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...that money is already spent by the Gov't and is owed to the SS trust Fund by the General Fund - It is probably in the form of Treasury Bills, Notes and Bonds. As such, this amount is already included in the national Debt calcs and repayment to the SS Sytem does not increase the current budget deficit.

There was a good post on this subject a couple weeks ago, but unfortunately, I haven't been able to dig it out yet.

I think that the indebtedness was originally treated as a ledger entry only, no bonds, notes or documentation of any kind, but now there is some form of paper, but I believe that it is of an unusual kind.

Similarly, since this is basically a current account transaction, I do not believe that this indebtedness is included in the National Debt. I would be extremely surprised if it is, since it is purely an internal government accounting transaction.

When the Democrats state that the SS system is solvent until 2043 they MUST be applying what is owed the system by the federal government. Don't you think so?

Actually, I think at some point in the distant past, maybe as far back as LBJ, the Gov't adopted 'Consolidated Budgeting' which combined the deficits of the General Fund with the surpluses of the SS Fund to give the impression of surpluses or smaller than actual deficits. (I think it was during LBJ as a means of masking the 'Guns and Butter' era of the Vietnam War).

Within this framework the funds were transferred and do exist as a form of obligation between the funds and bear interest at the lowest possible rate.