So Much For That Social Security "Lock Box"

The Social Security Administration says that a failure to increase debt limit would jeopardize social security payments.  From the Wall Street Journal:

The Social Security Administration has begun warning the public it cannot guarantee full benefit payments if the debt ceiling isn’t increased.

When asked by the public, the agency is notifying beneficiaries that “Unlike a federal shutdown which has no impact on the payment of Social Security benefits, failure to raise the debt ceiling puts Social Security benefits at risk,” according to a person familiar with the agency directive.

First of all, in my blog Fear-Mongering From Democrats is Irresponsible, I point out that there is plenty of current tax receipts to pay for social security, medicare, medicaid and pay interest on the public debt.   There's even enough to cover the military but not much more.

So, it's a lie to claim that Social Security payments won't be made.  They will.  It's just more fear-mongering.

But What about the Social Security Lock Box?

But why would the Social Security Administration warn about payments to beneficiaries when the Social Security Trustee's latest report claims that the programs are funded until 2032?

It's because there's no money in the so-called "lock-box."  And forget the stupid claims that social security doesn't add to the deficit.  The program is already in deficit and is indeed contributing to the budget deficit.  Jack Lew has lied to you, Al Gore has lied to you. Virtually all of the Democrats have lied to you about the solvency of this program.  The social security administration issues a fancy report each year and it's based on a very fundamental lie.

All too often, Liberalism is based on tricks and lies.  See my blog Liberalism: Imposed by Tricks and Lies, and Doesn't Work.

There's no money in any lock box--just IOUs.  The money has been spent long ago.  Current benefits are paid out of current receipts.  It's a pay-as-you-go system.  Yeah, there are government bonds in the trust fund, but government bonds in the hands of the government is a liability, not an asset.  That's where people are misled.  There's no money, no assets.  Thus the warning.

Here's the Social Security deficit projections that add to our future deficits: