The National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI) and the Rockefeler Foundation sponsored a survey on Social Security. Here are a few excerpts:
Three-quarters of Americans say it is critical to preserve Social Security even if it means that working Americans have to pay higher taxes to do so ...
[A]n overwhelming number – 90 percent – want Congress to act within the next two years to preserve Social Security. ...
Three times as many Americans say that we spend not enough on Social Security (45%) as believe that we spend too much (15%). ...
Ninety percent of Americans say they are concerned about the program’s ability to pay benefits for the next generation. Just 44% of non-recipients say they’re confident that Social Security will be available to them when they retire ...
83% support lifting the Social Security tax cap so that all workers pay the same payroll tax rate, regardless of income.
70% support dedicating the estate tax solely to Social Security.
69% support adding a 5% tax on families earning over $250,000 and individuals earning more than $125,000. ...
78% support extending benefits for “children whose working parents have died or become disabled from the current cut off of 19 years to 22 years old if the child is in college or vocational school.”
76% support increasing benefits “by $50 a month for recipients over the age of 85 because they generally depend more heavily on Social Security.”
76% support improving “benefits for widowed spouses of low income working couples who generally have inadequate benefits from lifelong low-pay work.”
69% support “guaranteeing that Social Security benefits for steady workers exceed the poverty line, even if workers choose to receive early benefits at the age of 62.”
64% support “counting the time that working parents take off to care for children toward workers’ future Social Security benefits so they do not receive lower benefits because of this gap in paid work.” ...
[T]wo out of three Americans (65%) agree “we should increase Social Security benefits because millions of Americans have lost savings and pensions in the current economic crisis
So most people want the government to give them more money, and want people with more money than themselves to pay for it. I'm shocked. Who knew.
ReplyDeleteHow many of those who approve of SSA shelling out more money every month would be willing to say, "Sure, go ahead, take more money out of my paycheck and give it to someone else."?
ReplyDeleteApparently a majority of people would be willing. Doesn't jibe with your view of things, but it seems to be what the survey is saying, and saying rather emphatically.
ReplyDeletePeople are concerned that there won't be enough money to pay current promised benefits but the majority want more generous benefits offered to select groups only to be paid by higher taxes on the people earning the most money. And 2/3 think that the government should come up with even more money from who knows where to pay for the excesses of the past?
ReplyDeleteOur poor grandchildren. We sure want to heap alot of debt on them.