[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12005]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    SOCIAL SECURITY PROPERTY RIGHTS

  (Mr. MILLER of Florida asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, as I listen to the national 
debate on Social Security reform, I am left wondering why no one is 
talking about America's greatest principles, and that is property 
rights.
  I get letters, e-mails, and phone calls every day from my 
constituents demanding that I do not take away their guaranteed Social 
Security benefits. That leads me to believe that our Nation's citizens 
may not understand that they really have no legal right to their Social 
Security benefits.
  The Supreme Court ruled in Flemming v. Nestor that there is no legal 
right to Social Security benefits. In the eyes of the Court, it is 
deemed a tax-and-spend program in which Congress can change the rules 
regarding eligibility at any time, and it has many times over in past 
years. That is how our current system works.
  Mr. Speaker, it is time for reform. It is time to give American 
taxpayers back their personal property rights. Personal accounts would 
give workers true legal property rights to their contributions and 
their benefits. They could not be raided to pay for other programs. 
Personal accounts are the ultimate lockbox.

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