Nikki Haley's first big proposal? Raise the retirement age and cut Social Security and Medicare benefits for "the new generation"

[Melizmatic]

Anyhoo, back on the actual topic at hand: hopefully this flawed tactic blows up in Haley’s face - sooner rather than later, that base they pander to is going to die off, and young people in general are NOT rushing to replace them…

[KathyPartdeux]

[Otherbrother]

@blissinfinite67

um… these are not entitlements.

I just wish the media would not let any of these d-bags get away with using this word but it just seems like is so entrenched in the dialogue. Dems are to blame for accepting this term as well.

I get that the Republicans are trying to turn “entitlements” into a dirty word, but in this case the term is accurate an appropriate. People who’ve paid into the Social Security system are absolutely entitled to receive these benefits, wouldn’t you agree?

Besides, it’s not just politicians that use the word. It’s a technical term used by the GAO among other government agencies.

Entitlement Programs

The Oxford English Dictionary also has the following definition:

1. a government program that guarantees certain benefits to a particular group or segment of the population.

Social Security is a government program that does just that, is it not? The SSA website quite explicitly calls it an entitlement program:

The Social Security benefit programs are “entitlement” programs. This means that workers, employers and the self-employed pay for the benefits with their Social Security taxes. The taxes that are collected are put into special trust funds. You qualify for these benefits based on your work history (or your spouse or parent). The amount of the benefit is based on these earnings.

[gatto]

@Otherbrother

So buying yourself some Treasury bills would have the same exact effect as giving it to the Social Security Trust Fund to invest for you.

wouldn’t the tax implications be quite different? iras and 401ks are granted special rules there. ( there probably are some iras that are bond heavy, but not entirely sure. ) and that’s still a step removed and not matched the way it is for 401ks

the are some states that have their own retirement funds open to the general public. matching and control over what they invest in are still issues though

[Brainspore]

@Otherbrother

I get that the Republicans are trying to turn “entitlements” into a dirty word, but in this case the term is accurate an appropriate.

One of the most successful marketing campaigns in Republican history. They’ve got progressives on the defense trying to argue “Social Security isn’t an entitlement!!!” instead of “what the heck is wrong with an entitlement?”

[anon61221983]

[Otherbrother]

@gatto

@Otherbrother

buying yourself some Treasury bills would have the same exact effect as giving it to the Social Security Trust Fund to invest for you.

wouldn’t the tax implications be quite different? iras and 401ks are granted special rules there. ( there probably are some iras that are bond heavy, but not entirely sure. ) and that’s still a step removed and not matched the way it is for 401ks

Different companies have different options for 401k investments, but mine absolutely does offer funds that are made up entirely of government bonds, and will match investment there like any of the other fund options. And if you don’t have a 401k you can still do an IRA made up entirely of T-bills if you want to.

By the way, whether it’s part of a retirement account or not, the interest earned from Treasury Bills is exempt from State Taxes, so there’s that.

[TornPaperNapkin]

The GOP is working hard to make sure the majority of us can’t live to 70.

[sdmikev]

@IronEdithKidd

She’s not a Boomer, though. She’s proposing to take benefits from her own generation and from her children.

As someone that is in fact in her generation (X) she can fuck all the way off. Sorry, but considering that when I’m 62 (I’m 56 now) and eligible to start drawing from SS (the reduced rate) at that point, that will be my 44th year of working. Combined with my small pension I have from my first 16 years of work along with my retirement accounts, I think I deserve to start drawing from which I paid in all those years. That’s enough working for one lifetime.

[Quinn_Skylark]

George Carlin: they're coming for your Social Security

They’re coming for your Social Security money…

[snigs]

That’s part of the “?” algorithm of how they go from underwear ->?->profit!

[IronEdithKidd]

She’s 9 months older than me, and it makes me absolutely livid hearing anyone in GenX proposing SSI or Medicare cuts. The eldest Xers are on the cusp of being able to take benefits, FFS.

[KathyPartdeux]

Man. That’s pretty ageist.

[zachstronaut]

Are we considering the idea that nobody in the GOP is running against anybody else, and it’s all one team and one mission? Nikki Haley goes out there and says extreme right wing things making Trump look more center-right and more electable. Strategy.

[IRobot]

This is what running for VP looks like…

[anon61221983]

Especially since the person proposing these cuts isn’t remotely a boomer, but is a Gen Xer…

[sdmikev]

@IronEdithKidd

She’s 9 months older than me, and it makes me absolutely livid hearing anyone in GenX proposing SSI or Medicare cuts. The eldest Xers are on the cusp of being able to take benefits, FFS.

Exactly.
I’m of the camp that we should in fact LOWER the age for both full and reduced amount so that the latter starts at 59 1/2 (the age at which you can pull from retirement funds like IRAs and 401Ks) and full to down to 65. Simultaneously, we should completely remove the income cap on who pays into SS. Let people enjoy their latter years, FFS, if they are able to do so while giving more young people chances at those jobs. IMO.

[fuzzyfungus]

Do you mean what I said; or the proposal that’s literally to scrap SS for everyone except the already old?

[anon61221983]

@fuzzyfungus

or the proposal that’s literally to scrap SS for everyone except the already old?

Again, the person proposing the cuts is not a boomer. While there are certainly plenty of people who “get theirs” and then seek ways to pull up the ladder, that most certainly does not describe “boomers” as a group… Plenty of boomer politicians are fighting for the exact opposite of what Haley is proposing here, which is the definition of not pulling up the ladder.

the problem is the ideology, not the age.

[IronEdithKidd]

If you were running for a public office where I could vote for, you’d have my vote locked up!