Lets Make a Deal?

Lets not.

The Rs are going down on the Soc Security fight and are now looking for a deal that can let them claim victory. We cannot allow this to happen.

From today's WaPo

....As described in interviews, most of these compromises would involve Bush significantly scaling back his proposals for restructuring the popular benefits program. In exchange, he could still claim an incremental victory on what he has described as his core principles: enhancing the long-term solvency of Social Security and giving younger Americans options to invest more of their retirement money.

In one example, Rep. E. Clay Shaw (news, bio, voting record) Jr. (R-Fla.) said, a compromise might involve merging Bush's proposal with plans -- some backed by Democrats -- that create government-subsidized savings plans outside Social Security. Under this scenario, Bush's proposal to divert 4 percent of an individual's Social Security payroll tax would become 2 percent or less.

"The president could claim a real victory just by getting personal accounts," said Shaw, who has shared his ideas with Vice President Cheney and White House senior adviser Karl Rove. "It may be that a hybrid" is the key to compromise.

There is no need for private accounts in any form. We already have 401(k)s, standard IRAs, Roth IRAs, deferred compensation plans, KEOGHs and no doubt a litany of plans I've never heard of. These plans allow hundreds of billions of dollars of income to be exempted from income taxes.

The Rs seek a compromise because they are defeated and any type of account will allow them 'a nose in the tent.' Set the accounts up now allowing just a small diversion from Soc Security this year, and in a few years,....Any money they can take out of social security will weaken the financial security of the system which will allow them future opportunities to claim crisis and system failure. They have to undermine the system to end it, and will do so any way possible.

Never mind that we can't pay our bills now, much less if we start funding with tax dollars private savings accounts.