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Protect Social Security! Write a Letter to the Editor.

Take action by Friday, March 4, 2005

Thank you for agreeing to write a letter to the editor opposing the Bush Social Security privatization plan.

GENERAL TIPS

• Be Clear and Concise: Keep your letters brief, concise, and to the point. Check the letter guidelines in your local paper – most newspapers will not run letters that are longer than 200-250 words.

• Get Local: Any local connection will increase the impact of your letter and increase its chances for publication.

• Include Your Contact Information. Most newspapers will only print a letter to the editor after calling the author to verify his or her identity and address.

SUGGESTED POINTS TO MAKE IN YOUR LETTER TO THE EDITOR:

• Emphasize your personal connection o Why are you writing this letter in opposing the Bush Social Security privatization plan?

• Social Security is a Safety Net. For 70 years, Social Security has been successfully providing a secure source of financial support for tens of millions of retirees. It has also served as a critical social insurance program for spouses and dependent children in the event of a worker’s disability or death.

• George Bush’s Plan drastically cuts benefits. Even if you don’t sign up for a voluntary account, your benefits will be cut under the Bush plan by more than 40%.

• The Bush Plan is Fiscally Reckless. And the $2 trillion in debt that the President needs to borrow from countries like China and Japan to finance his scheme is just fiscally irresponsible. This debt will weaken the Social Security system – not strengthen it.

• The Bush plan is especially bad for women. Women comprise the majority of Social Security beneficiaries, representing almost 60 percent of all Social Security recipients age 65 and over. Because women tend to earn less, have fewer years in the workforce, and are less likely to have pensions or retirement savings to supplement their Social Security checks than men, they depend on the fundamental guarantee of Social Security more. Cutting benefits as the Bush privatization plan proposes would make it even harder for women to achieve financial security in retirement.

• There are places for risk in retirement savings. But Social Security is not one of them. We do need to make it easier for workers to save for retirement by enhancing and strengthening investment vehicles like 401(k)s and IRA plans and providing clear and unbiased information on retirement investment options. But such initiatives should complement, not replace, Social Security.

• Democrats created Social Security and we will not let the Republicans gut this critical safety net. We will fight any proposal that cuts guaranteed benefits because Americans deserve to receive the benefits that they worked so hard to earn. And we will oppose any plan that increases the deficit – it is time that we adopted “pay as you go” budget rules. These rules created huge surpluses in the 1990s and they will put us back on the path to fiscal responsibility and allow us to protect Social Security, Medicare, and other important programs.

• There’s time to fix Social Security. Fortunately, we have the time to strengthen Social Security right – regardless of what President Bush and the Republicans may say, the only looming crisis is their irresponsible privatization scheme.

Sample Letter

Send email to:
   Cedar Rapids Gazette
   Des Moines Register
   Quad City Times
   Sioux City Journal
   Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier

Message Subject:

Message Body:
SAMPLE LETTERS To the Editor: I hope Rep./Sen. [XXX-insert name] actually listened to the many citizens who recently attended his town hall on Social Security and made clear that they do not support the President’s plan to privatize Social Security. While I understand that Social Security faces challenges, I do not understand why my congressman is trying to sell me on a plan that would just make things worse. Specifically, Bush’s plan to privatize Social Security would force our nation to borrow $4.5 trillion from foreign nations and cut benefits for future retirees – whether they set up a private account or not. And to add insult to injury, even if our nation could afford to set up a private account for every man, woman and child in America, these accounts do nothing to address the long-term financing problems facing Social Security. In fact, according to economic experts, the cost for setting up and monitoring hundreds of millions of private accounts would only speed up Social Security’s insolvency. Not addressing the core problem, cutting benefits and adding trillions to our deficit is not my idea of real reform. I think Washington can do better. Again, I hope Rep./Sen. [XXX-insert name] hosted this week’s town hall to actually listen to those he’s supposed to represent in Washington – and not just to sell the President’s plan. If he was listening, I think he heard pretty loud and clear from me and many others who attended that the people of [XXX-insert name] do not support cutting Social Security benefits and adding trillions to our national deficit. To the Editor, As a twenty-something, I’ve only been in the workforce a short time. But during these few years I’ve already learned one of the most important lessons on how to succeed – I should always keep my word. Which is why I’m concerned about President Bush’s plan to change Social Security. If Bush succeeds, he will be breaking a promise that my grandparents made for me and millions of other young Americans. When I started working the government promised that if I invested my money in Social Security, I would be guaranteed a livable income (in the form of my Social Security benefit check) when I retire. But now President Bush wants to break the government’s promise. Bush wants to go back on his word and cut those guaranteed benefits as part of his privatization scheme. Bush says I’ll make up for what he wants to take away if I invest it in the stock market, but if the past four years are any indication, I should not gamble my life savings on Wall Street. I would rather invest my money in the same, secure program my parents and grandparents have invested their money in: Social Security. Every week part of my check goes to Social Security with the understanding that I will get that money back when I retire. I don’t want people in Washington trying to take my money away from me. My future is too important for that promise to be broken. To the editor: President Bush claims that Social Security is in crisis and that privatization is the key. The fact is that the Congressional Budget Office projects that Social Security is solvent until 2052, and even then, the system would still be able to pay 73% of guaranteed benefits. But all this partisan wrangling misses the point. The real tragedy is that President Bush’s plan to privatize Social Security does absolutely nothing to solve Social Security’s long term solvency. Bush and his allies in congress want to increase the ballooning deficit by borrowing as much as $7 trillion from foreign nations to finance privatization, in effect hastening the solvency problem and hurting the system. Besides, by changing the way benefits are calculated, Bush’s privatization plan would result in massive benefit cuts even if private accounts do well in the stock market and live up to government projections. President Bush never mentions this part of the plan. Social Security is one of the most successful government programs in US history. It has provided a continuous and guaranteed retirement benefit to seniors since 1935. Effectively dismantling a program that has lifted millions of seniors out of poverty is a mistake.

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