Protecting Social Security

By Marjorie Margolies

We need to protect Social Security, now more than ever. Marjorie has spent her career fighting for vulnerable populations, bringing a voice to those who needed it. As a member of Congress, Marjorie will fight to keep Social Security benefits intact while ensuring the program remains solvent and able to help generations of Americans retire with economic security.

Strengthening Social Security is not a new challenge. When I joined Congress over 20 years ago, the situation was daunting. Through a series of measures beginning with passing the Clinton budget in 1993, Congress was able to extend Social Security's solvency for years--but it was not a permanent solution. Today there are calls for continued reforms, and while some go too far (particularly any cuts to benefits), I'll work with anyone in Congress in order to pass sensible improvements necessary to maintain the solvency and integrity of Social Security. These include:
1. Raising the income cap -- Currently, very high earners pay a substantially lower percentage of their income into Social Security. I agree with the bipartisan Simpson-Bowles plan that this inequality should be rectified. It's fundamentally unfair that a family earning fifty-thousand dollars a year has to pay 6.2% of their income while someone making a million dollars a year pays less than 1%. Fixing this is not only fair and just, but would have a substantial impact on the long-term stability of the Social Security trust fund.
2. Protect against benefit cuts -- Over 120,000 residents of the 13th District receive much-needed Social Security benefits, and many more are relying on those benefits being there when they retire. A reduction in these benefits would have a negative impact not just on our seniors, but on our local and national economy, with every dollar in benefits generating almost twice that in economic output.
3. Stop any and all privatization efforts -- As we saw over the course of the recession, retirement accounts relying too heavily on the stock market are more like gambling than a safety net. The intent of FDR's Social Security was to provide support that would always be in place for our retirees. No matter what Republicans say, the great promise of Social Security is to help our seniors endure hard times, not exacerbate them.
4. Reduce the need for a safety net -- Social Security is a vital program, but it doesn't exist in isolation. Retirement planning should extend well beyond Social Security. In my view, a hole in our social safety net is a problem in need of immediate fixing, but a bigger problem is that too many Americans need that safety net in the first place. We need to encourage saving and investing, protect employer-sponsored retirement plans, offer great options for individual retirement accounts, and grow the number of good jobs in the economy that pay wages high enough for workers to both live and save. We'll need experienced, pragmatic legislators to get anything through Congress, but it's a hard road worth traveling. Social Security represents a promise made to every American citizen, and it's a promise I intend to make sure we keep for every senior, every worker, and every child.