The purpose of the “lock box” on Social Security is to prevent those Americans without benefit of election to Congress from raiding Social Security and using it for purposes other than those on which Congress desired to spend money. The lock box existed to keep your grubby little fingers off what was your own money (before the government snatched it from you and put it in the lock box); it never existed to keep Congress from raiding that stash of cash to dissipate on monuments to its own glory and kickbacks to campaign contributors and whatever else should happen to capture its attention. I’m absolutely certain that Gore, if he were an honest politician, would have explained this scheme, but the moderator certainly didn’t allow enough time.