Social Security claims are untrue

Dressed up, it's still a lie.

The lie: Social Security benefits must be cut because they contribute to the federal debt.

The truth: By law, it's self-funded and can't/didn't contribute to the debt.

Another lie: “They” say (proposed) Chained CPI (cuts tied to the Consumer Price Index) is not a cut to Social Security. “They” compound the lie with the rationalization that it's “a small adjustment to the COLA” (Social Security's Cost of Living Adjustment).

The truth: This proposed “adjustment” would cut the benefits of beneficiaries.

If you begin withdrawing benefits at 65, Chained CPI would cut your benefits $307 (average) the first year. Your benefit cut compounds over time, so at 75 you'll have lost $4,631. At 85 your cumulative loss will be $13,910. Thus, they have the biggest impact when Social Security benefits are needed most.

Those liers omit telling us about the side-effect cuts of Chained CPI. Since it is tied to the federal income tax brackets, it pushes people into higher marginal rates; it's quite regressive, hitting middle-income earners the hardest, increasing their taxes substantially. And, because poverty rates will be redefined, there'll be cuts to more than 30 vital programs, such as Head Start, Low-Income Home Energy Assistance, CHIP (Children's Health Insurance), SNAP (food stamps), WIC (nutrition for women, infants and children), and the national school breakfast and lunch program.

Susie Petra

Ames