[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 41, Number 9 (Monday, March 7, 2005)]
[Pages 359-367]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks in a Discussion on Strengthening Social Security in Westfield, 
New Jersey

March 4, 2005

    The President. Thanks for coming. Okay, let's get to work. Thanks 
for coming. A hundred years since a President has been here. I don't 
know what took the other ones so long to get here. [Laughter] Mr. Mayor, 
thanks. Mayor Greg McDermott, I appreciate your inviting me here, 
appreciate you being at the airport. I appreciate you and the local 
officials putting up with the entourage. Thank you all for coming.
    My regret is Laura is not with me. She is doing great, though. She 
is a fabulous woman, and I'm a lucky guy that she has agreed to marry 
me.
    I've got some things I want to talk about. I want to talk about 
freedom and peace. I want to talk about growing this economy. I want to 
talk about Social Security.
    Before I do so, I do want to say thanks to Congressman Mike Ferguson 
for his great leadership in the House of Representatives. And Maureen--
good to see you, Maureen. I see her. She's doing great. Thanks for 
coming.
    Rodney Frelinghuysen is with us. Rodney, thank you, sir. Rodney and 
I were talking about, on Air Force One, how hard it is to be a baby 
boomer and trying to jog. [Laughter] Part of the problem we're going to 
face in Social Security is there's a lot of baby boomers like me and 
Rodney who are getting

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ready to retire. But I'm going to wait a little bit and talk about that.
    I want to thank Scott Garrett for joining us--Congressman Scott 
Garrett. I'm very honored that Congressman Steve Rothman is with us. I'm 
honored you're here, Congressman. Thanks for coming. I appreciate you 
coming. Thanks for being here.
    I want to thank--there's a Congressman you probably have never heard 
of, or maybe you have. I shouldn't do that. I mean, that's unfair. I'm 
going from New Jersey to South Bend, Indiana, and a good fellow from 
South Bend, who happens to be the Congressman, said, ``Can I have a 
ride?'' And I said, ``You bet.'' And his name is Chris Chocola, from 
South Bend, Indiana. Congressman, thanks for coming.
    Mike Chertoff--anybody ever heard of him? He's now at the Department 
of Homeland Security--raised right here. So we're standing on the stage 
during the swearing-in--or maybe right before or right after--and he 
said, ``Tell the home folks thanks.'' So, okay, Chertoff said, 
``Thanks.'' And I say thanks to Mike Chertoff for agreeing to serve in 
the Department of Homeland Security. He has got a big job. But he's 
capable of handling that job, and that job is to do all we can to make 
sure all Federal agencies work together to protect the American people.
    And speaking about protecting the American people, I want to thank 
the family members and the supporters of the Guard unit right here from 
this armory that is in Iraq right now. When you e-mail your loved one, 
tell them the Commander in Chief is incredibly proud, and so is the rest 
of the country. And we are thankful for the sacrifice and service not 
only of the men and women who wear the uniform but of their families as 
well.
    I want to thank--welcome Jason Reed, 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist in 
rowing. I appreciate you coming, Jason. Good job.
    Today when I landed, I met John Herrmann. John is a volunteer with 
the retired and senior volunteer program of Union County, New Jersey. 
What he does--he knows something about accounting, and so at tax time he 
helps the disabled or low-income or elderly individuals fill out their 
tax forms. What he is--he's a soldier in the army of compassion. He's a 
person who has taken his life--time out of his life to lend his talent 
to help a neighbor in need.
    And the reason I bring that up is there's all kinds of ways to serve 
our country. We've got those wearing the uniform serving our country, 
whether it be abroad or here at home. But you can serve your country as 
well by feeding the hungry or finding shelter for the homeless or 
helping a low-income person fill out a tax reform [form] *. You can 
serve your country just like John Herrmann is by volunteering and loving 
a neighbor just like you'd like to be loved yourselves. If you want to 
serve America, do so by helping save a soul and save a life. This 
country's real strength is the hearts and souls of our American 
citizens.
    * White House correction.
    We're living in amazing times. You know, we're--I want the 
youngsters here to just remember the times in which you are growing up. 
In Afghanistan, millions voted for a President. The Palestinians elected 
a new leader. In Iraq, over 8 million people, in spite of the violence, 
in spite of the threats, said, ``We refuse to be intimidated. We're 
going to vote. We want to be free.''
    Freedom is a powerful force for good. That's what the youngsters 
have got to recognize--and that freedom is just not a Western idea; 
freedom is not an American idea; freedom is a--in my judgment--a gift 
from a higher being, a higher power. Everybody desires to be free. And 
the job of the United States is to work with others to help people 
realize what's deep in their soul, and that is the desire to live in a 
free society. And it's in our interest we do so.
    Many of you were affected by the attacks of September the 11th. 
We'll stay on the hunt. We'll disrupt Al Qaida. We'll find them wherever 
they hide. But I will tell you the long-term solution to defeating 
hatred and hopelessness and the dark vision of Al Qaida and the likes of 
them is to spread freedom and hope around the world. And that's what 
you're seeing today.
    It's an amazing time. I just came back from Europe. I had a great 
trip. I want to thank our friends overseas for being such wonderful 
hosts to Laura and me. I sat down with

