http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/2009/09/22/social-security-may-be-in-worse-trouble-than-we-think/ Politics and policy from inside Washington Sun, 07 Apr 2013 21:23:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.2 http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/2009/09/22/social-security-may-be-in-worse-trouble-than-we-think/comment-page-1/#comment-2477 the Shah Wed, 23 Sep 2009 15:39:19 +0000 http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/?p=1960#comment-2477 When people talk about debt and ar aghast at the $1.7 trillion deficit this year and national debt of $11 trillion now, just think how horrified/terrified they would be if they knew the whole picture! If you inlude gov't pledges and underfunded liabilities - fancy naming gimmickery for what is plain old DEBT - the total is closer to $70 trillion, or roughly 375-400% GDP. When the Social Security 'situation' finally really comes to public attention there will be some scared people, and most of them foreign investors. I don't like to be a doom and gloomer, but I don't see lots of happy numbers to change my mind... When people talk about debt and ar aghast at the $1.7 trillion deficit this year and national debt of $11 trillion now, just think how horrified/terrified they would be if they knew the whole picture! If you inlude gov’t pledges and underfunded liabilities – fancy naming gimmickery for what is plain old DEBT – the total is closer to $70 trillion, or roughly 375-400% GDP. When the Social Security ‘situation’ finally really comes to public attention there will be some scared people, and most of them foreign investors. I don’t like to be a doom and gloomer, but I don’t see lots of happy numbers to change my mind…

]]> http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/2009/09/22/social-security-may-be-in-worse-trouble-than-we-think/comment-page-1/#comment-2467 George Patsourakos Wed, 23 Sep 2009 01:58:38 +0000 http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/?p=1960#comment-2467 If Social Security will start running a cash deficit as early as 2010 -- as opposed to 2019 -- then Congress should raise the eligibility age for Social Security to 68 or 70. If Social Security will start running a cash deficit as early as 2010 — as opposed to 2019 — then Congress should raise the eligibility age for Social Security to 68 or 70.

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