The Money Behind Social Security Privatization Push

The Money Behind Social Security Privatization Push
Institute For Public Accuracy

Economist and co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, [Mark] Weisbrot said today: "The 'President's Reform Plan 2' has administrative costs ten times as high as the current system -- but even this is not as much money for the financial industry as they would hope to get further down the road. The potential for making money for financial firms from private accounts is enormous -- billions or even tens of billions of dollars annually." Weisbrot is co-author of the book Social Security: The Phony Crisis.

Deputy director of the Campaign for America's Future, [Ellen] Miller said today: "More people are hearing about Congressman Jim McCrery, because he recently gained great power over our future -- and is poised to abuse it. He's President Bush's sherpa, the man charged to push Social Security privatization through the House of Representatives. Incredibly, McCrery has accepted nearly $200,000 in campaign contributions from the very Wall Street firms that stand to benefit the most from privatization. Of course President Bush's campaign contributors reflect a who's who of the country's biggest corporations -- from Wall Street to health care industries -- who are expecting big rewards from their investment in him."