Last Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press, Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) said that means-testing or raising the retirement age was a “backdoor method” of going after Social Security. He scolded those who would like to cut Social Security and said, “One of the things that always troubles me is when we start talking about the debt, the first thing people do is run to Social Security...Stop picking on Social Security.”
Alliance for Retired Americans President Barbara J. Easterling said, “I commend Senator Harry Reid for again taking a strong stand on Social Security. Even though Social Security by law cannot be part of the deficit, too many of his colleagues in Washington would have you believe otherwise.”
On Tuesday, January 25th, the President’s annual State of the Union Address will air across the country. President Obama has supported the Alliance position on Social Security in the past – no benefit cuts, no raising the retirement age, no cuts in the COLA and no privatization, which only benefits Wall Street. President Obama may address critical retiree issues such as Social Security and Medicare when he delivers his speech.