#17 – Retirement

82 years ago, President Franklin Roosevelt’s signature on the Social Security Act guaranteed an income for retirees. Having a safe and secure retirement system is what our hard-working Americans not only expect, but deserve. Enjoying the fruits of your labor is a basic human expectation. Social Security is a large portion of many Americans’ retirement incomes.  We must do everything we can to ensure that Social Security is there for many generations to come.  Raising the cap on Social Security is an easy and fair way to keep the program funded for future generations to come. We must eliminate the "double dipping" penalty on Social Security benefits being imposed on public sector employees, a penalty our own members of Congress do not have to suffer. Giving a REAL cost of living adjustment is way, way, overdue!  We must thwart any attempt by Congressman John Carter, who receives multiple government funded retirement plans, to privatize Social Security.  It’s a 3 trillion-dollar fund that you know hedge funds would love to get their hands on.  Privatizing Social Security would have all the benefits for money fund managers who make their fortune from fees.  It would have ZERO benefits for you!  Having your retirement bought and sold to the highest bidder on Wall Street is not the way to safeguarding our future. It’s a short-lived scheme that has no long-term solutions to your retirement future. Privatizing makes absolutely no economic or business sense.  We must also strengthen and enforce the rules and regulations that oversee our other retirement programs.  Our 401k's and pension plans should not be at the mercy of high risk or careless investments.   Promoting and encouraging retirement benefits for future retirees is essential to having happy and productive retirement life style.  Future Congressman Clark will show leadership and make sure that our retirement system is safe and secure.