Facing an intensifying fight over his plan to revamp Social Security, President George W. Bush insisted on Saturday that the retirement programme was in peril and he had a moral responsibility to fix it. "Saving Social Security is an economic challenge. But it is also a profound moral obligation," Bush said in his weekly radio address.
He described the 70-year-old US retirement system as broken and urged that it be changed to allow younger workers to divert a portion of their payroll taxes into private stock and bond accounts.
US Sen. Edward Kennedy this week accused Bush of hyping concerns about the nation's retirement programme, just as he did on Iraq, and urged Democrats to stand up to the "politics of fear." The scathing remarks from Kennedy, a leading liberal voice in Congress, came as opponents of Bush's plan stepped up their fight against it.
The AARP, which represents 35 million senior citizens, is spending $5 million this month a newspaper ad campaign to beat back Bush's plan. Labour unions are also strongly opposed to it.
Even some Republicans became skittish about Bush's strategy after a leaked White House memo suggested the administration favours curbing the rate of growth in future retirement benefits.
Bush, who has yet to unveil a detailed Social Security proposal, was non-committal about whether he favoured cuts in future benefits.
When asked by USA Today on Friday if people should expect some reduction in future guaranteed benefits as a necessity of overhauling the system, Bush responded, "No," without elaborating.
In 2018, Social Security will begin paying out more in benefits than it collects in taxes, according to report from the Social Security trustees, which includes Treasury Secretary John Snow and other members of Bush's Cabinet.
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