[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 14527]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 THE REPUBLICANS' SOCIAL SECURITY PLAN

  (Mr. DeFAZIO asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, every working day, every salary and wage-
earning American will pay 6.2 percent, or 12.4 if they are self-
employed, of their salary to Social Security, that is, up to the first 
$90,000. That is creating a $168 billion surplus, which is being 
borrowed and spent by this administration, some of it to give tax 
breaks to the wealthiest among us.
  Now the Republicans have a new plan. Here is what Congressional 
Quarterly says: ``The House version essentially counts the Social 
Security surplus twice. First, the government would borrow the surplus 
from Social Security's trust funds in exchange for special Treasury 
bonds, as it does now. It would then direct the surplus into individual 
accounts, but then borrow it back again in exchange for more bonds. But 
only the debt to the individual accounts would appear in the 
government's budget; the debt to Social Security's trust funds would 
remain `off budget,' as is now. The surplus itself would be spent as 
part of the regular budget.''
  Huh? That is the solution to the problems of Social Security? That is 
making the future retirement of Americans more secure? That is dealing 
with the fact that you are stealing money from working people and 
giving it to people who invest for a living? Give me a break.

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