February 9, 2005
SOAK THE IGNORANT RICH:
Poll: Wealthy should bolster Social Security (CNN, February 8, 2005)
Americans think the wealthy should help bolster Social Security, a CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll released Tuesday suggests.More than two-thirds of 1,010 adults contacted from Friday to Sunday said it would be a good idea to limit benefits for wealthier retirees and for higher income workers to pay Social Security taxes on all their wages.
Here's an opportunity the GOP can drive a truck through--most folks can't comprehend that the 401k's they have now mean that they'll be among the wealthy who don't qualify for SS if we just means test it.
Posted by Orrin Judd at February 9, 2005 1:08 PM
So, a majority surveyed would approve of ripping off people who already get stiffed on the wage-replacement formula, and reduce their benefits to boot. That's not exactly consistent with the popular impression that people are just getting bak what they paid in to their so-called Social Security account, is it? These are probably the same crooks who think it's OK to buy a gown at a store, wear it to a function, then return it. As someone said, anyone proposing to rob Peter to pay Paul can always count on the support of Paul.
Posted by: Axel Kassel at February 9, 2005 1:26 PMRight. My biggest discovery on "wealthy" came during the Clinton years: my girlfriend had student loans out the wazoo, made minimum payments on credit cards, lived at home, made $30,0000 per year (and wasn't making it despite being pathologically thrifty) and WAS CONSIDERED WEALTHY by the administration.
I don't allow anyone to define wealthy under a million dollars per year after taxes. Other than that, they're just trying to chisel.
Posted by: Arnold Williams at February 9, 2005 2:43 PMWhat am I missing? If we get rid of the ceiling on Social Security wages, I and my employer each get to make more "contributions" to the system. A couple thousand dollars a year out of my pocket, a couple thousand more from my employer that might have gone (but now won't) into my bonus.
For a whole lot of people, including the self-employed entrepreneurs we supposedly admire, that's basically raising the top marginal income tax rate by 7-12 points and wiping out all the tax relief Mr. Bush has wangled out of Congress so far for "the rich" (currently defined as folks who earn over $80,000 and change). Lots of malign incentives, plus it will raise an insignificant sum of money that will go for general tax purposes, will not come remotely close to paying the short-term transition costs, and will inevitably not be credited to a "personal account," because such accounts will have annual contribution limits and "the rich" will be well over them.
Posted by: Random Lawyer at February 9, 2005 3:12 PMThey needed a poll to tell them that most people would like someone else to pick up the tab? They've obviously never gone to the bar with their friends.
Posted by: Mikey at February 9, 2005 3:18 PM