LETTER: Both parties are hypocritical on entitlements

I am collecting Social Security, and it is an important piece of my retirement income. That said, hands off Social Security has become a slogan for both parties because any attempt to rationally discuss how to keep the program solvent is framed by the other side as cutting benefits and throwing grandma off the cliff.

But any position advocating that we not touch Social Security is exactly the same as being in favor of automatic cuts in the next decade. When the trust fund goes empty in 10 to 12 years, all payments will be automatically reduced by about 25 percent to the level where annual taxes received can cover benefits paid. The only way to avoid this is to reduce payouts — either through current benefit cuts or delaying the start of benefits to those not yet collecting — or to increase payroll taxes on workers and employers.

Why do so many politicians want “hands off” to guarantee automatic cuts? It’s because that way they can allow cuts to go into effect and not be blamed. It will all be the fault of the politicians who last reformed the program in 1983.

The progressives want Social Security to go broke to use the panic to ram through massive tax increases. The conservatives want Social Security to go broke force benefits reduced to match incoming payroll taxes.