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the French President, and we came--we understand some things. And one of 
the things we really understand is that Syria--Syrian troops, Syrian 
intelligence services, must get out of Lebanon now.
    Lebanon is a democracy. Lebanon is a democracy, and we strongly 
support that democracy. I was pleased that Crown Prince Abdullah of 
Saudi Arabia sent the very same message. The world is beginning to speak 
with one voice. We want that democracy in Lebanon to succeed, and we 
know it cannot succeed so long as she is occupied by a foreign power, 
and that power is Syria. There's no half measures involved. When the 
United States and France and others say, ``Withdraw,'' we mean complete 
withdrawal, no half-hearted measures. And those of you who are trying to 
analyze our foreign policy, just remember, democracy leads to peace, the 
peace we all want for our children and our grandchildren.
    The economy is getting better. Today we got some good news. We added 
262,000 new jobs last month. The national unemployment rate is 5.4 
percent. It's 4.2 percent right here in the great State of New Jersey, 
and that's good news. But we're living in a dynamic world. Things 
change, and the fundamental question is, what do we do to keep our 
economy growing? I've told the Congress one way to do so is to make sure 
we've got certainty in the Tax Code. They need to make the tax cuts 
permanent.
    I sent up a budget that says I understand we need to do something 
about the deficits, and I'm looking forward to working with the Budget 
Committees in both the House and the Senate. I thought it was pretty 
smart of me to say to the American people at the State of the Union, 
we're going to be wise about how we spend your money, and if a program 
is not working, we're not going to spend the money on it. Seems 
realistic and logical.
    I want to thank the House and the Senate for getting a good piece of 
legal reform to my desk. One way to make sure the economy continues to 
grow is to make sure the scales of justice are balanced. They were not 
balanced when it came to class-action lawsuits. Too many class-action 
lawsuits were driving too many good people out of business, which meant 
people weren't able to find a job. And so we reformed the class-action 
lawsuit system in America for the better. And they need to do the same 
thing on asbestos reform and medical liability reform.
    I can spend a lot of time on a lot of subjects, but Laura told me, 
``You're going to have some panelists up there. Give them a chance to 
speak.'' [Laughter] I will in a minute. [Laughter] I know, I'm going on 
too long. I'm just getting warmed up, then. Here we go. Let me talk 
about--let me get right to the subject at hand. I've asked some of our 
fellow citizens to join us on an incredibly important subject, and 
that's Social Security.
    First, let me say to you that the Social Security system has been a 
very important system, and I understand that. Social Security has 
provided a safety net for many retirees, and that's an important safety 
net. But the safety net has got a hole in it, and we need to make sure 
we save that safety net for future generations of Americans to come.
    The first thing I want to tell you about Social Security is that if 
you're getting your check, nothing will change. No matter what the talk 
is about reform, nothing will change. I don't care what the ads say. I 
don't care what the scare tactics say. You're going to get your check, 
just like the Government said. The problem isn't for the seniors. The 
problem is for the youngsters coming up; the question is, will you get 
your check? Will we be able to keep the promise?
    A lot of people say, ``Well, Mr. President, you're talking about 
Social Security. It's called the third rail of American politics. That 
means, if you touch it, you get a huge electric shock. Now, why are you 
talking about it?'' Well, you're going to hear me describe the problem. 
But I think we have a duty in elected office to confront problems and 
not pass them on to future Presidents, future Congresses, and future 
generations.
    I didn't run for office to dodge problems. And I don't think the 
American people--I don't care what your political party is, they don't--
I think the American people expect us all to confront problems and deal 
with them in a fair, open way. That's what I think.
    Now, let me tell you why I think we got a problem. And me and Rodney 
are part of the problem; we're baby boomers, and we're fixing to retire. 
Matter of fact, a lot of us

