From the Office ofCongressman Tom Tancredo
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 09, 2004
Posted on 01/29/2004 5:46:16 AM PST by Happy2BMe
| From the Office of Congressman Tom Tancredo FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 09, 2004 |
Tancredo Warns that the Social Security System Is Endangered by Bush’s Proposed "Totalization Agreement" with Mexico
A September 2003 GAO Report warns that the cost of the proposed agreement cannot be reliably estimated because the number of eligible Mexican workers in unknown and may number in the millions.
WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Tom Tancredo (CO-06) today criticized President Bush’s proposal for allowing both legal and illegal Mexican workers to reclaim their Social Security contributions when they reach retirement age. "The President’s proposal bears no resemblance to the other agreements we already have with 20 other countries," said Tancredo. "Bringing illegal Mexican workers into the Social Security System not only rewards illegal behavior, it also further endangers the fiscal health of our Social Security System."
"The President’s proposal for a "Totalization Agreement" with Mexico was included in the Administration’s proposals released on Wednesday, but few in the media have reported on the ramifications of that proposal," said Tancredo. "The American public needs to understand how this plan might impact an already fragile Social Security System."
"We do have agreements with 20 other countries, agreements which allow foreign citizens who have worked in the United States to reclaim their Social Security contributions when they retire in their home countries," Tancredo noted. "American citizens benefit from these agreements because the agreements are reciprocal."
But the proposed agreement with Mexico is radically different from earlier agreements, Tancredo noted. By including illegal workers in the program the costs will skyrocket.
"Including illegal Mexican workers in our Social Security System will add untold billions of dollars in future liabilities. The September 2003 GAO Report basically says the cost estimates being used by the Treasury Department and the Social Security Administration are not founded in actuarial realities. Among the many questions raised by the GAO, most challenge the adequacy or the SSA’s analysis of future costs.
The cost of a totalization agreement with Mexico is highly uncertain. [ p. 2]
Mexican citizens with fewer than 40 coverage credits[calendar quarters of active employment]will be permitted to combine their annual earnings under their home country’s social security program with their annual earnings under the U.S. Social Security program to meet the 40-credit requirement...A Mexican citizen need work in the U.S. only six quarters to qualify for the program. [p. 8]
An agreement with Mexico...represents unique and difficult challenges for SSA because so little is known about the size, work history, earnings, and dependents of the unauthorized Mexican population... An agreement with Mexico [is] potentially far more costly than any other. [pp. 14-15]
Poor data undermine the reliability of SSA’s cost estimate. [p.9]
The reliability and integrity of Mexican government data on birth, work history and retirement contributions are open to question because of poor internal controls within the Mexican government. [pp. 6-7]
"Adding Mexico to the list of countries with which we have reciprocal social security agreements makes no sense unless the primary goal is to encourage more illegal workers to enter the U.S. workforce," said Tancredo. "I think not only our senior citizens but all who care about the fiscal health of the Social Security System will have serious objections to this plan."
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I don't like this. Initially, Bush balked at endorsing concurrent receipt benefits for disabled U.S. military veterans because it would cost too much.
Where is the same concern when it comes to granting social security benefits to illegal migrants from another country?
" These projections don't take into account the economic impact of the Bush proposal, which would allow untold millions of illegal aliens from Mexico to collect full cash benefits for themselves and their families from their home country -- without having to work the required number of years that law-abiding American citizens must work to be eligible for payouts."
What is the difference? At least when we had Clinton the Republicans had something of a backbone...
"What is the difference? At least when we had Clinton the Republicans had something of a backbone..."
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I did the same thing, you weren't the only one. So did my parents (lifelong Republicans).
LQ
Don't worry about it. It the (occasional) conservative Rhetoric that counts, not the actions.
The system will overload and self-destruct. Something of this scale has to have been planned - intentional.
It's no mistake any of this is happening.
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