Democrat Seeks Panel on Bolstering Social Security
From The Wall Street Journal:
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the Senate's No. 2 Democrat, said Wednesday he would ask lawmakers to create a commission to recommend ways to shore up the finances of Social Security.
A commission would remove negotiations over the retirement program from the broader discussion in Congress of what changes to taxes, entitlement programs and other federal spending should be enacted to reduce the deficit. Separating Social Security from those emerging discussions could prove to be a contentious idea.
Mr. Durbin envisions an 18-member commission, with six people appointed by President Barack Obama and the remaining 12 divided equally between House and Senate lawmakers. The task force would have to come up with 14 votes for Congress to consider the plan.
A Social Security commission in the early 1980s led by Alan Greenspan, who later went on to be Federal Reserve chairman, proposed benefit cuts and other changes that were credited with placing the system on firmer footing. But recent panels charged with solving fiscal problems have failed. The 2010 Simpson-Bowles deficit panel failed to advance a sweeping debt-reduction plan. Now, Mr. Durbin is trying to line up co-sponsors to test whether a panel with a narrower mandate could succeed.
Mr. Durbin was a first-term lawmaker when the Greenspan commission's recommendations were put to a vote. New to Congress in 1983, Mr. Durbin said he was in a "cold-sweat panic" when he found out he would have to vote to increase the retirement age to 67 from 65. He voted for it—and was re-elected.
One lesson, he said, is to move forward on tough changes with support from both parties. "There wasn't anyone who lost the election over that issue. Why? It was bipartisan," he said.
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the Senate's No. 2 Democrat, said Wednesday he would ask lawmakers to create a commission to recommend ways to shore up the finances of Social Security.
A commission would remove negotiations over the retirement program from the broader discussion in Congress of what changes to taxes, entitlement programs and other federal spending should be enacted to reduce the deficit. Separating Social Security from those emerging discussions could prove to be a contentious idea.
Mr. Durbin envisions an 18-member commission, with six people appointed by President Barack Obama and the remaining 12 divided equally between House and Senate lawmakers. The task force would have to come up with 14 votes for Congress to consider the plan.
A Social Security commission in the early 1980s led by Alan Greenspan, who later went on to be Federal Reserve chairman, proposed benefit cuts and other changes that were credited with placing the system on firmer footing. But recent panels charged with solving fiscal problems have failed. The 2010 Simpson-Bowles deficit panel failed to advance a sweeping debt-reduction plan. Now, Mr. Durbin is trying to line up co-sponsors to test whether a panel with a narrower mandate could succeed.
Mr. Durbin was a first-term lawmaker when the Greenspan commission's recommendations were put to a vote. New to Congress in 1983, Mr. Durbin said he was in a "cold-sweat panic" when he found out he would have to vote to increase the retirement age to 67 from 65. He voted for it—and was re-elected.
One lesson, he said, is to move forward on tough changes with support from both parties. "There wasn't anyone who lost the election over that issue. Why? It was bipartisan," he said.
posted by Sid Cottingham | 5:59 AM
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