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turn 62 in 2008. That's the time you start to retire, and there's a 
whole lot of us. Yet we're living longer. We're living longer than the 
previous generations of Americans. So you got more people retiring who 
are living longer, plus we have been promised greater benefits than the 
previous generation. So we got more people living longer getting bigger 
benefits. And the problem is, is that the number of people paying into 
the system is shrinking.
    If you look over here, in the fifties, 16 people were paying into 
the system to pay for one retiree. So if that person was to get $14,200, 
say, it would be $900 a payer. The system now is 3.3 people paying into 
the system. In a decade, it's going to be two people paying in the 
system.
    Now, this is a pay-as-you-go system. In other words, it says when 
you retire, somebody is going to have to pay for your benefits. This is 
not a savings account. One of the myths of Social Security is that your 
money is going into it and the Government is holding it and saving it 
for you. That's not the way it works. Your money is going into the 
system, and it's getting spent, some of it on retirement benefits, other 
parts on just general Government. And there's an IOU, a paper IOU 
accumulating. But it's not just sitting there. There's not an account 
with your name that's saying, on behalf of you, the Government has now 
got your money. That's not the way it works. So it's a pay-as-you-go. It 
goes in and goes out.
    Now, let me give you some numbers about the consequences of what 
we're talking about, and this chart says it pretty good. Right now, 
there are more people paying in--the money coming in on payroll taxes is 
greater than the money going out, and that's the black part of the 
chart. But very soon, in a very quick period of time--as a matter of 
fact, in 2018--the money going out exceeds the money coming in, in 
Social Security. In other words, baby boomers like me, who will be 
living longer and have been promised greater benefits, are going to 
start saying, ``Send me my check.'' And those of you paying in are going 
to start to have to pay into a system that is going into the red every 
year. As you can see, that number gets worse and worse as time goes on.
    In 2028, the number of--the amount of the money that needs to be 
paid in order to make the promises is 200 billion a year above and 
beyond payroll taxes. And it gets bigger every year. It gets into 300 
billion a year. So when you got more money going out, in terms of the 
promises made to baby boomers retiring and fewer people paying in, this 
thing gets into the red in a real hurry. That's why I say we got a 
problem.
    Now, 2018, some would say, ``That's not--that's pretty far down the 
road, isn't it?'' Think about that--2018, if you're a mom with a 5-year-
old child, that person's going to be driving, and you're going to get 
gray hair before you know it. [Laughter] I mean, we're talking about 
right around the corner, when you think about it. Those of us in public 
office must look down the road. We can't say, ``Well, don't worry. I'm 
on a 2-year term,'' or ``I'm on a 6-year term,'' or ``I'm on a 4-year 
term. We'll just let somebody else deal with it,'' because the longer 
you wait, the harder the problem is.
    Imagine waiting until 2018, and you're a young worker, and the 
Government says, ``Oh, by the way, I'm going to have to raise your 
payroll taxes again in order to pay for the benefits we promised,'' or, 
``We're going to have to slash this program, that program.'' I mean, 
eventually, when you're spending at least 200 billion above and beyond 
that which you've got in payroll taxes and increases every year, 
something drastic has to happen. If we act now, we can do so in a way 
that saves the system for younger workers.
    I'm going to tell you again; I'm going to keep saying it all around 
the country--and I like doing this, by the way. I like going around the 
country saying, ``Folks, we have got a problem.'' And I like saying to 
people, don't worry about it if you've been born prior to 1950. Nothing 
changes. You're going to get what you're promised. But I'm also saying 
to younger workers, you better listen carefully to this debate because 
you're the ones who are going to have to pay for it. And if I were you, 
I'd be saying, ``Well, if we have a problem, Mr. President, what do you 
and the Congress intend to do about it?''
    Right now we're wondering whether we've got a problem. I've been 
reading the newspapers and been seeing some folks saying,

