Arthur Delaney on the HuffPo:
"Longer term, there has got to be a move outside of that system," Miller told CNN's John King. "Ultimately we want to transfer the power back to the states so that states can take up the mantle of those programs if they so desire."
Miller previously said that the U.S. should "transition out of the Social Security arrangement."
King, noting that Miller's position is something Democrats have pounced on, asked Miller to make himself perfectly clear -- that he wouldn't take away Social Security checks from the people who currently count on them, but that he'd like to do away with the program for future generations. King asked: "Would [a person born the day Miller was sworn in] perhaps grow up in an America where there is not a federal Social Security program if you got your way?"
"Absolutely," Miller said.
I live in an apartment complex for people who are elderly and/or have disabilities. I received a post card for the Miller campaign in the mail Saturday which says it is paid for by the Republican Party. I immediately laughed when I grabbed my mail and threw it on the table on my way out the door because I saw a line on the back that said, “Republican Joe Miller. Keeping Promises.” When I got home I read the rest of it, when I turned it over and read the front I gasped:
Not only has Joe Miller been outspoken about eliminating Social Security, so have many others in the Republican party. The elimination of Social Security is one of their main goals and has been for a long time. They tell the public lies about the stability of the program because they want their wall street corporate buddies to use a program we rely on for a secure retirement or disability to make profits off the public.
The back of the post card said this:
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"The Washington politicians have nearly bankrupt Social Security. I’ll make sure we keep our commitment to seniors while fixing the program for future generations."
Holy Crap. This is an out and out lie about Joe Miller’s stand on Social Security and it comes direct from the Republican Party. It is also a lie about Social Security which is completely intact and solvent until 2037.
Then it goes on:
-Joe’s Plan to Protect Social Security
-Stop the Washington politicians from raiding the Social Security Trust Fund to pay for wasteful government programs.
WTF? This implies two lies. Social Security funds have nothing to do with anything but Social Security, unless laws are passed changing it they can't use the S.S. funds for anything else. He is implying the current majority which would be Democrats, want to "raid" S.S. which is not true. What "wasteful government programs" is he talking about, he thinks they should all be eliminated for being "unconstitutional". The Republicans are the ones who want to “raid” Social Security and they paid for this post card. Embedded in the Republican’s “Pledge to American” is a plan to privatize Social Security. We did not even need that sketchy document to know they plan to destroy the program because so many of them keep telling us just what they plan to do. Now George Bush is saying his biggest regret is his failure to privatize Social Security.
John Nichols for the Nation:
Privatization of Social Security, a longtime GOP priority, was the first focus of former President Bush and the Republican congressional majorities the last time they won an election cycle—in 2004. And, with the scheme to lock in Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy, the only way Republicans will avoid creating the largest deficits in American history is by ending the nation's commitment to its seniors and to its most vulnerable citizens—by gutting Social Security and functional Medicare and Medicaid programs.
"They clearly support privatizing Social Security. They clearly support turning Medicare into a voucher program," says Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz. noting that two key players in the House Republican Caucus—Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan and Virginia Congressman Eric Cantor—have (sic) are busy championing such proposals. "Paul Ryan and Eric Cantor wrote a book about it and are in the middle of a book tour promoting that."
-Keep our commitment to seniors and those nearing retirement.
-Fix the program for future generations.
They don't plan to fix the program for future generations, they plan to privatize it. Just like the insurance companies now get a large portion of our healthcare dollars Wall Street in this kind of scheme would get a large portion of our retirement dollars. Just like the insurance companies deny healthcare claims, they will find ways to deny us part of the money we invest for retirement and disability.
There is nothing to fix. What they think is broken about S.S. is the billionaires who are backing them want to get their hands on the retirement money of the people of the United States. Corporatism's goal is to get to every last source of money the middle class and/or working class can use to help them survive to leech it. Just think how much profit they could make. Then think how much less money you will have when they get their fees from “managing” retirement programs. After the fiascos from Wall Street that have destroyed our economy why would we want them involved in an extremely successful program? Social Security helps protect our economy as well as individuals and whatever goes wrong with out retirement plans we will at least get our Social security benefits. An individual who works and has the money deducted from their pay checks can’t screw that up by lack of planning on their own part.
This is a disgustingly dishonest program of propaganda against a group who are for the most part living on just Social Security. It is also ironic to receive those post cards at this property which is federally run USDA housing. It is a very nice place to live. If it was run by Alaska it would very likely be a slum like so many of the places I have had to live in since being on Social Security. By convincing seniors to vote for him with lies he is pulling a con to get them to vote against not only their own best interests, but the best interests of future generations. Joe Miller thinks Social Security should be eliminated. The Republicans have been busy trying to plant the idea that past generations with the cunning use of Social Security have caused a deficit the younger generations will have to pay off while leaving out obvious causes such as a false war. Social Security is separated from the deficit, it is impossible for it to have contributed to it at all.
An ongoing poll on the online Peninsula Clarion shows Joe Miller ahead. I have seen Murkowski signs with RINO written on them, just to show you the level of class we are dealing with. They have no respect for our Democracy.
Below is what AARP has posted as representative of Joe Miller’s views about Social Security (On the site you have to give them information about where you live to get to candidate info.). This is the accurate picture of what he wants to do with Social Security which is the opposite of what his disgustingly misleading post card says.
Joe Miller: Social Security…has a trust fund or at least it is supposed to have a trust fund and unfortunately the federal government has raided that trust fund to pay for other obligations…So we’re at a point now today where the trust fund doesn’t exist because your elected representatives and senators have spent that money to pay for other programs that frankly the government is not authorized to actually do constitutionally…I think we as elected representatives, congressmen, congresswomen, senators have to work together to bring the country back to where it needs to be, to bring about financial solvency because if we don’t do that, this country is not going to be able to meet the obligations that it’s committed to with our seniors.
The government has not raided the Social Security funds, he is just making up crazy stuff here, lies, lies, and more lies.
Joe Miller: We are not going to reduce Social Security benefits to the current recipients…Our absolute actual debt, in other words the debt that we owe to those who are holding our treasury bills, $13 trillion dollars…So we’ve got to get that debt under control, but we’ve got to maintain the contract with our seniors that are most dependent on it. Now, ultimately there is going to have to be a transition to more of a personalized, privatized system and there are a couple of good plans that are out there. President Bush suggested several years ago to go into a privatization plan. Congressman Ryan has made a plan as well…There is ultimately going to be the need to transition into privatized pensions, privatized plans.
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