Social Security `Solvency' Report: Reverse the Economic Collapse, and You Can Trash the Report

May 13, 2009 (LPAC)—Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's menacing statement today on the release of new Social Security/Medicare reports—"The President explicitly rejects the notion that Social Security is untouchable"—is a pure threat to cut benefits. It is not an honest comment on the Social Security/Medicare Trustees' report released yesterday, because that report showed absolutely nothing, except the collapse of the economy underway.

Secretary Geithner wants to claim he sees "green shoots of recovery" in the (actually plunging) economy; but at the same time, he wants to threaten to cut Social Security benefits based on reports which show an actual depression collapse.

The Trustees' report makes a meaningless, purely mathematical projection and claims Social Security will be exhausted in 2037, four years earlier than previously mathematically projected; and Medicare in 2017, two years earlier. This led Geithner to announce the White House is looking to cut Social Security—but, he said, only after the success of Obama's current drive to cut medical costs and medical care to the American population.

But EIR demonstrated four years ago that these annual reports are completely incompetent at predicting the future condition of these trust funds or these entitlements. That future is determined by jobs, and income; how many jobs are created, how well-paying are those jobs, and whether the "income gap" is getting bigger or being reduced.

The U.S. economy is losing 4 million jobs a year. Turn that around and create a net 2 million jobs a year. Keep that rate of job creation (about 1.5% annually) going through modern infrastructure public works investments of $1 trillion a year, as proposed by Democratic economist and statesman Lyndon LaRouche. The result? Social Security would continue generating surpluses effectively indefinitely.

As for Medicare, consider the following: The average American family pays (including its employers' payments) something like $1,500 annually in taxes to support Medicare, and about $11,000 to private insurers for family healthcare insurance!

Commented LaRouche, "Geithner, Larry Summers and these guys have to go—or before long, the President they're advising is going to go. And the President has to think that through."