The Attacks Work

From USA Today:

USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds that a majority of retirees say they expect their current benefits to be cut, a dramatic increase in the number holding that view. And a record six of 10 non-retirees predict Social Security won’t be able to pay them benefits when they stop working.

Skepticism is highest among youngest workers: Three-fourths of those 18 to 34 don’t expect to get a Social Security check when they retire. ...

The downbeat outlook reflects “all the attacks on Social Security that we have this total crisis in the program,” says Alicia Munnell, director of the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. What’s more, she says, “the fear and distrust as a result of the financial collapse and the Great Recession has spilled over into people’s expectations generally, that you can’t count on anything.”