Word: reformer
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Just two days after the election, President George W. Bush was already teeing up the mother of all political issues, Social Security reform, declaring it a top priority for his second term. In a bold admission, Bush warned that "there are going to be costs." No other President or candidate for the office has been willing to say it so plainly and then tackle the issue head on--even though Social Security's looming insolvency has been apparent for decades. It's a daring gambit on Bush's part, and he can expect a difficult fight. But he has made...
...surprisingly, Bush faces daunting arguments against these reforms on multiple fronts--political, social and financial. Personal savings accounts "weaken the system because they dismantle the system," asserts Barbara Kennelly, head of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare. "They hurt the economy. They put workers' retirement at risk." Millions of taxpayers in Britain opted into a comparable system in recent years and, amid a poor investment climate, fared worse than those who stuck with the old state-run pension system. The government ended up cutting incentives to shift into private accounts, and unscrupulous financial advisers put many workers...
Bush has in hand a 2001 blue-ribbon President's commission report that concluded that personal accounts can work as part of a long-term fix. The commission's work is expected to be the starting point for reform discussions. A member of the commission, Robert Pozen, CEO of mutual-fund firm MFS Investment Management, says he believes future benefits must be cut to fix the system. He endorses personal savings accounts as "the sugar to get people to accept some slowdown in the growth of benefits." So far, advocates of reform have promised that people near or at retirement...
Social Insecurity Will the President's plan reform or ruin Social Security...
...Electoral College was set up to give the small states a voice and has done a marvelous job of achieving its purpose. If the Electoral College were abolished, would presidential candidates ever visit the less populous states? Probably not. The Electoral College is still valuable. It may need some reform, but it should not be eliminated. JANICE SMITH Philadelphia...