be saving Social Security's $2.6 trillion for a rainy day, to avoid problems like unrelated national debt. But like every other fund Congress has had its hands on for the past 40 years, it's gone.

Thanks for finally (and accidentally) making that clear, Mr. President.

Punishing fraud. Two months ago, the Social Security trustees issued a report assuring us the Trust Fund had that $2.6 trillion in "assets." In fact, the trustees said the assets had grown by $69 billion in 2010. The report was a fraud.

Now that the fraud has been exposed, it's time for a law punishing Social Security trustees, members of Congress and presidents with life in prison if they tell the public the Social Security Trust Fund has assets when they're referring to money already spent.

Frank Warner

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See also: Dow was at 10,596 when President Bush proposed partial privatization of Social Security on Feb. 2, 2005. On July 15, 2011, Dow was at 12,479.

Even under partial privatization, workers would not have to direct their Social Security payments to the stock market. The payments could go to bonds or money market certificates. But it would be something. As things are, no matter how many years he's worked, each worker has no money, no stock, no bond, nothing in his Social Security account.

Comments

[CJW]

Jan Schakowsky is Confused About Social Security Trust Fund

[Neo]

Perhaps Obama will get over the delusions of economic schizophrenia that keep the Democrats believing that they can continue to spend at current levels merely by taxing the rich. First, the rich aren’t that rich and second, the federal government spending currently is that out of control. There isn’t an endless supply of money out there, even if they tax everybody.
The federal government has achieved the economic “Bridge Too Far” and will eminently lose all those programs that they complain about having to “give up” if they don’t come to grips with reality.

[Kevin]

Aequitas!!!!!

Not all that appropriate, but I had a strong desire to say 'justice' in latin. Thanks for letting me, Frank.

Aequitas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Neo]

Social Security’s trustees, in particular its Managing Trustee, Treasury Secretary Geithner, are entitled to demand that those bonds be redeemed – cashed in – by the Treasury to whatever extent is necessary to provide the money to pay benefits. Because the principal amount of those bonds is part of the debt that is subject to the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling, every dollar of principal paid to redeem the bonds creates room under the ceiling for the Treasury to borrow more money from the public.

This leaves us knowing that Obama lied his ass off in an unnecessary attempt to scare.seniors.

[Frank Warner]

Kevin, thanks for the Latin. We needed that.

[George]

Social Security isn’t a Ponzi scheme; it’s worse.

[CJW]

Flashback: Krugman Says Social Security Has a “Ponzi Game Aspect”