Progressives laud Reid on Social Security

Sen. Harry Reid’s full-throated defense of Social Security during a Jan. 9 appearance on “Meet the Press” heartened progressives across the land.

The two-year old Progressive Change Campaign Committee sent an email link of the video to its 700,000 members , posted it to its website, and invited people to send the Senate majority leader from Nevada notes of thanks.

On Thursday in the U.S. Capitol, Reid was presented with a tall stack of 50,000 supportive emails by group co-founder Adam Green and Southern Nevada members Larry Fleisher, 69, of Henderson and David Klutts, 61, of Las Vegas.

Reid at the event called Social Security “ the most successful social program in the history of the world. Because of it, seniors don’t live with fear of retirement . The only fear they have today is that we are going to mess with it.”

But the payment program for the elderly , disabled, widows and orphans has come under increasing pressure exacerbated by the struggling economy. A report this week from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projected Social Security running deficits every year until its trust funds run out in 2037.

Moreover, the leaders of a bipartisan commission created by President Barack Obama suggested last fall that Social Security benefit cuts and increasing the retirement age be made part of a longterm fix.

On the political front, Reid and other Democrats have targeted criticism at Republicans who are talking about reshaping the program, including new House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, who has advocated allowing seniors to invest some of the Social Security in personal investment accounts.

Reid likened the plan to President George W. Bush’s 2005 plan to “partially privatize” Social Security, an effort that went nowhere in the face of strong pushback by Democrats.

“We won that battle,” Reid said. Public polls show people don’t want their benefits determined by the stock market, he said.

“This is only a program in crisis for those who want to privatize it,” Reid said, insisting it will be healthy for decades to come. “I wish my Republican colleagues would understand they are not representing their constituents” by proposing alterations.

“In short as long as I am majority leader I am going to do everything in my legislative powers to prevent privatizing Social Security. I simply say it is off the table,” Reid said.