[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 23 (Wednesday, March 6, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E289]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  CONGRESS BEARS THE RESPONSIBILITY TO ENSURE THE SOLVENCY OF SOCIAL 
                                SECURITY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 6, 2002

  Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join with my 
colleagues in expressing my concern about the Administration's budget 
and how it jeopardizes the Social Security Trust Fund.
  I would like to begin by reminding my friends that within the last 
year, the overall cumulative surplus has shrunk from $5.6 trillion to 
about $1.6 trillion; this is a difference of approximately $4 trillion 
in one year. Also last month, the Administration expressed the need for 
legislation that would raise the statutory debt ceiling in order to 
prevent a national default. Add the proposal to raid the Social 
Security Trust Fund surplus into this mix, and we have got a situation 
that the Democrats have been warning about and objecting to for the 
last year.
  Mr. Speaker, the war on terrorism and homeland security are very 
important, but so is the economic well being of this country. We will 
support the Administration in the war on terrorism, but we will oppose 
any legislation that disregards the economic well-being and future 
prosperity of our citizens. National security and homeland security can 
be achieved without penalizing, Social Security and Medicare.
  According to a Social Security primer published in September 2001 by 
the Congressional Budget Office, over the next three decades, the 
number of people over 65 years of age will rise by 90 percent, whereas 
the number of people below 65 years of age will rise by only 15 
percent. This is a major demographic shift that will stretch the Social 
Security program to its fullest.
  In his budget for FY 2003, the President is seeking more than $2 
trillion in spending. This implies that for the rest of his term, the 
government will have to consistently dip into the Social Security Trust 
Fund surplus to fund its day to day operations. All this, despite the 
promises made by the Administration last year to leave the Social 
Security surplus untouched. It was in February 2001, in his address to 
the joint session of Congress, that the President stated that his 
budget will protect all $2.6 trillion of the Social Security surplus. 
Other Republicans echoed the same promise. A promise that they are 
trying to break as we speak. With these facts blatantly staring us in 
the face, we should be ensuring Social Security benefits for the public 
and not dissolving them.
  It is true that the American citizens are concerned about national 
and homeland security. But, they are also concerned about their Social 
Security and Medicare benefits. We cannot and should not accomplish one 
at the expense of the other. It is time to keep the promises we made to 
the American public and ensure that the Social Security surplus is 
intact for the benefit of the current and future workforce.

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