You may have already heard it.
The Democrats are claiming Republicans want to "end Social Security," or "kill" it, or something along those lines. Welcome to the first of many lies, distortions and scare tactics the Democrats have up their sleeve.
You see, the Democrats really, really don't want to talk about their job-killing record in Washington and Madison. And if it takes an absolute whopper of a lie about Social Security to distract from it, so be it.
But, the facts tell a different story.
Without making any reforms, Social Security will begin running permanent deficits by 2015 and by 2037 the Social Security piggy bank will be exhausted. What do the Democrats think about that? President Obama said, "Social Security is not in crisis."
Republicans, such as Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan, have offered reform-based solutions to address the impending crisis, which America's seniors, and their children, and their childrens' children are going to face if no changes are made. These changes have become even more urgent as the baby-boomers head toward retirement age.
Contrary to the breathless lies and hyperbole coming from the Democrats, Paul Ryan's plan does not end Social Security. The way the Roadmap restores financial solvency is by providing workers with the option of investing a third of their payroll taxes into personal savings accounts. No changes are made to existing Social Security recipients.
Because investments in secure funds consisting of equities and bonds receive a higher rate of return, these accounts would allow workers to have a larger retirement safety net than the current program provides.
As these accounts accumulate wealth, they will replace the funding that comes through the government's pay-as-you-go system. In turn, the government will have to spend less, retirees can have a sound future, and Social Security can afford to keep its commitments.
So the next time you hear a lie about the Republican stance on Social Security, you'll know it's nothing more than the Democrats' constant effort to scare seniors into believing lies about the GOP.
