Statement of Sen. Carl Levin on the President's State of the Union Address

Statement of Sen. Carl Levin on the President's State of the Union Address

Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., issued the following statement following the President's State of the Union address.

President Bush failed to offer specific plans for his drastic changes to Social Security and he failed to discuss their costs. Instead, Americans heard a speech long on broad themes and short on details. It unfortunately raises more questions than it answers.

Privatized accounts for Social Security like the President proposed tonight would cost trillions of dollars, using up the Social Security Trust Fund surplus even sooner. At the same time, by privatizing Social Security, we would introduce a crapshoot into the system: there will be winners, and there will be losers. Under the President's proposal, Social Security would no longer be a guarantee for all Americans, but a jackpot for the lucky.

I am prepared to work with the President and Senate Republicans to strengthen Social Security. When we needed to adjust the Social Security system in the 1980s, we acted carefully and thoughtfully - on a bipartisan basis - to help protect Social Security without creating risk or uncertainty for all Americans. We should do so again.

http://levin.senate.gov/newsroom/release.cfm?id=231427