President Bush Calls for Privatization of Social Security in State of the
Union Message
On Wednesday night, President Bush addressed a joint session of
Congress and called for sweeping changes to Social Security, including the
creation of private accounts. After the President’s speech, Democrats
responded, stating that the President’s privatization plan is risky and
unnecessary, and would drain $2 trillion from Social Security over the first ten
years alone. Speaking on national television after the President’s speech, the
Democratic leader in the Senate, Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, said: "There’s
a lot we can do to improve American’s retirement security, but it’s wrong to
replace the guaranteed benefit that Americans have earned with a guaranteed
benefit cut of forty percent or more." Quoted in the Feb. 3 New
York Times, Rep. Levin warned that the President’s proposal would result in "...massive
benefit cuts and massive borrowing. Far from resolving the long-term challenges
facing Social Security in 40 to 50 years, the President’s privatization would
make it worse, and bring about the dismantling of Social Security through
benefit cuts and massive borrowing."
Veterans Health Care Act Introduced in House
On February 2, Rep. Levin
joined the Ranking Democrat on the House Veterans Affairs Committee and 63 other
Members of Congress in introducing the Assured Funding for Veterans Health
Care Act. With an increase in the number of veterans seeking care, a
dramatic rise in medical costs, and years of inadequate VA health care funding,
there is growing gap between the demand for VA services and available funds to
support these services. This trend has resulted in long waiting times for
routine and specialized medical care nationwide. Every year, veterans have to
fight with a myriad of non-veterans’ programs to receive the money necessary
for their health care treatment. To end this annual budget battle, the Assured
Funding for Veterans Health Care Act would require the Treasury Secretary to
annually provide funding for the VA health care system based on the number of
enrollees in the system and the consumer price index for hospital and related
services. This legislation is supported by every major national veterans'
service organization.
President Urged to Order Full Disclosure of Taxpayer Dollars Spent on
Propaganda
It recently came to light that the Education Department secretly
paid conservative commentator Armstrong Williams $241,000 to promote the Bush
Administration’s No Child Left Behind Act in television and radio appearances.
Media reports also revealed that syndicated columnist Maggie Gallagher was paid
$21,500 by the Department of Health and Human Services to help promote the Bush
Administration’s marriage initiative. On January 28, the House Democratic
Leadership and ranking Democratic members asked the President to direct the
release of all contracts for secret publicity campaigns to promote
Administration policies. In a separate letter, House Democratic Leader Nancy
Pelosi and other senior House Democrats wrote to the Social Security
Administration to urge them to halt the Administration's use of propaganda to
push the President's plan to cut Social Security benefits. To read both letters,
click here.
Trade Deficit Surges to All-Time High
The U.S. trade deficit soared to an
all-time monthly high of $60.3 billion in November. China
accounted for just over one-quarter of the total U.S. trade deficit. According
to a new study by the Economic Policy Institute, the rise in the U.S. trade
deficit with China between 1989 and 2003 cost the U.S. economy 1.5 million jobs.
For the year, the trade deficit is on track to exceed $600 billion in 2004,
which would be the largest annual trade imbalance in history.
Rep. Levin Receives "Friend of the National Parks" Award
On
February 2, Rep. Levin was honored for his work to protect America’s National
Parks by the nation’s leading national park advocacy organization. The
National Parks and Conservation Association (NPCA) presented Levin with a
"Friend of the National Parks" award for his pro-park voting record
during the 2003-2004 Congressional session.