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Official Lies

layopinions Wrote: Jan 30, 2013 9:36 AM

"The Social Security trust funds contain nothing more than IOUs" While that's technically true, the "trust fund" is already counted in our national debt. We could borrow money to pay SS recipients without affecting the total debt. For example, if we borrowed $65 billion from China to pay SS this month, that would add $65 billion to China's debt holdings, but subtract $65 billion from the SS trust fund. The sum of the two doesn't change. Put another way, it's like taking out a home equity loan to pay your mortgage. Your total debt wouldn't change, but your mortgage would get paid. If SS recipients don't get their checks, it has nothing to do with the debt ceiling. When the "trust fund" runs out, that will be a different story

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Official Lies

Let's expose presidential prevarication. Earlier this year, President Barack Obama warned that Social Security checks will be delayed if Congress fails to increase the government's borrowing authority by raising the debt ceiling. However, there's an issue with this warning. According to the 2012 Social Security trustees report, assets in Social Security's trust funds totaled $2.7 trillion, and Social Security expenditures totaled $773 billion. Therefore, regardless of what Congress does about the debt limit, Social Security recipients are guaranteed their checks. Just take the money from the $2.7 trillion assets held in trust.

Which is the lie, Social Security checks must be...

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