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``There's not a problem. He's just exaggerating.'' Well, I'm going to 
keep telling people we've got a problem until it sinks in, because we've 
got one. The facts are irrefutable. You can't dodge whether we have a 
problem or not. Because, see, the next follow-on question to that is, 
``If you've got a problem, what do you Republicans and Democrats and a 
few independents intend to do about it up there? Are you going to sit 
around and play politics? Or are you going to get it to table and do 
your duty as public servants?''
    And so I started that process. When I gave my State of the Union, I 
said, ``Put your ideas on the table.'' I said, ``Come on, bring some 
ideas forward. We have an obligation.'' And I reminded people that 
Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan had some good ideas. President Clinton, 
my predecessor, had some good ideas. Former Democrat Congressman Tim 
Penny had some good ideas--all of them interesting ideas that need to be 
in the mix in order to permanently solve this problem. And so I want to 
say again to folks who are listening here today, I'm really interested 
in working with members of both parties to be able to say we've done our 
duty.
    Now, I've got some ideas, and I wanted to share one of the ideas 
with you right now. I believe in order to make the system work better 
for younger workers, they ought to be able--be allowed to, at their 
choice, to take some of their own money and set it aside in a personal 
savings account. That's what I think we ought to consider.
    Let me tell you why it makes sense to me that--first of all, the 
Government can't meet its promises. But one way for a younger worker to 
come close to what the Government has promised is to be able to take a 
portion of the money and get a better rate of return on your own money 
than that which the Social Security system gets. See, there's something 
called the compounding rate of interest. That's when you set aside a 
dollar or a series of dollars, and it grows over time. And obviously, if 
the rate on your money is 2 percent, it will grow at a certain pace. If 
it's 4 percent, it grows double that. And right now the money--your 
money is earning very little compared to what you can get in 
conservative stocks and bonds and investments. I'm talking conservative; 
I'm not talking about lottery, taking it to the track--[laughter]--a 
conservative mix of stocks and bonds just like Federal employees get in 
the employee Thrift Savings Plan. And just like we give people who work 
for the Government, you can take some of your own money, set it aside, 
and watch it grow.
    Do you realize that if you're a person who earns an average of 
$35,000 a year over your working career, $35,000, and you're allowed to 
take--put 4 percent of the money--the payroll tax aside in a personal 
account, and you hold it over time, that when you retire, you'll save a 
quarter-of-a-million dollars. That's your money. That money, by the way, 
the quarter-of-a-million dollars, is the capital account. Now, you can't 
spend all that the minute you retire. This is a retirement account we're 
talking about. But it's your money, and the interest off that money goes 
to supplement the Social Security check that you're going to get from 
the Federal Government. See, personal accounts is an add-on to that 
which the Government is going to pay you. It doesn't replace the Social 
Security system. It is a part of making--getting a better rate of 
return, though, so--to come closer to the promises made. That's 
important to know.
    Secondly, you just can't take it all out. I mean, it's a retirement 
system. There will be rules about withdrawal. You can't put it in 
certain things if you--start-ups. There are guidelines to encourage you 
to make the right kind of investments. Now, you can alter stocks and 
bonds and different things--your choice. But it's been proven that when 
you hold money over a period of time in safe, conservative investments, 
it gets a better rate of return than the money you get in the Social 
Security system. So there will be guidelines about what you can invest 
in.
    We've got to make sure the system is fair to poor Americans. And so 
there's ways to make sure the benefit structure is fair. But let me talk 
to you about investing. There's a certain notion in America that the 
investor class is only a certain type of person. I just don't believe 
that. I don't subscribe to that. I don't think that's what America is 
about. I think we ought to encourage people from all walks of life to 
own something. I think

