http://mediamatters.org/items/200908200004 On his Fox News show, Sean Hannity falsely claimed that Senate Finance Committee chairman Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) said Social Security "could face default" and "could be insolvent" within two years. In fact, it was Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-AL) who made the comments about Social Security in an interview with the Tuscaloosa News, and his staff later clarified that he meant to say Social Security could face a "deficit," not "default." From the August 19 edition of Fox News' Hannity: HANNITY: How does this impact? Two bits of news came out today that really scared me on top of all the bad economic news that we got last week that I'll ask you about in a second. Max Baucus says Social Security could face default within two years. He said that yesterday. And we have hundreds of dealers have dumped the Cash for Clunkers program. They're not getting paid. STUART VARNEY (Fox Business Network host): Right. HANNITY: How does it impact it? VARNEY: Well, I don't know how it directly impacts Social Security or the Cash for Clunkers deal. But this is a clear-cut call to start retreating from all of the spending. [...] HANNITY: Let me add one other point. Hang on. Let me advance this a little bit. FORMER SEN. GEORGE ALLEN (R-VA): These are important fundamental differences. HANNITY: Dealers have abandoned Cash for Clunkers, 'cause it's not working. Max Baucus said that Social Security could be insolvent in two years. Medicare's broke. Medicaid's broke. I have a Stanford study with the Hoover Institute that says 70 percent of countries that have socialized medicine don't like it. It's bankrupt. It needs a complete rebuilding. Why, if America can't run the current programs they have, do so many people have faith that they can take over 20 percent of the economy?
Rep. Bachus (R), not Sen. Baucus (D), said Social Security could face a "deficit"Tuscaloosa News: "Social Security could face a deficit within two years, according to U.S. Rep. Spencer Bachus." In an August 18 article, the Tuscaloosa News reported that "Social Security could face a deficit within two years, according to U.S. Rep. Spencer Bachus who met with The Tuscaloosa News editorial board Tuesday." The article also stated that while Bachus originally said Social Security could face a "default" in two years, his staff clarified to the editorial board that he meant to say "deficit." From the article: TUSCALOOSA | Social Security could face a deficit within two years, according to U.S. Rep. Spencer Bachus who met with The Tuscaloosa News editorial board Tuesday. "The situation is much worse than people realize, especially because of the problems brought on by the recession, near depression," said Bachus, R-Vestavia Hills, in an interview with the Tuscaloosa News editorial board. Bachus, the ranking member of the House Committee on Financial Services, said most people seem unaware of the impending crisis. He initially said Social Security could face "default" within two years, but his staff responded later saying the Congresssman [sic] intended to say "deficit." "What this recession has done to Social Security is pretty alarming," he said. "We've known for 15 years that we were going to have to make adjustments to Social Security, but we still thought that was seven or eight years down the road. But if things don't improve very quickly, we're going to be dealing with that problem before we know it." The solvency of Social Security, which provides pensions for people older than 65, has not played a major role in the current debate about health care in Congress. Bachus said it will not likely be addressed in any health-care bill the House eventually passes, although if a Social Security bailout is needed, it will invariably have an impact on government health-care programs.
Social Security will pay full benefits through 2037Social Security trustees: Full benefits available through 2037. The 2009 Social Security and Medicare Boards of Trustees report projected that in its current state, Social Security funds will be "exhausted in 2037, at which point tax income would be sufficient to pay about three fourths of scheduled benefits through 2083." From the report: Social Security's annual surpluses of tax income over expenditures are expected to fall sharply this year and to stay about constant in 2010 because of the economic recession, and to rise only briefly before declining and turning to cash flow deficits beginning in 2016 that grow as the baby-boom generation retires. The deficits will be made up by redeeming trust fund assets until reserves are exhausted in 2037, at which point tax income would be sufficient to pay about three fourths of scheduled benefits through 2083.
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