National Social Security Council
rejects latest Social
Security proposal
as ‘Horrendous Ploy’
WASHINGTON, Jan. 5 /PRNewswire/
-- President of the National Social Security Council, Witold
Skwierczynski, today rejected a proposal by the New America
Foundation as a ploy that would open the door to privatizing
Social Security.
"The Foundation's
so-called nonpartisan Social Security reform plan is a
horrendous ploy that would end guaranteed retirement,
disability and survivorship benefits; cut future benefits;
and raise taxes," said Skwierczynski.
A recent meeting of
advocates for aged Americans affirmed opposition to
privatizing Social Security. In December delegates of the
decennial White House Conference on Aging overwhelmingly
rejected privatization of Social Security.
The proposal advanced by
the New America Foundation, formally called the "Nonpartisan
Social Security Reform Plan", comes at the tail end of a
failed, nearly yearlong campaign by President Bush to sell
the American people on privatizing Social Security. In
January 2005 the story broke that the Social Security
Administration leadership had politicized the agency by
attempting to enlist career-level employees in the sales
campaign. The effort quickly halted, though political
appointees from SSA continued to travel around the country
to promote privatization. By August 2005 the campaign was
widely viewed as failed and the issue was considered dead.
"This is the same sort of
proposal that Americans rejected last year. The American
people don't want to privatize Social Security," said
Skwierczynski. "Isn't it time to focus on issues of
importance to the American people, like health care coverage
and creating a simpler, more cost effective prescription
drug benefit under Medicare?"
The American Federation of
Government Employees (AFGE) is the largest federal employee
union, representing 600,000 workers in the federal
government and the government of the District of Columbia.
The National Social Security Council, officially known as
the National Council of SSA Field Operations Locals (AFGE
Council 220), represents about 28,000 employees of the
Social Security Administration who work in field offices and
national calling centers.