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ownership is a vital part of being a productive citizen in our country. 
I think we ought to encourage ownership, not discourage ownership. And I 
think we ought to recognize people from all walks of life are plenty 
capable about managing their own affairs.
    I'm getting ready, hold on. I'm winding down here. [Laughter] Think 
about a system where you've accumulated a nest egg of your own--the 
35,000-a-year person, a quarter-of-a-million-dollar nest egg--and that 
when you pass on, you can leave it to whom you want. In other words, 
that person can then take it and spend it tomorrow if they feel like it. 
But it's your asset. See, it's your money to begin with.
    The Social Security system today--if you're a young widow and the 
money your husband put in, there's nothing there. There's no asset. 
There's a Government promise that at a certain age you'll get a stipend. 
But there's no assets there, see? And so what we're talking about is 
really changing how the system works so that your money can earn a 
better rate of return, and that after your--when you pass on, you can 
pass that money on to whomever you want. So we're talking about helping 
people build up an asset base, which I think is a vital part of a stable 
future. It also has the added benefit of providing more savings. And 
when there's more savings, there's more investment. And when there's 
more investment, there's more jobs. It will be good for the economy as 
well.
    So I'm interested in this idea. I'm excited about it. I've spent a 
lot of time talking about it to people. I understand we're going to have 
to explain to people, over time, when we talk with Congress, how this 
works. I've said it makes sense to phase it in very slowly so that we 
can better afford the transition cost to go from one system to another. 
But I'll tell you this: If we don't act, we're looking at about an $11 
trillion hole for the American taxpayers that are coming up. This is a 
big liability--not for me and baby boomers. We're fine. Rodney and I are 
just fine. We lucked out when it came time to--the year we were born.
    But if you're born--if you're a young worker, you've got a problem. 
And I repeat, I hope--I hope that as time goes on and this debate goes 
forward, that you understand the power of your voice to say to people, 
``We've seen enough of this, `We're not going to move because somebody 
might look good,' or, `We don't want to do it because my political party 
told me not to do something.' '' Now is the time to get rid of all 
that--all that deadlock in Washington, and focus on the problem for the 
good of the generation to come.
    All right. Olivia Mitchell is with us. Olivia, tell us what you do.

[At this point, Dr. Olivia Mitchell, executive director, Pension 
Research Council, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and former 
Member, President's Commission to Strengthen Social Security, made brief 
remarks.]

    The President. Well, I appreciate that, Olivia. It is very 
important--[applause]. Thank you all. It is very important for those 
folks--and listen, I understand there's a lot of people who rely 
exclusively on their Social Security checks, and I know that. And it is 
very important for people to not be frightened by the discussion about 
making sure your grandchildren have got a system around. I mean, one of 
the great things about the generation who now relies upon Social 
Security is there's a deep concern about generations coming up. And this 
really is a generational issue, and I want to thank you for bringing 
that up.
    Speaking about that, we've got John Bligh with us. Welcome.
    John Bligh. Hi, Mr. President.
    The President. How are you?
    Mr. Bligh. Fine, thank you.

[Mr. Bligh, retired senior, East Northport, NY, made brief remarks.]

    The President. Well, I appreciate you, John. Thanks, good job. Thank 
you, very good.
    See, I think the operative word is that he's not worried about 
getting his check--counts on his check, not worried about it. That's 
what I--one of the things I'm going to continue saying around this 
country, and by the way, this is State number 10, and tomorrow is 11, 
and I'm keeping moving. I just say I'm going to a lot of places. I'm not 
going to go

