Cato Daily Dispatch for October 19, 2004
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Social Security Scare Tactics at WorkKerry Says Bush Is Indifferent on Health Care
Ignorant Electorate Threatens Democracy
Social Security Scare Tactics at Work
"You can tell it's getting close to Election Day, because the senior scare campaign is back," according to an editorial in today's Wall Street Journal. "John Kerry got things going on the weekend with an accusation that President Bush is planning a 'January surprise' to 'privatize' Social Security. And, right on time, his campaign is rolling out an ad that claims Bush 'has a plan that cuts Social Security benefits by 30 to 45 percent.'
"... Start with the political scare word, 'privatization.' This accusation works with some voters because many Americans mistakenly assume that their payroll deductions are currently going into a government account with their name on it that will then be paid out when they retire. Privatization conjures up a vision that they will have to provide for their own retirement with no government safety net whatsoever. Sorry to break it to these trusting souls, but there are no Social Security accounts. Today's payroll taxes are spent by today's politicians."
The Cato Institute has been warning of the fiscal crisis facing Social Security and calling for reform for more than 20 years. In July, Reps. Sam Johnson (R-Tex.), Pat Toomey (R-Penn.) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) introduced a bill modeled after Cato's plan for Social Security reform through individual accounts. The Cato plan, written by Michael Tanner, director of Cato's Project on Social Security Choice would allow younger workers to amass substantial retirement savings, while protecting those workers who are already heavily invested in the current system.
Kerry Says Bush Is Indifferent on Health Care
"Sen. John Kerry on Monday accused President Bush of a dangerous indifference to the country's health care concerns, using the shortage of the flu vaccine as a symbol of the broader problems of uninsured families and high-priced prescription drugs," the New York Times reports.
In "Kerry vs. Health Care," Michael Cannon, Cato director of health policy studies, argues that "the Kerry health plan would undermine health coverage and reform."
"America is not without her health-care problems, and serious changes are needed," he writes. "Certainly no presidential candidate has perfect answers. But a status quo that includes health savings accounts is far better than the vision put forth by Sen. Kerry."
Cannon is the author of "Mrs. Clinton Has Entered the Race: The 2004 Democratic Presidential Candidates' Proposals to Reform Health Insurance."
Ignorant Electorate Threatens Democracy
In his column this week, Cal Thomas writes: "During this soon-to-be-over (thankfully) political season, there have been those who, in the heat of debate, have told people of a different political persuasion, 'You don't know what you are talking about.' There is now evidence that backs up that claim."
The evidence Thomas writes about is Cato's Policy Analysis "When Ignorance Isn't Bliss: How Political Ignorance Threatens Democracy," by Ilya Somin, assistant professor of law at George Mason University.
"An informed electorate is a prerequisite for democracy," Somin writes. "If voters do not know what is going on in politics, they cannot rationally exercise control over government policy."
But the problem is less with the voters and more with the size and scope of the federal government. "The size of modern government is often so great that it is impossible for voters -- even the most knowledgeable among them -- to be adequately informed about its operations," he writes. "Smaller government may actually be more democratic than that which we have now: voters would be more likely to exercise informed control over policy. "
Wyatt Dubois, editor, wdubois@cato.org
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