Paul Ryan Social Security Plan Calls For Private Accounts

[TomCADem]

Source: Huffington Post

WASHINGTON - Mitt Romney's choice of Paul Ryan as his running mate has already reignited the debate over the future of Medicare. Ryan has proposed ending the guaranteed benefit and instead giving individuals vouchers to pay for private insurance, which Ryan refers to as "premium support." By reducing the amount of money that Medicare would pay out over time, the plan reduces its long-term costs in an effort to become solvent without raising taxes or lowering health care costs. But it leaves seniors on the hook should costs rise faster than the value of the vouchers.

It's a proposal strikingly similar to his suggested Social Security reform in 2005, which also relied on shifting risk from society at large to the individual.

Ryan, in a March 2005 interview on C-SPAN, described his Social Security plan in detail. His bill would have allowed people under 55 to divert roughly half of their payroll taxes away from the traditional program and into a private account "owned" by the individual but managed by Social Security, and invested in stocks and bonds. But that plan did not cut any benefits, but brought such an astronomical price tag that the Bush administration called it "irresponsible."

"Individuals own their own retirement accounts that are invested in markets and stock and bond indexes and things like that," Ryan said of his plan. "The system is off the hook to pay you that part of your benefit from those dollars, because you're going to get that benefit out of your personal retirement account. Because the system's off the hook to pay you that benefit, the system reduces its expenditures by that amount, that helps bring the system into solvency."


Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/11/paul-ryan-social-security_n_1767292.html?utm_hp_ref=elections-2012

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Watch the corporate media use words like "bold" and "brave" to describe a plan designed to take from the least politically powerful and give massive tax cuts to the Koch's and Adelson's of the world. Hey, they may even start calling Romney a "Maverick."

[Kingofalldems]

1. George Carlin was right

[BlueJazz]

13. Yep...I know exactly what you're talking about.

...and they'll get it...

[wordpix]

33. link?

[Kingofalldems]

34. Here you go:

[hobbit709]

2. The Republican plan is to do to SS what they did to everyone's IRA.

[Andy823]

6. Yep

Give all to the bankers and wall street and let them "invest" it, or should I say "steal" it!

This didn't work before, and it won't work this time. Only a moron would think that adding Ryan as the VP is going to save Romney's ass.

Romney had a bad week, so he comes out on Saturday morning, I live on the west coast and it was around 6:00 am when I turned on the tv and saw that Romney was going to announce Ryan as his VP pick. So it might take care of the Sunday talks shows, keep them from talking about Romney's terrible week and of course his drop in the polls, and it might last a couple of days next week, but then I think it will become old news. Might bring Romney up a point or two in the polls, but once the Obama camp starts in on Ryan's plans to gut medicare and SS as we know it, privatize it in other words, things will once again focus on what a disaster a Romney Ryan ticket would be for the american people.

Romney will probably go back into "Mittness" protection and make himself unavailable to the press till the convention, but come September the heat will be on them and americans will be demanding to once again see more tax returns from Romney, and asking how Ryan's plans will help anyone but the rich. Mitt went big, at least that's what the media is saying, but to me it looks like one big mistake with the only ones happy being the likes of the Koch brothers, and the moron base of the republican party, and that isn't going to get those two elected!

[Mz Pip]

28. All that talk worked out so well

for the GOP in 2006. Whatever makes them think they can dig this carcass up again and make it run?

This ticket seems to be a replay of 2008. The top of the ticket is a guy that the conservatives don't really trust so they add a looney right winger to balance it out. Didn't work in 2008 and it won't work in 2012.

[dixiegrrrrl]

25. Yep..I agree.

I'm sure that no one has overlooked the fact they crashed the economy just as the Boomers were going to need that retirement money., which had been used by investment firms to rocket the Dow and pad pockets.
And now Ryan wants those under 55 to be stupid enough to do it all over again.

[WinkyDink]

3. Oh, nothing volatile about the Stock Market!

[aquart]

4. Just trust them.

[TomCADem]

20. Remember The Tea Partiers Who Demanded That Obama Keep The Government's Hands Off Their Medicare?

It will cause their heads to explode as Fox News tricks them into defending the Ryan plan.

[KansDem]

35. Yeah! Besides, don't they "self regulate?"

That should eliminate the risk factor, so what could go wrong?