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away on this issue because it's vital, and we've got to do something for 
the younger folks.
    And the fact that John said he's not worried about the check, the 
check that he's been promised, is an important statement. He said, ``I 
need it, and I'm not worried about it.'' And I want others to hear that 
as well.
    Then he invited--Lisa--who invited who? Did you invite Dad, or did 
he invite himself?
    Lisa Engler. Well--I'm sorry--the truth of the matter is, I need my 
parents on a regular basis to help me, because I have five children----
    The President. Five kids, that's good, yes.
    Mrs. Engler. ----and I really can't do it all on my own. So anyway, 
yes, I'm Lisa Engler. I'm here with my husband, Will. We have five 
children.
    The President. Right. John is your dad.
    Mrs. Engler. And my dad. And Social Security, of course, for me is 
an issue, because not only did I work in the workforce for 10 years and 
saw a big chunk of my money go into Social Security, and all the senior 
managers telling me, you know, ``It may not be here for you. Invest in 
401(k),'' but now, looking at the numbers and everything, it's very 
frightening as a parent. I have a 3-month-old daughter who, at the age 
of 65, this system will be bankrupt for almost 30 years. It's 
frightening.
    The President. In 2042, it goes broke, for good. It not only goes in 
the red, but whatever paper is available in the form of IOUs is gone. I 
mean, it's just--it's a fact.
    Mrs. Engler. And there's no getting around it. I mean, we all know 
it. We all heard----
    The President. No, not everybody knows it yet. They're going to know 
it.
    Mrs. Engler. Oops.
    The President. You know it. It's all right.

[Mrs. Engler, stay-at-home mom, Westfield, NJ, made further remarks.]

    The President. There you go. [Laughter] Yes, and not only that--
that's a good--very good. And not only do you watch your money grow, but 
you watch people making decisions about the economy. In other words, 
there's a certain sense of when you own something, you actually own a 
stake, and the future matters a lot.
    You know, I love the fact that more people are owning their home in 
America than ever before. I love the fact that people are owning their 
own business in America, people from all walks of life. And I think it 
makes sense to encourage ownership when it comes to retirement systems.
    Carlos Pagan.
    Carlos Pagan. Thank you, Mr. President.
    The President. First of all, he's a firefighter, and I'm proud of 
you.
    Mr. Pagan. Thank you, Mr. President.
    The President. Good job. All right, where are you a firefighter?
    Mr. Pagan. I'm a fireman in the city of Paterson.
    The President. Good, yes. Thank you. Staying in good shape?
    Mr. Pagan. Yes, sir.
    The President. One thing about those firefighters, they stay in good 
shape. You also----
    Mr. Pagan. I own a real estate company in the city of Paterson. 
Again, my name is Carlos Pagan. I'm 33 years old. I'm raising two kids. 
I have a daughter named Vanessa; she's 15.
    The President. No, you're not 15. [Laughter]
    Mr. Pagan. And my son, Steven; he's 13.
    The President. So like, teenagers?
    Mr. Pagan. Yes, sir.
    The President. Yes--I've been there. [Laughter]

[Mr. Pagan, owner, Century 21 Northern Realty, and firefighter, 
Paterson, NJ, made further remarks.]

    The President. Let me tell you an interesting statistic. You know, 
Carlos--I was getting ready to tell you, the other day I was at one of 
these forums, and the person said, ``People like me''--see, she had read 
a survey that said people her age thought they were likely to see a UFO 
before they'd get a Social Security check when they retire. [Laughter] 
Kind of an interesting observation, isn't it? [Laughter] So here's 
Carlos, a firefighter, saying, ``Just give me a chance to manage some of 
my own money.''

[[Page 366]]

