The Georgetown College Democrats and Republicans hosted a bipartisan debate last night, entitled the Next Generation of Social Security. College Democrats President Peter Solecki (CAS ‘07) called the forum “an opportunity to learn clear facts and good information” regarding the pressing issue of Social Security solvency.
Economics professor Dr. Mark Huggett proposed that the origins of the Social Security problem lie in the increasing number of elderly Americans.
The panelists supporting Social Security privatization stressed the importance of individual ownership rights of the money channeled toward Social Security.
“All the government can do is promise that future governments will tax future workers for your future retirement,” Cato Institute Social Security policy expert Brooke Oberwetter argued.
Vice President of Research and Programs at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Dr. Maya Rockeymoore opposed her, referencing privatization as the crisis, rather than the current Social Security system.
“Individuals can’t use money in the private accounts for anything but retirement,” she said.
Senior Economist at the Center for American Progress Dr. Christian Weller acknowledged the shortfall in benefits the current system will be able to provide in the year 2042, but he stressed that addressing the problem requires gradual changes in the system rather than funding Social Security with the intention of providing benefits years into the future.
