Social Security is not going bankrupt, contrary to the President's claims. That is a deception perpetrated in order to create the urgency for radical changes. Under conservative forecasts, the long-term challenges in Social Security do not manifest themselves until 2042. Even then, Social Security would be able to pay 70 percent of full benefits without a single change.

George Bush's scam would pay for the private accounts by making massive cuts in future retirees’ Social Security benefits. Privatization pays for itself by diverting Social Security taxes (that are currently being used to pay benefits) into private accounts. Without that steady stream of taxes, benefit payouts will have to be cut by up to 46% in the future.

Privatization means trillions of dollars of new national debt. Social Security works like this: younger workers pay for the retiring generation. The Republicans know that the public wouldn’t look favorably on any proposal that cut current retirees’ benefits. So with the Republican scam, we’ll incur trillions of dollars of new national debt, all to pay for a risky, potentially disastrous and unneeded privatization. This means huge deficits—as high as $15 trillion over the next 40 years.

The Republican scam would turn a guaranteed benefit into a guaranteed gamble. The stock market is risky and can't be predicted—that could mean millions of people won't have the money they need when they need it. The benefit cuts alone could create widespread senior poverty, but imagine what would happen if there was a stock market drop or crash. This country would have a generation of retirees with no safety net, who would have to depend on their children for their every need, or go on welfare, or just keep working in order to survive.

We all agree that Social Security should be strengthened for the future. Social Security is a fantastic American accomplishment and one of the best examples of people working together for the greater benefit of all. With Social Security intact, we never again have to be a country with millions of people suffering through a penniless old age. We all want Social Security to remain solvent for generations to come. Minor, bi-partisan changes can accomplish that. But the Republican privatization scam will not solve Social Security’s problems: it will cut benefits, gut a sound program and burden future generations with trillions of dollars of new debt.