DEMOCRATS' RECORD OF FAILURE: Retirement Security

One of the key planks of House Democrats’ “Six for ‘06” agenda was retirement security, yet they have taken no steps to address the issue during their first 100 days in control of Congress. House Democrats have failed to bring forward any legislation that would strengthen Americans’ retirement security and pointedly refused to address much-needed reforms to strengthen Social Security in their budget proposal.

Everyone knows runaway entitlement spending is unsustainable on its current course. With the retirement of the baby boom generation beginning next year, our current entitlement system represents a looming tsunami that will bankrupt future generations of Americans. And yet, the response from the new Democratic majority is stone, cold silence. The Democratic budget ignores the warnings on entitlements – among other things – and offers no reform to preserve Social Security for future generations.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING ABOUT DEMOCRATS’ FAILURES ON RETIREMENT SECURITY

At a House Budget Committee hearing on January 23, the Democrats’ own witness – David Walker, the Comptroller General of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) – called the rising costs of government entitlements a “fiscal cancer” that threatens “catastrophic consequences for our country” and could “bankrupt America.”

“Delay does not avoid action – it just makes the steps that have to be taken more dramatic and potentially harder. We owe it to our country, to our children and to our grandchildren to address this fiscal imbalance. The world will present them with new challenges – we need not bequeath them this burden too. The time for action is now.”
- GAO Comptroller David Walker testimony, House Budget Committee, January 23, 2007

“Strengthening Social Security and Medicare is the most important step we can take to ensure the retirement security of our children and grandchildren, the long-term stability of the federal budget, and the continued growth of the American economy. I look forward to sitting down with Democrats and Republicans, without pre-conditions, and finding common ground on these critical issues.”
- Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson testimony, House Budget Committee, February 7, 2007

The Democrats’ chose to ignore these warnings and refused to address the issue in their budget proposal – a plan that also includes the largest tax hike in American history. As Budget Committee Ranking Republican Paul Ryan (R-WI) said during March 28 floor debate, “The Democrats heard all of these witnesses, all of these warnings, and they chose to do nothing.”

REPUBLICANS ARE WORKING TO STRENGTHEN AMERICANS’ RETIREMENT SECURITY

Republicans have worked hard to strengthen Americans’ retirement security, not only by working to preserve and expand worker pensions but also proposing to preserve Social Security for future generations. In fact, the Republican budget alternative not only balances the budget without raising taxes, it also includes critical protections for Social Security and sets the table for serious, long term retirement security reforms – something the Democratic majority simply chooses to ignore.

Moreover, Republicans worked closely last year on a bipartisan basis to enact the Pension Protection Act – the most comprehensive overhaul of our worker pension laws in more than 30 years. Workers and retirees deserve pension laws that protect their interests, and these bipartisan reforms will make sure their heard-earned pension benefits will be there when they retire. The positive reviews of the pension reforms continue to roll in, both in safeguarding the retirement security for Americans relying on traditional, defined benefit pension plans but also helping workers save and invest more wisely in 401(k) retirement savings plans. Lastly, the measure will help protect taxpayers from a potential multibillion dollar bailout of the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, which insures worker pension benefits.

In their first 100 days, House Democrats have failed future generations of Americans who will need worker pensions, 401(k) retirement savings plans, and a strengthened Social Security program to ensure they enjoy a prosperous retirement.