Misleading Again

Once again, the President is trying to mislead the American people by drawing false analogies. He is using the example of the Thrift Savings Plan which is a plan available to federal employees. What he doesn't say is that the Thrift Savings Plan is in addition to Social Security, not in leau of Social Security.

I could actually get behind the idea of a Thrift Savings Plan. It is basically an IRA, but may be more utilized because the funds would come directly from your paycheck.

Bush Social Security Analogy Questioned

By GLEN JOHNSON, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Out on the hustings, President Bush likes to make a case for allowing younger workers to invest some of their Social Security taxes by citing the example of the Thrift Savings Plan, private investment accounts available to members of Congress and other federal employees.

"Doesn't it make sense for members of Congress to give younger workers the opportunity to do the same thing with their money that they get to do in their retirement system?" the president asked this week in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, baiting his congressional opponents. "Frankly, if it's good enough for federal workers and elected officials — putting aside some of your own money in a personal savings account — it ought to be good enough for all workers in America."

What Bush fails to mention is that his accounts differ from Thrift Savings Plan accounts in a key way: They would be carved out of the Social Security taxes nongovernment workers pay. By contrast, federal employees get their accounts in addition to a traditional Social Security benefit check.
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