[Seattle Conservative]

Will he be awake, will it matter?" - - -LOL!

"I saw that he was one of the Republican bastids who voted NO on keeping 'hands-off' SS funds. Way'ta'go DICK!"

For those who didn't see it, here's an article that eeevil posted on the ss funds:

53 Senators vote to raid the Social Security trust fund

Yesterday, Senators Jim DeMint and Mike Crapo introduced an amendment to prevent the current Social Security Surplus from continuing to be spent. 53 Senators voted against it.

After the vote, DeMint issued the following statement:

“Sadly, fifty-three senators turned their backs on America’s seniors,” Senator DeMint said. “There is simply no way to save Social Security if we don’t have the courage stop using the surplus as a secret slush fund. I’m thankful there were forty-six senators who stood with America’s seniors to end the raid. We will not be deterred by cynics who offer no solutions.”

“Those who voted against this amendment voted to raid Social Security,” said Senator DeMint. “Now, every senator will be on record whether they oppose or support the raid. This said absolutely nothing about personal accounts, it was about whether you believe Social Security should be saved or allowed to wither on the vine.”

Details about the amendment via a DeMint press release are in the extended section.
UPDATE: Pasted below are the 53 Senators who voted to raid the fund -- Republicans who should no better are in bold. Click here to see the whole breakdown.

Akaka (D-HI) Baucus (D-MT) Bayh (D-IN) Biden (D-DE) Bingaman (D-NM) Boxer (D-CA) Burns (R-MT) Byrd (D-WV) Cantwell (D-WA) Carper (D-DE) Chafee (R-RI) Clinton (D-NY) Collins (R-ME) Conrad (D-ND) Dayton (D-MN) Dodd (D-CT) Domenici (R-NM) Dorgan (D-ND) Durbin (D-IL) Feingold (D-WI) Feinstein (D-CA) Harkin (D-IA) Inouye (D-HI) Jeffords (I-VT) Johnson (D-SD) Kennedy (D-MA) Kerry (D-MA) Kohl (D-WI) Landrieu (D-LA) Lautenberg (D-NJ) Leahy (D-VT) Levin (D-MI) Lieberman (D-CT) Lincoln (D-AR) Lugar (R-IN) Menendez (D-NJ) Mikulski (D-MD) Murray (D-WA) Nelson (D-FL) Nelson (D-NE) Obama (D-IL) Pryor (D-AR) Reed (D-RI) Reid (D-NV) Rockefeller (D-WV) Salazar (D-CO) Sarbanes (D-MD) Schumer (D-NY) Smith (R-OR) Snowe (R-ME) Stabenow (D-MI) Talent (R-MO) Wyden (D-OR)

---

The current Social Security system allows Congress to spend the Social Security surplus on other government programs. Including interest, Congress has raided $1.7 trillion from Social Security since 1985. The surplus now only consists of IOU’s stacked in a vault in West Virginia that can only be paid back by raising taxes or cutting spending.


The DeMint-Crapo Amendment to Stop the Raid on Social Security would have allowed the Senate to pass legislation with the following requirements:

· Social Security surpluses must be used to help pay for future benefits

· That it make no changes to the benefits of those Americans born before January 1, 1950

· That it provide a voluntary option for younger Americans to obtain legally binding ownership of a portion of their benefits.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1598883/posts

[johnny7]

And 'blubberin Voinovich... had to abstain from voting. Maybe the 'Pigeon Sisters'(Collins/Snowe) can get him fitted for a nice house-dress!

[Phsstpok]

formatted to make it easier to ID the Senators:

My senators, Frist and Alexander, apparently either voted against or abstained.  With the exception of Domenici (R-NM) the list of Republicans is pretty much the "usual suspects."

Akaka	D-HI		Burns	R-MT
Baucus	D-MT		Chafee	R-RI
Bayh	D-IN		Collins	R-ME
Biden	D-DE		Lugar	R-IN
Bingaman	D-NM		Smith	R-OR
Boxer	D-CA		Snowe	R-ME
Byrd	D-WV		Talent	R-MO
Cantwell	D-WA
Carper	D-DE
Clinton	D-NY
Conrad	D-ND
Dayton	D-MN
Dodd	D-CT
Dorgan	D-ND
Durbin	D-IL
Feingold	D-WI
Feinstein	D-CA
Harkin	D-IA
Inouye	D-HI
Jeffords	I-VT
Johnson	D-SD
Kennedy	D-MA
Kerry	D-MA
Kohl	D-WI
Landrieu	D-LA
Lautenberg	D-NJ
Leahy	D-VT
Levin	D-MI
Lieberman	D-CT
Lincoln	D-AR
Menendez	D-NJ
Mikulski	D-MD
Murray	D-WA
Nelson	D-FL
Nelson	D-NE
Obama	D-IL
Pryor	D-AR
Reed	D-RI
Reid	D-NV
Rockefeller	D-WV
Salazar	D-CO
Sarbanes	D-MD
Schumer	D-NY
Stabenow	D-MI
Wyden	D-OR)

I think we may have found an issue to hammer the Democrats on for November (I will try to figure out what Domenici was thinking before I push this too far... I respect him).

 

[Mo1]

Thanks for that post!

[kabar]

If you don't use the SS surplus, you must then borrow the money publicly and pay addional interest to service the debt.

[csmusaret]

If Congress did not spend Social Security contributions what would they do with the money? Where would they put it? Is there a Govco savings account somewhere? It is my understanding that they have to spend those funds on something because there is no other place to keep it.

[PrinceOfCups]

...“Those who voted against this amendment voted to raid Social Security,” said Senator DeMint. “Now, every senator will be on record whether they oppose or support the raid. This said absolutely nothing about personal accounts, it was about whether you believe Social Security should be saved or allowed to wither on the vine.”

Go ahead, put it on record.