President Bush's Goal 'A Brighter Future'

摘要

Social Security is one of the magnificent governing achievements of the 20th century. Those of us in government have a moral obligation to preserve and strengthen it. In our time, there is a moral imperative to reform it. If we do not, as President Bush noted in his State of the Union address, our children will inherit a bankrupt system. To understand why Social Security faces problems/one must understand how Social Security works. Social Security has never been a savings program. It is, in effect, a "pay as you go" system. Most of the Social Security taxes paid by current workers are used immediately to pay for benefits. Any remaining surplus is spent by the federal government on current programs. No money has ever been actually saved.