    Things have changed in America since I was Carlos' age. I don't 
remember 401(k)s when I was 30 years old. Maybe they were there; I just 
wasn't observant of it. I don't think 401(k)s came into being. I don't 
think there was this notion of defined contribution plans. So here we 
are, talking to a brave firefighter, talking about, ``Give me a chance 
to contribute to my own plan.'' It's kind of interesting, isn't it? It's 
an interesting shift of attitude. There's a lot of folks that may not 
realize this; there's a whole kind of investor culture that is growing 
up throughout the whole younger generation. People are used to it, used 
to the concept of opening up a quarterly statement and saying, ``Look at 
my asset base. Look how it is growing.''
    That's an important thing that people need to hear, particularly 
people in the United States Congress, that we're not talking about a 
foreign idea of allowing people to take some of their own money, in 
order so that that money can grow at a better rate than that which is in 
the Government, so that when they come to retire, it can be closer to 
the benefits promised by the Federal Government. That's what we're 
talking about.
    I think it's interesting, don't you, that Carlos is--he's got an 
entrepreneurial spirit to begin with, right? When did you start your own 
business?
    Mr. Pagan. Seven years ago, sir.
    The President. Making a living?
    Mr. Pagan. Yes, doing all right.
    The President. That's good, yes. It's what we like to hear. 
[Laughter] Employing people?
    Mr. Pagan. Yes, and this summer, I'm going to employ my daughter for 
the first time, and she'll be able to contribute to Social Security.
    The President. That's good. Good job.
    Okay. Brian Dougherty. Welcome.
    Brian Dougherty. Thank you, sir. It's a pleasure to be here, Mr. 
President.
    The President. Glad you're here. Age?
    Mr. Dougherty. Twenty-three.
    The President. See, he's nervous, and should be. Not about sitting 
up here--[laughter].
    Mr. Dougherty. I'm 23 years old. I live in Hoboken, New Jersey, now. 
I'm a sales manager at the Hilton Short Hills around the corner.
    The President. Business all right?
    Mr. Dougherty. Business is good.
    The President. You deserve a promotion, then, what the heck. 
[Laughter]
    Mr. Dougherty. Well, thank you. Maybe if we can get you to stay in 
the Presidential suite, which is calling your name.
    The President. Very good.
    Mr. Dougherty. Your next overnight trip, sir.
    The President. That's called turning the tide on the old boy, you 
know. That's good. [Laughter]

[Mr. Dougherty made further remarks.]

    The President. It's interesting, isn't it? Listen to this 23-year-
old guy. He's saying, ``I've analyzed it. I started to pay attention to 
it. And when I looked at the math, I realized I'm going to be on the 
short end of the stick.'' In other words, you can put all the money in 
you want, but because of the demographics and the math, there's not 
going to be anything left. You're just paying for me, and I--and I 
appreciate it. [Laughter] We're happy you are. The question is, will you 
be paying for anything for yourself? And the answer is, not unless we 
reform this system. That's what the message is here today.
    Keep going, you're on a roll. Keep going.
    Mr. Dougherty. The other thing, Mr. President--we had an opportunity 
to speak backstage, and I appreciate your listening. I'm here to ask 
that Congress listens. You don't see many 23-year-olds on the MSNBC 
circuit or anything like that at nighttime, but we have something to 
say, and we're concerned about the issue.
    The President. Yes. You sure do have something to say. See, here's 
the thing about this issue. I actually ran on it. I said, ``Vote for me, 
and I'm going to do something about Social Security, and I'm going to 
try to put out some innovative ideas to fix it.'' And in the past, 
people would say, ``Don't campaign on Social Security; you'll get 
beat.'' It used to be politically that if you just said something about 
it, they would run ads saying, ``Well, Bush is going to take away your 
check.'' And they actually did that in 2000, I was told. And 
fortunately, when I ran the

[[Page 367]]

next time, I was able to say, ``Well, we didn't take away your check.''
    But I'm still talking about it because I think it's an issue we need 
to talk about. I think it's an important issue. And the dynamics have 
changed. Young people are beginning to say, ``What about my check? 
What's going to be around for me?''
    This is a generational issue. People born from 1950 and before have 
nothing to worry about; the promise is going to be made. The fundamental 
question is, will the Congress have the will and the desire to work with 
the administration so that we can say to people like Brian and Carlos 
and everybody else up here that are born after 1950, ``We hear your 
voice, too. We know you've got a concern, and we want to make sure this 
very important system, the retirement system, is modernized and reformed 
so you'll have the safety net when you retire as well.''
    Listen, I want to thank you all for giving us a chance to discuss 
this. I want to thank our panelists. God bless. Thanks for coming.

Note: The President spoke at 10:56 a.m. at the Westfield Armory. In his 
remarks, he referred to Mayor Gregory S. McDermott of Westfield, NJ; 
Maureen Ferguson, wife of Representative Mike Ferguson; President Hamid 
Karzai of Afghanistan; President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) of the 
Palestinian Authority; President Jacques Chirac of France; and Crown 
Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.