AARP Proposals for Resolving Social Security Bankruptcies Non-existent
AARP in its Washington Watch section entitled Budget Cuts Looming in its November 2013 AARP Bulletin disappointedly made no recommendations for restoring the health of the Social Security Retirement program and saving it from bankruptcy. Social Security Disability is projected to be bankrupt by 2016 and Social Security Retirement by 2033. AARP instead resorted to platitudes such as ‘ find fixes (to the budget challenges) that won’t hurt Medicare and Social Security beneficiaries’ or ‘Keep Social Security separate from the rest of the budget and shore up the program without using it to reduce the deficit’ or ‘For Social Security, changes should be discussed only in the context of strengthening Social Security and retirement security’ or ‘We want to make sure that earned Social Security benefits are not used as a piggy bank for the budget debate’. There were no concrete and strong recommendations for restoring the social security programs. To put it very personally (and you readers can do the same for your own circumstances), I will have my social security retirement benefits cut by 23% or more in 2033 when I am 85 and unlikely to be able to work. I am getting nervous and angry. When will AARP put together a solid set of recommendations that will prevent the Social Security programs from going bankrupt in the near future? When will they present these recommendations to Congress and lobby to get them passed and enacted into law. It is time for AARP to act.
Harry Pukay-Martin
