The Bush Administration is going on the offensive to convince Americans that it knows how to “save” Social Security. The President is saying the system is in crisis, and privatization is the answer.
Democrats are divided between those who insist there is no crisis, and those who want changes — but not the same ones Republicans are advocating.
But beyond twisting lawmakers into knots — what will all this mean for you? If social security is transformed from an insurance program into a system of private investment accounts as the President is advocating, who wins and who loses? And how can the average person figure out which side of the ledger they are going to end up on? Re-calculating retirement, weighing the flash and the allure of the free market against the dull grey security of social insurance.
Guests:
Gene Barrett, retiree from New York
Dustin Lee, law student from Michigan
David Wyss, chief economist at Standard and Poor’s
William Spriggs, economist with the Economic Policy Institute.