"What kind of person, given vast inherited wealth and power, sets about worsening the financial circumstances of most Americans?" asks analyst Richard Eskow.
(Photo: World Affairs Council of Philadelphia/flickr/cc)
Jun 04, 2015
As older Americans face a looming "retirement crisis," presidential candidate for the Democratic nomination, Bernie Sanders, has come out swinging against undeclared GOP rival Jeb Bush, who recently suggested raising the retirement age to 68 or 70.
"I have a hard time understanding what world Gov. Bush and his billionaire backers live in," said Sen. Sanders (I-Vt.), founder of the Senate Defending Social Security Caucus. "When the average Social Security benefit is just $1,328 a month, and more than one-third of our senior citizens rely on Social Security for virtually all of their income, our job must be to expand benefits, not cut them."
"It reflects a callous insensitivity toward working Americans, a lofty patrician blindness toward the lives of the hoi polloi."
--Richard Eskow, Campaign for America's Future
The Center for Economic and Policy Research has stated that raising the retirement age would cut workers' benefits since workers would have to pay more to get the same level of benefits.
The former Florida governor, who will reportedly announce on June 15 that he is officially running for president, made the statements Sunday on CBS's "Face the Nation."
"I think it needs to be phased in over an extended period of time," Bush said of raising the retirement age. "We need to look over the horizon and begin to phase in, over an extended period of time, going from 65 to 68 or 70. ... And that, by itself, will help sustain the retirement system for anybody under the age of 40."
In keeping with the Republican Party's "anti-elderly" platform, Bush's remark indicates that he's privileged and "out of touch," wrote Campaign for America's Future senior fellow Richard Eskow on Monday. "It reflects a callous insensitivity toward working Americans, a lofty patrician blindness toward the lives of the hoi polloi. What kind of person, given vast inherited wealth and power, sets about worsening the financial circumstances of most Americans--without even bothering to learn what those circumstances are?"
In a separate piece published this week, Eskow noted that, along with Bush, most leading Republican presidential candidates are pushing cuts to Social Security, with only former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee opposing such cuts.
Sanders, who supports expanding benefits as opposed to cutting them, described Bush's plan as "just a continuation of the war that the Republicans are waging against working-class Americans to reward billionaires on Wall Street."
The senator has proposed legislation that would eliminate the cap on all taxable income above $250,000 so that millionaires and billionaires pay the same percentage of their income into Social Security as middle-class Americans.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
bernie sanderscenter for economic and policy researchelection 2016jeb bushmike huckabeerepublican partyretirement ageretirement crisissenior citizenssocial safety netsocial securitywall street
As older Americans face a looming "retirement crisis," presidential candidate for the Democratic nomination, Bernie Sanders, has come out swinging against undeclared GOP rival Jeb Bush, who recently suggested raising the retirement age to 68 or 70.
"I have a hard time understanding what world Gov. Bush and his billionaire backers live in," said Sen. Sanders (I-Vt.), founder of the Senate Defending Social Security Caucus. "When the average Social Security benefit is just $1,328 a month, and more than one-third of our senior citizens rely on Social Security for virtually all of their income, our job must be to expand benefits, not cut them."
"It reflects a callous insensitivity toward working Americans, a lofty patrician blindness toward the lives of the hoi polloi."
--Richard Eskow, Campaign for America's Future
The Center for Economic and Policy Research has stated that raising the retirement age would cut workers' benefits since workers would have to pay more to get the same level of benefits.
The former Florida governor, who will reportedly announce on June 15 that he is officially running for president, made the statements Sunday on CBS's "Face the Nation."
"I think it needs to be phased in over an extended period of time," Bush said of raising the retirement age. "We need to look over the horizon and begin to phase in, over an extended period of time, going from 65 to 68 or 70. ... And that, by itself, will help sustain the retirement system for anybody under the age of 40."
In keeping with the Republican Party's "anti-elderly" platform, Bush's remark indicates that he's privileged and "out of touch," wrote Campaign for America's Future senior fellow Richard Eskow on Monday. "It reflects a callous insensitivity toward working Americans, a lofty patrician blindness toward the lives of the hoi polloi. What kind of person, given vast inherited wealth and power, sets about worsening the financial circumstances of most Americans--without even bothering to learn what those circumstances are?"
In a separate piece published this week, Eskow noted that, along with Bush, most leading Republican presidential candidates are pushing cuts to Social Security, with only former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee opposing such cuts.
Sanders, who supports expanding benefits as opposed to cutting them, described Bush's plan as "just a continuation of the war that the Republicans are waging against working-class Americans to reward billionaires on Wall Street."
The senator has proposed legislation that would eliminate the cap on all taxable income above $250,000 so that millionaires and billionaires pay the same percentage of their income into Social Security as middle-class Americans.
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
As older Americans face a looming "retirement crisis," presidential candidate for the Democratic nomination, Bernie Sanders, has come out swinging against undeclared GOP rival Jeb Bush, who recently suggested raising the retirement age to 68 or 70.
"I have a hard time understanding what world Gov. Bush and his billionaire backers live in," said Sen. Sanders (I-Vt.), founder of the Senate Defending Social Security Caucus. "When the average Social Security benefit is just $1,328 a month, and more than one-third of our senior citizens rely on Social Security for virtually all of their income, our job must be to expand benefits, not cut them."
"It reflects a callous insensitivity toward working Americans, a lofty patrician blindness toward the lives of the hoi polloi."
--Richard Eskow, Campaign for America's Future
The Center for Economic and Policy Research has stated that raising the retirement age would cut workers' benefits since workers would have to pay more to get the same level of benefits.
The former Florida governor, who will reportedly announce on June 15 that he is officially running for president, made the statements Sunday on CBS's "Face the Nation."
"I think it needs to be phased in over an extended period of time," Bush said of raising the retirement age. "We need to look over the horizon and begin to phase in, over an extended period of time, going from 65 to 68 or 70. ... And that, by itself, will help sustain the retirement system for anybody under the age of 40."
In keeping with the Republican Party's "anti-elderly" platform, Bush's remark indicates that he's privileged and "out of touch," wrote Campaign for America's Future senior fellow Richard Eskow on Monday. "It reflects a callous insensitivity toward working Americans, a lofty patrician blindness toward the lives of the hoi polloi. What kind of person, given vast inherited wealth and power, sets about worsening the financial circumstances of most Americans--without even bothering to learn what those circumstances are?"
In a separate piece published this week, Eskow noted that, along with Bush, most leading Republican presidential candidates are pushing cuts to Social Security, with only former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee opposing such cuts.
Sanders, who supports expanding benefits as opposed to cutting them, described Bush's plan as "just a continuation of the war that the Republicans are waging against working-class Americans to reward billionaires on Wall Street."
The senator has proposed legislation that would eliminate the cap on all taxable income above $250,000 so that millionaires and billionaires pay the same percentage of their income into Social Security as middle-class Americans.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.