Vaibhav Menon
Ms. Duquette
AP U.S. Government
14 November 2010
Issue Paper- Social Security Reform
Social Security Reform may not seem as important as the Health Care Overhaul the Democrats passed, however the issues surrounding it are similar and as important as Obama Care. Concerns of Social Security range from government expense to who benefits. The first problem of Social Security is that it is being strained by the baby boomer generation, and many fear that the government might stop providing this service due to the excessive spending by the government, which in turn raises taxes of the main populace (US Liberal). Over the years, the government has tried keeping the benefits of Social Security by cutting down on pensions and increasing federal taxes, however the burden of expenses has caused some politician to think about canceling the whole program (Hub Pages). However, the Democrats and Republicans have different goals for the program. The Democrats insist that Social Security is an important aspect of many senior citizen's lives, they argue that pension is necessary because after people have worked hard their whole lives they deserve to live retirement in ease (On the Issue). The goal supported by Democrats will cause the keep the same pension per person, but the total budget for the whole program will increase because more people are meeting the requirement for social security. The aspect of spending more when we have nothing has caused some Republicans to suggest that people should privatize their pensions, they argue that this action would reduce the burden of government and improve the economic status (On the Issue and The Hill).
The other significant problem for Social Security is caused by the recession the United States is experiencing right now (Hub Page). The government attained its deficit by attempting countless ways to improve both the economy and the welfare of the people. As we can observe now, the result was only a small improvement in the economy and a debt that is frightening many adults. However, another result of the debt are the reforms some politicians are thinking about. One important reform that politicians are considering is increasing the eligibility age for retirement (Brookings). The reason why politicians are considering increasing the eligibility age is because eligibility is because it is one of the main features of the pension plan of Social Security. The solution of increasing the retirement age over a shorter amount of time would reduce government spending and also provide aid to people who are eligible. Politicians should also consider this solution because citizens who already benefit will not lose their pension, and also because if people plan on retiring and are not eligible to do so, all they have to do is to work for couple of more years or retire on their savings.
We can observe that both parties have different solutions for the different Social Security reforms listed above. However, we can observe that the Democrats want to help senior citizens by keeping the benefits of Social Security and suggest reducing the deficit by changing the program and cutting the budget of other programs that are not necessary. While the Republicans, who have the same goal, wish to hand over pension plans to private companies to alleviate the burden of government and increase government prosperity. There are flaws for both these solutions, a flaw in the Democratic solution is where cutting a programs budget may actually hurt some people who are dependent on it, while a flaw in the Republican solution is that different people are receiving different pensions and also pay for the service. There are always flaws, but a reform is only the beginning of improving our livelihood.
Bibliography:
- Democratic Party. "2006 Democratic Party Congressional Promise." On The Issue. 10 Feb 2010. 14 Nov 2010. http://ontheissues.org/Celeb/Democratic_Party_Social_Security.htm
- White, Debroh. "Liberalism 101: Democratic Party on Retirement Security." About.com Guide. 2010. 14 Nov 2010. http://usliberals.about.com/od/theeconomyjobs/a/RetireAgenda.htm
- Republican Party. "Republican Platform adopted at GOP National Convention Aug 12, 2000." On The Issue. 10 Feb 2010. 14 Nov 2010. http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Republican_Party_Social_Security.htm
- Rushing, Tyler J. "Udall: Social Security reform 'should be on the table'." The Hills Blog. 11 Nov 2010. 14 Nov 2010. http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/128849-udall-social-security-reform-should-be-on-the-table
- Burtless, Gary. "Increasing the Elgibility Age for Social Security Pensions." Brooking. 15 July 1998. 14 Nov 2010. http://www.brookings.edu/testimony/1998/0715saving_burtless.aspx
- CherlyTheWriter. "Recession: What is it and How did we get here?". HubPages. 20 Feb 2009. 14 Nov 2010. http://hubpages.com/hub/Recession-What-is-it-and-How-did-we-get-there