[banned from Kos]

5. Let the fucking VETTING begin!

Paul Ryan - you are now a national figure and fair game!

[Drum]

14. +1

[Justice wanted]

7. So we are back to that "GEM". Where is Rove? Isn't that one of Rove's pet projects?

[SoapBox]

8. THE last thing that I want in my government and budget is

"bold and brave".

I just want common sense.

And when you apply "bold and brave" to the Party of Thug, Bully and Bagger, uh, NO THANK YOU!

[allan01]

9. re:Paul Ryan Social Security Plan Calls For Private Accounts

this felgercarbe again. ronnie tried it . the shrubs tried it . no joy. now this one will try it again . oh when will they ever learn . oh when will they ever learn ? (geeze, there i go dating myself again !!!)

[airplaneman]

10. Serious review of Paul Ryans plan for medicare notes:

one: that people who cannot afford the insuracne will simply not get it.
two: insurance companies would be free to deny anyone medicare that have pre-existion conditions.

[jmowreader]

16. Which means NO ONE will be able to get it

Is there a senior citizen alive who doesn't have at least one pre-existing condition? Seriously: anyone who makes it to 65 is going to have at least high blood pressure or at least one high blood chemistry--cholesterol, triglycerides, blood sugar, something.

Since these vouchers will not be redeemable for cash, anyone who doesn't qualify for insurance or can't afford the "we insure anyone, regardless of pre-existing conditions" so-called-insurance companies (that don't believe in paying claims) will have to return the voucher money to the government, which makes things even cheaper for Paul Ryan than they look on the surface.

[sarcasmo]

17. Republicans hate the living and love the corporations.

[KamaAina]

11. They just lost Florida!

[underpants]

23. I agree in fact a lot of Romney's elderly base

well we both know that the Fox News beleivers will do what ever the pretty blonde ladies tell them to do but for anyone not a believer this is chilling.

[obxhead]

12. "The Bush administration called it "irresponsible."

Wow.

[lovuian]

15. Paul Ryan will bring the Republican Party to Self destruct

the more they talk about Medicare and Social Security the more votes they lose

the women vote is assured to go to the Democrats

[YOHABLO]

18. Individuals own their own retirement accounts that are invested in markets and stock and bond index

Are you f...ing kidding me? Oh yeah, trust the banks to increase your medical savings account for when you or one of your family members is diagnosed with cancer. Let's see how much shall I stash away for that with my minimum wage?

[rocktivity]

19. Sounds like it's time to spin that oldie but goodie

http://agit-pop.com/gallery_item/bush-in-30-years


rocktivity

[midnight]

21. Wall Street darling Paul Ryan can finally hand over our S.S. to the bankers, because they don't

already have enough of our hard earned tax dollars...

[wordpix]

31. AND because their past record is so stellar

[Kablooie]

22. Wow.

So he wants us to pay higher taxes so Wall Street bankers can pay less.

THEN all the money we are forced to pay into Social Security will be given to those Wall Street bankers who will take out their share of management fees whether our investments increase or disappear into nothing.

We'll have to hand over our living expenses and our retirement savings to the same people that already force us to carry all the risk for their risky, irresponsible investments while they take all the profit.

Whew.

If they win you'd better go get a high paying job on Wall Street.
Either that or move to the Antarctic.
I hear that soon the climate there will be great for lounging on the beaches.

[Politicub]

24. No one wants to worry about choosing the "right" investments before they retire

It's absurd to think everyone in the US would make prudent choices.

This proposal sounds like a publicly funded 401k plan, which has been nothing more than a vast Wall Street giveaway.

At least under Pres. Obama, 401k losses from Bushco's era are starting to be erased. If you had a 401k and tried to retire up until 2009, you had less in your account than you started with.

[catbyte]

26. I lost a third of my retirement inthe crash of 2008

and I had to put off retirement for at least 7 years. The GOP can kiss my ass.

[lovuian]

27. And all the people burned in the crash will REMEMBER

they lost money in WALLSTREET

[wordpix]

32. my condolences but remember, you didn't lose it. It's in the hands of the Wall St. casino operators

Some person or group there has your money.

[Javaman]

29. ahh, recycling the stupid. good plan ryan. nt

[wordpix]

30. great, let's put the entire life savings of elderly citizens in the hands of unregulated Wall St.

It's worked so well in the past and Wall St has such a stellar record.