Democratic Primaries
Related: About this forumProtect Social Security
Jan 21, 2020
Bernie Sanders will never cut Social Security. When he is in the White House, he will expand benefits.
Link to tweet
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided
Sloumeau
(2,657 posts)Per Drunken Irishman
[link:https://www.democraticunderground.com/1287438479|]
Because we have a candidate who has decided to go scorched earth and attack Biden in the most disingenous way possible, here's the reality:
Biden has consistently opposed privatizing Social Security ( [link:https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/watch/biden-holds-ryan-accountable-for-support-for-privatizing-social-security-44419651530|] ). Biden gave a strong defense of Social Security during the 2012 Vice Presidential debate:
Biden: "We will not privatize it. If we had listened to Romney and the congressman during the Bush years, imagine where all those seniors would be now if their money had been in the market. Their ideas are old, and their ideas are bad."
In 2007, Biden supported raising the cap on Social Security. He said this during the 2007 debate at Dartmouth. It's interesting that this was used against him in a recent post - however, Bernie Sanders also supports raising the cap on Social Security tax.
In that same debate, Biden opposed the idea of raising the retirement age, saying raising the cap would solve that problem.
In 1999, as Senator, Joe Biden opposed the Republican debt relief Social Security 'lock-box' proposed by Senators Spencer Abraham and Pete Domenici, which stated that the Social Security surplus could be used for other purposes than paying down the debt or actual paying out of benefits (instead, creating private retirement accounts).
In 1998, Biden opposed personal retirement accounts.
Joe Biden received a life-time rating of 89% from the American Retirement Association - exactly the same score as Ted Kennedy.
In 2012, People's Action's grassroots story project OurFuture, who has endorsed Bernie for 2020, came out in full support of Joe Biden in 2012 and his history of supporting Social Security:
The Vice President should be applauded for talking sense about our Social Security system. He has performed an important public service with his recent comments reassuring the American people that Social Security will not be changed.
In a classic bait-and-switch, too many politicians, pushed by right-wing ideologues, are plotting to use the excuse of the federal deficit to cut Social Security, even though It has not added one penny to the federal debt.
We need to get them to understand that Social Security is an earned right; that, by law, Social Securitys income must only be used for Social Security; that cutting Social Securitys modest but vital benefits will not reduce the national debt at all. How can politicians responsibly talk about changing Social Security, when they dont even seem to understand it?
That is why it is so refreshing to hear Vice President Biden reaffirm his and the administrations commitment to Social Security, and aligning himself with the will of the vast majority of the American people.
The fact is, another candidate's supporters can reach back as far as they want to sling mud at Joe Biden but Biden has, consistently, stood up for Social Security throughout his 40 years in public service - as senator and as Vice President.
These are the facts. It's interesting, though, that just a few years ago, many of the same progressive groups lambasting Biden, sang his praise on Social Security. Hm...
In 2012, he was a champion. In 2016, he was a champion. But all the sudden? He's advocated for cutting Social Security every step of the way the last 40 years. It's a lie. And sadly, when campaigns lie on something that significant, it means they're desperate.
14
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
abqtommy
(14,118 posts)primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
MrsCoffee
(5,801 posts)primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
brooklynite
(93,873 posts)primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
Donkees
(31,085 posts)primary today, I would vote for: Undecided
LanternWaste
(37,748 posts)Others will pretend to protect it by airing edited videos.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
squirecam
(2,706 posts)Wants cuts.
https://news.yahoo.com/trump-suggested-medicare-social-security-174602818.html
Not Biden.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden